If you think the definition of hot rod is basically the same as “street rod,” you are wrong. If you think a hot rod is a rattier version of a street rod without fenders, you are also wrong. Hot rods are made up of way more than T-buckets, three-window high boys, and roadsters… The definition of hot rod even describes trucks, late models, and possibly even (eek) imports. Before you start lubing up those joints with Ben Gay to grab your pitchforks, hear me out.
The term originated from the idea that someone would mechanically modify a vehicle to go faster. That could mean stripping it down, it could mean swapping the engine, it could mean forced induction. It doesn’t mean Lambo doors, underglow lighting, etc. It also doesn’t mean billet door handles and hood hinges, custom interiors, flawless paint, polished wheels…you get the idea. So by that measure, a rusty Pro Touring ’71 C10 or even a muddy Pre-Runner is way more of a hot rod than a street rod with a suede headliner, leather-wrapped dash, polished frame, and mirror finish.
Now, there are some cultural implications with the term hot rod. Many say that hot rodding is way more than just the vehicles, it is a culture in itself. This is a culture that is rebellious, resourceful, and self-reliant yet still communal. As long as something follows those basic tenets, why wouldn’t we accept it into the culture?
Now, this is where I feel that imports actually split from “real hot rods” in some (but not all) cases. If you fabricated a turbo kit for your Honda Civic in your own garage, bought a turbo and wastegate from Summit Racing, and are burning off a set of Mickey Thompson slicks every Thursday night – it’s every bit of a hot rod as a modified ’32 Ford or ’69 Camaro. That said, if all you are doing is importing factory JDM or Euro parts, not so much. There’s nothing self-reliant about that. This completely goes against the spirit of hot rodding.
If there is one area where our hobby has really failed, it’s accepting younger generations as the scope of “hot rodding” should have changed but the “gatekeepers” didn’t want change. They wanted things to stay the way they were. Well, guess what, if they are successful then when all the gatekeepers die from old age, the hobby dies with them. In some cases, it is thinly veiled xenophobia, but I think for the most part this came from a natural inclination as people get older to cling to things that are familiar as well as the desire – with the purest of intentions – to want to pass down a legacy.
I challenge all of you reading this to think more deeply about this legacy, deeper than just sheetmetal. Let’s keep the spirit of hot rodding alive, no matter what the vehicle is or what engine is powering it.
On a personal note, I’d really love it if someone said, “That’s a sweet hot rod” to my future self when I Coyote or LS-swap a Porsche 928. Heaven knows the Porsche crowd isn’t exactly going to accept me with open arms.
