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95 Volkswagen Golf Sport - Low, slow, and loud purchased 4/5/08
93 Nissan Sentra SE 2 door - sold 4/5/08
88 Honda Civic DX Hatchback - sold 9/26/07
85 BMW 325e Coupe w/ 88 I motor swap - sold 2/24/07
93 Sentra XE 4 door - wrecked 7/29/06 totalled.
90 240SX Fastback - sold 7/15/05
That has to be the most stereotyping I've seen in one small article.. This is what happens when people try to write an article based on no research what-so-ever, other than maybe watching the Fast and the Furious.. Journaistic integrity is ZERO on this one.. figures it comes from a Insurance company thats main goal is to charge you as much as possible and put the blame on topics like this or get people to report their minor modifications so they can up the premiums. If I had these guys I would look else where for insurance. Screw the stupid ass lizard....lol
Last edited by myoung : May 8th, 2005 at 05:59 AM.
I find it funny that they say to look for strut bars and tie braces but don't say look through the wheel to see if the suspension has been changed.
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Location: Cola, South Carolina MoFo Status: Teh Black
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Yes the article is not very good, but it does encourage the parents to be aware of how their kids may be using the car. Hopefully, if the parents are informed they can step in and take action. I'm tired of hearing stories where the parents' comment is "I had no idea my child was doing that".
__________________ Hendrix
"Have you heard of the chain of command? It's the chain I beat you with until you realize that I'm in command" - Firefly, Jayne. Affirmative Action MoFo
Signature edited to please Scoot
Yes the article is not very good, but it does encourage the parents to be aware of how their kids may be using the car. Hopefully, if the parents are informed they can step in and take action. I'm tired of hearing stories where the parents' comment is "I had no idea my child was doing that".
Being aware of your kids actions should always be a parents first priority, in those cases like you mentioned, it's obvious the apple doesn't fall far from the tree..... morons create little morons...
yeah, how about useful things like "My kid comes home at 3am and smells like burned rubber and talking to his friends about who owned who"
not "look for metal bars under the hood. those bars mean kids are street racing" ummm yeah, right. that was the first mod I ever did to my Maxima 7 years ago because it felt like a boat on the highway.
Location: Cola, South Carolina MoFo Status: Teh Black
Posts: 2,641
Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt93SE
yeah, how about useful things like "My kid comes home at 3am and smells like burned rubber and talking to his friends about who owned who"
Like I said, parents need to be aware of how kids are using the car.
__________________ Hendrix
"Have you heard of the chain of command? It's the chain I beat you with until you realize that I'm in command" - Firefly, Jayne. Affirmative Action MoFo
Signature edited to please Scoot
If your kid comes home with Altessa/Euro rear lamps on his/her car then it's time for a intervention...haha... "but sweetie we just love you and don't want people to chuckle and laugh at you everytime you drive by"...
So now everyone who drives a modified car and is a teenager street races and doesnt have the skills to drive a high performance vehicle? Look for bars under the hood? Unusual wear on the tyres? So autocrossing and track days don't exist? All I can say is fuck Geico.
I recently found out about a section you published related to street racing through an automotive forum and I was horrified to see how innacurate your information is. As a start, most people who build their engines do not engage in street racing for a variety of reasons. One, road conditions on the street are not desireable at all for any type of high performance driving. Two, road conditions on the street are not predictable and by no means uniform. Three, other drivers are on the street who are not engaging in higher speed activities. In other terms, street racing is very dangerous and risks not only the life of the driver, but also the lives of anyone in the general area.
Your descriptions are somewhat incorrect. The ideal car for racing from a dig (going from a stand-still to generally the quarter mile) is generally an all wheel drive car, currently known as AWD (unless you are running an NHRA pro RWD drag car). In the US, Subaru and Mitsubishi have developed and marketed the ideal cars for this type of racing known as the WRX/STi and Lancer Evolution/MR respectively. Generally sixteen year olds cannot even afford these cars. Racing from a roll (when you are already in motion) is generally done with RWD, but since traction is generally less of an issue than from a dig, FWD is used also. Racing from a roll is generally the form that street racing comes in although racing from a dig also occurs.
I feel you are generalizing and stigmatizing anyone who builds a car and is a young person. This is no different than saying elderly people are senile and worthless or any insurance company that uses humurous commercials is a joke. Having invested quite a few thousand dollars in my engine and related components, I find it silly to risk such an investment on the street despite insurance coverage. Even more importantly, risking lives of other people for mere enjoyment is simply wrong. I am not the only one who believes this either. I never have and never will condone street racing, and most automotive forums and magazines agree with my standpoint. I actually drive slower than the majority of drivers on the street.
Most "racers" engage in track activities. Some choose autocrossing, some formalized SCCA and some drag. These activities are legal, fun, and if conducted properly, very safe.
There is also a new generation of younger drivers that are learning how to control high performance cars as well and if not, better than their older counterparts. Driving schools, not driver education, has been helping this. These schools not only encourage safe driving skills for both the road and track, but also teach avoidence skills and other related skills that will help anyone avoid an accident on the street. I know of quite a few driving schools and NONE of them condone street racing. Most actually condom it.
So does a "customized car" mean that someone is street racing? Absolutely not. As a general rule, cars modified more with cosmetics are more likely to street race as cosmetics are less expensive than engine modifications. At the same time, I am in no way implying that everyone who modifies their car cosmetically street races. In case you did not know, modifying a car in terms of performance costs thousands of dollars and a large majority of the "modifiers" realize this and do not attempt silly and stupid stunts or races. Do strut and sway bars mean someone is street racing? Absolutely not. Autocross racers use these bars to add to chasis rigidy to allow higher speed turns and the best cornering speeds through the toughest of apexes. Many newer cars come with front strut tower bars stock and some have even more suspension related components stock. I cannot see how a stock strut bar would be an indicator of street racing. Anyone engaging in track racing is going to chew up tyres faster than normal driving; this is a fact.
So in conclusion, I feel you may have generalized the younger generation a bit too much. Not every racer is in the "Fast and Furious" mode. Not every teenager engages in illegal activies such as smoking dope, drinking booze, stealing, street racing, unprotected sex, etc. One does not need to participate in illegal activities to have a good time. We, the younger generation, are stigmatized as much, if not more, than elderly people. This is called ageism. The "big" racing movies depicted an unrealisitc reality and has now caused a plethora of hate against anyone who modifies their car. One can always find a few bad people in a crowd and this will ruin the reputation of everyone. As I will not deny the existance of street racing as I realize it does exist, I will contest that the majority of those who modify or "customize" their cars do not street race. Even moreso, one does not have to modify a car to street race. In the future, I would advise the wording of a section such as this. If you have any questions about my letter or any concerns, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for reading this letter and I hope it helps in future policy or wording of writeups. The best way to discourage street racing is simply education. When one sees how terrible things can occur in an uncontrolled enviornment, it is the best way of helping encourage responsible decisions.
.......I can already hear the Trash button being clicked. If they wanted personal opinions about the topic, they would have polled a large group of people. But if they can make money off of customisation, they are going to say what people want to hear. It's called marketing.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RoadWarrior - ocforums.com
Yes, SATA is faster however..... putting full spec formula one tires on a 1.6L stock honda civic will not make it capable of 200Mph......
If they wanted personal opinions about the topic, they would have polled a large group of people. But if they can make money off of customisation, they are going to say what people want to hear. It's called marketing.
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