Do you wave to other Sprinter drivers?

sikwan

06 Tin Can
In the street, I wave to other motorcycle riders.
In the dirt, I hold up and flash fingers 1-5 to oncoming riders.
In my Jeep, I wave to other fellow Jeep drivers, mainly Wranglers.

When I saw an oncoming Sprinter, I do a half-wave off my steering wheel and I get a funny look. :confused:

Do you wave to other Sprinter drivers?

I should start a poll, huh? :D

Seek
 

Zach Woods

New member
Howdy Seek -

When I first got my Airstream Sprinter Westfalia I waved to most all the Sprinters that I saw. There were many fewer on the road and I would get the occasional wave back - maybe 25% of the time at the most.

I no longer wave unless there is something particularly interesting about the Sprinter (another Westfalia, xtraworx stake-side, another interesting RV).

I have a Mini and I wave most of the time - I probably get waves back somewhere between 50 and 75% of the time.

I think the utilitarian nature of the Sprinter keeps most people from noticing / caring. Lots of the drivers are in a work vehicle - it may be owned by their employer - they don't notice that the person that just waved is in the same vehicle they are driving.

Zach
 

BaywoodBill

pre-Yuppiedom
About that heirarchy. Just off the top of my noggin, I can't think of a vehicle put to as many different uses as are Sprinters. RV owners may think they are the most clever with their use of the vehicle while UPS/DHL/FEDEX drivers may appreciate that they have the cushiest runs (more distance, fewer parcels). Tradesmen may be smug because they can stand up in their work trucks. The stakesides and box van people may just be happily appreciating a realized dream -- owning a Mercedes.

Who knows? I can't see a real heirarchy. Nearly everyone who has a Sprinter is pleased with his or her purchase (or with the use of the vehicle if they don't own it) and doesn't really believe any one use is superior to any other.

As for a wave? As mentioned before, not too many of those. As for us, we notice nearly everyone that comes down the road.
 

bobinyelm

Member
Back when I was driving a British sports car, it was the rule, rather than the exception, to wave at other British car drivers. It was a cult of sorts, a bond formed by not only the enjoyment we got from our cars, but an acknowledgement of the constant attention they demanded. We were comrades in arms.

As cars have become more reliable, they have at the same time become appliances, like a toaster oven. You plug it in and it works, period. No muss, no fuss, and no tinkering required. Less driver involvement required to keep them running. They are less personal than cars used to be.

Enter the Sprinter. As was pointed out, so many of them are driven by so many sorts of people for so many purposes. Employees, tradesmen, family people who look at it simply as a station wagon, and RVers who use them for camping. Many of these folks NEVER owned a vehicle that created a sense of comradeship any more than owning a certain brand of toaster oven does. They don't "get" the wave. Most are trying to get to a job on time, trying to deliver their kids to soccer practice after piano lessons, on their way to a favorite camping spot, and are not even looking out of the windscreen with an eye to what's coming at them.

Bottom line, I suspect waving is a very unrewarding experience in a Sprinter, and anyone doing it will probably burn out in rather short order. Ask me how I know this!

The "Jeep Wave" was mentioned above. Years back (35 to be exact) I owned a Jeep CJ5. Back then, mostly farmers, Forest Service personnel and other serious users owned Jeeps. They were hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and wet when it rained, so few "civilians" drove them. Then they caught on a niche vehicles, and a lot of "enthusiasts" started driving them, and along came the wave. It united folks who enjoyed going off-road, and who were willing to put up with the hot/cold/wet of a CJ.

Now we have the Wrangler, heir to the CJ. They are the "same," but different in that they are comfortable, well sealed so occupants are not cold, hot, or even wet anymore. Jeeps are now bought as an alternative to a Miata by college kids and even 40-something moms.

I own a Wrangler, and I can tell you that the "Wave" is dying as the owner group diversifies. Here in Texas, fewer Jeep owners return my Texas wave (2 or 3 fingers of the right hand raised from the steering wheel) than drivers of pick-ups. The Texas wave used to be something EVERYONE did to everyone as a sign of friendliness, at least on country 2-lane roads. There were even signs here that said "Drive Friendly." Even the general Teaxas wave is dying as people accelerate their lives, and the population diversifies.

Sprinter STARTED with this diversity, so I suspect the Sprinter Wave is a non-starter.

Bob
 
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Zach Woods

New member
Great summary, Bob -

My vehicle/ wave experiences:

1949 CJ-3A - it sometimes gets waves from people who probably don't even own a jeep let alone are driving one when they wave

1965 Rambler American 440 - less so, but same as the CJ

1965 VW Double Cab Pickup - roughly same as the CJ but with a whole bunch of quizzical "whut-tha-hell-is-that" looks

1967 Sunbeam Alpine - roughly same as CJ plus some quizzical looks

1976 VW Westfalia - I got waves from other air cooled VW owners, particularly bubble window buses

1976 MGB - MGB's almost always wave, other MG's usually wave, other old British cars almost always wave

1984 VW Rabbit GTI - most people didn't even see me

1987 VW Syncro Westfalia - Mostly quizzical looks (I had it badged as a BMW (just for fun - I even got a parking ticket written to a BMW once and thought about trying to fight it as I have never owned a BMW according to vehicle title) and it had unusual off-road bumpers front and rear)

2004 John Cooper Works Mini Cooper S - Many Mini's will wave - worth noting that Mini made "the wave" a marketing effort

2006 Airstream Sprinter Westfalia - Lots of quizzical looks (MB badging and very high roof plus Airstream and Westfalia badging) but almost zero waves!

Zach
 

bobbyb

New member
I aways wave, Fed ex drivers give me strange looks.
I also have a Jeep Wrangler, and a Mini Cooper.
I wave a lot.
Glad to see there are other Jeep and Mini owners with Sprinters
bob
 

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