Im curious why people get upset when someone calls them a fanboy?

I don't like being called a fanboy. It's like sb is telling me that i am immature, blind-minded and i don't know how to judge things.

PS. I would like to hear HOH's views on the questions he stated in the first post.

The term fanboy makes me think of the stereotypical "boy racer" guy, the one who drives a pimped Renault Clio and wears a hoody (hooded sweatshirt).

Hmm, Roberto, i don't think that the terms "fanboy" and "boy-racer" are the same thing. A fanboy (or fangirl ) is someone who is very passionate about a brand and has a blind-minded attitude towards this brand, by not seeing or refusing to admit his favourite brand's mistakes or dissadvantages compared to other brands. On the other hand, a boy racer is someone, usually young, that has turned an old budget car into a pimped-budget-car and pretends to be a race driver even if his car is slower than a donkey that goes down a mountain.

PS. It would be interesting to see how other members define the term "fanboy"

imo there are several levels for fanboys. extreme fanboy, fanboy, fanboy but with an open mind

Yes I agree with everything you said Giannis -- I was just thinking about those young guys you see who obsess over their cars and street racing: Mitsubishi Evolution, Nissan Skyline, Subaru Impreza. etc.

Well that's some what where the name comes from. Boys(children&infants) are usually extremely stubborn, very biased and non critical towards their passion, which some adults are, hence the name fanboy. It is not a pretty name, which can said about the arguments and statements coming from some adults.

But like Just-me said there are different levels of fanboyism.

well, not everyone (i just had to say that )

Well, a fanboy is always a fanboy. But what you said is also true. There are levels. But the bias towards a certain brand still remains.

When I met seveal of you on German Car Fans, I was more or less a BMW fanboy. Not dyed in the wool, but pretty much there. Over time all of your input molded me into a relatively impartial German Car (and Honda) enthusiast.

Folks like Yannis, Martinbo and the the whole lot of you GCF'ers have really broadened my understanding of German Cars and have made me a better judge of all things Automotive. Thanks for the education.

Haha that kind of reminds me of when I discovered that GCF had a forum, prior to that I just visited their site for news and was a frequent Autospies subscribes, and yes i even got their newletter in my hotmail inbox. But most importantly I was one of the most notorious BMW bashers of all time. Thanks to all the rebhab(GCZ) I'm a much wiser and unbiased car enthusiast than what I was 2-3 years ago.