Origin
The Car Salesman meme originated from a tweet by @ObviousPlant_ on June 29, 2018, showing a stock photo of a salesman slapping a car roof with the caption:
“Car salesman: slaps roof of car
This bad boy can fit so much fucking spaghetti in it”
The absurdist joke went viral immediately, inspiring countless variations replacing “spaghetti” and “car” with other objects/items.
Format & Peak (Mid-2018)
The format exploded across Twitter, Reddit, and Instagram throughout July-August 2018. The structure:
- [Person]: slaps [object]
- “This bad boy can fit so much [absurd item] in it”
Variations included:
- Books (“so much emotional damage”)
- Coffins (“so much death”)
- Countries (“so much political chaos”)
- Bodies (“so much anxiety”)
The format’s appeal came from subverting sales pitch enthusiasm with absurdist or dark humor.
Cultural Impact
The phrase “this bad boy” became shorthand for exaggerated boasting or ironic salesmanship. The hand-slapping gesture also became a recognizable meme action.
Peak usage: June-September 2018, with rapid exhaustion by October 2018.
Decline
The meme burned out quickly due to extreme overuse within a 3-month window. By late 2018, it had become a punchline about meme culture’s rapid consumption and disposal.
Sources
- Know Your Meme: Car Salesman
- Twitter Moments: Slaps Roof
- Reddit r/MemeEconomy: July 2018 Archives