[Hammer]

I read this thread and I'd like to include my opinon. Some of you guys mentioned that the ricer thing is a fad. I'm afraid I have to disagree with it. They already have several companies dedicated to making and selling parts for their cars.

Then I would have to disagree with you Dan-Man. This "rice" crap is a fad....
There are auto enthusiasts (Domestic and Import), and there are "ricers" (Domestic and Import)

A 'ricer can drive anything made by anyone... the term just originated that way because the majority of these idiots were driving imports at the start of this whole "scene".

It IS a fad... (The outrageous paint jobs, the 16 huge fog lamps, the blow-off valve noise makers, the fake intercoolers, the tri-plane wing, the bazooka tube diguised as an NOS bottle... I could go on and on)
This stuff will go out of the window the same time as sideways hat wearing and jeans 10 sizes too big go out of style.....

These idiots are laughed at by true import enthusiasts just as much as we laugh at them.

Now there was a point made by someone about domestic reliability still not being on par with run of the mill Japanese imports... I'm afraid I must disagree.... With just BASIC maintenance both my 83 and my 88 5.0 have gone well over 150k miles and are still kicking just fine. I don't see any more 83 Hondas than I do 83 Fords on the road. (And we were still wayyyy behind the imports in reliability during the 80's) But nowadays I see absolutely nothing to convince me that a 2002 Honda or Mitsubishi is any more reliable than a 2002 Ford or Chevy....

As far as the I-4 engine that was discussed....
When you start out with a small bore and 4 cylinders, you absolutely RELY on boost. You have to use forced induction to get comparable numbers with a modern domestic V-8.
Now if that's the route you like, have fun....
I've seen a lot of half-assed import guys at the track throwing money at Civics and such. Turbos, big hits of NOS, and front slicks. Some will run pretty quick until their engine grenades.... and boy do they grenade. Just keep increasing that boost guys, those stock Civic internals will do JUST FINE.....

Can you get the right combination on a small 4 with lots of boost to get insane numbers? Sure you can. It's all about money and patience..... Just like domestics.... The problem is that most of the "import enthusiasts" we see on the roads aren't enthusiasts at all.... they're posers that don't know the difference between a fuel pump and a fuel pressure regulator.

I think you guys make a lot of valid points about "ricers." However it seems like you are making a blanket statement just by looking at a very small proportion of the import scene.

Speedemn, I don't know how it is in Canada, but here in the states, there is 1 "true" import enthusiast for every 30 "rice" boys. I am not kidding... It IS that bad. In many areas, the "true" enthusiasts are the minority, especially on the import side.
That is why many of us tend to unfortunately group you guys in sometimes.

I'll sum up with a quote from 95MustangGT:

You can through 20 psi from a turbo on a Supra, but guess what? Through 20 psi from a turbo on the 4.6L DOHC in a Mustang Cobra, and see where we stand.

Rice is not who drives Toyota or Ford or Chev or Honda.

RICE IS AN ATTITUDE