Topic: poll: what does hot rod, rat rod and junk rod mean to you?

[ratrodranger]

 here are my thoughts on this.....

HOT ROD: high dollar paint job, chrome, billet parts, show quality,if its a 32 ford all the body parts are 32 ford

RAT ROD:  patina'd paint or primer, rust, loud, very little chrome, can be mix and matched body parts( 32 ford with a chevy grille and a dodge bed for instance)  basically build it with what you can find and make it safe for driving and going fast, usually built for low cost...... a vw or s-10 with flat black rattle can paint job and red wheels is not a rat rod.....some could say that about my ranger....but it does have rust and patina and being built simple in a rat rod style...

JUNK ROD: bunch of random junk thrown together in an unsafe matter..... crappy welds, looks like they drove it through a thrift store or junkyard to see what sticks...lol

what do you think???

[oldskool49]

For me the 1st two are Hot Rod. The second set are rat rod's. And as for the last option that is what I feel all of us are against. It is what brings a bad rap to this hobby. No matter what goes into the build as long as it is safe.

[miraclepieco]

JUNK ROD: bunch of random junk thrown together in an unsafe matter..... crappy welds, looks like they drove it through a thrift store or junkyard to see what sticks...lol

LOL, that's funny! 

I'm a little different than most on this issue: I love junk rods, scrap rods, shock rods. I came from a street rodding background and I rebel against high dollar, fancy fabrication, etc.  I like anything ugly and offensive, anything that pisses off the snobs. These cars aren't used for daily transportation; they are novelty cars usually driven only on weekends to shows, so safety isn't that big a deal. Where do you draw the line on safety? Should a rat rod have air bags, 5 mph bumpers, crumple zones, roll cages, rear-view cameras, etc etc?  "Junk rods" as you call them (I call them "shock rods") are the dreadlocks of the automotive world: ugly as hell, but super cool. Read "Crash Saturday" on RRN; lots of hot rods crash, but I've never seen a "junk rod" crash.

[lowboy]

Hot rods are the ones that the guy is scared to death that some kids gonna scratch his 10000 dollar paint job
Ratrods are the ones that tha kids can look at and not get yelled at by Mom or some stranger because he was too close
Junk rods i kinda put in the rat catagory (there is NO reason to make one unsafe)My 2 cents worth
Shock rods are the ones people call "fun" I put the boog bug in this catagory because it pisses the purists off(YOU DID WHAT TO A ....)

[hotwheels]

I think a street rod is a high dollar build that most people can't afford to drive or buy, and usually built by a high dollar shop, then trailered everywhere.

I think a hot rod is usually a period correct car, but with an updated v8 motor, maybe even the original motor, but a little bit more drivable then a street rod. Still could have fancy paint, etc, but generally drivable. Can be built by the owner, friends and maybe a shop depending on the shops skills.

I think a rat rod is a car built from part's you find, motor, frame, body parts, etc. Some are painted, some still have rust or paint patina, etc. Usually built by themselves or with friends, and maybe a shop but on a lower end budget.

[Jeepenstein]

4dr station wagons and 90 and up trucks with crappy bodies aren't rat rods.

I'm building a jeep that every single thing will be modified. That to me is a rat rod cause it's been gone through and personalized.

Now it seems every junk car or truck is called a rat rod. Weird but to each their own.

[brett93304]

My Two cents:

Hot Rod = must have engine mods that makes it faster/more powerful than stock...the "Hot" part of hot rod..maybe some other mods wheels tires, different ride stance...ect.

Street rods = super clean usually owned by someone way too old to care about a more powerful engine...HA HA.

Rat rod = Counter culture, clearly modified, very custom, no rules but built with purpose not just junk thrown together.

Junk = is just junk not worth spending time on or talking about.

I consider my truck a hot rod but do not care if they call it a rat rod.

[oldskool49]

Ironic that this discussion has come up. And over all we pretty much agree. But a week ago Tim Strange started bashing Rat Rods. I jumped in, can not back down, anyway it got almost ugly. I just decided to walk away before it turned nasty. 

[oldskool49]

I spoke too soon. This shit and his crap will not go away ! Just found his post on FB.


so again from time to time I like to help the young kids and new people to the world of hot rods with word definition.
Todays meaning is....
Rat Rod.
Comes from two Latin words fuckinitupicus and embarassmenticus.
Rat Rod is not to be confused with, white walls, bias ply tires, patina paint, bare metal, traditional, old school, drum brakes, flatheads, unfinished, fenderless or a project car. Contrary to popular belief, a chopped and or sectioned vehicle with Mexican blanket seat covers, super low stance, and unshiney paint or lack thereof does not make a Rat Rod.
Rat Rods are when someone, on purpose tries to make something unsafe, scary, or ugly, with no disregard to taste, style, and safety. Most Rat Rod builders don't know how to properly weld or fabricate or know paint finishes can actually be sprayed on instead of applied with a roller or paint brush.
Rat Rods sometimes have metal spiderwebs, beer can overflow tanks, and road sign floor boards.
American slang, usually seen around crowds, drinking Pabst blue Ribbon beer, giving hi fives, and measuring pant leg cuffs for proper style. Can also even be seen in certain hipster circles, along with beards.
Rat Rods sometimes get sold off to pay for night school welding classes so they can grow up to build a real car.
That is your lesson for the day

[miraclepieco]

That ship has sailed and Tim is left standing on the dock. Rat rods long ago became accepted as a legitimate automotive genre and universally loved by the public. Rat's have their own magazines and get all the attention at shows. Tim may as well be whining about President Coolidge's foreign policy for all the relevance his opinions have today.

[Rubberhead]

I don't know who this Tim Strange guy is, but he's an idiot. Did you guys catch this in his moronic diatribe: "with no disregard to taste, style, and safety" - that's absolutely correct, most rat rodders don't disregard taste, style and safety, they pay very close attention to all three.

[hotwheels]

LMAO, he is seeking attention for something. Not sure if he writes for a magazine, or a person that has some sort of shop, but he dang sure sounds like one of those guys that built a high dollar car and the rat rod next to him got all the attention.

[oldskool49]

A little Tim Strange: Before "Search and Restore" he was another high end car builder in the mid west/Mississippi valley region. After his show got cancelled he had to move to the Tenn. State (crying towell please) He has a youtube/web site called "Strange Motion".  His big fame shot is either SEMA and a once a year build or he does motor cross announcing at GoodGuys events. And him and a couple of his followers  were having at rat rods in general. And I was going head to head with these ass clowns. But health issues I walked away. But out of all of the builders that I know he is the only one that has launched an verbal assault on the rat rod community.  And it is funny, but maybe not. But one of his followers does what I do. But he rants about rats but when you pull up his photos on his web site guess what you find ?? Mmmm.

[billy]

i call mine a hot rod
some do too
others call it a rat
my wife sez she likes it because riding in it makes her feel cool
(her words)
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

[naessdrawos]

don't really chime in often due to no garage and mainly building my bike but. i agree that street rods are trailer queens. hot rods and rat rods i mostly lump them together the only difference i see or like is the paint. basic principles go fast bare necessities to ones own needs. meaning yea bolted down seats instead of potato sacks filled with sand. some things people do just to be different when really there being dumb. sorry ranting. and sometimes i agree with miracle its fun to piss off   the purist of the auto world. like the guy who built a rod out of a newer semi can lost of channeling narrowing and chopping and fenderless but there was many in the rat rod world that gave him crap. and sometimes my mood changes to agree with killbillet type rules.

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[gemnewt]

Hello Everyone
What does this mean to me? well I feel that "Hot Rods" are in a different class at least the ones that are in pristine condition, the ones with reproduction bodies, Hemi engines, six speed Keisler transmissions,the ones where you pick up the phone and order everything and there built by the best in the business like Barris, Brizio, Chapouris, Coddington, Foose, Trepanier, and the list could go on and on depending on what kind of ride you want. The ones I consider "Rat Rods", are the ones that have original vintage bodies found out in a field, barn or locked away in a shed or garage for fifty to seventy five years. There built using scrap parts, pieces from trucks, tractors and even airplanes. Builders use what's available to them, they use their ingenuity, creativity, frugality and artistic side and they make the vehicle appear to have been built in some post apocalyptic future period and they develop some of the wildest rides I have ever seen. Builders of rat rods come from every walk of life every state in the union and around the world. This is what it means to me and what I think this whole movement is. A person that's in to "Rat Rods or Junk Rods" is the type of person who is creative, skilled, intelligent, maybe a little quirky, there the type of person that takes the road less traveled, your good natured, your willing to help others with their project. Overall your a good person and I believe we need more good people in today's society it's a great balance in this genre of car building. I have never met anyone that is in to this style or any other style that doesn't possess at least some of these qualities.

[miraclepieco]

The Brizio, Chapouris, Coddington-type cars are simply the modern day version of the Ferrari, Porsche, etc: custom-built status vehicles designed to stroke the egos of the shallow rich. The real innovation is happening in the trenches of home garages by blue-collar enthusiasts with Harbor Freight welders. And the rich guys can't spend fast enough to keep up.

[gemnewt]

How right you are!