Car Show Noob

[btoran]

Hey, all. I finally put my car back together from a series of Winter projects (pictures to come soon) and my wife and I will be attending our first ever car show this weekend. Hard to believe, but I caught the car bug lat(er) in life. My car will be in the show (parked with other similar cars), but will not be judged. Other than a camera and sunscreen, what should I bring to the show and what can I expect? Thanks.

[4uall]

Bring your "A" game & swagger

Good luck

[TX82FIAT]

Folding Chairs, cooler, water, consider additional shade. If car is in good shape then bring a detail spray wax and a microfiber towel to wipe the car down for a nice shine once you get there. Have some actual cash on hand as vendors often don't have portable credit card machines if you want to buy a burger or someting. A lot really depends on how long you want to stay at the show. 10AM to 4PM can be a long time once you have slowly walked the cars a couple times. If your lucky the show is in a town square or someplace where you can plan additional activities. I often bring a light book.

[SunnySideUp]

+1 on TX82FIAT's recommendations. Also, take a pen + small note pad/Post-It notes/business cards so you can get or give some contact information. I know a lot of us rely on our mobile devices but sometimes a pen & paper works great.

Good Luck & Have Fun -- Post some pics from the show!

[spidernut]

I so agree with the others! Seating, shade and water are critical elements. For the car, bring a wax/cleaner for bird droppings or bugs, glass cleaner for windows and your Tire Wet or rubber and vinyl spray for last minute touch ups. There is one other thing - a camera is a necessity! Take pictures...lots and lots of pictures. Take some of other people's cars too. A portable radio doesn't hurt either if there's no music at the event.

Be prepared for the inevitable morons who will look at the Fiat emblems and make the fix it again Tony remarks. You'll also have people ask who makes Fiat, or is this an MG, etc....these are innocent questions and interested people. It is fun to inform the people who don't know what a Fiat is but irritating to deal with the critics.

For the fix it again Tony crowd, I simply act excited and ask how long it has been since they've owned one. They usually would reply that their brother's friends grandmother's second cousin had one back in the early 60s (before the Spider was built). I then pretend that their interested and talk about history of the Fiat Spider and bring up as much useless minutia as I can muster up. They look all around trying to find a way to escape but I don't let them until I know they're good an irritated! I just keep acting like they're interested and talk, talk talk. Ha, ha! Payback is sweet!

Have fun!

Most people will compliment you or say nothing. It is really fun to chat it up with people who love European sports cars and those who have owned one before.

[btoran]

guys - thanks for the tips. they're very helpful. i will certainly take pictures and post them here afterwards. the show is almost full. the organizer said he has a little space left and will try to fit us in with the alfa's. so people will probably confuse us with them (rather than with mg's). another forum member should be there as well, so we'll represent the brand/model together.

[Zippy]

I went to my first car show last month. Take sunscreen, water, food, camera and folding chairs. The thing that surprised me the most was all the people asking where they can get parts or service. If you know anyone local that have parts cars they are selling from, bring their info. Also be prepared to share resources you know of such as parts suppliers, mechanics, body shops and upholstery shops. You would be surprised how many people are not aware of this forum or the online parts suppliers we have.

Take a lot of pictures. I wish I had taken more than I did. I spent a lot of time talking to others about my car or theirs and didn't take very many pictures at all. Take more than one shot in case someone walks into the frame.

Don't be shy. Even the exotic car owners will be happy to share their knowledge of their cars.

Also, take a lot of pictures

Did I mention pictures?

Have fun!

[fiat218]

fun. i cant wait to do that

[btoran]

to all future car show lists, everyone should add the following: check camera batteries BEFORE leaving home. in my rush out the door, i didn't and discovered 0% battery when i pulled out the camera at the show. of course the camera doesn't take regular batteries and my cell phone takes such bad pictures i didn't even try to use it. DOH!

but the show was fun and the venue was great. we saw a lot of very cool cars and met some very nice folks, including Jim (spiderman) from the forum. my wife and i will definitely attend more shows. we left the kiddies home this time, but will bring them as there were plenty of other kids running around and playing.

there were 3 spiders at the show. jim's 1979, my 1975, and a 1975 for sale from a guy not on the forum. comparing my 1975 to his, we noticed many differences such as bumpers , side marker lights, turn signals, etc., leading me to believe mine may have been a european version or redone by a PO. is there any way to tell from the VIN whether the car was made for the US or European market?

[RRoller123]

One feature of shows or "cruise nights" (as we call them here) that we look for is rest rooms. The bigger venues provide at least portable toilets and the best venues also serve food. There is a lovely small CN in Canton, MA at the foot of the Blue Hills at the Episcopal church, that has barbecue burgers, dogs, sodas, etc. for a buck or two, and you can use the Church rest rooms. Really nice people there. Friday evenings.

[btoran]

as my wife and i were strolling the gardens of the event, we realized we hadn't seen a restroom. we evenutally found them and they were big and clean, but quite a walk from everything else going on. i can only imagine if we brought our boys (ages 6 and 7). they routinely ask "which one is the pee-pee tree"? that would have been pretty funny at a botancial gardens venue.

[speedracer]

to all future car show lists, everyone should add the following: check camera batteries BEFORE leaving home. in my rush out the door, i didn't and discovered 0% battery when i pulled out the camera at the show. of course the camera doesn't take regular batteries and my cell phone takes such bad pictures i didn't even try to use it. DOH!

I was right there when Bruce realized he had 0% battery. It was actually quite funny, sorry Bruce! Anyway, there were only about 1000 beautiful cars to take pictures of, so you didn't miss much!

but the show was fun and the venue was great. we saw a lot of very cool cars and met some very nice folks, including Jim (spiderman) from the forum.

Thanks for the compliment. I am Jim, but I'm not spiderman. I'm speedracer. I'm deeply hurt!

there were 3 spiders at the show. jim's 1979, my 1975, and a 1975 for sale from a guy not on the forum. comparing my 1975 to his, we noticed many differences such as bumpers , side marker lights, turn signals, etc., leading me to believe mine may have been a european version or redone by a PO. is there any way to tell from the VIN whether the car was made for the US or European market?

[/quote]

The guy selling his Spider was being very optimistic IMHO, asking $17,500! Nice car for sure, but not worth that kind of money. Wonder if he got any bites? Bruce, your Spider looked very nice. You really got a nice one. I think it is Euro myself, due to having no side marker lights at all and your blinkers looked different to...

[brackie1]

I have never had a car worthy of a car show until now, now I have the bug. I have '78 and people love it. I agree most will say "Oh my brother, or friend HAD one" years ago. I think most people are glad to see that some have survived. I was standing next to a guy from Europe {somewhere} who had a (not a kit) 427 Cobra. I was admiring his car which was next to mine when he said. "I love those spiders I wish I had one again". Of course I was beaming with pride.



Geneo

[RRoller123]

I find, at these shows/CNs, that about 2 out of 3 people are reflective and have very fond memories of their various Fiats, the other 1 had a terrible experience and I am going to hear about it. Just the way it is...

[brackie1]

You are exactly right. I usually just smile and say "I guess I am lucky to have never had a problem, they are not for the faint of heart".