Do cars have character?

[rotary_freq]

I think cars have character, for instance, I drive an old '89 Celica convertible and this car's been through everything. I bought it off my freind after he blew the engine, and I swapped in a 3S-FE from a camry, then I put the car up for sale cause I could no longer keep it. Someone bought it, but only for the engine. About a year later I was digging through a junk yard, and I found the car. Rust and Engine free just how I sold it, I bought the it back for 100 bucks, popped another engine in and boom. But there's just somthing about it. It's a being all on its own, it's not "Marquiz's car", its "THE celica"
Some people beleive that cars are just machinces ment for driving and or racing.
But I think there's more of a connection between a man (or woman) and his (her) machine...

Am I wrong?

 

[Quick_Nick]

Each individual car is produced with a unique personality. The more a car has been through, the more unique its personality gets. Your 1989 Toyota Celica is a great example.

 

[Flerbizky]

Some people will even go so far as to call crappy build quality (crappy suspension bushing, faulty electrical connectors etc. etc.) for "character"....

 

[stumpydino]

yeh something that runs perfectly is boring and ignored like that honda advert says " the better something is at its job, the more it is taken for granted"

 

[Duke]

I had a friend with an old Karmann Ghia with massive electrical oddities. That car was the automotive equivalent of Bobcat Goldthwaite. For instance if you turned the car off with the radio on, you could take the keys out and walk away and the engine would still be running. It would stay running until you turned the radio off.

 

[G.T]

One of my neighbours has got a Ford Probe which used to ding, ding, ding when the front electric window goes down. I think the alarm is the alarm that goes off if you leave your lights on when you open your door.

 

[neanderthal]

cars that are well built, unexciting in any way, neutral feeling, not to boldly styled and so on leave me feeling kinda.....................blah. theres pretty much all of toyotas lineup there, most hondas and a good portion of most manufacturers.

some models; EG civic Si, any 1.8 miata, etc have that special something that elevates tham above mundanity, but most modern cars are just boring.

now old cars on the other hand, cars with tendencies, proclivities, inclinations, unergonomic dashboards and all that; for some reason, i find them characterful.

my corolla (which wouldnt die) had the soul of a dishwasher. i loved it like i love having my prostate examined. digitally.
my BMW 2002, rattles over certain bumps, has some seals that let rain in, needs constant monitoring of the engine temp when its really hot and theres traffic, runs 4500rpm at 90mph has a lousy soundstage (massive sound from teh rear 6X9s and very little at the 5' in front) etc has bags and bags of character.

of course, those quirks that imbue the car with character are also what bug non enthusiasts about cars.

 

[DJF70]

Of course cars have character, why do you think people love muscle cars so much? Gas-guzzling, overweight money pits that can only go fast in a straight line(most of them), but oozing with character.

 

[rotary_freq]

Of course cars have character, why do you think people love muscle cars so much? Gas-guzzling, overweight money pits that can only go fast in a straight line(most of them), but oozing with character.

Hardcore man, I love the old Challenger R/Ts like in Vanishing Point, THAT car had some character

 

[rotary_freq]

Some people will even go so far as to call crappy build quality (crappy suspension bushing, faulty electrical connectors etc. etc.) for "character"....

Okay okay, but lets say you have a nice Nissan Skyline, and you've made a few mods to it, but whenver you hit the horn, the winshield wipers turn on for a second. And it ussually takes a while to start. But you love your car anyways, and would keep it even if offered a brand spakin new one. That's character.

 

[skip0110]

I think a lot of "character" is not determined by the car itself, but by how well the owner gets to know it. Even the most meticulously engineered Honda, while not having blatant "flaws" wil have its own idiosyncracies, especially with age.

Lots of people who just jump in, throw it in Drive, sit their coffee in the cupholder and blast the radio will never pick up these little bits of character.

 

[neanderthal]

I think a lot of "character" is not determined by the car itself, but by how well the owner gets to know it. Even the most meticulously engineered Honda, while not having blatant "flaws" wil have its own idiosyncracies, especially with age.

Lots of people who just jump in, throw it in Drive, sit their coffee in the cupholder and blast the radio will never pick up these little bits of character.

thats the thing. to most people a car is just an appliance, albeit one that sometimes masquerades as a status symbol/ chic magnet. my twin brother, much less my mom, dont know what character is in a car. they doint understand what makes a miata worth the same money as a honda accord V6. "that little car is twenty two thousand? i can get that much bigger ....... for the same money."
to them a satrun relay is just as viable an option as a Xterra if the salesman makes a good pitch. or if they "like" him.

 

[subarustilover]

I thought THE celica was sold a second time, when our friend blew the engine it was crazy, you could see right threw the engine block.

So is the idle problem with barons car charecter?

Or my accord holding it's revs?

both make the cars sound stupid sometimes

 

[VIPFREAK]

I had a friend with an old Karmann Ghia with massive electrical oddities. That car was the automotive equivalent of Bobcat Goldthwaite. For instance if you turned the car off with the radio on, you could take the keys out and walk away and the engine would still be running. It would stay running until you turned the radio off.

SWEET! 👍

Anyway, yes I do... I love my car for that reason... you don't see '88 Toyota Corolla SR5 2dr. cars much anymore but there's a lot of character like the popup lights.

 

[Joey D]

Of course cars have character! Look at the S-Trucks. They weren't anything special for a truck, but in the mini-truckin' world they are looked upon as the best of the best. It all depends on what the group is.

I think my Blazer is very ugly (it's a box) but its the little things that give it it's personality. Beauty is only skin....errr sheet metal deep on cars.

 

[animateria]

Character is what makes a diverse line of car companies...

I drove my friend 96 200sx (sounds good until you know its just the plain Sentra)

The car was louder than mine and the gas pedal shaked along with the engine(old car)... It went to 5000 rpm easily but then the pedal was too light and it was a bit annoying to set the speed around 50 mph without adjusting my foot all the time...

And afterwards I went back into my car(a plain 96 Accord) and noticed how quiet and stable the car felt than the Sentra... It pulls fine around 3000-4000 rpm without going over excessive amounts of revolutions (the sentra would go up to 5000 rpm like nothing but I didn't feel a lot of pull from it)...

Both cars suffer from extreme lag when pressing the gas harder on slow speeds... They both go quiet and then jerk forward in an unimpressive way...

I'd take my car over his for daily driving... Mine is more comfy roomy and the engine doesn't make much noise (okay some cars I need engine noise... but the Sentra sounded like crap...)

But looking at the price.. mine $5000 (bought at 2003) and his $2000 (bought at 2003 also)... I kinda get sick thinking about the $3000... I probably would have gotten a better car for $5000 but from all the cars I've found this was the best deal... ... Anyways cars have character!!

I'm glad that when I get a new car in the future I will appreciate it more than somebody who started off with a nice car (Damn rich kids driving G35, Sti, Evo 8, IS 300, BMW, Murcs etc..)

 

[Seanman]

"Damn rich kids driving G35, Sti, Evo 8, IS 300, BMW, Murcs etc.." Hey, just because I started with a M3 doesn't mean anything. Just kidding.

 

[Goomba]

I had a friend with an old Karmann Ghia with massive electrical oddities. That car was the automotive equivalent of Bobcat Goldthwaite.

Normally I don't say this, but for that comment, I think I can break it.

OMGROFLMFAOLOL!!!

I almost spit a nice cup of hot peach tea everywhere, but it would of been worth it.

I'm glad that when I get a new car in the future I will appreciate it more than somebody who started off with a nice car (Damn rich kids driving G35, Sti, Evo 8, IS 300, BMW, Murcs etc..)

You know, a lot of people say this and it may be true sometimes, but I still take offense to it.

I drive a 2004 WRX and while it isn't super expensive, I don't see a whole lot of 19 year olds driving them. While I pay for everything related to my car, I wouldn't be able to do it if my parents didn't pay for food, allow me to still live with them rent free and for schooling. However, one day doesn't go by that I'm that I'm not grateful for what they've done for me and how they help me out and because of that I'm grateful for the car I have. Not every spoiled brat isn't grateful for what he has and realizes how easy his life is compared to many, many others.

PS. Its Mercs.

 

[Joey D]

You know, a lot of people say this and it may be true sometimes, but I still take offense to it.

I drive a 2004 WRX and while it isn't super expensive, I don't see a whole lot of 19 year olds driving them. While I pay for everything related to my car, I wouldn't be able to do it if my parents didn't pay for food, allow me to still live with them rent free and for schooling. However, one day doesn't go by that I'm that I'm not grateful for what they've done for me and how they help me out and because of that I'm grateful for the car I have. Not every spoiled brat isn't grateful for what he has and realizes how easy his life is compared to many, many others.

PS. Its Mercs.

Agreed, I have boughten all my cars myself. The most expensive being my Blazer, but I don't like it when parents buy their kids a brand new car unless its for a special occansion and they are rich. I can see when someone turn 16 that there parents might get them a 1000 dollar crappy car, but if you want a new nice car you should work for it.

 

[Danny]

All Citroens (Exept early Xsaras) were brimming with character, eg. 2CV, Saxo, DS

 

[Safe Speed]

My SAAB, like nearly all saabs, has a center dash ignition switch. That right there, is a whole lot of character by itself.

 

[Layla's Keeper]

You ask if cars have character? Well, here's the answer.

I defy anyone to say that the MkI "Bugeye" (Frogeye if you're on the other side of the Atlantic) isn't a car with gobs of character.

 

[Safe Speed]

I-I think it winked at me

 

[GilesGuthrie]

I think that cars have characters. I think that they have likes and dislikes, and once you get to know them, you can extract far more from the vehicle than someone who is not sensitive to these things. But I acknowledge that this is probably just the personification of the car's setup, it's characteristics.

I've always been someone who has looked for clues from the car, showing ways to make it go quickly. Usually when I don't like a car it's because I can't get anything back from it. If a car doesn't give feedback, I find it characterless, and I can't get any joy from driving it.

 

[Danny]

I think that they have likes and dislikes

My dads car dislikes cornering and starting in the morning.

Seems to like rust though.

 

[daggoth]

I think cars have character, for instance, I drive an old '89 Celica convertible and this car's been through everything. I bought it off my freind after he blew the engine, and I swapped in a 3S-FE from a camry, then I put the car up for sale cause I could no longer keep it. Someone bought it, but only for the engine. About a year later I was digging through a junk yard, and I found the car. Rust and Engine free just how I sold it, I bought the it back for 100 bucks, popped another engine in and boom. But there's just somthing about it. It's a being all on its own, it's not "Marquiz's car", its "THE celica"
Some people beleive that cars are just machinces ment for driving and or racing.
But I think there's more of a connection between a man (or woman) and his (her) machine...

Am I wrong?

You are aboslutely right! I have the same Celica (hard-top) and I'm the eight owner of the car! I think I'm most likely the only owner that has treated the car well. When I bought the car he had been in an accident, was badly repaired, the wheels had the casters and cambers totally off, each tyre was from a different brand, the steering was completely miss-aligned, the brake discs were bend, the battery was loose inside the hood..... it just went on and on. Still, I turned the key and that magical 1.6 twin cam came to life with no problem at all, I took it for a drive and the feeling of being at one with the machine was something that I had never felt in any other car. Mind you, I work for Toyota so I've driven the newest Celica and MR2 but they couldn't compare to the rush that the car gave me! Needless to say I've fallen in love.

This car isn't a performance beast. Many modern sedan or hatchbacks can make minced meat out of it, but, there's something about the car, that it's hard to explain. It was designed 20 years ago but it still turns heads when it passes, it will still be turning heads 20 years in the future.

So, regardless of make and model, a car that is almost impossible to kill, puts a smile on your face when you drive it and ages well..... Is that isn't character/charisma... I don't know what is.

 

[animateria]

Agreed, I have boughten all my cars myself. The most expensive being my Blazer, but I don't like it when parents buy their kids a brand new car unless its for a special occansion and they are rich. I can see when someone turn 16 that there parents might get them a 1000 dollar crappy car, but if you want a new nice car you should work for it.

Yeah... Sadly around me... I don't see a lot of people like you... For some reason I find people with new expensive cars that were just given to them... But I know not everybody is like that... Just a lot of people like that around me...

 

[Takumi Fujiwara]

My 240 has character, all right.

A very feminine character, actually.

Make one mistake, and she'll give you hell for it. A lot of times, you don't even know you're doing anything wrong, but she won't let it slide. And she's quite high-maintenance, demanding a lot of attention, work, and, of course, money.

But it's all worth it, because, when you do things right, you're in for one hell of a ride. Drive her the way she wants and you become one with the machine like nothing else. She'll give you pure extasy if you treat her right. And, even without that, those curves, talk about sexy.

And there are all the wierd little quirks.
Take, for example, the dome light. It doesn't work. However, turning it on does have an effect, that being lighting the "door open" indicator on the dash.

Or the fact that you periodically have to fiddle with the battery terminals to get her to start.

And, lastly, the fact that she's very picky about her drivers. I've seen people who can drive incredibly in their own cars perform much worse in mine. I guess she's the monogamous sort.

 

[Wilkins]

The car I own is technically a POS. It is a Citreon BX. I hope to get a DS when I get some cash but the BX will do. There is something about the styling of the machine that I like and my god have I given it a hard time. Still gets me from A to B, and that is all I require.

 

[Danny]

Like I said earlier, pretty much all Citroens have an abundance of character.