15 Hot Rod Budget Build Alternatives: Do This, Not That

11. Something Shiny

Buying a part “polished” basically means you paid someone to take a mass-produced product and grind, sand, and polish it until all the surface imperfections are gone. To polish something yourself you don’t need a lot of skill, just plenty of elbow grease and a lot of time.

Aluminum is the easiest (and most common) metal to polish. If the surface isn’t smooth, cut down the roughest spots with a Dremel tool. Then make your way from coarse-to-fine sandpaper, before working from coarse-to-fine metal polish.

Chrome trim that has aged and bubbled can often be cut down and polished as well. Be realistic when trying to salvage a part that will never shine again. When in doubt, black paint can hide a lot of ugliness.

12. Something Custom-Made

Exclusivity is the breading ground of cool. Every car needs at least one item that no other car has, and ideally you’ll make that item yourself.

The recipe of success here is to build a part that has a critical function, is made from an impressive material, and displays top-of-the-line craftsmanship.

If the first version comes out looking like a hack job, redo it. Everybody loves fabricated parts, and no one has to know if there were multiple rough drafts before the final version was installed.

13. Air-Grabbing Induction System

Multiple carbs, Hilborn injection, or a blower sticking through the hood tells everyone that you’ve got a serious car—but all three come with a hefty price tag. The key to any intake is to deliver cool, dense, and clean air to the throttle body or carb.

A conservative hoodscoop or cowl-induction hood always suggests there’s performance in the engine compartment. If you actually have some serious hardware to show off, let it poke through the hood.

Just avoid over-promising and under-delivering—cause you’ll never be able to show anyone your 2bbl engine if there’s a Pro Stock hoodscoop on top of it.

14. Something That Looks Fast

Fast is a designer’s word for any sleek line or structure that draws the eye over, or towards, a car or component.

Scoops, ducts, brake cooling vents, and spoilers all create this effect. Removing parts that slow the eye down can also provide an illusion of speed. This works especially well on four-door cars and vehicles that weren’t built with nice lines.

Removing trim, door handles, sideview mirrors, and windshield wiper arms—or painting them to match the body color—will speed up the look of any vehicle.

15. Stance

Let’s start with the basics: Lower cars with a slight front-to-rear rake look higher-performance. The exception to this is the gasser stance that makes a car always look like it’s cutting a killer 60-foot time.

Some racers use adjustable spring cups to reduce ride height without having to buy new springs. This is also great way to raise the front or rear of your vehicle for that perfect stance.

Sometimes, late-model springs have an increased spring rate, as well. Depending on the car, you may be able to use late-model springs and cut a coil off to lower the car.

Source: HotRod.com