pedal to the metal

Students share modifcations and experiences of their customized cars

by lathan levy outdoors staff

Brody Sandler Harfeteh Singh

While safety is an extremely important feature in cars, style has an equal level of importance for senior Harfeteh Singh. He got into cars a couple of years ago and currently drives a 2021 Toyota GT 86.

“I started watching the 'Fast and Furious' movies with my cousin when I was younger,” Singh said. “I got into the car scene from that, and I eventually got into classic cars, [Japanese domestic cars] and German cars.”

Singh was initially pushed by his parents to get a Jeep Wrangler for the safety features. However, when heading to the dealership, Singh was intrigued by another car.

“While we were walking into the store, I looked to my right and I saw the car that I have now," Singh said. "I ran towards it because I wanted to look at it for fun. My parents told me that I would still be getting the Jeep, but they ended up surprising me a month later with the car I drive now.”

Singh started applying customizations to his car because of the severe lack of horsepower. The base horsepower of the car is around 205, but he pushed that number all the way up to 255.

“Right now I have an Injen evolution intake, a Tomei exhaust and some headers that are on the way," Singh said.

To pay for his customizations, Singh works at a Shell Gas station. He then applies the mods at his grandfather's garage.

"My grandpa is an engineer so he lets me use his tools when I work in his garage," Singh said. "My dad helps me select all of the best things to add [to the car] because he also used to be interested in cars and customizations when he was my age."

Booming sounds emitted from one of the fastest cars on the market excite many people. For some, that excitement is enough to purchase a 2018 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. Sophomore Brody Sandler is one of those people. He developed his passion for cars at a young age, and since he knew he was going to be able to get this car, that passion heightened. Sandler loves all aspects of his car, but one of his favorite things to do is drive under bridges.

“When you go under a bridge, it echoes the noise and gets super loud,” Sandler said. “When [I] accelerate, it has the infamous Hellcat whine. No matter the speed, you can hear it; it's got a massive supercharger on it. It's the biggest stock supercharger you can buy on a car. I plan on adding a mod to the car that makes the whine louder, making it even better.”

Sandler’s car is lightning fast, with a zero-to-60 of 3.4 seconds and 707 horsepower. His family supported the purchase of the car, and the only debate about it was the color.

“All of the cars my mom has had were white, so she wanted me to get a white one,” Sandler said. “But when we found the green, I was really set on it. At first, she didn't like it, but when we saw it in person, she ended up really liking it.”

With a car as fast and powerful as Sandler's, there is some inherent risk involved.

"The only issues I have with my car is that it's rear wheel drive," Sandler said. "That means when the roads are slick and I accelerate, I have an increased chance to spin out. It also sucks through gas. But that's expected."

LEFT: Sophomore Karan Vatwani looks at his bike while resting. He keeps it off the ground to keep it clean. “The carbon is pretty durable, but I try to take care of it,” Vatwani said.

MIDDLE: Vatwani holds his bike up with just one fnger. The water bottles double the weight. “The bike itself weighs 11 pounds,” Vatwani said.

ABOVE: Vatwani rides down a bike path. It was cold, but he persevered. “I can’t wait for it to be warmer so I can ride outside more often,” Vatwani said. (Photos by Mac Huffman)