10 Different Types of American Car Builds #blogpost

Believe it or not, there is some variety to the cars from sea to shining sea.

One: Pro Street

A pro street car can be defined as a car that can put down really fast drag times during the weekend and then cruise back home in comfort. Focus is put on straight line speed and everyday drivability, to where pro street cars come close to being like pro mod cars (purpose built drag cars) but with creature comforts for road trips. One event with a lot of pro street cars is Hot Rod Drag Week, where drag cars drag race at 5 racetracks in 5 days all while road tripping in the drag cars themselves.

Two: Pro Touring/ Race Car

Pro touring is a somewhat newer trend in the muscle car community. A pro touring car is a car that can corner, stop, accelerate and road trip with ease. A pro touring car and a BMW M5 have a lot in common. People will often put an IRS in a classic muscle car to improve handling and manual transmissions are common with this kind of build. The Optima Street Car Challenge is where pro touring cars can be seen in action. Strip out all the creature comforts of a pro touring car and toss in a roll cage and racing seats and you have yourself a race car.

Three: Rat Rod

Rot rods have been pretty popular recently. Rat rods are usually pre 1980 American cars with loud exhuasts, rust and patina paint jobs and quirky modifications. They’re hot rods if they were left outside for a decade or two Some prime examples of a rat rod is many cars featured on the Roadkill show on Motor Trend’s Youtube channel. The Rotsun, General Mayhem and Stubby Bob are just a few examples of Rat Rod like vehicles out in the car scene.

Four: Low riders

When JDM cars get low, they stretch the tires and camber the wheels. When American cars get low, the whitewalls are shiny and the fender skirts are low. Low riders don’t just have to be cars with bouncy hyduralics, shiny paint jobs and Latino drivers. They can be cars like the one below, living out the slogan of Ramone from Cars “Low and slow” In my opinion, this is what a low car should look like.

Five: Hot Rod/Street Rod

If one car could represent what a hot rod is, it would be a 32 Ford Coupe like the one pictured below. This car was featured in American Graffiti, a film set in 1962 Modesto California, where teenagers listened to rock and roll and cruised around town in souped up hot rods. It could be argued that hot rod culture which was the beginning of American car culture. Street rods are hot rods but with fancy paint jobs and luxurious interiors with show car quality.

Six: Cruiser

Cruisers are big American cars that can cruise Main Street comfortably and look good doing it. Bench seats, automatics, good sound systems and a shiny paint jobs are the norm here and cornering capability is often an after thought. This kind of car would be a great choice for date night, because the average girl probably doesn’t want to ride in your race car.

1967 Buick Wildcat: A great car for cruising the Vegas strip in style

Seven: Donks or Hi-Risers

Love it or hate it, “donks” are here to stay. These cars are anything but stealthy, with flashy paint jobs and regarding the rims, bigger is always better This style of car is often liked and driven by African Americans in the inner city of Eastern and Southern USA. They could be compared to “ricers” who make cars LOOK fast but are the opposite of fast.

Eight: Drifter
American cars built to drift are probably more rare than a Lamborghini (not counting the tractors), but people still do make them. The build style of a drift car is very similar to that of a track car but with some minor differences. Buckets of grip and down force are traded for hydraulic handbrakes and a stiff suspension. The Hoonicorn, Ken Block’s 1965 all wheel drive Mustang is a fine example of an American tire slayer.

Nine: Gasser
This is a unique style of car used for drag racing. Cars like this are classic cars that have a lifted front end to aid in weight transfer with a solid front axle, fiberglass body, stripped interiors and plexiglass windows. Wondering what a gasser looks like in practice? Look no further than the Blasphemi; a Tri Five Chevy gasser with a 6 speed manual and a big block Hemi that belongs to Mike Finnegan. He’s one of the two presenters of the Youtube show Roadkill, two buddies thrashing on rusty hot rods and muscle cars.

Ten: Rally and Off Road
Lastly, some people believe that when the pavement ends, the fun begins. Therefore, sometimes you see a Mustang or two with some mud tires, lift kit and bull bars, built to excel on non paved roads. The General Mayhem and Hudson Hornet are examples of this off road beast mentality.Whether they want to show up a Subaru at SCCA rallycross or want run with pre runner trucks in the Mojave Desert, you’ll see American cars getting dirtier than a pig in a sty and exploring the four corners of the Earth with a rooster tail of dirt behind the taillights.