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Time to read 12 min
It is somewhat humorous when something new and dynamic comes around the bend and seems to take the world by storm right under our eyes. Humorous to the degree that few people embrace technology at its introduction. Purists hold up their fingers in the sign of a cross, they scream "failure", they cry "doubt" and point fingers - even before they examine the benefits and witness the possibilities. The funniest part comes when the biggest critics become the most rabid adopters. What will happen to our world of modification and high performance as technology seems to be steamrolling our fun? Before we look forward and try to predict the future, why don't we look into the past and see how far we've come. If we choose to admit this or not, looking into the past may show us how similar those times are to the times we are experiencing right now. Sit back and imagine the time when the "horse and buggy" were the primary method of transportation. It's around 1890 in America where industry and new ideas are blossoming faster than anyone could have ever imagined. Picture a morning where a group of people are gathered outside a barn at the town's largest farm discussing the plans for the day and chatting about the latest news and gossip. As he adjusts the saddle on one of his horses, a young man mentions that he recently heard from his brother in Germany. In his letter, he mentioned news that the horseless carriage might be coming to America. As the group snickered and coughed with doubt, he continued to exclaim that everyone will own the machine. Imagine that between the laughs he confidently professed that this machine will soon replace the horse and carriage. Humor-filled questions would have flown from the mouths of the doubtful gang, with some asking, "What do you think will push or pull these things forward if there is no horse? There is no replacement for a good horse. There is no way to improve or change something that has been working well for years.", they may have said with disbelief. "If you remove the horse - you remove the power."
Less than 150 years ago, the average person was at a serious point of disbelief that a machine with four wheels containing a miniature mechanized horse would soon be transporting human beings from place to place, accelerating their travel and work time, and revolutionizing the way they all function each day. Amazingly enough, within a 10-30 year span after the fictitious but historically correct example above could have occurred, the development and production of steam-powered, gas-powered, and even electric-powered vehicles were a ground breaking and pivotal part of the Second Industrial Revolution (1870-1914) up into World War I. As all lovers of machinery, technology, and innovation know well, when the mountain of accomplishment is large and high, the snowball grows and rolls down the mountain faster and faster. Some may say that there is no way to compare those times with those we are living today, but truthfully, if timelines are placed side by side, there are more similarities that we would like to admit. Without an internet, computing, automation, or any of the advanced sciences we have today, the revolution and time was moving fast. Whether they liked it or not, many of the developments at hand would take hold and become bedrock to our modern foundation and the primary seeds that are cultivated in today's auto industry. Laying the timeline out shows that the first direct current motor was developed in 1886 by Frank J. Sprague , but within a four year journey into the future, the first induction, or alternating current (AC) motor would also be developed and quickly adopted for use in industry. By 1896 , Henry Ford built his first gas-powered vehicle, moved forward to start manufacturing as Ford Motor Company by 1903 , and within 20 years produced 2 million Model T Fords. Since those times, placing all the other stunning accomplishments of modern industry aside, the automobile has been successfully redesigned, modified, and re-imagined more times than our minds can accept. If there is a design, technology or innovation, creative humans will find a way to make it stronger, better, and faster. History has proven this point many times over.
Every enthusiast is well-aware of the global movement grown from those early days of creative need and passion to make the best even better. Lovers of automotive history, motorsports, and vehicle customization will agree that this movement began as soon as the early modern automobile began rolling down the streets of the civilized world. As soon as someone looked at a vehicle as a piece of art, a blank canvas, or as more than a machine, but an organism that possesses unlimited capacity for style, performance, and innovation. In the late 1920s and early 1930s , specialized custom shops in Los Angeles were modifying car bodies and creating memorable exterior pieces to make the vehicle unique from the manufacturer's designs. By 1936 , aftermarket pioneers like Joseph Kraus, Frank Kurtis , and George Duvall were innovating the overall design of the automobile. They began developing and selling parts like special grills, fender skirts, hoods, and entire re-conceived body designs for several models of the day, beginning the ever expanding and changing nutrition stream that quickly began feeding the newly born custom car enthusiast. Not stopping at a car's exterior, the feverish desire to dig into the mechanical heart of the automobile was the primary fuel that lit the flame of the modification movement of the 20th century. By the end of the 1930's , full circle modification and hot rodding of vehicles was at full momentum. Over the next 40 years, enthusiasts of every brand and model began altering their vehicles to reach higher speeds, better handling, and get the most positive accolades on the street, track, or within their friendship circle. During the 1960s and 1970s, the American muscle car brought an increased desire of power, speed, and performance along with another target to hit as engine output got higher and more dramatic enhancements, motor swapping, and aftermarket parts became more accessible. As automotive designs changed, environmental concerns built, and restrictions became more prevalent, enthusiasts became more ingenious, more inventive, and innovative.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the invasion and establishment of the Japanese Domestic Market ( JDM ) brought manufacturers like Honda, Toyota, Nissan, and the up and coming builder, our beloved Subaru out front to promote and build the “Tuner Car Culture” from the ground up. In turn, this created a new breed of enthusiast wrapped neatly in a coat of technology, bravery, and passion that would transform the performance world from big iron and muscle to lightweight materials, tight handling, and streamlined power plants. No obstacles could squelch their enthusiasm, potential progress or performance dreams from this period forward - until some new technology with old world beginnings began to become victorious in the highly competitive marketplace. In the middle of the auto industry's “Modern Era” things began to change with the introduction of Hybrid Electric Vehicles stemming from conversations involving the environment, pollution, carbon emissions, and how recreational motoring affects the planet. Between 1997 and the present, Electric Vehicles (EV), much like the "horseless carriages" that prompted a chuckle in the late 1800s, grew from a passing old school mechanic's joke and a once in a lifetime sighting, into a thickening thread woven deep into the fabric of automotive society. From Toyota's hybrid offerings in the late 90s, to the fully electric models produced by Nissan, Chevy, Mitsubishi, and most notably, Tesla beginning in 2009, Electric Vehicles have become as normalized as the early gas-powered buggies and seen as just another option in the eyes of the average consumer. Being that the modern era is not this platform's first rodeo, car historians will reflect that the Electric Vehicle had a short, but unsuccessful run between the late 19th century and the early 20th century when, believe it or not, many people preferred electricity over gasoline or steam as the fuel source to make their carriages cruise. At that time, the ideas and development behind Electric Vehicles were fresh, innovative, and promising, just as they are today, but further development of the car lost momentum due to the more progressive benefits of the internal combustion engine, which included greater range of travel, better refueling time, the increasing infrastructure for petroleum production, and the progression of the assembly line used by gasoline vehicle manufacturers like Ford. As the cost of the gas-powered vehicles decreased compared to the higher priced electric vehicles, the life of the early EV declined and ended in the 1930s, propelling the gas-powered vehicle into a fun-filled, profitable world of exciting auto performance, innovation and enthusiast modification.
The National Academy of Engineering has noted Electrification as "the most important engineering achievement of the 20th century". This is a statement that is more poignant and important now than it has ever been since the dominos of its impact have been falling beyond the global powering of homes and business to landing solidly into the auto industry, a fossil fueled realm many would have concluded to be untouchable. If you questioned 100 enthusiasts back in the year 2000, and asked them if the Electric Vehicle would replace or possibly compete with gas-powered performance vehicles in the next 30 years, it's reasonable to think that the majority would respond, after a smile and a giggle, with a somewhat elitist "No". It would have been hard to imagine witnessing the advancements we have seen over the past 20 years, and the projected numbers and statistics promised for the next 20. If you were to speak with enthusiasts today, maybe some of the same ones surveyed back in 2000, it is likely you would get a mixture of straight, quick answers, including "No", "Yes", or "Maybe", but, considering the current climate in the auto industry, an aggressive response might be more predictable. When we asked some of our customers their feelings on social media last year regarding Subaru going Electric, we got multiple, lackluster responses that included the expected, "Good luck. LOL. Would never buy an EV. If this does happen it will just make the gas versions more desirable”. - [Dominique M], another that read, "No thanks, I’m good. True cost of having to replace an electric battery vs a new motor - I’ll still go with my gas car”. - [Joyce B], and another driver who exclaimed, "God I hope this EV 'save the world' trend ends soon. Not interested in boring EV vehicles!” - [Ryan T]. This was definitely a chorus of the faithful who see nothing but decline of their community, abandonment of love from a cherished brand, and fear of the unknown. Some enthusiasts and gear heads who have famously embraced the possibilities of modifying the EV platform have taken the creative process back to the lab with less spillage of oil, grease, and fluids and more balancing of voltages, coding of software, and perfection of mechanism, much more in parallel with the early modification pioneers than we would want to admit. Looking back at history with an optimistic spirit, from the introduction of the gas-powered vehicle through the decades of change, challenge, and innovation of technology, enthusiasts during those times and into the future have had to think outside the box, be creative, remain inventive, and also think differently. It seems logical to think that when impending doom begins to stir the waters of progress and true enjoyment, those willing to take chances walk into the dark and look for the light switch - without angrily looking back.
Industrious modifiers who think of electrification and the EV as killers of the modification culture should look closer at someone like 21st century modifier Jim Belosic , a young innovator and entrepreneur who took a 1981 Honda Accord , successfully morphed it with Raspberry Pi software and the EV technology and electric motor salvaged from a Tesla Model S P85, and created something that not only turns heads and starts conversations, but also smokes mostly everything it challenges. When interviewed by The MagPi Magazine back in 2018 , Belosic said, “I’ve been wrenching on something since I can remember, so turning the Accord into an electric car seemed like a good way of keeping it around for nostalgia. I also figured that if I want to be able to modify cars in the future, I’d better learn everything I can about these kinds of vehicles now.” Developing into a well-told story, Belosic told Road and Track in 2019 “The thing that’s going to help people love electric cars is performance,” he said, “not range or autonomy.” Once modifiers wrap their heads around the potential realities of the future world of modification, they may be more likely to become excited at the possibilities and ground breaking energy behind the updated movement. Belosic's Teslonda has been clocked at 2.43 seconds for a 0 to 60 run, which we know are numbers that compete with some dangerous, high-end luxury sport platforms."That’s where the future lies”, Belosic told Road and Track, "beyond batteries and motors, which will simplify with time."
He confidently believes that someday "you’ll thumb open a...catalog to cross-shop crate motors and batteries...or maybe you’ll order a chassis...and provide your own salvaged [EV] powertrain.", he said. "But the software is where everything is going to be crazy." Obviously, this scenario worked for a guy not much further removed from guys like Henry Ford, Frank Sprague, Joseph Kraus, Frank Kurtis, George Duvall, who looked into the dark and said "I'm going to walk in, find the light, and get to work." When it comes to technology entering our space and possibly taking away or seriously disrupting a hobby or way of life you've grown to love, things get sticky. As Subaru enthusiasts, do we expect that the Subaru EV sports car is right around the corner and ready to replace our cherished gas-powered favorites? When that time comes, do we give up on Subaru, the culture, and the prospect of standing by the brand because of the movement of technology? Do we take another road and do our best to learn as much as we can about EV technology right now and embrace this mysterious, fast-changing world that may have a lot of fast moving innovations in store - that may not be that far from our reach? Will the EV overtake and overrun the world of Subaru modification culture and destroy an entire aftermarket parts industry in its wake? Look back to history and predict a timeline that seems most logical-considering the facts and innovative spirits that ruled the day. The truth confirms that we have always found a way to go faster, be more creative, remain unique, and break a few rules to gain the most victories - all while being hand in hand with technology. Guess what? The dreamers always win.
Subimods continues to concentrate on providing aftermarket innovations and products that take the Subaru platform of your choice to new levels in the present and the future, no matter if you choose a more exciting, dynamic daily drive, a more exhilarating weekend on the track, or a more aggressive adventure overland and in the wild. We would be very interested in your thoughts regarding this article and would encourage your feedback.
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Bryon Turcotte - Marketing Writer/Analyst
Turcotte has worked as a writer, journalist, and digital content developer for 30 years. He began his career in music journalism in 1995 then worked for several years as both a staff writer, managing editor, and a freelancer for both regional and national music publications. Over the next three decades his contributions extended beyond the music industry as he served within the realms of higher education, science and technology, manufacturing, and finance. He has been serving as a content developer and writer on the Subimods Marketing team since August 2023.
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