[robvolz]

I'll get you started:
Just yesterday, this hot Latino woman wearing a low-cut dress said, "I just love cars, especially yours. Its a Pontiac, right??"

Go ahead and ask me what color eyes she had. To be honest, I'll tell you, I'm not sure she even had eyes.

 

[araknd]

The one that always gets me:
Question: What kind of car is that?

Answer: An Alfa Romeo.

Question: Oh, who makes it?

 

[Alfisto Steve]

I'll get you started:
Just yesterday, this hot Latino woman wearing a low-cut dress said, "I just love cars, especially yours. Its a Pontiac, right??"

Go ahead and ask me what color eyes she had. To be honest, I'll tell you, I'm not sure she even had eyes.

So was that a Pontiac Spyder or a sedan she thought you had?

 

[Farace]

The dumbest thing, and I get it from time to time, is people lecturing me on how unreliable my car is. Like they'd know, based on third-hand anecdotal evidence passed down from someone that owned a clapped-out Spider and never did regular maintenance on it. It's usually accompanied by one of those "you poor fool/I know better than you" expressions on their face.

But the absolute dumbest thing I got about any car I had was when I had a '63 Valiant and someone I gave a ride to thought it was an old Mercedes.

 

[jc96]

"mind if I borrow it sometime?"

 

[Renaldo]

"....Alpha Romero you say....?"

 

[TorW]

"Who cares. It's just a rebadged Fiat."

 

[aralfa8589]

"mind if I borrow it sometime?"
That's good!

I drove my GTV6 to work one day, and a friend said, "Looks like a Pinto-but not quite as sporty."
It was actually pretty funny, more clever than dumb.

 

[oz3litre]

I have never understood why people feel compelled to tell you that your Alfa will be unreliable or that it has crap electrics when they can clearly see that you love it. These comments, even from people in the trade, are pretty well all based on complete ignorance. I don't like MGs, but there is no way I would comment on their unreliability to my good friend who has one that he lovingly restored. Do these same people say, when shown someone's new baby, "What an ugly baby. It will grow up to give you nothing but trouble you know" or do they say to someone they meet "God you're fat. It will kill you one day of course."
I am pretty patient, but sometimes I feel like making some disparaging comment to them.

 

[yvesmontreal]

The dumbest thing, and I get it from time to time, is people lecturing me on how unreliable my car is.

A friend of mine asked for a fuel pump for his Renault Fuego at the local auto parts store. Another customer waiting behind him started yakking about how French cars were unreliable crap and went on and on. My friend didn't look at him or say a word until the pump arrived. He unpacked the pump, then showed Mr Know-it-all that the pump was made in Germany. He proceeded to tell him "If my pump had been made in France instead of Germany, it wouldn't be broken and I would not be here purchasing a new one and having to endure your crap."

 

[sidewaysalfa]

I hear they are unreliable

I agree, than go into my "yep, this MIlano, after 220K miles the engine had to be rebuilt, bad oil rings, and the front seats needed restuffing.
Got 340K on it now and the air conditioning just went out. And it just passed Calif smog.

Last Saturday a homeless looking guy on a bicycle shouted "look out those things catch on fire" and cycled away down the road.

But the other day buying some lunch (drove the Alfetta GT) a kid (20ish) tapped me on the shoulder and said "hey man, cool car". I said "thank you".

 

[oz3litre]

But the other day buying some lunch (drove the Alfetta GT) a kid (20ish) tapped me on the shoulder and said "hey man, cool car". I said "thank you".

My 21 year old daughter's friends think her 1981 GTV is pretty cool and most of my 18 years old son's friends think his 1988 75 3 litre is cool as well. Maybe some old cars are becoming more accepted in that generation. They are not aware of the myths, so my kids don't have to put up with that crap like I sometimes do.

 

[mbaum]

... getting ready to kill my car "friends" who keep refering to my car as the "blue Saab Sonnett" ...

 

[Alfisto Steve]

Who makes that?

 

[Dave De Rosier]

A favorite of mine when I had my '69 GTV with the quadrifoglio on the C pillar. "Is that an Irish car?"

And they walk among us.

 

[robvolz]

My red S2 spider pulled up at the light and 3 twenty-something year-old kids yelled, "Hey, Barbie called, she wants her car back."

Normally I would have ignored the comment, except for the fact they were waiting for the bus.

 

[goliardico]

I was driving my Giulia SS and two guys in a generic Japanese cross-over mini SUV asked me where my car was made. I said Italy. Then the passenger said, "Oh, I though it was made in Bulgaria." I gave him back a genuinely confused look, then realized he was trying to make a feeble attempt at a joke.

 

[Bill]

"Wow nice car! Who in England made this one?" ....and the beat goes on....

 

[GTV-GR]

in Greece i get this ALL THE TIME : " i had one too back in the days , a 2 liter one"
everyone had one here and all were 2 liters , so one day i'm riding with my best friend who also has a gtv and also has heard this a thousand times , at the light an old guy next to us started saying -yeah cool car i had one too it was a... , my friend then intervenes and they both say "a 2 liter" , man what a laugh that was.

 

[alfaporsche]

Many years ago (pre cell phone days) with my first Spider I was having trouble with a sensor that was making the car run very roughly. I limped into a local gas station here in Virginia hoping the mechanic might be able to help me. When the mechanic came out and saw the car, he asked "which end is the engine?" My reply was to ask if I could borrow his phone to call a tow truck.