By Theo Vuong, Staff Writer
Looks can be deceiving. Compared to many other cars out there, senior David Pham’s 2004 Acura TL does not look like much at first glance. In fact, aside from the custom headlights and Japanese stickers in the rear window, some might be quick to call it “normal.” Taking a look under the hood and inside of it, however, would reveal that this could not be further from the truth.
Pham had always been into cars since he was little, finding great inspiration in his Hot Wheels toys and racing movies like Fast and Furious. In high school, he quickly made friends with other like-minded individuals, where his interest for automobiles grew. When he finally received his own car, however, his passion for vehicles jumped to new heights.
“I got into cars when I received that car senior year. I just wanted to modify it to make it special to my own taste and liking. This is not my dream car. It was passed down to me from my older brother so it wasn’t really a choice. However, it was a great platform to build on and had a relatively fast engine,” said Pham.
Ever since he first turned on the ignition, Pham has been working tirelessly to construct what he has envisioned for his car. Over the course of the year, he has built up quite the repertoire as far as car parts goes.
“There’s a lot [of parts I own] but here are some of the basics. A cold air intake gets rid of the stock intake system. It allows more air to be sucked into the engine, allowing for bigger explosions in the pistons. This lets the engine breathe better and gives more horsepower. Coilovers allow you to lower your car and have stiffer suspensions. Lowering your car allows your car to have a lower center of gravity. This helps with cornering at higher speeds and handling. The stiffer suspensions also give better weight distribution. This helps with handling, braking and acceleration. An exhaust system makes your car significantly louder. However, it also allows more air to exit the engine after combustion. This also gives some horsepower to the engine. The best feature of my car is the aesthetics and the manual transmission. The worst feature is the gas mileage,” said Pham.
This level of customization, however, does not come without a price. Pham works to pay for his car parts by himself, viewing it as a reflection of his hard work.
“I fund my hobby with my after-school job. I work 3 hours everyday after school at AH Tech and 40 hours/week during breaks. It is super satisfying to be able to pay for all of this by myself because it’s a visual representation of what I have accomplished. Before I hop in the driver’s seat every day I am just reminded that I earned this. It’s a great feeling,” said Pham.
Looking at Pham’s car now and even some of the other cars at Fountain Valley High School, the prospect of joining the ranks of Pham and his friends would seem daunting. Pham is quick to remind others that being part of the car culture does not always mean having the most expensive car or being a street racer.
“I feel like cars are just basic transportation devices. However, you use them almost everyday and each car has a dedicated owner, so why not make it your own? I’d say the car culture of FV is friendly and fun. However, we all live on a high school budget so we don’t have the top notch cars. We don’t all street race or have obnoxiously loud exhausts. We aren’t crazy or reckless drivers and we’re actually really nice. We’d love to tell you all about cars if you’d let us,” said Pham.
