On “Seinfeld,” Elaine’s on-and-off boyfriend, the mechanic known for high-fives, is David Puddy.
David Puddy is played by Patrick Warburton and becomes one of Elaine’s most memorable romantic partners. He is emotionally flat, stubborn, and often bizarrely confident, making him an unusual match for Elaine’s sharper and more expressive personality. Their relationship repeatedly breaks apart and resumes throughout the later seasons.
Puddy works as a mechanic and is introduced as “the only honest mechanic in New York” in “The Fusilli Jerry.” His mechanical work is important to his character because Jerry values Puddy’s honesty even when he finds Puddy personally irritating. Puddy later works as a car salesman, creating the central conflict in “The Dealership.”
The high-five storyline also comes from “The Dealership.” Puddy enthusiastically adopts high-fives, while Jerry considers the gesture crude and primitive. Jerry’s criticism reaches Elaine, who confronts Puddy, contributing to another breakup. Tim Whatley is Jerry’s dentist, not Elaine’s boyfriend, and the names David Costanza and Kevin Puddy are not Seinfeld characters.