Ask Lemmy

Fiat 500, and yes I do, but nobody else who drives one seems to feel the same way.

I did when I drove an old VW Beetle, I'd wave to anyone in a classic VW. Generally, anyone driving one is probably cool. That did not extend to new VWs.

We recently bought a Rivian and I've noticed all of the other Rivian drivers wave. So we wave too.

Kind of similar, I drive a service van for work and it's kind of funny how when I see another van from another company we always give each other a polite wave but if it's another van from my company we always flip each other off.

I see a mini, I point at said mini and shout MINI!!! like it's some sort of sport.

We're called miniacs for a reason.

Not really, but Subaru owners are (especially the Outback, Crosstrek or any of the wilderness models) are a bit of a cult.

Yes, I drive New Beetle and lift my hand every time someone comes in with the same car.

Lol no

I might be curious about the car itself, just to figure out how it may or may not differ from my own, based on the year it was made, but I don't give two shits about the driver. I generally don't like other people, and car brand ownership makes no difference in this equation.

Used to drive a ~~Tank~~ 1995 Volvo 940, and more than a few times did someone approach me to talk to a fellow "vintage Volvo enthusiast".

Now that I drive a 2019 Volvo XC90 T8, people assume that I am a Volvo enthusiast based on the fact that I've had two Volvos in a row. The truth is that I really liked the durable tank that was my old car, and I really like the comfort of my new car. They are not similar in any shape or form. They just happen to both be Volvos.

Definitely! I have an MX5 (miata), and the camaraderie between strangers is great. Majority of people will wave to each other as they drive past and I often get stopped for a chat in petrol stations etc. It's one of the reasons I would really hate to get rid of the car because it's just an extra dose of fun compared to everything else I have owned.

I will salute and recognize any other man driving a minivan particularly a Honda Odyssey. They know real practicality, and value. Chance are also good that they care less about their image than the do about being useful.

My current car is fairly common and boring grey so no.

My previous car was and old Renault Kangoo which is even more common but was red which is not that common. I saw this exact same model and color from time to time but it's mostly used by farmers or construction workers so not much kinship there. One time we were driving on a mountain road and exact same red Kangoo was driving the other way with a couple similar age as we inside. We all noticed started laughing.

I had an old BMW. I park in the back of retail parking lots because I don't see the point in circling lots to find a space that is 40ft closer and you can pull through the spaces. Lots of times I would come out of the store and another BMW would be parked next to mine, like there was some automotive kinship or something. There would be five open spaces, some guy and my car. It was always weird.

when i got my suzuki many years ago, i saw a guy driving the same model, so i looked at him and raised my fist in solidarity. He took a split second, looked back with his best serious che guevara face, and saluted me back with his fist raised

Used to never care. Not one bit.

And then I treated myself to an E60 M5.

Day 2 - some random guy compliments it and starts a chat.

Random talks at the lights. In the parking lots.

Someone walked up to me in Belgium and asked if he can take a photo. Of a disgustingly dirty car that had been driven 1200 miles in the last 24 hours. I just shrugged it off and said sure, go ahead.

Point being - I am now aware of it being a thing. It's also a pleasant feeling, so now I try to do the same. Last one I complimented was an E34 M5. Guy made the appropriate smile of acknowledgment back.

I drove a 2000 Honda Accord for about 15 years and in the later years I definitely did. New car, not so much l.

I have a default grey Camry. I lose it in the parking lot all the time and feel kinship whenever I run across someone else also looking for their generic, vanilla car.

yes

(i don't have a car)

A little, we have something in common

When I drove a pickup? Lol no pickup drivers are 99% assholes and pieces of shit.

Now that I'm driving an older model car? Also no, I see a parts bin I can pillage when my car dies.

Always. I don't make a big deal out of it but i do notice and feel connected.

I currently have a common car but it's fun when you have an uncommon car and so have your own exclusive club!

But either way, I think it's normal (for people who care at all about cars). Us humans are wired for connection, after all.

Nah, most brands have customers that treat their car like an appliance. They aren't interested in a shared culture around their car. Jeep specifically cultivated that culture through "its a jeep thing" advertising, and it's since taken on life of its own. Some other ones I've seen though

VW owners will throw up peace signs to other owners. Especially popular with Beetle drivers.

Mini cooper owners act like golden retrievers and start flashing their lights and wiggling the car when they see each other.

Subaru WRX/STI owners leave each other little bottles of vape juice

Prius Club member local 619 checking in

Sort of, if they drive a Subaru Outback (as I do) or a Forester (as I considered) because these two drivers are Subaru people. Doesn't apply to other models because those are less designed for outdoor functionality.

But there are a lot of us in the Pacific Northwest.

Only because they don't make them anymore. I always give a 👋🏼 —or a 🤘🏼 if their stickers are funny. 😋

A 2008 Silver Toyota Yaris Sedan. I sure do. It's amazing the things still run so we'll.

No, all their cars are shit except mine specificaly

I did when I drove a Saab. I got it right around 2009 or so when the brand was dying off anyway. GM pretty much killed it, but the market finished it. Anyway, was always fond of them bc they're safe and they weren't common in the state anyway.

Now, I give a little rev for other manuals/standard trans I notice at a light as an acknowledgement they're not alone. I usually get a little smile or nod haha. Easy to tell on flat ground and no brake lights on.

The way lemmings see their cars is the way normies see their computing devices.

Somehow a little bit, yeah

I used to. While most of my cars have been non-descript, recently

• Subaru forester - was close enough to niche and had strong associations with camping, hiking, dogs, so I was all in. And yes, I did all three with that car. But they’ve gotten more popular - now they let anyone buy them
• then I got a Tesla. One of the few people making the choice with my money to save the world ….. but apparently now I’m a Nazi right wing MAGAt, and half my country somehow doesn’t believe that EVs are or need to be a thing. I’m no longer part of the small group leading the change but just a little ahead of than those who reject change

I feel more of a kinship with people driving the same speed as me on the motorway.

I still remember when the audi a4 I had been behind for 200km took an offramp about 50km before me...

I drive a Jeep and don't feel a kinship with Jeepers. I used to. Mine is a 2001 and in those days I could drive across town and see 1-2 other Jeeps. We'd wave, and if we stopped at a red light next to each other, there's a good chance we'd talk and possibly invite each other to go offroad or even just stop and have a beer or something. Most Jeepers knew their Jeep inside and out and had built, modified, installed and worked on every inch of them.

Nowadays, it's weird. There's 3-4 Jeeps at every red light, so why wave? A lot of Jeeps are superhero or cartoon themed which is the dumbest most childish shit to me. There's orange Nero jeeps and blue Dory jeeps, green Shrek jeeps, and they're all covered in so many damn LED lights they could signal Jupiter. I've never got into the duck thing either.

That's enough of an old man rant. I won't get into how I've seen Jeep events cancelled due to light sprinkles, how Jeep "offroad shops" mostly just sell LED lights and Jeep branded clothes now, or that time a trail leader interrupted me giving excellent advice to a Jeep experiencing brake fade coming down a mountain, to recommend taking the Jeep to the dealer.

I can't afford a car, so no