you know you're obsessed with cars when..

[-=Charley]

-you have nightmares about your dash cracking

-you play the 'make/model/year game' wherever you go.. and even say it to yourself when nobody's around

-you dont just know the names of everyone that works at your local shop, but the names of all the OTHER regulars

-you get into serious arguments about breakpads and tires

-the first thing you do when someone you know gets a new car is get on ebay and see what turbo kits are available for it

-you 'shave' money here and there for your car fund.. hiding it from 'the boss' in a secret location

-you interlock your zip ties (amongst other tricks) to lengthen them and can install them with one hand.

-you give more thought to which oil you're going to buy than which... anything else you buy.

-you have more nightmares about your dash cracking

-most of your shirts were free from jeg's and other vendors

-the rest of your shirts you bought, but have vendors' logos on them

that's all i could think of that im guilty of right now. anyone else?? thought it'd be fun

[Otis]

Too funny. The zip tie one -- hitting close to home. Okay, here are mine . . . No, wait, stop . . . must resist temptation . . . must tone down sarcasm . . . must get back to work . . .

[ibjettin]

• You spend more time at the office checking out the internet searching for parts and tips than you do with a project deadline.

• It's hard to follow the "want Vs. need" logic with purchases.

• You are more focused on what color to paint your car than paint your babies nursery

• You talk more about cars to the girls at the office than the guys. (my office is mostly women with only 2 guys... Neither guy gives a hoot about cars, but a few of the girls are totally into them and always ask how it's coming along)

• When you get home from work, rather than your wife asking how your day was, she'll ask what did you buy for the car? (brings us back to the first bullet)

there's more, but I have a deadline today and actually have to work

[DukeRimmer]

-all available storage space is filled with parts.

-you dream of more storage space.

-you'd rather have a 47 year old sprite than a new mx5.

[BarryA]

lot, 1200 square foot house & a 3600 square garage/shop by trying to convince her of the low maintanence benefits of a small house and big shop that barely fit the lot....

[Mike Self]

-- you have a list of "VINs I have known"

-- you have at least three spares for everthing on your car that might sometday break.

-- you have boxes for parts for cars you've never owned because (1) they're new and (2) someone gave 'em to you.

and (true story from my year in Viet Nam)--when the new Playboy arrives, you read Ken Purdy's automotive column before looking at the centerfold.

I could go on and on...I have it bad--since 1963!

mike

[H_Krix]

- you use appliances around the house that were meant to clean YOU to clean your car parts

- you spend more than 20% of each paycheck on old hunks of rusty german steel

- you have a "preferred and systematic" way of sifting through eBay to find the parts for YOUR car, and not some 2002 328i

- the first car you ever bought was a parts car.

[HarryPR]

Your wife is afraid to leave you home alone for more than a day at a time because every time she does she finds a "new" car when she gets back.

You have hidden cars you have bought at friends' homes so the wife won't find out. Trust me, she will, and she won't be happy when she does.

When you stop at a gas station with your '02, you get excited when another patron mentions that he knows of a place where you can find a bunch of them. After excitedly asking for more details, you find out he's talking about YOUR house.

[OH2DRV]

(nt)

[a54atii]

- When the UPS driver delivers boxes addressed to you, he asks what car parts you got this time.

- You feel bad when the UPS driver says that his truck smells like tires because he's been hauling around your new Sumitomos all day. You want to keep him happy because there will be more car parts coming soon.

- The next time you order tires, you have them shipped Fedex.

- You have more cars than space to store them but you have really good reasons why you should keep each of them.

- Most of your friends are tired of you asking if they know of any cheap/free places to store cars.

- Whenever you walk by your spouse's car in the garage, you think about how your car storage problems could be solved if she would just park outside so you could put a 4-post lift in her spot instead.

- You'd rather sit at the computer responding to "you know you're obsessed with cars when..." threads than spend time with your family. (Don't worry, I already spent time with them today. Really! At least 5 minutes... I promise.)

If you need me, I'll be in the garage...

Karl

[ibjettin]

When you stop at a gas station with your '02, you get excited when another patron mentions that he knows of a place where you can find a bunch of them. After excitedly asking for more details, you find out he's talking about YOUR house.

ROFLMAF! Too funny Harry!

[Otis]

Your wife is afraid to leave you home alone for more than a day at a time because every time she does she finds a "new" car when she gets back.

You have hidden cars you have bought at friends' homes so the wife won't find out. Trust me, she will, and she won't be happy when she does.

Patti just LOL'ed at that one. She HATES Douglas, my '53 Dodge PU, which somehow appeared one day in the driveway.

[powelli]

- When the UPS driver delivers boxes addressed to you, he asks what car parts you got this time.

My UPS guy has an e28 M5 that he is slowly making right and was excited to hear that I was working on a 2002, so I don't mind the questions.

It's my wife that calls me at work and asks me what parts I got this time. She is convinced that I am building a complete car from parts order through ebay, BLUNT and others.

When I need a break from her comments, I ship the stuff to work and sneak it home later.

[Stu]

You spend $15,000 over a 10 month period of time to do everything you want to make your car perfect (performance engine, sidedrafts, 5 speed, etc) then go on a binge and spend another $2,000 on a lark (Bilsteins, Ireland sway bars, new wheels and tires, Stahl header). There will come a time, fearfully soon, that my wife is going to notice this big depletion in our savings account. Yet I carry on. Pray for me.

[Biscuit3]

You and your car have matching tattoos!!!