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Me and cars - the reality

9K views 27 replies 15 participants last post by  kee 
#1 ·
I am excited that my new Ateca has arrived at the dealership and I'll enjoy the trip up to Inverness to collect it. However, I confess that I am not a car geek or a true car lover. When I read how my fellow Ateca owners lovingly wash, polish, wax and re-wax their cars, I realise that I am not worthy.

After the excitement wears off and I get used to a new car, it becomes just another "car" that gets me from A to B - in comfort. My careless parking has led to the odd scraped alloy over the years and cars get cleaned every now and then.

Am I a lost cause or do you think my Ateca will convert me into a loving, caring, proud owner?

Anyone else out there like me?

A2A
 
#3 ·
Another sharer of your views.

I always start with good intentions and care for the car regularly to begin with - then life starts to take priority again and car care starts to get relegated from a "must do", to a "should do" and finally to a "could do".
 
#4 ·
I don't tend to wash my car much either, that's got as much to do with time as the narrowness of my driveway as being fairly busy. I have to drop passengers off before I pull on, otherwise they can't get out. I certainly couldn't get a step ladder out to reach the middle of the roof.
I do make sure I get rid of birds mess fairly quickly, but beyond that it's treated to a local hand wash every now and then.
 
#5 ·
I'm with you NeilW there is nothing like a 'good hand job' ......cleaning the motor.Although I have one of those United Nations manned wash machines thingies close by which Costa a few Shekles.What the hell, if its good enough for SWIMBO it's fine fore me!!!!! In my 14 the week wait for me Ateca.
 
#6 ·
I'm with you A2A. I took delivery a few weeks ago, not washed it once yet! Not even at a car wash... !

I'm still wary of kerbing the tyres tho!
 
#7 ·
Same with me. Full time working mum of two, plus housework and washing I have neither the time or desire to clean a car as well. However, I've always had pretty old cars in the past so didn't care that much.

I have bought some cloths off of Amazon with good intentions but I am pretty certain that they won't get much use :))
 
#8 ·
And me! No outdoor running water (flats) so used to take car to local jet wash (at least it's not a machine/auto wash!) until they changed staff to people who didn't care. Occasional washing now, as and when required (it's more of a garaged-for-the-weekend car so I get away with it).

Intend to resurrect good habits though when my Ateca finally arrives - have the buckets, cloths, towels and polishes at the ready. And like Kee, very careful about kerbing to begin with - until you get the first scratch allow, at which point it's the end of the world then you get over it and realise stuff happens and adopt a more laissez-faire attitude ;)

The other half has had her car for 4 weeks now... needs a clean but suspect that duty will fall to me! (Good practice with the new kit before I get the Ateca I suppose :roll:).
 
#10 ·
Dadofett said:
I feel like your all ganging up on me :lol: I can't help it I love cleaning my car and spending a whole afternoon on it. It's my way of unwinding I have been the same on all my cars. I think it's an OCD thing. :D :D
Mate - absolutely no problem. Different strokes for different folks and all that :D
 
#11 ·
Dadofett said:
I feel like your all ganging up on me :lol: I can't help it I love cleaning my car and spending a whole afternoon on it. It's my way of unwinding I have been the same on all my cars. I think it's an OCD thing. :D :D
can i come around yours and you wash my car for me pls? :p
 
#13 ·
I love a clean car. I really do. It's just that I really hate cleaning it myself. That's what the gentlemen at the disused garage around the corner are for. £15 for a mini valet every month - that'll do, pig. That'll do.
 
#14 ·
Thank you all for still accepting me after my confession. I'm glad I am not alone - it has been a big burden to live with since joining this forum ;)
 
#15 ·
Dadofett said:
I feel like your all ganging up on me :lol: I can't help it I love cleaning my car and spending a whole afternoon on it. It's my way of unwinding I have been the same on all my cars. I think it's an OCD thing. :D :D
Lol, i only wish I did enjoy it. There is the satisfaction when it's done but it's the "getting round to doing it" that doesn't seem to happen.

I wonder if I can bribe my kids to do it :-?
 
#16 ·
Dadofett said:
I feel like your all ganging up on me :lol: I can't help it I love cleaning my car and spending a whole afternoon on it. It's my way of unwinding I have been the same on all my cars. I think it's an OCD thing. :D :D
I'm in your gang mate - usually most Sunday mornings i clean both our cars inside and out - all year round, as i just can't stand a dirty car - when i miss a week it bugs me!
 
#17 ·
I washed our Cee'd this morning as some bird had used it for target practice. Have to say, that although the novelty wore off half way through, I can't stop taking a peek through the window to look at how shiney it is.

Ordered some shampoo and "make all nice and shiney" products in the vain hope that when the Ateca arrives I will be a car cleaning enthusiast
 
#18 ·
LoftheM said:
...
Ordered some shampoo and "make all nice and shiney" products in the vain hope that when the Ateca arrives I will be a car cleaning enthusiast
Exactly what I've done - gone the whole hog too; if I'm now going to spend time doing it then I may as well do it properly - twin buckets, grit guards and all! :cool: All I need now is my Ateca :cry:
 
#19 ·
I must say that paint finish on my Ateca is near enough perfect. No sign of orange peel effect, almost a mirror finish. It would be a shame to let it get scratched by poor cleaning techniques or machine washing.
 
#21 ·
Well my cavalier attitude to car-care cost me money. Rather than part exchange my old car, I sold to Webuyanycar. Of course, I knew their business model was to spot every tiny defect and adjust the price down, but I thought I had made a pretty accurate measure of the car's condition. Turns out that 3 of my alloys were scraped, not 1. There were chips and scratches where I had not noticed them. Maybe I will take better care of my Ateca. With the top view camera, I don't have an excuse for kerbing the alloys anymore!

A2A
 
#22 ·
The trouble is, it's not necessarily down to how you park, sometimes it's due to other drivers forcing you into the kerb. A work colleague has given me a number of some guy that does alloy refurbs at a reasonable rate, in preparation (not sure what he's trying to tell me about my driving :lol: )
 
#23 ·
LoftheM said:
The trouble is, it's not necessarily down to how you park, sometimes it's due to other drivers forcing you into the kerb. A work colleague has given me a number of some guy that does alloy refurbs at a reasonable rate, in preparation (not sure what he's trying to tell me about my driving :lol: )
Yeah, I had some right idiots make me choose curb or crash when they overtook on hatching and pulled in front due to traffic islands. I chose the cheaper curb scrape. My point being it's not always the parking which ruins the alloys - and why I fitted a dash cam.

Sad truth of life though - we're in the real world and bad things happens :(

If you want to go to one of these mainline used car buyers and have a bit of visible damage then you are better off getting the damage repaired first 'cos they knock you down way more than they should for every minor dink.
 
#24 ·
Accord2Ateca said:
Well my cavalier attitude to car-care cost me money. Rather than part exchange my old car, I sold to Webuyanycar. Of course, I knew their business model was to spot every tiny defect and adjust the price down, but I thought I had made a pretty accurate measure of the car's condition. Turns out that 3 of my alloys were scraped, not 1. There were chips and scratches where I had not noticed them.
A2A
'
Glad you're aware of the business model. I often read negative comments from people who sell to auction sites together with people who somehow 'get screwed' when they hand back their lease / PCP only to discover they have to pay fees for every bump and scratch.

What planet are these people living on because when I do read such comment, I keep asking myself the same question - where is this magical dealership that ignores any bumps, scratches and poor condition of the car you're trading in? In my 36 years of buying and selling cars, I've yet to come across it.
 
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