Out of curiosity I looked into my web logs to see where people are coming to my website from and I found this interesting conversation about my car on the Corvette Forum. Not very pleasant for me, but hey! Opinions are like Assholes, everybody has one, and some people's opinions really stink.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/showthread.php?t=1833206

I wouldn't worry too much Steve. The trouble with having your car so exposed on the web is that you will get a cross section of society casting their own perspective on your design. Its too easy for these guys to make a flippant comment on something they know nothing about ;

But we know better don't we

p.s. I was accused of making a 'poor man's Ultima' last month ...... I'm not sure if it was meant as an insult

They're all retarded Americans who can only drive automatics and think the bigger the litre engine and horsepower the better the car is...TARDS. Corvettes handle like sh*t anyway (Bar the C6).

Diamo you are largely correct, but please don't tar all Americans with the same brush...Steve is one after all....one who IS doing something different.

I recently had a longish ride (about 150 miles) in a Z06, and to be honest was not over impressed at all.....

Ask any of those critics which parts of their cars did they design? or make? or even fit?

Steve, just ignore them.....

I wouldn't be too concerned... it's just a cross-section or American supermusclecar owners trying to make up for their gonads' lack of size. If I were to ask any of my car-nut OR engineering friends, they would have more respect for you, Kurt or Mr DP1 than a Corvette driver.

Maybe they're jealous?!?!?!?!

Hey, what about me..

I could use some respect too.....

quote:

---

Originally posted by Daimo_45
They're all retarded Americans who can only drive automatics and think the bigger the litre engine and horsepower the better the car is...TARDS. Corvettes handle like sh*t anyway (Bar the C6).

---

quote:

---

Originally posted by Sven

Funny ... great way to help out those Brits (like me) who live in the US. I'm going to go for you were tongue in cheek or your medication needs adjustment.

And you're a cyclist too ... will you make all my cycling buddies pissed off and take it out on me too?

-Steve

---

We wouldn't be human if what they said had no effect. Some people think my car's ugly. Eh, okay, we all like different things. If it really comes down to it, ask what they have built that's better, and their defense will be that, "Well, I would have...." No, what have they built? Nothing.

A friend of mine had a 30 minute discussion with the lead judge at a hot rod show. My friend used my car as a "random" example, asking the judge why it didn't win. It was interesting how vague and squishy the judging "rules" are. Nevermind that the first place winner was a good personal friend of the judge. He even said to my friend that "no one says it's fair." Funny, I thought that's was judges were for.

My friend asked what the difference is between someone who goes to a big hot rod shop, tells Boyd what he wants, an collects it six months later, versus someone who does all the work themselves. The judge didn't have an answer.

When it's all said and done, you have to forgive them and move on. Something to the effect of, "Forgive them, for they know not what they say."

To me this sort of thing is symptomatic of the societies will all live in. People are now conditioned to be consumers and not creators. I’m sure we’ve all seen the blank uncomprehending look when you tell someone you are building your own car from scratch.
Then the next question “What is it then?” The insinuation being we’re all lusting after something we can’t have and therefore have to copy it (not that I have any issue with people building replicas).

The bottom line is people will always attack what they don’t understand and if you chose not join a corporate fan club that’s something most people just don’t understand.

If you put it on a truck chassis, gave it box steering and a 120kg live rear axle, and a 6 litre 120hp engine, they might like it better

Don't forget, they can't even spell colour

Having lived in the USA for a few years (we escaped a while back). There's 2 expressions the condescending nature of which you just can't get until you've heard them used first hand.

1. Ricer

2. Crotch rocket.

Kb58, have you ever seen a Japanese engined car win a hot rod show?

Oh, sure, mine has, but I have to pick and choose my battles carefully. I understand your point though, and yes, it's nearly impossible without a chrome V8 up front.

quote:

---

Originally posted by Doug68Kb58, have you ever seen a Japanese engined car win a hot rod show?

---

Walt Disney said that if he had an idea, he would run it past 10 of his friends and if one of then agreed, it was a bad idea!
My advice:
Observe the masses and do the opposite.
It is a good job that they don't build statues of critics, otherwise you wouldn't be able to open your front door!

Steve.

Who did you build your car for?.... yourself or the corvette crowd? Really, you did it because you had fun doing it, it made you happy and you've probably made lots friends along the journey with similar interests.

You are both an individual builder AND a manufacturer of kit cars and components.

As for being a "locostbuilder", I say F everybody and their opinion regards to style etc. As long as its safe.

But your embarking on a business venture too, so these opinions, feedback, and critique matter. Even though they are corvette guys, there still automotive enthusiasts, and they have the potential for valuable input.

Ask those corvette guys what they would do to your design to make it appeal to their crowd? What would they change? What would it take design wise to sell a kit to a corvette enthusiast? you never know.

You built you're first car for yourself, but when your selling cars, you need to change your mindset to what your (potential) customers want. This separates the successful kit car manufacturers from the unsuccessful.

Andrew

I think your car is one of the pretiest around so beauty is always in the eye of the beholder.



I agree with ^^^^^ - as a business it might well be worth your while to do some research as to general opinions which I guess is what you are doing by trolling the forums.

Steve,

I noted that BrooklynC6 has this under his avatar.........


Member Since: Jun 2007
Location: Brooklyn New York drunk scuba is a REAL sport........


ANYONE who thinks or even MIGHT think drunk scuba diving is cool, HAS to be a right proper twonk.

Not even worth thinking about mate.

oh nice looking car by the way.

I've had some "interesting" things said about my car on various forums - including this one!

Some people are jealous, some people are incapable of the sort of lateral thinking that it takes, some people will join in with trashing anything (mob mentality) & some people will genuinely not like it for whatever reason. I will always support anyone who's prepared to actually try something different - power to the lateral thinkers

Steve,

I'm not going to read the link intentionally because it is trivial.

And that's how you should think it...

I've just read an article about a Fisker Tramonto - basically a re-skinned Mercedes SL55 AMG which IMO suffers from the fugly sydrome.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained....

Steve

As long as your not bothered by it, then no harm done.

But, does anyone else see the funny side of a corvette forum having two strong opinions, one being it looks like a corvette, and the other being that it looks ugly.....

(PS, i love your car, well done.)

I wouldn’t loose any sleep over it Steve, most of then are apparently not even bright enough to string two sentences together. Hell they even missed the fact that you are building a small lightweight rear engined car, while Vettes are large heavy front engined cars

How's these items one of the owners includes in his cars spec in his sig?

Corsa Sport Exhaust with 4...4" tips, Lloyd's "Lingenfelter" Floor Mats, Window Tinting


Re “what is it” I also found that in the early stages of my project, before I decided to go with the t70 spyder inspired shape, other people were unable to understand that I might want to build a car that was not a replica of anything.

Cheers

Fred W B

[Edited on 10/10/07 by Fred W B]

I prefer your car to a Corvette... it looks a lot better...

All forums are protective though, we make fun of some kitcars on ebay as well and they would probably also nt be too happy reading these... But if someone would say the Locost or seven type cars are ugly, we would jump and protect the car, that's it. Don't worry about it!

But I agree, go to the forum and ask them in a polite way what they would change to make the car suit their tastes better. You might even win them over...

Gergely

I thought the link was put up as sarcasm! I laughed my way through the posts. I don't tar all septics ( septic tank=yank, rock and roll rhyming slang!) with the same brush just the 90+ % who don't know where the next state is let alone anywhere outside the USA and are blind to any culture except the American one!

I did a lot of touring with bands in the USA during the early 80s and boy do you meet some people that really can't see beyond their own noses!

Caber

Find a tight and twisty racetrack, and ask them to put up one of theirs against yours.

That'll shut 'em up!

You've done well Steve, and done something those pathetic self satisfiers could never know where to start.

Cheers,
Syd.

Ooops...forgot sgrabcar is American. Just the Vette are tards.

There seemed a mixed opinion on the forum and some was positive. Mindless and unconsidered opinion is the speedhump we all face as special builders.

your car looks a hell of alot better i think!!

an i bet also goes round corners!!

If you want to understand these kinds of reaction look up 'Postdecisional Dissonance' - one of the implications of Cognitive Dissonance.

Almost tempted to register on the Vette forum and offer some education on the following...

Style
Individuality
Skill
Patience
Attention to detail
Car design
Handling
Power to weight ratio
Enterprise
Live and let live

...I could go on.

Steve - as other have, I salute your efforts and wish you well. I'm proud enough to have built a kit car let alone a full on scratch build.

Nick

that corvette thread made me laugh.

It's fairly clear they need glasses if they think Steve's car looks like a corvette....... So I'd stick a covette badge on the front and post a pic on that thread.
Now that would be fun.

On a more serious note, these guys are hardly your target audience so who cares if they like your car or not.

quote:

---

Originally posted by nick205
Style
Individuality
Skill
Patience
Attention to detail
Car design
Handling
Power to weight ratio
Enterprise
Live and let live

...I could go on.

Nick

---

Wow Nellie! You guys! I didn't think this was going to start such a 'Steve Love' thread! holy cow. But thank you, I am moved and a little misty eyed that you come to my defense with such passion. You're a great group of individuals,

I admit to being a bit put off by that thread, and how it appeared that a mob mentality had set in against my little car. And I did take it personally because I don't hear the negative very often.... Tells you something right there doesn't it? But this morning after sleeping on it and coming to the same basic conclusion as most of you that a percentage of Americans are really close-minded (in a stereotypical sort of way) and tend to fear what they don't understand, I am ok with letting them diss my car. Fock'em. In a few months maybe one of them will have their socks blown off by la Bala and they will start to evangelize to their friends about the cool new middy that kicks Corvette ass! LOL.

BTW- Kurt, you are a stand-up guy. || And iank... you scare me!

Finally wrt Americans... If 2% of Americans are complete twatters, that's over 4 million people! Let's assume a twattage rate of 10%.... Holy cow that's a big pile of morons!

- I can make fun of my own....

The negative comments on that forum are worthless, dey jus jealous!

Anyway we can unleash that 'ggnore' chap on their forum?

quote:

---

Originally posted by violentblue
and yes, I get tired of explaining to people what I'm building, only to get the reply "so its a kit car then?"

---

hmmm, showed thet I had double posted, then I deleted the second post, my first also dissapeared.

I think I'll take a nap now.

Bah, of the various auto enthusiast groups in the US, Corvette owners are arguably the pigiest. The faster Vettes make good competition at the track, however.

I remember a hilarious bit by a comic where he's talking about how he considers himself a good guy, husband, parent, friend, et cetera. Then he get's in his Corvette AND BECOMES AN ASSHOLE. Now I don't necessarily think this about Corvette owners. Some are great fellows, but obviously their affinities lie with big, honkin, torquey, factory-built machines. It's kind of like asking a boxer what he thinks of Tai Chi.

edit:

Great reply, Kurt!

[Edited on 11/10/07 by kreb]

Maybe they would prefer this lightly modified Vette?

Cheers

Fred W B



limovette

It's not just Steve

Some OPO on Dicks car .

Cheers

Fred W B

[Edited on 12/10/07 by Fred W B]

Sorry, I'm a little late to this party... I think he said it best

quote:

---

To me this sort of thing is symptomatic of the societies will all live in. People are now conditioned to be consumers and not creators. I’m sure we’ve all seen the blank uncomprehending look when you tell someone you are building your own car from scratch.

---

Now I properly realize the purpose of building your own car is to annoy Stupid People.

Actually I'm offended that I can't some group of like minded blockheads crapping on what I'm up too.

KB-I think your post went over the intel/reading comp. level of most corvette forum members.

graber-criticism of others generally stems from ignorance and insecurity (50k penis extension). The fact of the matter is that after designing and building and taking the time to understand dynamics with your own car; you really know more about their car than they do.


Please do not dispute my opinions because my dumps smell like roses.

I can't stand foreign food
If you've paid $X,000 for something you probably need to feel superior to someone. It's human nature I think.

It's the same everywhere though!
Over here in the UK, you haven't "made it" unless you live in the right postcode and drive his and hers BMW's (M3 as his pen1s extension and an X5 for her to take the kids to school in)
I don't know what a new Vette sells for in the states but surely with an ounce of common sense and backbone you could not follow the sheep in front of you and buy a car that
1. looks good.
2. goes around corners like it doesn't belong in a circus.
3. will attract interest from passers by that are over 12!



The "kitcar" stigma is something that we all have to put up with. If it's not branded as a kit car then it's a re-bodied something or other. Shame really as we take all of the best parts that we can from various sources and put them into our own cars that in every way will out perform the donor and anything that is remotely similar.

But hey, this is just my opinion and I'm here because I share the opinion of you guys.......which I suppose is what the Corvette owners are saying too (only we aren't sheep)

remember though.......Opinions are like assholes, everbody has one and you always think everyone elses stinks

Don't let them drag you down Kurt or Steve and although we are the other side of the water we do realise that there are a few Americans that weren't made with the same mould!!

regards

Steve

quote:

---

Originally posted by sgraber
So true! I have people that see the car IN PERSON and they have been told right there that its designed and built from scratch, and they STILL are trying to ask what kind of car it is...

---

well, one things for sure it's again a 100% real Yanky to bring that up!

don't ever pay attention to those people, they just shout before they have looked at anything.

Oh and KB58 would you please never again mention the name Boyd coddington,
I watch his show in discovery pretty often because there's only winsor pilates on the other channel at 10:am, and frankly I have never see them build anything I would drive around a 90degree corner at 60mls an hour. sportscars and modern engineering my A**. he's defenatly not locostbuilders worthy! (and not because of costs)

they should watch more topgear over there!

grtz Thomas

[Edited on 26/10/07 by thomas4age]

Do a search on "Alumitube" if you want to see an amazing build of an all-aluminum hot rod. Of course, it'll crack in no time and the suspension isn't worth beans, but you'll look great, having spent a fortune to be different.

Re Boyd coddington, is it just me who thinks he seems to be the worlds worst manager?

Cheers

Fred W B

quote:

---

Originally posted by Fred W B
Re Boyd coddington, is it just me who thinks he seems to be the worlds worst manager?

Cheers

Fred W B

---

I've worked for worse believe it or not and he wore a syrup!

American Hot Rod
American Chopper
Unique Whips
Pimp my Ride
Trucks!

All shows that must make us all feel like mechanical genius's!

I've not seen all these shows, but those I have generally seem to celebrate vandalism, stupidity, botching, bad-manners, rudeness etc....What bits of fine craftsmanship there are seem to mysteriously appear from non-dramatic sub-contractors.....

What I'd like to see is something for us on the lines of this old house or similar DIY program where good ideas and crafstmanship can be portrayed without the drama, but still in an interetsing and light hearted way.....

Perhaps that just me though?

quote:

---

Originally posted by Doug68
I've worked for worse believe it or not and he wore a syrup!

American Hot Rod
American Chopper
Unique Whips
Pimp my Ride
Trucks!

All shows that must make us all feel like mechanical genius's!

---

The trouble is TV networks think we've the attention span of a goldfish.

I agree that those shows listed are targeting people with absolutely no desire to learn about the craft and more about the relationships of ass-holes that they conjure up to work at these places! Made for TV almost certainly!

What rubbish and I can't stand to watch any of them. I have been hitting up my brother-in-law who works with Dennis Gauge of My Classic car to see if they are interested in a show such as described by Alan B. - more along the lines of this old house. That would be a cool show, well worth watching.

i always saw "Rides" on either TLC or Discovery to be close to what you're discribing, jumps around just a little too much, but the concept is there, They just need to capture a little more of the details that make up the craft.