Article Surfing Archive

I have written many articles and the ones about cars are always the most popular. I know why it is and it is because cars are just a lot of fun. Most of my articles have been about older muscle cars and newer muscle cars and which is better and why. One thing I think I can safely say is, whatever generation you prefer it is better than being a *ricer".

A *ricer" is one of those import cars you see cruising around the city streets lowered down to the point the body is almost scraping on the ground. They usually have huge fart pipe mufflers sticking out from under the rear bumper. I don*t even really understand the point of those mufflers because they don*t even sound good. A *ricer" usually has a driver that has the back of his seat leaning way back but the driver is somehow sitting up to be able to see and reach the steering wheel. Coming from someone that lives using his common sense the whole idea of these *ricers" make no sense to me.

Why spend all this money on a Honda Civic with teal green paint and no power. Why spend even more money to lower it down, throw wheels on it that probably cost more than the car and then try to be cool by sitting straight up while the back of your seat is nowhere near your body?

While old generation muscle car owners and newer generation owners disagree over which cars are superior I think they tend to agree about the fact that their love of their cars actually makes sense compared to the people driving around those *ricers".

I personally like both generation of cars. I would love a late 60's or early 70's Mopar. I would really love a 69 Z28. I have owned several 87 turbo Buicks. I just bought myself an 87 Chevy IROC with a 350 TPI. They all have their great things about them. When I see any of these classics drive by I usually like to get a good look at them. When a *ricer" drives by I find myself chuckling because they just look so ridiculous to me.

I certainly don*t mean to offend anyone who may drive one of these imports. It is your money and you can spend it however you like. I understand the fascination with cars, it is a guy thing. I just don*t understand why it is a Civic or an Accord. This is not to say some imports are not impressive cars. Toyota Supra*s, Nissan 300 ZX twin turbos, and the new 350Z's are nice cars. They are excellent performers, great looking, and they handle far better than the American cars I mentioned above. One advantage they certainly have over American cars is their reliability.

But, when I think of buying a high performance car to have some fun in it is the American cars they come to mind first. They have power, looks, and an intimidating presence about them. They also tend to be cheaper, unless you get into the real collectible muscle cars. There is just something to pulling up to a friend and hopping on the gas with the right foot and holding the brake pedal with the left and taking off a few miles of rubber. You can*t get the same effect from a front wheel drive 4 cylinder.