PRHS students add their own colors to driving through their cars
Bearcats are turning driving into something they can call their own. They fill their free time with car care and mods. The hard work rewards them. And their cars are roundly their own. Buying the car is only the first step in a longer process that consists of fixing, upgrading, and customizing.
“I knew what things I wanted to get for it but I didn’t really want to spend more than what I had to. I was willing to work on it but there wasn’t much that needed fixing,” sophomore Kade Mitchell said when talking about his 2001 Chevy Silverado he began working on around Sep of 2021. Mitchell has removed running boards, changed the water pump, fixed the AC, and put on a new muffler. Considering his process as temporarily “done,” he knows more problems will tie him up soon. After all, it’s 20 years old. And beloved.
Similarly, senior Jordy Rodriguez thinks about “what needs to be fixed or what can be improved, and what would take the most time” when taking the next steps in upgrading his 1994 Honda Accord. Since he first started working on his car in August of 2020, he has since swapped his transmission from an automatic to a manual, installed bucket racing seats, and removed the muffler. His process is “far from” being finished, the next step being the paint job.
These drivers are transforming their modes of transportation into reflections of their work and personality. They don’t always have a firm end destination. However, the satisfaction and life knowledge that they get along the way continuously pay off.
“It was a great learning experience just learning the car inside and out,” senior Tony Garcia said. His freshman year, Garcia took on the project of fixing up his grandparents’ 1986 Suzuki Samurai. The “Frankenstein car,” as Garcia called it, first arrived brand new in 1986 and then worked its way to his father’s garage.
"It was a great learning experience just learning the car inside and out" - Tony Garcia, 12
Since then he has finished the “running parts” by piecing from another Samurai he purchased. He upgraded to a bigger engine, adding lower gears for off-roading, adding bumpers, installing mini cooper seats, and putting in speakers – all his own work, the Samurai transports Garcia to school everyday. However, next on the list are customizations that reflect Garcia’s personality: purple leather, Garcia’s favorite color, and a carpeted dashboard are set to be installed to complement the already present purple accents.
For about a year, another senior Taylor Ehlers has been essentially rebuilding his 1975 Ford F-350 Dually fully equipped with a 390 FE big block motor with a four speed manual.
“I would say that knowing I worked for this truck and built it is a motivator. I see it as the reward for all of my hard work,” Ehlers said. In the immediate future he plans on rebuilding the transmission to make it drive better and safer, but in the long term, he hopes to make a custom flatbed and paint it.
"I would say that knowing I worked for this truck and built it is a motivator. I see it as the reward for all of my hard work" - Taylor Ehlers, 12