LoveMore Stance 2014 (Photo Heavy)

Due to the high amount of photos, I'll keep the write up short...

If I could sum up the whole day in one word it would be: Perfect. The weather was perfect, the venue was perfect, the music was perfect, and the stance...was perfect.

Dopest Inc. really pulled out all the stops for their event, from the beautiful venue, to the delicious Pizza (from Lovemore Pizza), to the top class DJs, to the bonfires at the after party, to the jumping castle and foamy slippery slide. Oh and to the slush puppy machines!

It really was the perfect day for all stance fanatics, and the stance-off entrants were on point as they always are. We had an awesome time and hope to see you again next year...
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(I'm not sure why a couple of photos are over exposed on the blog, but when viewed on PC they are normal, I'll rather leave them up in case the owners feel like we don't want to upload photos of their car :) )

Blade Runner

Original, creative and daring...4 elements that can set you apart in the game we call stance. Yes I said 4 and only mentioned 3, but I'll get to the 4th point in a little bit. If you are a follower of the stance scene, it becomes apparent that to be noticed or stand out is quite the mission. Sure your car has the latest set of wheels on the market and maybe a set of coilovers or bags for that matter, but is your car truly a reflection of the passion and dedication true enthusiasts put into their rides? Maybe you are just a carbon copy of the dude down the block? 

So what does it take to be different? Originality - coming up with your own ideas for one, Creativity - thinking goes a long way, Daring - bold is the order of the day, but most importantly, and this is my 4th point...EXECUTION!!!

Now don’t get me wrong, I'll give you a nod of approval if you have 1 or 2 of the elements secured, but what I saw at an event not so long ago held at NMMU where Charl Rensburg first debuted the new look on his 150i Honda Ballade, I was gob-smacked to say the least. Not only had he nailed these 4 key elements down to the T, but he received a double thumbs-up from me.

I have to admit, on the day of the event the weather was very overcast, which in my eyes gave Charl's Honda a different hue, and made me think it wasn’t his; that, and the fact that it was sporting a freshly coated Mugen front spoiler, perfectly colour-coded to the match the body. The paint on this Honda is super clean, but as Charl explained was a mission to rectify after he purchased it few years back, making his panel-beater sweat bullets over the colour blending on the 17year old car. Not only did his panel-beater do a stellar job but Charl went the extra mile in having all the minor dings and dents removed to give it that smooth fresh factory look, complimented beautifully with a slide a tilt sunroof and a sleek looking E46 boot-spoiler.

As Charl explains; once the stance bug bit, he just knew he had to do something radical to step his game up; running through a good few sets of wheels in the time leading up to his current setup, but first on his to-do list was ditching his cut springs in favour of a set of Tuning Art coilovers which immediately gave his car that low slung look we all crave.

The real turning point came when he went with his gut and purchased these stunning Mazda 6 wheels; how's that for thinking outside the box? And dare I say, daring? Knowing that he'll be running into trouble fitting the wheels as they are of a different PCD, plans were made to fit the 5x114.3 7J wheels to the Honda. Enter the good folk at Euroworx to weave their magic on the car.

To get the wheels fitted sure looked like a battle but in true Euroworx fashion the chaps went over and beyond our expectations. The hardware alone left us all stumped, you see, to get the wheels to fit and fit properly, some serious work went into the 25mm adapters as it is seemingly impossible to fabricate 5x114.3 adapters for a 4x100 hub since the holes will overlap. Not only did it work, but another 9mm spacer was added all round to get the wheels fitting perfectly in the arches. You might ask why such thick adapters and an added 9mm spacer? This is the beauty of OEM wheels; their high offsets give you the room to get your wheel as close to the fender as possible. Originally the Mazda blades have an offset of 60, so add the 25mm adapters plus the 9mm spacer and Charl was left with a final ET of 26, giving him that perfect fitment and resulted in him taking 1^st place for fitment at WonderSLAM this year. And seeing the hardware peek through the spokes of the wheels will just leave you shaking your head in amazement.

When the time came to mount these bad boys, a fellow stancer by the name of Nithaam joined the party and hooked Charl up with the extended wheel bolts and I must admit the red anodized bolts suit the wheels really well, giving it that extra ''wow'' factor. It's what I call a flawless execution. The last thing Charl struggled with was the tyre combo for the wheels, saying it was nerve wrecking but he knew his choice was a good. The chosen tyres were 165/35/17 front and 185/35/17 rear, hence the name ''Blade Runner''. It’s a scary sight but man does it fit the cars overall look, just the right amount of tuck and just the right amount of low.

Overall this car speaks volumes; the idea of being creative, original, daring and executing it perfectly left us all astonished. Charl’s car should serve as a reminder to us about what can be accomplished with a little patience, a bold approach and sheer willingness to push beyond what society thinks is acceptable in the scene. So to Charl and his Honda; I commend you for pushing pass this barrier and who knows what radical wheels and fitment combos are around the corner for us as stancers to drool over.

Words: Cheslyn Bellairs

Photos: Cheslyn Bellairs & Darryn Plaatjies

Post Processing: Sherwin Hambridge

Video: Duane Baatjes

Arctic Air

Let me just clear the air (no pun intended) by saying I'm a sucker for white cars, especially big bodied white cars. I'm an even bigger sucker when they carry a VAG badge, as a matter of fact, any big bodied white car does it for me, albeit BMW, Nissan, Honda, Mercedes Benz, Lexus etc., whether its estates, hatches or sedans, I lust after it. It's like a weakness, my automotive Kryptonite. It will stop me dead in my tracks, take me on a quick automotive fantasy of what I'll do to it then leave me with this lingering gleam in the back of my mind with a little side note; ''One Day''.

When pictures of Mahesh Hooka's bagged Audi S3 started doing the rounds on social media it just further confirmed my love for white cars and we all agreed that it needed to get in front of our lenses, so we got in touch and a date was set.

When we arrived at the shop they were busy closing for the day and as we waited admiring all the pretty wheelware that was on display in the shop window, the man himself came up and introduced himself...oh before I forget; for the out-of-towners, he's the owner of an accessory shop that goes by the name of Autostyling down in P.E, or as we’ve dubbed it: ''SLAM CITY''.

Pleasantries were shared after which we were guided down a flight of stairs to the shop's workshop. While chit-chatting with some of the employees one thing was amiss, ''where was the car?''. Unbeknown to us, the workshop had a cordoned off section separated by a roller gate and as we hung outside talking smack the unmistakable sound of pressurized air muted our conversation. A few seconds later the same sound swept through the workshop. That sneaky gate started to open up to reveal what we came for.

I was in an automotive trance for a good few minutes. If I stood there any longer I would've melted. The florescent lights had the most amazing cooling effect on the car as it stood there all aired out. This car just oozed appeal when staring it head on. I circled the car few times and all my little side notes I made of owning a white big bodied car went out the window. All I kept telling myself is ''you really don’t need much, just a good wheel with a nice tyre combo and bags". Sure Mahesh could've gone to town on it, but he didn’t, maybe he's still planning on it, but damn, I for one would just leave it as, I mean; it's just so beautiful.

We proceeded fitting the shop's number plates and smacked on the decal for the finishing touch and off we went. Seeing this car in motion on Fifteen52 Tarmacs was pure bliss, the white on white looked oh so heavenly coupled with a dark tint which made the white pop even more. Spending 3 to 4 hours photographing a car really allows you to appreciate all the small details that manufacturers add to their range topping models to make them feel more special and it’s no secret that Audi is one of the best at doing so. 

The interior of an A3 is class leading to begin with but the S3’s interior even more so, with solid plastics, brushed aluminum, and chunky sport seats that radiate premium quality and class. Subtle S3 and Quattro badges in and around the car as well as front and rear diffusers serve as further reminders that the car was made to get you from point A to B quickly, and incase the badges aren’t convincing enough the stage 1 software and downpipe Mahesh added will cast all doubt from your mind that this S3 can still do what it was made to do.

After we had our way with it in front of the camera's, and it rolled off into the distance, I could feel my weakness disappear, my Kryptonite has been removed, I started to function properly...yet it left me again with that faint lingering gleam. Will my love for white cars continue to linger? Was this the epitome of my white addiction or will another piece of white Kryptonite stop me in tracks? I'm yet to find out...

Poloaded

''Everything in moderation, including moderation'' - a quote by Oscar Wilde that rings so true when it comes to car modification. Too often have I seen guys purchasing goods left, right and centre and doing mods all at once. While this is all good if you have put some thought into it and did your homework, but (yeah there is a but) at time's I feel going about it this way loses all the excitement of modifying your pride and joy. I for one would've been bored if I did all the changes at once, so from one car guy to another, I say to you...''Always leave room for improvement so you don’t grow stagnant with your car''

Now that the sermon is out the way, let’s get back to our latest feature. As mentioned earlier, this is exactly how Romeo Barends approached his ’99 Volkswagen Polo 6N, gradually doing things over the last 7 years but at the same time keeping his goal in sight. As you can tell from the exterior, lot of inspiration was drawn from our European counter parts; clean and arrow straight looking body lines with small tweaks that will go unnoticed at first glance. Take the front bumper for instance; I didn’t notice it at first, but it underwent some plastic surgery. It’s been shaved and flushed to rid it of its fog vents, a very nice “face-lift” I might add. A pair of angel eyes replaced the stock headlights and got the ever popular HID treatment as well. The obligatory tilt and slide sunroof is in play too and a dash of red laminex on the tail lights to finish off the exterior. Like I said, clean and simple.

You might have noticed the WheelWhores sticker located on the rear bumper, it’s there for a reason. Romeo is somewhat of a wheel junky, having quite a few sets he scoots around on. Just the past couple of months he went through 4 or 5 different wheels ranging from Schmidt’s, BBS's and Helios just to mention a few. I was surprised to see him at VW Campfest this year where he mentioned a new set in the works; those would be his current offering. A pair of HRE 454's Vintage Series coming in at 17x7 et 30, which are tightly wrapped in a set of 185/35 Nankang rubber, sort of reminds me of the ones the Lamborghini Countach sported a while back. As far as the suspension goes, he had a pair of JOM Blueline coilovers ordered and fitted by Amish Raga from Euroworx, and that brought the entire package together to give the car an almost floating effect as it screams pass you on the streets of P.E...and by scream, I literally mean just that...SCREAM!!!

The sound this car emanates is all thanks to what's hidden under the hood. As I mentioned previously, Romeo owns the car for roughly 7 years, strategically improving on it as he went along, nothing out of the ordinary just something to keep him smiling along the way. Thanks to the work of Abdul Davids, it started out as a 1.6i, but then went a step further and had a 2.0 short block chucked in. That step was short lived as the bottom end saw some mods in the form of 82.5mm 2.6 Caravelle pistons along with a forged steel crank borrowed from a 16v. An upgraded oil pump and a sport Windage tray was added for peace of mind and at the time it still ran the stock U-flow head together with the stock mp9 setup, but when boredom struck not long afterwards, a plan was hatched to ditch the U-flow in favour of its crossflow equivalent borrowed from an Mk4. It got flowed and ported for the 288 Estas cam and Vernier pulley that was about to be dropped in. A Rowland intake was sourced and also got some love in the flowing department. Being a crossflow head, I don’t think there's anything better suited for it than a pair of ITB's, the sound they make always put the most evil smile on my face whenever I hear them. Romeo’s choice was spot on with a pair of Toyota 20v ITB's with 100mm trumpets that's ready to suck in ample amounts of fresh air when his foot stomps the pedal, and spent gasses make their way out into the atmosphere via a 57mm TNT branch and exhaust system. The last piece of the puzzle ties everything together in the form of a dictator management.

His mods sound very minimal, something you'll often hear at a drag meet, but it's when you pop the hood that it dawns on you how much thought was put into it. You see, Romeo is part of Xtreme Vdubs down in the Bay and from my personal experience with them in the past one thing is clear, these chaps like neat and tidy engine bays, with more chromed and polished parts to blind Stevie Wonder. It was only fair on Romeo’s part to follow in his crews’ footsteps and get a few (a lot) parts polished and chromed from a fellow member called Lennie. With all these sparkly bits in place, it makes for a real treat on show days when the hood gets popped and you get stared down by those trumpets looking as if they might have been pulled off an old battleship. The engine bay received its fair share of presentation points on the day of the shoot, as everything was neatly tidied up by doing a semi wire tuck. What amazed me the most was how much the crossflow conversion opened up the engine bay, giving you the freedom to have a good look at what’s crackin’. Battery covers, oil catch cans, tappet cover and all other ancillaries beautifully polished or chromed. With the new rage of having smoothed out engine bays and wire tucks, I find it refreshing as to how this engine bay looks, it still keeps its identity to some extent, in that you can clearly identify parts and can clearly see the work that went into it...semi hardcore...semi posh, with still room left for improvement if the need arises.

For a car I’ve seen at numerous shows and events, I never really took note of his interior, maybe it was a case of always being overwhelmed by his exterior or motor or even his wheel choice at any particular time. Whatever the case, that changed on the night of the shoot when he asked me to start up the motor. Usually I’ll just stick my hand through the window and turn the key, but not this time around. As I turned the key I was greeted with a little cool blue gauge and audio equipment that lit up the interior. Being the curious person I am, I immediately popped the door open to get a better look inside. Yip...I was sitting in neatly upholstered tan leather seats, while the engine was dancing to its off-beat rhythm produced by the cam. In front of me was a sporty little racing steering wheel with a Momo emblem on it, ''nice piloting tool for this little monster'' I thought. To my left, a stock shifter for grabbing those gears when your foot is planted on the OEM VW accelerator. ‘‘Function over form''...spot on. Just above the shifter is the auto gauge I mentioned that monitors the oil pressure. The longer I sat the more I liked being in the driver seat, everything was so simplistic, yet performed its duties perfectly. As for the audio, this car was loaded up good and proper; upfront is a Pioneer in-dash DVD head unit with matching pioneer splits in the front doors. To get the bass notes going in the back are 2x12'' pioneer subwoofers with 2x8'' limpids just above them, all the gear gets amplified via 2 Star Sound amplifiers...again nothing fancy, just enough to keep the man smiling.

Just like that the fun came to an end. A very straight and simple polo, loaded with a ton of attitude. As said in the opening paragraph, everything in moderation, and I think we all can take a chapter from Romeo’s build. I for one took in a lot from this feature; it constantly evolves, growing from strength to strength. What’s next for the polo we surely don't know, but whatever gets done to it, will definitely be a step up from its current state. So I’ll end off with another quote ''Rome wasn’t built in a day''...or should I say ''Romeo's polo wasn’t built in a day''?  

Photos: Sherwin Hambridge

Words: Cheslyn Bellairs

Video: Duane Baatjes