# I Polka-Dotted My Car **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 9, 2016, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386 "2016-05-09T12:52:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/1 "2016-05-09T12:52:53Z")
I polka-dotted my car a few weeks ago. There were a couple of things that led up to this decision. One was that one of my children surprised me when I found out he knew my license plate. He has high functioning autism and is not known for being all that observant, but I found out that he can’t distinguish my car from all the others in the car line at school and had learned the license plate number to avoid going to “the fake out” cars. Another thing was attending an art car parade. There were over 250 cars and other vehicles there and it’s just hard to not feel inspired to do something to one’s own car. And the last reason is that I’m in school (online) and fooling around with the car when I need a little break is handy. So here it is: [Prius with Dots - Imgur](http://imgur.com/3SkNU8k) I think it looks awesome, silly, stupid, fun, and probably a few more things. It reminds me a bit of the children’s book “Put Me In The Zoo” which my kids really enjoy. The dots are just vinyl clings and can be moved around or removed easily. The do stay on even after going through the automated car wash. If I were careful removing them and don’t stretch or bend them too much, I think I could even save them and use them again in the future. Maybe next year I can be in the art car parade. I’ve found that, obviously, the car attracts a lot of attention so I have to be careful to use my blinker, avoid rolling stops, and generally be a very responsible driver when out as that I’ve lost my driving anonymity. But, I plan to keep them a little longer and then I’m going to replace the dots with something new! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/2 "2016-05-09T12:55:14Z")
I like your polka-dot car. The dots move it from “one of a million white cars” to being unique. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/3 "2016-05-09T13:45:15Z")
I like it! Good job! (Now, for the next week, consider rearranging the dots every day! The people who park beside you will be, “Are the spots moving around on their own? Am I imagining this?”) ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/4 "2016-05-09T13:50:10Z")
They have vaccines for things like that you know. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/5 "2016-05-09T13:55:46Z")
That’s a pleasant surprise. It’s nice looking, pleasing to the eye, unique but not in some mere attention-getting manner. You could start a trend with that. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/6 "2016-05-09T13:57:12Z")
I love it. I definitely predict a trend. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/7 "2016-05-09T13:57:30Z")
Are they numbered? Can I connect them with my magic marker? What pattern does it make? ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/8 "2016-05-09T13:59:10Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > That’s a pleasant surprise. It’s nice looking, pleasing to the eye, unique but not in some mere attention-getting manner. You could start a trend with that. I agree with this. To be honest I was expecting something gimmicky or even slightly tacky (like a business will mess up their car for the “attention”.) But it looks less gaudy and more like a fun, subtle touch. And the first thing I thought of (I clicked the link before reading your post) was also Take me to the Zoo! A book I loved as a kid. Way to go! ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/9 "2016-05-09T14:00:05Z")
I was expecting it to look really stupid but that came out fantastic! Damn good job! ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/10 "2016-05-09T14:07:52Z")
I dig it. It’s charming as hell and utterly non-obnoxious. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/11 "2016-05-09T14:12:40Z")
I’d already decided that when I get a car, I’m going to want it in the most distinctive color available. If you’re meeting someone and they need to recognize your car, it does no good to say “it’s the gray one”, and white, black, and beige aren’t much better. Much easier to say “it’s the green one”, or orange, or whatever. This just takes that one step further. I agree that it came out looking very nice and well-done, but even if it didn’t, it might still be worthwhile. ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/12 "2016-05-09T14:18:08Z")
I like it. I think it’s great and if it helps your son, that is wonderful. Good for you on being such a caring parent to consider your son’s needs. As for the “extra well behaved driving” it reminds me of a friend who let her son dye his hair green when he was thirteen. It kept him on the straight and narrow, because he was so easily identified. Some.of his friends got into minor scrapes but he stayed far away from mischief. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/13 "2016-05-09T14:18:19Z")
It’s surprisingly attractive. It looks like it might be an ad for something – I bet lots of folks will be looking for a flashy logo and getting confused when they don’t see one! ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/14 "2016-05-09T15:03:36Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > I’ve found that, obviously, the car attracts a lot of attention so I have to be careful to use my blinker, avoid rolling stops, and generally be a very responsible driver when out as that I’ve lost my driving anonymity. But, I plan to keep them a little longer and then I’m going to replace the dots with something new! A classic tartan! ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/15 "2016-05-09T15:04:13Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > I agree with this. > > To be honest I was expecting something gimmicky or even slightly tacky (like a business will mess up their car for the “attention”.) But it looks less gaudy and more like a fun, subtle touch. > > And the first thing I thought of (I clicked the link before reading your post) was also Take me to the Zoo! A book I loved as a kid. > > Way to go! My thoughts pretty much exactly, right down to _Put Me in the Zoo_! (Thanks, by the way: I had forgotten the title, and even though yours was slightly off, the correct one popped right up in google.) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/16 "2016-05-09T15:12:33Z")
I’ve been shopping for a new car, and despairing over the narrow choice of colors available. You’ve hit upon an alternative. But you may cause some confusion if parked near a loaf of Wonder Bread. ---
**Author:** ![quiltguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e47774/32.png) [@quiltguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quiltguy)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/17 "2016-05-09T15:13:26Z")
Make the dots bigger, line them up, and you can play Twister. Personally, I’d go for a crossword puzzle square. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/18 "2016-05-09T15:33:39Z")
I call my car “silver”. but everyone else seems to call it “grey”. ☹ I’m thinking polka dots would not look nearly so good (and I agree yours look very nice) on anything but a white background. ---
**Author:** ![Periwinkle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Periwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Periwinkle)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/19 "2016-05-09T16:07:28Z")
I love it! I can’t imagine why this idea isn’t already more popular. Your car looks so cute. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2016, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386/20 "2016-05-09T16:13:01Z")
Super awesome! I am in the market for a new car and not sure what color to get. I want to keep the same color I have but yet somehow be “different.” This gives me a good idea of what I can do! (I probably won’t do it haha) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-polka-dotted-my-car/754386.md?page=2)