I should preface this post with the following: THIS IS PURELY MY OPINION! I understand that what I’m about to write is a controversial subject among the car community. If you’re going to leave a comment please keep it civil.
As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I had become disenfranchised with car culture / enthusiasts for a multitude of reasons that I am going to lay out below. Let’s start with something that the majority of people can relate to.
Anyone who’s been to a car show has probably seen a sign similar to the one above. All the signs say more or less the same thing and usually have the same few rules: no revving, no burnouts, no reckless driving / speeding. Yet despite these numerous warnings and sometimes police presence, people still feel the need to break those rules. I get it. Part of the experience of cars is from the noise and visual aspect of a vehicle. The look and sound of a car, whether by the nature of its design or through the owner’s personal modifications, is what draws many people into car culture. However I feel the audio / visual aspect is creating a culture of narcissism and will be the car community’s demise.
What exactly do I mean by this statement? For starters, the whole idea of revving your engine, doing a burnout (with the exception of warming your tyres at a drag strip), and / or driving recklessly (street drifting, j-turns, etc.) is purely to draw attention to oneself. For the people that like to partake in these acts I believe that they desire to be the center of attention and don’t particularly care about what is going on around them. Don’t get me wrong, from time to time I love to give my car the ol’ Italian tune-up, but I think there is exists a difference between wringing your engine out for your own personal enjoyment and bouncing off the limiter to draw attention to yourself. Another important aspect is being self aware. There’s a difference between revving out in 2nd gear vs 4th gear (IE: the actual speed you’re going) and when / where you are. Driving through a neighborhood? Not the best place to bounce off the limiter. Driving on a back road? Rev your engine out to your heart’s content.
Ultimately what’s it worth to you to act like a hooligan? Is it worth the picture below?
Time and time again I see articles and photos of local car meets getting shut down or car enthusiasts constantly being targeted by police for the reasons stated above, yet the car community more than often fails to realize that majority of the time the unwanted shutdowns / police attention is their own doing. Car owners aren’t entirely to blame, though. Many times the spectators coerce the car owners into revving their engines, doing burnouts, etc. In those situations the car owners have to set an example by declining the spectators’ whims and act in a more adult fashion.
My apologies for this short, rant of a post. I felt the need to finally get this off my chest. The car community needs to get its act together and begin acting more responsibly and less like children if car culture is going to survive. If you truly need an outlet to unleash your inner child, find an empty back road, go do a track day (or an autocross if you’re really budget minded), or even hit up your local drag strip for a test and tune night.
The car community ain’t all that bad, though. I’ll cover the upsides in another post. Like always, feel free to leave a comment below.
Thanks,
J. Stitt