The Caldron of cool: drenched with cultural diversity and clamoring for individuality, Southern California's influences on automobiles are manifold

Automotive Industries,  Dec, 2004  by Rob Wilson

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"Hey, look at me. I'm alive, I'm happening and I'm cool!" That's what Southern Californians say to the world. They don't have to shout it, just lay back and dig the scene, check out what's new. Californians just do their thing in the caldron of cool and trends and new activities just keep spinning off as the world watches, listens and often adopts and adapts, or sometimes just plain steals.

The automotive world pays close attention, has SoCal pretty completely wired for direct input, in fact. After all, California is a state where residents will sing about their "409" and "little deuce coupe" and will do so till "daddy takes her T-bird away." It's a straight line from the California street rods to halo vehicles like the DCX Prowler or the Chevy SSR (aka: Trowler).

From surfboards to skateboards, from hot rocks to muscle cars to low riders to tuners to drifting, the latest craze, it all happens in California first and on a big scale. While cable and direct TV have accelerated participation by the rest of us, California remains the springboard for the next thing.

The caldron of cool has a much different makeup than the U.S. generally. With over 35 million inhabitants, highest in the nation, only 59.5 percent are white vs. 75 percent nationally; only 6.7 percent are black vs. 12.3 nationally. Yet persons of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 32.4 percent vs. 12.5 nationally; Asians account for 10.9 vs. 3.9 percent. Fully 16.8 percent are from some other race, vs. 5.5 nationally. California is much more diverse than perhaps any nation, but actually reflects the world at large.

It is a litany of cultures and ideas not only living in the same area codes, but moving forward with real synergy. The California car culture says it all. The highest fuel prices in the country and toughest emission regulations actually sharpen its leading edge rather than blunt it.

California is a widely diverse place geographically, as well as culturally. The natural surroundings stimulate enthusiasts of the winding wind, four wheelers who like to deviate from the beaten path, beachcombers, street-racers, drifters, classic car collectors or the run of the mill Ferrari club member. Few countries account for more Ferrari sales each year than California natives, who clearly know cool cars when they see them.

With all this nuanced car enthusiasm sitting in the fertile crescent of the entertainment industry, trends come to permeate throughout the rest of the country. Movies like "Fast And Furious" and "The Italian Job" make stars of cars. Or, check your local listing for "Pimp My Ride" and "Overhaulin'." The fringes of vehicular maximization are always in plain view in California.

One of the most current and interesting cross-pollinations of cultures and car movements is the entry of the Pontiac GTO and Ford Mustang into the drifting world. Drifting is a motorsport born in Japan that has swept California and rapidly spreading across the country. It is a judged event where the most crucial element is being able to kick the side of the car into a lateral drift, holding a smoky burnout throughout the entire course.

In Japan the sport has been dominated by Supras, RX-Ts and the like, while the entry level drift car had classically been older Corolla-type vehicles that featured a rear end capable of drifting. The importance of the U.S.A. entries, on a manufacturer level, not only speaks to the desire to see the U.S.A. vs. Japan on the track, but rather to see them all flying sideways through turn two, grinning from ear to ear.

Nearly one dozen Asian car companies call California home for their U.S.A. operations, and some two dozen domestic and international car builders have design studios of some sort there. Ford moved its Premier Automotive Group (PAG) to Irvine, pretty much the heart and soul of SoCal, in 2000 to co-locate with Lincoln-Mercury, which had moved there from Dearborn in 1998. Surprisingly, Lincoln-Mercury moved back to Dearborn in 2003 to solve its dilemma sans SoCal cool or energy.

Invited to attend this year's Concours d'Elegance in Irvine this fall Automotive Industries looked in on some notable automotive organizations to try and qualify and quantify California's special automotive attributes. This was just before taking in the outdoor event at Strawberry Farms Golf Club, which very nearly got rained out, but then at the last minute was salvaged by sunshine. (Best of Show Award bestowed on Sissy 8z Roger Mortison's 1912 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost.)

First stop was the lrvine company itself, the organization responsible for the planned development of The Irvine Ranch, a prize 93,000 acre tract taking up about 20 percent of Orange County and stretching 22 miles eastward from the Pacific, is often said to be the best example of city planning, period. Nationally, the Kennedys stimulated the early excitement with city planning and indeed it was at the same time, in 1960, that the Irvine Company drew up the original master plan guided by architect and planner William Pereira.