Can't Believe I Saw It

[oldE]

Yesterday I was driving through a nearby town when I met a "stanced" Mazda 3. The owner had gone the whole 9 yards: lowered, with wide rims mounting tires which were deformed in order to seat the beads and drastic negative camber resulting in the tires contacting the road surface with part of the tread and part of the sidewall.
Oh yes, the road surface was a recently plowed street which was a combination of rough ice, loose snow and bare pavement. WTF?
I applaud the effort that goes into making a vehicle a statement of one's interest, but where does the line between interesting and insane get crossed?
If I had the authority, I think I would have had the vehicle removed from the streets until it was returned to a specification suitable for travel on public roads or rendered inoperable. It's bad enough having to get from point A to point B on winter roads without worrying about the ability of someone with questionable judgment to keep their misguided expression of self on their side of the road.

Rant over.
Les

[pwd72s]

If I ever see one, I'll do my best to be far away from it...scary stuff to avoid.

[CurtEgerer]

I don't have a bucket list. But if I did, one item on the list would be to drive an extreme stanced car. I'm really curious just how horrible they handle.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by oldE

I applaud the effort that goes into making a vehicle a statement of one's interest, but where does the line between interesting and insane get crossed?
If I had the authority, I think I would have had the vehicle removed from the streets until it was returned to a specification suitable for travel on public roads or rendered inoperable.
Les

How do you feel about lifted trucks? The “urban” influence isn’t strong out here but lifted trucks are everywhere. The serious farmers drive filthy trucks with stock or slightly lifted suspension and relatively narrow tires. The “statement” trucks are all shiny and clean, jacked up to absurd heights, with wide, knobby tires sticking way out past the fenders. They are a menace.

[herr_oberst]

I've seen newish BMW's and Merc's at such extreme stances, with the wheels cambered so radically, that the tops of the wheel arches are roached. And my thinking is, the damage is a badge of honor, part of the look. (I've also seen this effect on Hondas. I don't react the same way, those are cheap and mostly disposable and are often sort of clapped-out anyway)

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

How do you feel about lifted trucks? .... They are a menace.

There's one around me that is at least 24" above stock. Their bumper is at or above my head in my Volvo.

It is seriously dangerous to other cars, but the owner does not drive in a manner that indicates he understands the problem.

[Zeke]

There's Miata coupe (rare I think) near me that is on it's 2nd wrap. This one is hot pink with spreckels. Not metallic, spreckels. The wheels are splayed out at 30º when the air bags are deflated and it sits on the ground.

A dude drives this.

[GH85Carrera]

We have a lot of the crazy pickups lifted so high that the enormous tires would just roll over any car, and theer bumper is at SUV window height. We also have pickups with wheels sticking way outside the fenders. Both should be outlawed for street use.

[oldE]

I wouldn't want to go as far as Germany in that any modification from stock must go through an approval process but automotive fads can lead to some seriously dangerous crap traveling on the highway with us.

Best
Les

[sc_rufctr]

... but where does the line between interesting and insane get crossed?

For me its when the cars ability to be used safely is compromised.

If you can't actually drive a car safely, what's the point?

[LEAKYSEALS951]

There is a group of young guys around here who have a 'gang' of lowered cars.

If one degree of negative camber helps- 10 degrees should be better? Right?

Well, anyways, they have a volvo wagon, and some BMW 3 series and a bunch of import stuff. Some older subie wagons. Cool stuff.

Even if lowering the car to bottom the struts out on the strut towers isn't my thing, I get it, and it makes me smile. I give them a big smile and thumbs up when I'm in my p-car. I've even hunted down the volvo guy and talked shop with him-

Usually I like to approach them in my wagons, or my custom bicycle builds. Said in a David Attenborough voice.

but- watching these cars ride bottomed out makes me a little sad. I can almost see the splndles bending and shock towers cracking as they waddle down the road. I couldn't see myself buying one of these cars used from them, even the volvo wagon. They really don't track too well over the simplest manhole cover.

That said, I love their enthusiasm, and there are some other import tuners around who will hang a gawdawful turbo off the front of anything, and I love their creations!

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Also of interest are the "spinner" 22 / 24/ etc. inch rimmed cars.
The buick rivieras, the caprice classics.

The rear is easy, just lift the solid axle. The front ends get squirrely, on the least amount of pea gravel!
I do like to watch the front end linkages wiggle wobble as they navigate city streets at sub 20 mph speeds.

[Zeke]

It's the American answer to the Japanese car culture. One in particular goes to the extreme:
https://www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&sca_esv=5414f8829cd55d19&q=japanese+car+Bosozoku&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwji0Lu3-YiEAxUwLUQIHbFrA-IQ0pQJegQIDBAB&biw=1920&bih=911&dpr=1

[A930Rocket]

I’m glad they are car guys and everybody’s got their opinion. Unless they barely drive them, how does the inside contact patch not wear out in a few hundred miles?

[herr_oberst]

Has anything really changed? (This car seems to run pretty well. I'll bet tuning 8 carbs and 2 ignitions is no mean feat.)

[rcooled]

Originally Posted by oldE

...lowered, with wide rims mounting tires which were deformed in order to seat the beads and drastic negative camber resulting in the tires contacting the road surface with part of the tread and part of the sidewall.

This is a popular look around here among the import tuner crowd. I can only imagine how poorly these rigs must drive...but hey, it's all about the look, right?

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

Has anything really changed? (This car seems to run pretty well. I'll bet tuning 8 carbs and 2 ignitions is no mean feat.)
>

No, I don’t think things have changed all that much. There were dedicated followers of fashion when I was a teenager too. In the 60s there was a rule at the drag strip that you couldn’t run slicks that wouldn’t fit in stock wheel wells. So guys were buying wide tires and jacking the rear of the car up in order to get them inside the wheel well. So that became a fashion. Stupid kids were buying long spring shackles and jacking up the rear of their skinny tired, 6 cylinder Novas with no clue as to why, other than it was the fashion.

[oldE]

Indeed. I once had a ride in a neighbor's 67 Nova which was jacked up in the back for just that reason. The ride was best described as stiff and squirrely. The reason? When longer shackles didn't give him enough clearance for the wide tires, he jacked it up and put exhaust clamps on the shocks!
Yes, morons have always lived among us.

Best
Les

[Bob Kontak]

Older guy. I asked Back pressure issues? He said Not any more. Then I proudly pointed out my Ford 5.0 emblem on the back of my RAV.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by oldE

I wouldn't want to go as far as Germany in that any modification from stock must go through an approval process but automotive fads can lead to some seriously dangerous crap traveling on the highway with us.

Best
Les

Back in the last 60s and early 70s in Hawaii it was required to get a permit to put larger tires on your car. The man that introduced me to photography had a Mustang with larger than stock tires, and he had a real fight to get the permit to run those tires and wheels. Back then the state inspectors actually got in the car and test drove it to test the brakes, and steering. Of course back then there was no smog tests since no car had pollution reduction systems.