Doperides

Music Project.

2006-08-28T10:27:00.000-07:00

This one was pretty tough to beat for awhile. My old boss found it in the South Bay area one morning and came in really excited. You can pretty much stare at this one for hours and keep finding new stuff. And it's got a hitch welded to the front so you can tow it. I wonder if it runs or if it's little bug engine doesn't crank out enough horsepower due to the three tons of equipment it's got on it. I bet the guy that owns it takes it around to schools around California during music appriciation week (yeah, budgets have been slashed that music programs are now just one week a year). He's got to be raking in the dough with that gig, right?

On a sad note; we think we might be able to stretch this out until October, because we've got the ultimate Halloween ride ready to go, but after that we're pretty much done. Not a whole lot of people have been checking the site out and we've had to let some of the staff go. So we really need some submissions. We've got a couple left in the archives, and we've got a line on a couple of cars, but after that, it's pretty much over. Unless we rerun it on Myspace, where I'm sure we could get 937615 "friends" in the first month. We'll keep you posted.

Art Project.

2006-08-21T11:40:00.000-07:00

Wow. Another San Diego special. Seriously, what's going on down there? There has to been some kind of reactor leak that contaminated their drinking water. That's the only explaination. Anyways, this one is nice because it's ghetto. Primer? Check. License plate zip tied to the front bumper? Check. Crazy '80s abstract art on the doors? Check. But of course the thing that puts this one over the top obviously is the Alien. Because after you see that, then it all makes sense. Or not. Haven't really made a decision on that one yet. We'll let you know.

Acid Trip.

2006-08-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Seriously, this one had to had taken years to finish. Found in NorCal somewhere. For some reason we love the moasic pattern around the windows. And the crazy animal theme is outstanding as well. I mean, you really don't need us to say too much more about this one, right? You can pretty much make fun of it on your own. Yup, that's about all we've gotta say about it. Enjoy.

Eighties.

2006-08-07T11:34:00.000-07:00

Ok, we're back from hiatus and we're kicking off Bug Month here at Dope Rides because, what the hell, it's August and people do some messed up stuff to Bugs. I think because there's just so many Bugs around that owners feel they have do something crazy to stand out in the crowd. So without further delay, here we go;

So I like the 80's, but this is just taking it too far. The purple, the crazy art piece on the side, and am I insane or did they chop this thing? Whatever. Another San Diego special, and this is only week one. We promise there's even better stuff coming up.

Cintegra.

2006-07-18T15:07:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the late post, I forgot my iPod at home yesterday and that's where I have all the pictures. Anyways, so this one is actually a car that was owned by a guy I used to work with. He brought in pictures one day and we laughed at him for a long time. Then we all calmed down for about five minutes but then it was still too much so we started laughing at him again. Because that's what friends do. Anyways, this one's called Cintegra because it's a Civic Hatchback with an Integra front end grafted onto it. But you would have never known about that if I hadn't have told you. The second picture is an "inprogress" shot where the front end isn't as smooth and the all important rear aluminum spoiler isn't attached yet. I also really like the interior and engine compartment pics. It's all about the details, remember that. Anyway, we gotta figure out what we're doing for the next two weeks because August is going to be another specialty month devoted to a specific car model. Just to let you know. Peace.

Red Hot.

2006-07-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

I'm kinda shocked we haven't run this one yet, because it's a classic in the making. I was looking through the archives (which are becoming smaller and smaller with each passing week; basically what we're saying here is you need to help us out because we're lazy, so send in those submissions) and noticed that this one hadn't been spotlighted yet, so this was the week. I believe it was taken in the South Bay area in SoCal and this is personally one of our favorites. The flames, the two different kinds of rims, the useless spoiler, the clear taillights, this one's got it all. And we love it.

Shoe Car.

2006-07-05T09:20:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is a car made to look like a shoe, you are not on acid. We've seen a couple of these things around a few different places, and we finally got some pictures this time. I love the shoelace detail, it's all about the details. I wonder what it would be like to drive this thing; I wonder how it handles? Anyways, I mean, it's a car that looks like a freakin' shoe, what else do I need to say over here? 'Cause I got nothing else...

Woody.

2006-06-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

Sadly, this is the last week of Truck Month x2. That is unless one of our staffers gets up off his lazy ass and takes a couple of photos of a truck I keep telling him to shoot (yeah, I'm talking about you, Karl). Anyways this one is once again from the San Diego area (Man those, San Diego-ites...San Diego-uns...San Die-guns...San Diegans! love their trucks.) and you just don't see this kind of craftsmanship anymore, or...uh...ever. Um, yeah, this one is scary even by normal stabbin' cabin standards. I do like the damage to the right front quarterpanel that's probably never going to get fixed, and the fish window detail, those are nice touches. So there you go, a great way to end Truck Month(s). So we salute you truck owners (and maybe make fun of you at the same time), without you, gas wouldn't be $3+ per gallon. So thanks for that.

Purple Haze.

2006-06-19T10:01:00.000-07:00

Ok. So. What is this? A truck? An old VW bus? A '30s Ford? Our answer; it's all three, and it's magically delicious. Another one from the San Diego area and, I mean, seriously we don't have anything else to say because there's really nothing to make fun of and yet there is but we don't know where to start. This one is sheer awesomeness in it's rawest form. Enjoy.

Purple Rain.

2006-06-15T11:18:00.000-07:00

Sorry this one took so long, I was rehabing from a Vegas trip. Like anyone reads this thing anymore anyway. I'm sure our two readers were crushed the last couple of days when they didn't see an update. Anyways, I believe this one was taken near Ocean Beach in the San Diego area. I imagine the guy that owns this one takes a bunch of shit from his construction co-workers for painting his work truck light purple. The lightning bolts are nice and awesome and all, but the truck is still purple; you can't get around that, dude. However, if it was any other color, I guarantee it would look strange, and that's basically his only defense and it's not much of one. So we salute you Mr. Purple Lightning Bolt Truck Owner; Mission Accomplished.

Monsta.

2006-06-06T09:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry about yesterday, I was kinda busy. Besides, Tuesday's the new Monday right? Anyway, this one was taken by a friend of an old boss of mine at Lake Havasu, Arizona, even though it looks like something straight outta the 909. This is a call, Flatbillers unite! I wouldn't be shocked if the bro who owns this one lives in Riverside for 50 weeks a year and then in Havasu for 2. And he's 38 and tries to pick up on drunk college girls on Spring Break. Let it go dude, just let it go; it's time to grow up now. Anyways, back to the truck, seriously, the lift kit and tires on this thing are just plain stupid, but hats off to the flame detail on the windows and the smoothed out bumper with the Cadillac emblem in the grill. Keep up the good work bra, we salute you.

Mobbin'.

2006-05-30T09:56:00.000-07:00

So this is the first submission we've received (note to Carrie: get some work done) and we're excited about it. This was emailed to us from Chris (aka: "The Crippler") from the Valley (or the SFV as the kids are calling it nowadays). I think he emailed this one to us last Thursday, and since we're all about instant gratification here at Dope Rides, we decided to run it this week. It also gives us a great opportunity to talk about car wraps and how stupid they are. Even though this one is probably the coolest/stupidest one we've ever seen, and that's saying alot, because these things are everywhere in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, this should be a cautionary tale for anyone thinking of doing this to their car or truck. People, just don't do it. It's not worth the money the advertising people are giving you. You're selling part of your soul, or at the very least, part of your car's soul. Just say no. So thank-you to Chris, you actually bailed us out with this one, because we only had eight trucks slotted for the nine weeks of the expanded Truck Series we're currently running. As previously stated, we're extending the Truck series into next month, so be prepared for four more weeks of awesomeness.

Mellow Yellow.

2006-05-22T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is truly a work of art. Master craftsmanship at it's finest. Again, this is an East L.A. special, and it was sitting right outside of work one Friday night like a Chrismahanukwanzakah present just waiting to be unwrapped. I quickly took a front shot because I think the guy was watching me from across the street, so I snapped it and then ran back to my car and took off. Then, last Friday, as if it knew I was going to run it on Monday, I saw it again, sans truck cab (which is also the reason the pictures are totally off in color). Truly a Festivus miracle in May. I really like the window jibs that cut down on that pesky wind that always seems to mess up your mullet when you're driving around with the windows down. Those are nice. And the smaller jibs on the extended cab windows, do they even serve a purpose? The answer is no, but they sure look cool. The only thing that would make this one even better would be the air jib on the hood and a truck bra on the front; that would have classed it up a bit, but we still love this one even without all those fancy extras. I wish I could quit this one...but it completes me. And I think it might have had me at hello.

The Duece.

2006-05-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

This one is a classic. You've seen it (or one like it) around. It's got pretty much every aftermarket cosmetic piece ever made for a truck. I only wish there was a spoiler involved somehow. Or a mural on the tailgate. Either one. This truck was found in East L.A. (that should surprise no one) by an ex-staffer. Speaking of murals, I saw one on a van last week on the freeway. It was glorious. It involved a warrior and his sword and a scantily clad woman. Kind of like something straight out of Heavy Metal. Unfortunately, the battery in my camera was dead and I couldn't get the shot. That always seems to happen. By the way, I don't know why we called this one "The Duece", it just happened that way. Also, Harley Davidson sticker on a car or truck, let's talk about it. Why do people put a Harley Davidson sticker on a car or truck? Harley Davidson makes motorcycles. Hello? Anyone home? Does this make sense to anyone? I love it when you see a tough guy in a Harley shirt and leather tooled jacket get into a car. Textbook walking contridiction right there. Ok, I gotta calm down...

Space Truck.

2006-05-08T13:36:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I love this one. If there was a For Sale sign on this one, I would have had a hard time not waiting for the guy to come out and making him an offer. Sure there's some stuff wrong with it, but there are more things right with it. I found this one on lunch in East L.A. (like I really needed to tell you that, one look at this thing and you can tell where it's from) and it's magnificent. Truly a work of art.

Moster Cabin.

2006-05-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

We're kicking off truck month this week here at Dope Rides, and I don't have to tell you that the entire staff is excited about this event. We're so excited that we're extending it another month. That's right, nine weeks of trucks. We were also going to contact the promotions department over at MI:3 to see if they wanted to do a tie-in, because they've got like 9000 of those going on right now, but then we remembered that we're not whores. Anyway, so the question you're probably asking yourself right about now is, why trucks? Well, they've led the way in car sales for the last ten or so years, and people are doing stupid stuff to them, so there's a lot 'em around for us to take pictures of. Like we really needed an explaination for that one. Anyway, on to this week's entry;

We're starting things off a slowly with our first installment, but trust me, it will build up over the coming weeks, and when it peaks, you'll be thanking us for starting out with a change-up instead of bringin' straight inside heat. Anyways, this is what's commonly refered to as a stabbin' cabin (hey, I'm not makin' stuff up here) and frankly, I'm shocked that you don't see people putting cabins on newer trucks nowadays, they seem to still rock them on 1978 Ford King Cabs. I think you'll start to see them on newer trucks a little more often as time goes on, but in general, the camper is a dying industry. Everyone seems to be moving to huge RVs or using their SUVs and a couple of tents, or they realize that camping is lame and don't even think about it. Seriously, when was the last time you went camping? Probably a long, long, long time ago. Anyways, this one was taken in San Diego by a friend of the staff who actually likes camping. So there you go, I guess people still do enjoy camping in the 21st century.

Green Machine 4.

2006-04-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

Sorry for posting so late. I'll make it up to you next week and I'll give you a little taste because I was so late this week. We're going to be kicking off Truck Month here at Dope Rides. You heard correct, five weeks of trucks, and they will not disappoint. Now you're listening? Well, you better be prepared for awesomeness because we're bringing the pain. Anyways, to get to this week's car, I really wish I could have done this one justice by following the driver home so I could take pictures of it on the street. This one is craptacular, and I mean that in a good way. A giant spoiler and three different colors of paint, including primer, are you kidding me? When this was presented at as a candidate at a production meeting, the entire Dope Rides staff stood up and slow clapped. To the owner/creator; bravo and well played sir, you are a God among mere mortals. You might be wondering why this is named Green Machine 4 and the answer is, yes there are three other Green Machines, but I wanted to get to this one first because no one's seen it yet. We will be getting to the others soon enough, and I daresay that Green Machine 3 is hands down the best one we've found so far. Stay tuned.

Gran Turismo.

2006-04-17T13:38:00.000-07:00

I think this one is pretty solid. It's almost like a car I made way back in the original Gran Turismo video game, but only if it had generated real damage to the car while I was driving. One thing I always liked about Gran Turismo franchise is the fact that you can crash straight into a wall at 200+ miles an hour and nothing happens to you. Sometimes that game is ridiculous. Anyway, I found this in the Ralph's parking lot up by my place in Burbank one morning. I love that it's got some damage going on to the front but the owner is more focused about sticking on decals than getting some body work done. Way to go there pal. I was concerned while I was taking the picture that the owner was the Ralph's worker who was collecting the shopping carts in the parking lot, but that guy just gave me a weird look and continued corralling carts with his orange safety vest on. So he wasn't the owner, but I guarantee it had to have been someone that worked there, even though I haven't seen it since I took these shots.

XtremeZ.

2006-04-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry about last week, work was kind of insane and I forgot all about this thing. I'm sure my five readers were crushed. Anyway, about the car, this one was taken in the South Bay by my old boss. I believe this car could have greatly benefited from some kind of advanced paint scheme. It's good, don't get me wrong, but it could have been great. I also like the fact that the owner had custom decals made for it, that's a nice touch. But why did you have to go and name it "Xtreme"? I hate that word. A lot. Everything's "Extreme" now and when you want to make it even more extreme, you spell it with an "X". Enough already. I bought a Chevy Blazer "Xtreme" in 2000 and was sick of hearing that word inside of three months. People, just stop it. I know it's hard, but it's not like kicking a crack addiction; it's really easy to do, just stop using it in sentences and/or marketing plans. I implore you; stop the madness.

B-Dub.

2006-03-27T08:19:00.000-08:00

This is another stellar entry. Taken by my old boss in the South Bay area, this is a pretty clean one. This one's actually not that bad. This one was kind of on the bubble, until you get to the backend where the pointless and ginormous spoiler which pushes it into full-blown Dope Ride territory. And what's more, at the time, the owner was trying to sell it. Why he would be willing to part from this masterpiece is beyond me. This one's a keeper.

Super-Ru.

2006-03-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, this one's pretty much a stock WRX, but the paint is what makes it great. But I'm averaging a pathetic 2-5 hits a day, and no one is leaving any comments, so I'm mailing this one in because I'm tired. But getting back to the car, I guess the guy that owns this one is either; A. really into rally racing, or B. really into pretending he's in a rally race while he's driving around in the city. Regardless, either explaination is lame. Why anyone would do this to a brand new car is beyond me. Anyways, I found this one night when I was out running. I had to double time it home 'cause the sun was going down. When I got back to the spot where it was at and made the u-turn, some guy in a house next door came home and watched me until I decided to bail. I came back the next morning and it was parked a few spots away. In closing, I don't know what it is about this one, but I like it.

Prime2.

2006-03-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

Wow, I'm already falling behind. Anyways, this is yet a another solid entry, and another one from the Sacto area. I guess people in Sacramento really like primer. I find this interesting. Anywho, I love the crazy side f/x that are going on here, as well as the pretty much industry standard ground f/x. I mean, you really get the sense that someone put a lot of time, energy, love and money into this one. Why? I have no idea. There's really not much else to say about this one, it prettty much does all the talking for itself. Bigtime thumbs up.

Prime1.

2006-03-07T10:18:00.000-08:00

I believe this one was taken in the Sacramento area by a friend of my old boss. This is a great example of what I was talking about in the FAQ section about leaving the ground f/x primered. It's just the classy thing to do. And I love big spoilers. 'Cause when you're driving 45 mph on the streets, you really need the downforce from the the huge spoiler to keep the backend from lifting up. So overall, this is a pretty average entry, but I do like it because it's got it's own individual style. It's pretty solid.

Eat This.

2006-02-27T11:11:00.000-08:00

Ok, now we're getting somewhere. This entry is very high up on the all-time list, probably in the top three. I'd seen this one before a few times because it was parked in an industrial area of East L.A. near a bar we used to go to on Friday's after work. I finally remembered that I had my camera with me one time, so I threw it in reverse and made a little history. I don't remember seeing it too often after that, so it's probably a good thing I got it while I could. If I ever make a Dope Rides shirt, this is the car that's going on it. This is pure poetry in non-motion. The lightening bolt theme and "Eat My Dust" on the spoiler are great, but the hood scoop is what really does it for me for some reason. I'm sure this guy has a bad cop mustache with an equally bad mullet and listens to Foreigner and Reo Speedwagon (he probably also refers to them as "The 'Wagon"). I'm also speculating that he probably wears nothing but flannel shirts with the sleeves cut off with acid washed jeans that are unfortunately one uncomfortable size too small. And when I say uncomfortable, I mean for everyone else. Anyways, this is an example of a Dope Ride in it's purest and rawest form. The archetype for everyone thinking about sending in a submission.

Dukes.

2006-02-20T11:04:00.000-08:00

This car makes me long for the simplier days in the South where a man could outrun the law in his Orange '69 Charger while his cousin and Grandfather cover up for him and occassionally lend a hand to bust him and his brother out of jail.

With that out of the way, I'd just like to say that although I loved the Dukes of Hazard when I was growing up, I never, ever had the impulse to buy a Mercury Comet and live out my childhood fantasies by painting it like the General Lee and driving around poorly paved backroads with my brother Luke. That's just taking things one step to far. I found this one almost directly across the street from the Racer Z, but it illuded me for awhile. I finally made a habit of just taking my camera everytime I went to this area for lunch just in case it was there. I finally got it, even though the old lady who was sweeping the sidewalk outside of her house was giving me a dirty look the whole time I was taking pictures and was making me nervous the whole time, as I think it belonged to her son who, surprise! still lived at home with his Mom. I was ready to throw down if I had to. She would have needed a lot more that that broom to take me out. Anyways, so many things are wrong here it's hard to even pick a place to start. One: obviously the color is wrong, I don't know how you can go with the full-on Dukes theme and not make it orange. And two; they have a Goodwrench sticker on it (GM's parts company) and it was made by the Ford Motor Company. Again, I find this very interesting. But I love it all the same. So this week, we here at Dope Rides tip our hat and salute all of the men who enjoyed the Dukes of Hazard and had the guts to try and turn their car into the General Lee so I can make fun of them. Bravo gentlemen, bravo.

Racer Z.

2006-02-13T10:59:00.000-08:00

This was one of the first ones I ever took, and it's one of my favorites. I somehow spotted it on the way back from lunch in Alhambra. We had to figure out how to get to it because it was on a hill and there was a weird system of islands in the middle of the streets. The paint was immaculate and it looked like someone really cared for this baby. It's pretty high up on the all-time list.

OG Dope Ride.

2006-02-06T14:11:00.000-08:00

The car that started it all:

We found this one in a parking lot in Anaheim in the spring of 2002. This ride represents everything about the American Tuner Experience that we here at Dope Rides have come to know and eventually love. From the handpainted rear spoiler and front ground f/x, to the mismatched rim and hubcap combination, and finally to the highly mediocre paint scheme, this car screams originality. (By the way, you should have already noticed that it only has the ground f/x on the front bumper, and not on the sides and the rear, which is the route normal people would have taken. My guess is the dude ran out of money/paint. Only two words can be used to best describe this phenomenon; totally awesome) This whip set the bar for all future dope ride candidates. Often imitated, but never duplicated, it's an Original American Classic (by way of Asia; like most Orginal American Classics are nowadays).

Submissions.

2006-01-30T11:39:00.000-08:00

1. As you can see from looking at a few of the photos, I usually try and take at least two pictures, a front shot and a back shot from a 3/4 angle. See the two photos below for an example. Depending on time/paranoia I also try and take a detail shot if there is something that doesn't come out. Please set your camera to the highest possible setting and take the shot with the car taking up most of the frame. Please try to not crop any part of the car out of frame. Please do no resize, crop or Photoshop anything, I'll take care of that. You might think this is pretty basic, but you'd be surprised at how many people don't know how to take a picture of something.

Example 1: Front shot, full frame.

Example 2: Back shot, full frame.

2. Please include your first name, city and state, and a brief description of how/where you found the vehicle.

Please Note: although some cars may look like Dope Rides, they are indeed stock (i.e.- directly from the factory). Please do not send me pictures of stock rides. i know the Subaru Impreza WRX looks like someone added some crazy stuff to it, but in reality, you can buy it straight from the dealer like that. Paint is another issue. Stock rides with wild paint and/or decals will definitely be taken into consideration. A good example of a dope ride has a ground f/x kit (preferably primered) with a wing or spoiler, and custom paint and/or stickers or decals.

FAQ.

2006-01-23T14:09:00.000-08:00

Q: What's this all about?
A: This is a site to document the American Tuner Experience or ATE. It all started back in 2002 with a few of my ex-coworkers. Having just bought digital cameras, we would take pictures of cars on the way to and from work, at lunch, or while running errands. Eventually we amassed quite a few pictures and turned it into a calendar for close friends. Postings on this site will be from "the archives" as well as some new ones that I've taken that no one has ever seen.

Q: Why are you doing this?
A: Because people continue to do stupid stuff to their cars and this really needs to be documented so future generations can look back and laugh. Some people do things to their cars for fun, others take it very seriously. But as long as people continue to do stupid stuff to their cars, I will be taking stupid pictures of their stupid cars. And posting them on this stupid blog.

Q: When do you update this site?
A: I'm going to try and update it every Monday, so bookmark it and check back. Feel free to email this link out to everyone in your address book.

Q: Yo, I snapped some pictures of this crazy ride. Bro, if I email you the pics, will you post them?
A: Sure. We love submissions. But please refer to the submissions page before you email me.

Q: Where do you find these things?
A: I live in Los Angeles., which seems to be the dope ride capital of the U.S., but I believe they can be found anywhere people have an abnormal amount of spare time. Normally I find them when I'm in my car driving or while I'm running errands. I usually keep my camera in my backpack for just such occasions. I have also been known to follow someone home to take pictures of their car at a later date to avoid confrontation.

Q: Yo, man, I emailed you some pics. Why aren't they up?
A: This can be answered in one of four ways, either; A. I'm lazy and haven't gotten around to it. B. I've got some other cars that need to be mentioned first. C. It sucked, or it's a stock ride, not a dope ride (please refer to the submissions page). D. Your picture wasn't framed correctly/ the resolution was too low (again, please refer to the submissions page).

Q: What happens if the owner or someone related to the owner sees me and asks me why I'm taking a picture of his or her car?
A: This is my greatest fear, but luckily, you've got a few options here. 1.Run like hell. 2.Make something up. Tell them you're a junior editor for American Tuner Magazine. If they ask for a business card, tell them it's your first week and they haven't printed you any yet. Another good one is you have a friend with a similar make and model of the car you're shooting and tell the owner that your friend is looking to do something similar.

Q: What's up with the calendar? How can I get one, and are there any plans for a new one?
A: Back in 2003, we made a desktop calendar to give out as a Christmas present. This was followed by a 2004 calendar and almost resulted in a 2005 version before I lost motivation and several of my partners in crime quit to move onto more lucrative positions in other companies. I might PDF the calendars and make them available for download when I get some time. Depending on how many submissions I receive and how many new cars I am able to find, I might develop a new calendar.

Q: Do you have any other kind of media, like desktop wallpaper?
A: Coming soon.

Q: How many pictures of these things things do you have?
A: I have a cache of about 30-40 cars. So without taking any new ones or receiving any submissions, I have enough to post for about the next six to seven months. This should be motivation for you to go out and search for cars to submit.

Q: I own a "doperide". Can I send in pics?
A: Sure, but you should have some pretty thick skin, because you will be mocked without mercy. I take my job seriously. Again, please refer to the submissions before you send an email.