University of North Carolina at Charlotte

The Automotive Culture of Charlotte

Paul Chang
Connie S. Douglas
UWRT 1101-090
November 4, 2014
Paul Chang
Connie S. Douglas

UWRT 1101-090
November 4, 2014

Every city has its own distinctiveness that makes special that it is hard to notice its famous aspects, features, and culture. Charlotte is the biggest city of North Carolina that features
the well-known nightlife, financial centers, and sports. However, the automotive culture in Charlotte is overlooked by the general public because it is a lifestyle that only a certain group of people will understand and live. I decided to study the automotive culture for my ethnography because it is rare to find a large and diverse group of people that shared the same passion for their
automobiles anywhere else in the nation.
I attended many events to understand the automotive culture of Charlotte because it has
been a foreign subject to me. I have attended weekly car meets at UNC Charlotte and in Matthews, North Carolina. I went to a drag race and a dynamometer test with a professional drag
racer. Finally, I attended Tuner Evolution, one of the biggest events on the East Coast for this
certain subculture. I decided to observe and conduct my first-hand field research at the car meets
on UNC Charlotte because it comprises many different car enthusiasts from all around Charlotte.
The event takes place weekly on Sundays at the upper levels of CRI deck on the engineering side of campus. The event starts around seven oclock P.M. and enthusiasts flock to the
top of the deck after checking in with the event coordinators at the entrance. Automobiles begin
filling the top deck first and you notice that specific cars park together. For example, a Mazda
Miata park amongst their own while the Honda Civics do the same. The owners of these cars are
usually students of UNC Charlotte yet some of them come from other schools; such as, Central
Piedmont Community College. The majority of these people are male, yet there are a handful of

females as well. It is diverse when it comes to demographics because you see a lot of white men,
but there are a lot of Asians and Hispanics as well. The age group ranges from around eighteen
to late twenties in general, but there are a few outliers. Around eight when the sun begins to fall,
more enthusiasts begin to come and reach a peak at around this time. The bulk of this subculture
prefer their cars lowered and with aftermarket exhaust systems, but do not own any expensive
cars. The most expensive cars to come around to this meet include Nissan GTRs, Corvette Z06,
and Toyota Supras. The car scene is most relatable to the Fast and Furious scenes for a visual
depiction because the cars would be parked in an organized fashion while onlookers gather or
wander around admiring the cars of fellow enthusiasts. The enthusiasts usually come with friends
and they will group around a car and carry on a conversation. Some people come to take pictures
of the cars and others will come to observe others cars. Owners are eager to answer questions in
regards to what they did to their car to achieve a certain build. I could notice that the types of
people here like to show off what they have as a item of dedication and taste. Some of these enthusiasts like to race on the streets illegally for bets, to prove who is faster, or for the adrenaline
rush that comes from racing. The meet itself does not condone any racing, burnouts, and revving
and the person will be banned given that they break the rules. If an unique car pulls up to the
scene, people will gather around to observe the car or talk to the owner. I noticed that women are
synonymous to car meets because there will always be models advertising for a certain company
wearing limited amounts of clothing. This is a common theme for car meets because being that
the majority of the attendants are males, it is more attractive to include females. Everybody
leaves around eight thirty to nine oclock P.M. and most likely leave with the people they came
with.

I interviewed some owners of their cars to get insight on the Automotive Culture. I asked
Kyle, the owner of an 06 Honda Civic Si about what he thought about the Automotive Culture
of Charlotte. He said, I came from a small town where the people dont really appreciate cars
and there were no groups that had the similar passion for cars as I did. After I attended UNC
Charlotte I found out about the car meets and began to attend them and that is the best thing I
love about Charlotte. I asked about how much he invested into his car and why and Kyle responded that I have around five thousand dollars put into my car mostly for performance and
looks because I like the idea that you can make your own car unique and individualized as well
as faster than the person next to you. I cant build the nicest or fastest car because I go to school
but Ill make do with what I have. I also interviewed a humble drag racer named Matt about
why how much time he spent and why. He said, I am a perfectionist and Ive been perfecting
my car for over a decade because I love doing it and also it allows me to bring out all the potential that the car has in a specified distance. When asked about what he thought about the Automotive Culture of Charlotte, he responds, Thats why I moved down here from Virginia, its
because theres so much more to offer in the automotive industry down here. I plan on working
for NASCAR and/or running in a specific league of drag racing because there isnt anywhere
else to achieve this goal than in Charlotte. I met the lady that hosts the car meet at Matthews,
NC named Leyla L-Train and asked her about why she hosts the meets, she replied, I pay out of
pocket over two-hundred dollars to have that location every week. Its because I love the people,
I love to see them together, and I love that everybody comes and shares a similar passion.
Upon secondary research, I discovered that this culture as a whole is a concept of consumption. The practice of modification complements status in which he or she does not already
possess. Modification of stock cars to become custom goods which others comprehend that

the consumer has a set of culturally constituted meanings. There are three themes that can be inferred by the practice which has been revealed in behavior and literature. The first is appropriation and repurposing of goods through modification. The second is extension of functionality or
the introduction of functionality. The third is beautification through modification. As seen in
observations at the car meets, the enthusiasts modify their car for several purposes which may
include creating associations that a consumer cannot have at their disposal due to prohibitive
costs and access. Most, if not all the cars have labels and stickers that define and associate themselves to a certain group. For example, big associations may include StanceNation, Dapper,
Toyo Tires, Tailored, NVUS, Slammed, HellaFlush, and Lowlife. This may likely
lead to a new cultural or societal identity for the enthusiast. By having top-dollar modifications
on cars such as air-bag suspension systems, the owner can build status through the concomitant
expenditure of labor and cost of build (Hill, 2006).
While most people claim that automobiles are just a machine, there are those people
that have a special bond to that car. To the masses, it is unorthodox to spend the time, money,
and
heartache to build a transportation from point A to B yet, the people I observed at the UNC
meets and Tuner Evolution seem to beg to differ. Automotive culture all comes down to what it
does for us, the drivers. They fill people that enjoy speed and machines with happiness and infuriation but
in the end they are like friends, or a wingman perhaps. The culture ticks because it is invigorating to create something of our own that is unique to each individual that goes further than just the
engineering itself. It is hard to grasp why one would dedicate so much time and money to a machine but to tuners and racers, it is an art that will create joy and happiness for them. I have

witnessed through both research that it is the passion for individuality expressed through automobiles that separates car people from the masses. This is what drives the automotive culture and
fuels the spirit for innovation and modification.

Works Cited

Hill, Matthew, "Automotive Culture and History in the United States" (2006). 2006 AHS
Capstone Projects. Paper 17. 2 Nov. 2014.

Huffman, John Pearley. What Id Do Differently. Car & Driver 59.11 (2014): 116. Academic Search Comlplete. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.

Potter, Harrison. "Cars, Culture, and Place Fall 2010." RSS. 1 Jan. 2015. Web. 1 Nov.
2014.
Volti, Rudi. Cars and Culture: The Life Story of a Technology. JHU, 2006.
171. Print.