Alright – I know a lot of S3 guys are from the Southeast… so I have an idea of where this may go. But honestly, as far as the import scene stands right now, who do you think (overall) is doing it better – the East Coast or the West Coast? Oh, and why?
Were coming for you bastards! West coast, you killed my family, raped my dog, and have in and out burger! SCREW YOU
The West Coast… what can you really say that we don’t already know? Everything started there. There are more wild cars, more crazy shops, and more names from California than anywhere else. When something catches on in California, it eventually makes its way everywhere else…
So yeah, we’ve established that, no denying that, right? Yeah, you get your respect, California…
… but what you might not realize if you aren’t a part of whats going on out East is that people are tired of hearing about the West Coast. People are tired of browsing the forums, the blogs, the magazines and seeing nothing but West Coast cars and events. No disrespect, but the big question is….
“What is stopping us from doing it like that?”
Thats a good question. Its much harder for the East Coast to have a scene like that. The population isn’t there, we’re spread out. We don’t have the big name shops, the importers, the abundance of JDM crap that piles into the West Coast. We can’t find fifteen other like minded enthusiasts on the same street, sometimes not even in the same city. We don’t have the big name venues, the endless amount of magazine coverage, etc.
We do have one thing though – dedication.
Its not a big thing for people to jump in the car and caravan hours and hours to another city for a big meet. Teams may have cars spread out all over Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee and still get 100% attendance at the monthly get together. We are dedicated to the few shops we have, and we support them hard.
People out here have great attitudes, too. I think thats what makes it what it is. I go out to Import Alliance, and everyone that has been there and supported them for years knows each other like we’re one big family.
I’m tired as hell, otherwise I’d write some more – but what do you guys think?
A) i took those first 3 pictures
B) i wish i took that last one.
C) west coast they started the scene and they innovate it.
D) Import Alliance gives me hope that the East Coast stands a chance
E) i really do wish i took that last picture
You HAVE to give it to the west. They build innovative and trend setting cars, the east just builds clean, trend set cars after they’ve taken the wests’ ideas and ran with them.
Overall, I will give it to the East for cars though, yes the west has TOO many nice cars to count, but also, the East has cars that flow a lot better, a lot more clean and parts that fit their build
i LIVE on the east coast, nj to be exact, and i will straight up say west coast. Nine out of ten cars i see from the west coast are done right, look clean, and put east coast to shame. Nearly every car i see being posted from someone from the east coast has either tons of knock off parts on it, or just looks plain, or just looks stock. I look through some of the threads from the west coast car meets and even people just snapping shots of their car, and I’m like wow west coast does it the right way.
Thats true, I don’t think we’re necessarily trying to compete with West Coast directly… its more like, “Hey, West Coast is great, but look what the East Coast is starting to do now….. “
Im from East Coast Jersey to an Im going to say west we have some hot cars but a majority are just done wrong an lots of knock off an just look like garbage but Im moving to West in a week!!!
The East Coast has progressed more rapidly in the last five years than the West, meaning it’s transitioned away from painted fiberglass dashes, chrome rims, and pleather seats at a much faster rate than the West did. They didn’t transition first, but they did it faster. If the East can keep that momentum going, things could get interesting. But my answer is not “The East is better.”
I think the West Coast is fantasized by many as a sort of Honda enthusiast wonderland. It isn’t. Besides a couple-hundred-mile stretch of Southern California, the remainder of the West Coast has few advantages over the East. Shops and resources are few and far between in Central California, as they are north of Northern California all the way to the Canadian border. Mail-ordering and waiting for parts is just as popular in Los Angeles as it is in, say, Boston. And, believe it or not, in this age of freelance-based publishing, it is no more challenging for the guy in Ohio to get his car in a magazine than it is for the guy in San Diego. All it takes is a phone call, a thread or an email to pique an editor’s interest and, chances are, he’s already working with a photographer in that area. But I digress.
It’s all about perspective though. One needs only look to Ireland, Thailand, Dubai, Malta, Greece, and the dozens of other overlooked regions where Honda enthusiasm is spreading (at a greater rate than it is in the U.S., mind you) to realize that we’re all basically doing the same thing. I also think it’s age-related. I’ve been involved in this “scene” (as the kids call it now) for nearly 20 years, spent time on both coasts during different eras, and have watched massive change take place in spurts. Look at the big picture and I think you’ll find that we’re progressing as Honda enthusiasts as a whole, and not by region.
the west is leading the charge but the east is mos def. holdin it down…i look at it from the aspect that west coast has more outlets, resources, support from vendors, sponsors etc.
Aaron,
Yes, freelancers are active on the East Coast, but if you’re one of the 99% of automotive publications located on the West Coast, you’d rather have local cars covered by staff photographers than paying out freelancers out East. Not to mention, on the West Coast any and every event is full of staff photographers, so they always get amazing coverage.
Believe me, if Import Alliance was on the West Coast, it would’ve had ten times as much media coverage.
I’ve been told personally by editors that the East Coast is great because there are cars that pop up that are done amazingly well that nobody has ever seen before, that don’t have 500 page build threads, and don’t get posted up in meet photos because they don’t attend the huge meets (there are none out in the sticks lol) but the only problem is… they have NO WAY of knowing about them. Sure, a freelancer might pop up and offer to shoot the car, but photographers on the East Coast aren’t nearly as abundant as the West Coast, especially if you don’t live in a major city.
So yeah, we definitely are at a loss when it comes to media coverage, but I think West Coast publications are starting to take note and are going to start milking the East Coast a little harder… I’m sure there will be plenty of staff photographers at Import Alliance next year.
West Coast-Show cars
East Coast – Fast cars
I look at it as if the East was the retarded inbred redneck trailer park cousin that transferred to the West’s school and is now beginning to come around. Its still a little retarded, which is why it’ll take a while. The east is still at a level where its still copying the West for the most part, but is not yet beginning be innovative enough in order to distinguish itself.
Sure, most general trends start on the West Coast, thats a given… but there are cars on the East Coast that have taken it, thrown a twist on it, and ran with it. There are some very unique builds here – then again, there are some that follow the same trends and styles … but over there they’d get props, so I’m not going to give them any less props for doing it like that on the East Coast.
good way to compare it…
there are more rare/jdm/imported parts on craigslist in L.A. than there are combined on craigslist in Birmingham, Atlanta, Nashville, and probably the entire fucking East Coast.
… you guys got alot more shit floating around to scoop up and work with. Gotta give us props for doing what we’re doing with what we have. Sure, we can hit up an online vendor, but you know we’re paying top dollar on those parts, not to mention the shipping.
plus we got alot more donks LOL
i don’t think its a matter of who doing it “better” its a matter of style. and styles have always been different from east to west coast. i think you see more trends come from the west coast. but as mentioned before the we have more shops, imported shells and parts than anywhere in the U.S. we would be doing something wrong if we weren’t producing “better” cars on a regular basis.
i’ve seen some really nice cars come from the right side of the map, but to me its about building a car thats fun to drive and, inspires others and doesn’t bite anyones trends, regardless of what side of the country your on.
i was born and raised in LA county. so i’ll always claim west coast!
peace up…
a town down.
Speaking from the SouthEast: I think West Coast definitely sets most trends. Style out there is always spot on… in and out of just cars. But I feel like the East Coast has a lot of energy going right now. And that’s got to count for something. The fact that we have to often get out of our local city and cross state lines to get to a meet, makes it more of a voyage… a real road trip. That shit brings people together. When we get to a meet, it’s all camaraderie and hotel parties… no mean mugging. I feel like the focus is more on the people (at least in the SouthEast)… and less on the modlist of your car.
There is a lot to say here, so to those who actually read the novel that I am about to write. I owe you a cookie.
2 years ago September I decided on a last minute whim that I would do something I have never done before. I planned to drive from my home in Oregon, to a car show in Ocean City, Maryland. Now when I say last minute, I am not sure that you could plan this in a shorter amount of time than I did. As this was on a Saturday, the show I planned on attending was 8 days away, and in order to make the cross-country drive I would need to leave no later than Tuesday. Over the course of the next 3 days I proceeded to quit my job, scrounge up a passenger and a couple bucks, throw everything I needed in my car and drive.
To preface, I drive a Volkswagen GTI. Volksawgen has always been a seperate part of the import scene. With a couple showing up to the larger shows, but for the most part remaining their own little group. The show I was attending is the 2nd biggest VW show in the country. And realically I had no idea what to expect.
But once I got there I was completely in awe. For years I had stood by the saying “The West coast is the best coast”. It is understandable too, as other replied have stated, I can drive 5-6 hours and be in Canada, where there are more Skylines and JDM imports than you can shake a stick at. Which naturally means that a lot of those parts trickle down into my neck of the woods. That didn’t matter though, due to the sheer size and power that this show commanded. People were not only ready and willing, but eager to make the drive from Chicago to this show. Crowding the town for the weekend where if you weren’t driving a VW you were in the minority. Think about that for a minute. You would be a minority for being one of the few people in an entire city that wasn’t driving a Volkswagen.
People on the East coast fill up every last inch of that area. And that makes them feel less distanced from everyone else. So when it comes time to drive a few states away for a big car show. No one bats an eye. They have no idea the struggle that it takes to get anyone to drive to Seattle, a short 3 hours drive to the closest large city to me. But in order to get there, you need to drive through 2 hours of absolutely nothing.
So to get someone to drive to California? Forget about it. There are 3 states taking up the West. Opposed to the 11 that make up the other side. Not to mention there are around 4 majorly populated areas.
The point of all this rambling is that despite all of the neat features we get here. Like the parts, the cars and the magazines locally. We don’t have the community. Which I feel is something that no one quite seems to grasp. Just because you might look at event coverage of shows online and see fantastic cars. You are just as likely to see them in person as I am. And that is a little upsetting.
^^^ yeah it seems like on the West Coast, you have a lot of significant cars. But most of them are in metro LA, metro San Fran, or metro Seattle…. with not a whooole lot inbetween…. other than vast land that nobody wants to venture out into. I mean – if you’re a sport-compact guy in LA, for example… there’s honestly no reason you’d ever have to venture out of LA… there is always something going on any given weekend (I assume). Over here in the east, we make the drive to go hit events… but there are a lot of smaller cities, etc to keep you entertained along the way.
lol ol Gegg i know in and out is pretty sweet isn’t it,well obviously west coast owns the scene only because the pure fact that it doesn’t cost as much to ship parts from japan over here than it is to the east coast but when i see the cars from the east coast they tend to shit on 85% of the cars in the west such as Frankie with the rhd eg9 and that blue spoon eg for examples
the left coast is the best coast.
naaah, the east coast heads have some very dope cars as well.
i like how a lot of the east coast d00ds are coming to the west coast shows and events. we should try and attend some of the eas coast shows as well.
I really think of it as a David Vs. Goliath
With Hondas being the most popular import I will name them Goliath in this analogy and most Honda “trends” derive from the West Coast without a question.
So with the said……the current Honda trends if I’m correct originated with Volkswagon’s (low offset, stretched tires, etc.)
Volkswagon’s are David IMO though they are not that small in terms of community, they aren’t the “biggest” community neither.
Though it seems the biggest community seems to adopt some of their past trends and add their own style to it.
(All an opinion)
well said Pana.
everything come in phases, VW’s have had low offset wheels for years. its the big thing “right now” in the honda scene. but soon enough it will be something new.
what goes around comes around, in a few more years it might be body kits and drag racing all over again,
I was going to post on here sooner but was just to lazy lol welcome to the West Coast.
So most everyone is saying the same thing on here and I can agree. I have been in the scene for over ten years now traveling to shows on both coasts and I can always say the scene on the east always felt a little behind but to me its a way better scene. I mean there is a passion on the east that the west just doesnt have, there is a respect level that just goes beyond the car scene and the friendships that have developed on the east are just so much more substantial then on the west where its all Hollywood and fake. Dont get me wrong I love the west coast and the scene is amazing but being someone who lives out here and goes to all these shows every month/year, it just gets so damn repetitive and just has that stuck up attitude. I had more fun at Import Alliance this year then I just did at Nisei or any of these other west coast shows this year.
I give the east a lot of respect and credit for the determination and dedication to be different and do things there own way, so some people might say there behind but I can honestly say there more innovative and creative, and I guarantee some of the stuff I saw at IA would kick ass in a west coast show!
I am sure I could say a lot more but for now thats about it. I just wish the scene across the country was the way it used to be in the 90’s before all these damn forums and “internet celebrities” your not a pro car builder or celebrity unless your out winning shows in the car you built! Take a look at the mini truck scene we need to take notes from those guys, they have the comradary that we never had, if they see another mini truck broken down or someone in need of some help they pull over and help. our industry if you see someone broken down your thinking about steeling there car from the side of the road later that night lol.
No matter what coast your on, just do you, do what makes you happy and build your car your way who cares what everyone else thinks. And support S3 damnitt there the only real magazine actually trying to keep the scene alive and featuring real peoples cars, not company built demo vehicles.
Peace
I think the west coast always has and will be known for setting trends.I also think that a large part of that can be attributed to sheer population of shops and parts. It seems that the east coast is really putting HP to the pavement right now. But this question really comes down to what you’re looking for. I think if you want to get down to what made this scene to begin with, you left out a contender, but not a coast at all.
The southeast is really putting it down right now. We have fewer shops, less rare parts to work with, but we still know what its about. Its about getting together with friends and wrenching or admiring work. Its about sleepless nights to make it to the meet. If you dont believe me you either weren’t at Import Alliance and you don’t know about Mr. Coupe’s car. If you were or do, you know what I mean. I’m not saying the coasts dont have peeps like this.I’m not saying that at all. I’m just saying that right now….SE FTW.
East Coast is the Beast Coast.
I think east coast has better cars but like stated on another site they have more shops and companies. I love the east side import scene just do not have the cash to put into my car. From what I see in Atlanta PG+K and ol gregg do it hard loving all the stuff yall do. Keep it up. The yellow s2k and rootbeer dc shit those beat the majority of the west side. much love fellas no homo 😉
i could care less. as long as the tuner scene keeps growing in the east and west coast.
Its all about the dirty dirty third coast. Gulf Coast > *
SouthEast!
I love the comment where the guy says east coast has faster cars than us..LOL
^^^^ run ’em. haha
serously im from tha east coast to be exact atlanta ga and i would say tha west coast but im sure one day tha east coast will rise but till then right now west coast gots it