Scene trends

Cars Culture

Top six modified scene trends of 2019

As with any fashion, trends in the scene change quicker than most blokes change their underpants (no, turning them inside-out doesn’t count as ‘fresh’) and as we’re around halfway through the 2019 show season it was high time we checked them out.

This year has been an interesting one for changing trends and outlandish choices. As the excitement builds during the winter, with people getting their builds ready in secret with a view to creating a wow or shock factor, it’s always exciting to see what drops in those first few months of show season. No matter what the scene; whether it’s Jap, VAG, French, Ford or other marques, builders aim to please. Each manufacturer’s following seems to have a different goal. Jap, for example, has always been known for more performance-orientated choices in their builds, while the VAG has mostly about immaculate paint and flashy wheels.

Whatever your flavour, though; if you’re into cars, there’s always something to tickle your fancy.

And this year’s no different.

So let’s get into it with the first in our six modified scene trends of 2019:

 

  1. ROTIFORM AERO DISCS

Rotiform are well renowned – in particular in the Volkswagen Group scene – for being a go-to wheel choice. It’s popular belief that air ride and Rotiform wheels equal a show car. We’re not sure how true that is, but credit where credit is due Rotiform have some cracking wheel choices for all manner of stud pattern and offset. And the brand clearly has a huge following, which could be the reason why the new Aero Discs are so popular. They’re a bit like when you get fans for BBS. And they’re a bloody awesome idea! The wheel is pretty plain as standard, but it’s the free downloadable graphics from Rotiform that really make them interesting. And if you want to be different, a good graphics designer will be able to whip you a design of your own up without an issue. Versatile AF wheels, for sure.

scene trends rotiform
  1. CAMBER

Oh camber. I would liken Camber for marmite; you either love it or you hate it. You get the ones who mock the functionality of the car and you get the ones that royally rock the sh*t out of negativity. When I say negativity, I mean negative camber. And no, we’re not talking about THAT stupid Volkswagen Lupo from a year or so ago… And no one is a fan of the aesthetics of positive camber. Positive camber is only acceptable in certain track-racing cases. There’s creating shock at shows and then there’s sealing yourself a ticket out of the modified scene’s hit list. Now, of course, when a car is lowered somewhat it does create some very slight negative camber, but the show hoes are taking the small step forward into negative naughtiness.

  1. BIG WANGS

Aerodynamics ftw, right?! Well unless your car is a track weapon, these big wangs are purely for looks. Some people go overboard – the aforementioned few that are looking for that show shock factor – and some go tasteful. A big wing (or spoiler) sounds scary, but they really can look good when done right. And if all else fails, you have your very own picnic table to hand or you could perhaps do your ironing if that’s your thing…

  1. LIVERIES

Now, don’t get it twisted, wraps have been in for a while now in a bid to change up your car completely and cheaply without the need for a respray every year. But, wraps have been done and are seeing a bit of a decline in the modified world; it’s now all about the liveries and graphics. So rather than covering a car in a full wrap, modders are going for custom liveries made up for their cars. Taking individuality to another level, we love this trend. There’s not many things you can do to a car that can’t be seen as ‘copying’ and being original in this scene is something that’s become rarer and rarer over the years and if an original idea is presented, it’s not original once it’s debuted at a show because someone is going to go and copy it ready for the next show. Liveries are a little different in this respect; no one wants to be caught out outright copying and liveries are unforgiving in that sense.

  1. SPLITTER RODS

Splitter rods, if you didn’t know, are the (often unnecessary) bits that look like they’re holding a splitter on to the front bumper. In fact, some splitters are designed with splitter rods to ensure they remain parallel to the ground. This year, these are all the hype. But they’re not all as they seem, with some being purely aesthetic rather than having any real functionality. We’re really not sure on this one, let us know what you think in the comments below.

  1. CHUNKY TYRES

Think back just five or six years and it was stretched rubber that was all the rage. No one wanted to see any tyre wall, unless it was the classic white walls of the retro era. In fact, some people saw it a challenge to see how little size tyre they could stretch across their fat girth – the aim being; higher the j, the higher the amount of stretch. Now, though, that’s all seemingly changed. People are wanting more rubber and are veering more toward the race spec and drivability side of a show car. We’re not sure how well this sort of tyre would go down on a ‘show wheel’, but on these Regamaster EVO they’re a fine choice!

WILDCARD…

LEATHER WHEELS

Yep, leather wheels. Leather-covered wheels, to be specific. Not to be driven on, purely for a trailer queen’s looks. The owner was told the wheels were unsafe for road use, due to a high risk of cracking, so decided to glue a leather trim directly onto the face to make them show wheels. Sounds bonkers, is bonkers, yet looks awesome! Can you tell we’re confused?!

So that’s some of this year’s modified scene trends we’ve homed in on. Have you caught any random trends, such as our wildcard? If so, let us know in the comments.

images: Superb, TRIFECTA Media and Jonny Smith

 

 

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