Automotive Saturday: Holy Honda Fanboi!

Posted in Automotive by Janx, September 18, 2010 at 5:15 pm | 1,887 views, 11 comments

This article was featured in our second issue of the magazine as well as in the October 2008 issue of The Calgary Journal.

We’re all accustomed to hearing it. The wail of an exhaust so loud that most are caught off guard as it goes by, the wail of an exhaust so large that it could double as grapefruit storage, the wail of an exhaust so annoying that you look around for the source of the noise not out of interest, but out of irritation. And lastly, the wail of an exhaust, that’s 90% of the time, coming from the back of a Honda. Or at least it seems to be 90% of the time.

So, why is it that these loud, obnoxious exhausts have found such a prominent home on the back of Hondas? What is it about Hondas that compels young men to install these loud and irritating exhausts? Why Honda?

“It’s just everything about Honda,” says Jason Lieung, matter-of-factly. Jason is a 17-year-old high school student out of southwest Calgary. He’s also an aspiring electrical engineer, and he’s 100% a Honda “fanboi”. “I guess to me a fanboi is basically a guy who’s totally dedicated to one single brand or name or company.” Jason says. “Usually they’re guys so focused on that one specific brand that they bash or hate on everything else— usually for no good reason either. In this case, for me, it’s Honda.”

And why the loud, grapefruit sized exhaust?

“The fart can’s a must man,” Jason says. “It’s usually the first thing you mod on a Honda. It’s louder than f*** most the time too. It’s definitely a big ‘Look at me!’ thing, but there are some performance benefits too.”

Jason isn’t alone in his love for all things Honda. The local Honda scene in Calgary is strong, and organized, thanks to a local Calgary-based automotive forum where Honda “fanbois” congregate to discuss anything and everything Honda. The forum is called Beyond. Beyond has been around for the past eight years. Originally started back in 1995 as a name for a consulting company, Beyond is now one of the busiest automotive forums in North America with an estimated five million views each month. Registered members gather here, online, to discuss nearly anything, from car repairs to finances.

Shelton Kwan, creator and president of Beyond, says that “roughly 50%” of Beyond’s 45,000 Calgary-based members are Honda owners. “When it comes to cars and performance,” Shelton says. “Most of the inquiries on the site are Honda related.” So, why Honda? “Hondas are the easiest cars to soup up,” Shelton says. “Both performance wise and looks wise, due to Honda’s massive aftermarket support.” Beyond is a good example of Honda’s popularity. That popularity doesn’t end in Calgary either. Honda’s are one of, if not the most popular, import vehicle in all of North America. The Honda Civic is also Canada’s best selling vehicle 10 years running.

Ian Andrews knows this last statistic well. His business depends on these types of Honda statistics. Ian is the General Manager of Calgary’s T&T Honda, one of the best selling Honda dealerships in Canada. Ian thinks Honda’s popularity lies in their adaptability with the tuner world. “I think it’s because they take well to modifications,” Ian says. Ian believes that Honda owners have a solid base to begin with. He says that the list of potential modifications on Hondas is endless and that Hondas take well to all sorts of different varieties of modifications.

Whether visual modifications or performance based modifications, Hondas encompass it all. Ian also feels that Honda’s renowned reliability isn’t compromised like it is on other cars when these young men start adding aftermarket parts. He believes this is one of the reasons why Honda has such an extensive following of young enthusiasts.

The diversity of people buying Hondas, both new and used, also plays a huge part in their popularity according to Ian. “It’s a full spectrum,” Ian says. “It’s a bit of everybody buying Hondas. It’s a safe vehicle, two-door, four-door, Si (sports edition), family, it’s all over the map.” Both Ian and Shelton share a strong Honda connection with their businesses. However, both men drive BMW M3’s.

It’s a clear Friday night. The top level of the Chinook parkade is quiet and empty. Tonight isn’t Wednesday night. On Wednesday nights, this parkade is filled with car enthusiasts from all over Calgary showing off their newest modifications or simply attending as spectators. Beyond holds its weekly meets here.

“Our weekly meets were actually started by the 403Honda club,” Shelton Kwan says. “It was there that the ‘Beyonders’ that drove non-Honda vehicles began to go. Since then the 403Honda club has dissolved due to personal reasons of the organizers, but the meets still live on through Beyond.”

The Beyond meets can attract as many as a hundred or more cars of all variety, but even in this melting pot of cars, one car often stands out from the rest for its sheer quantity.

“My friend had one,” says David Myers, a 20-year-old southwest Calgarian. David looks older than he should for being just 20, sitting at the Chinook Starbucks this late Friday night. He’s average height and average weight for a young Caucasian male. He has come here directly from his job at Shaw as a support technician. He looks tired. David says that he doesn’t plan to make a career at Shaw, his goal is to be a mechanic and he’s already started his hours as a mechanical apprentice at Calgary Honda. His Honda story starts like so many other Honda enthusiasts stories.

“My friend had one,” David continues. “We worked on that car all throughout the summer. It grew on me. That’s why Honda.” David used to drive a 1990 Honda Civic Si hatchback. The gray paint wasn’t the best, one of the front side markers was missing, the muffler rattled. Sometimes the heat wouldn’t work. Sometimes the seat-belt would move positions by itself, and sometimes the engine would backfire, “like a cannon” he says. His love for that trouble-ridden Civic is immediately apparent though. It was his toy, his passion.

“It had a complete engine swap,” David says, his tired appearance suddenly replaced with enthusiasm. “It was a Japanese spec Honda engine called a B16. It’s a popular swap in the Honda world.” The engine swap alone increased the power output of his Civic from a stock 106 HP, to roughly 165HP, a gain of about 55 percent. The modifications didn’t end there either. Since he bought the Civic he also put some elbow grease into it. He changed the cams, upgraded the suspension, replaced the control arms, replaced the brakes, and fixed most of the other ongoing maintenance requirements the car needed. “I had plans to build the engine,” David says. “But, unfortunately, I never got around to it.” David’s Civic sat at around 180HP by his guess. “It was a quick little thing.”

Last September, David let his little hatchback go though. The car’s steering column was so bend that the car was becoming progressively more and more undriveable. He sold the car to a guy from Edmonton for parts. When asked why he thinks Honda has such a “fanboi” following he pauses for a second before responding.

“They’re cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap to do up. They’re great for someone who wants something fast and something fun without going out and spending $40,000.” David wasn’t $40,000 into his Civic. “I was about $4,500 into it,” he says.

After another 30 minutes of talking about everything and anything Honda David leaves. He jumps into his new car, a red —go figure, Honda Civic sedan. His white spoked wheels catch the eyes of a few on-lookers in the parking lot as the wail of his Civic’s exhaust blasts by.

One of the onlookers shakes her head as David’s car goes wailing away. “They’re so annoying,” I hear her say about David’s Honda. “They’re ugly and loud and terrible sounding.” Ironically, the last comment David made to me before leaving was that the sound of a wailing Honda was simply, as he put it, “Music to my ears.”