Hot Rods Today

Today, the term "hot rod" has many a different interpretation. Let's call those interpretations "factions." And within each faction, there are subcategories.


Naturally, everything is open to individual opinion. However, most hot rod enthusiasts do agree that the sport, field, industry, hobby—whatever one wants to call it (a passion, perhaps)—is mostly democratic; everyone simply does whatever they want to their cars and all vehicles peacefully coexist, whether they are true originals, street rods, rat rods or high priced "retro" custom reproductions.

To Each His Own
As for a true definition of what a hot rod is, well, that certainly is up for debate. According to many sources, there isn't any real answer to who coined the term "hot rod," nor when it originated. However, the general consensus is that the hot rod itself has roots going back to the 1930s when people discovered how to "accessorize," or, more to the point, modify their car so that it would go faster.

But hot rodding really became popular essentially after World War II, with its strongest protagonists in California; people who were seriously transforming old Fords (primarily) into powerful, lightweight, volatile racing machines, some with flames adorning the hoods and doors, some left black and menacing, all an individual expression of personality and horsepower. The sport/fascination/habit became mainstream as mechanics matured into entrepreneurs, developing parts, techniques and businesses that allowed enthusiasts to convert these once abandoned or seriously neglected roadsters and hardtops into viable vehicles for the street and track. As time went on, the phenomenon also became a valued art form.


Fast forward to today and the '32 Deuce with its famous Ford flathead is now 75 years old—the subject of many books (Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum Executive Director Tony Thacker's among the best of them), celebrations and honors. Hot rodding has been around for a long time, but has taken on many permutations and transgressions.