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[NGHT] The Car Culture of Los Santos


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The Car Culture of Los Santos

Written by Kate Rourke

 

The most prominent scenes of nightlife I've found since travelling here has been nightclubs, by far. I hadn't heard of any "Car Culture" in Los Santos, and was surprised to find someone hosting racing events. My first thoughts of this event were if anyone would even have an interest in it, as the city's focus seems to be in other aspects. However, to prove myself wrong, I set out to find people involved in this scene, and what I found was quite surprising.

 

The first thing that I realised was tracking down the people at the forefront of this scene would be near impossible. As I sat in my car, looking around for any sort of spirited driving, cruising or meetups, I realised just how hidden this scene is in Los Santos. I'd see a glimpse of a car, then it'd be gone before I could react. Reaching out on social media wouldn't be the answer either; the worst thing for someone in this scene to do would be exposing themselves online randomly. Time went by and I was about to write this scene off entirely to just the odd few people..

 

However, I finally found my answer. I met three people, two males and a female, all of which with modified vehicles. I ended up meeting them just outside of a club by luck. They agreed to take me in and teach me a little about their hobby, to which they took me up to the hills and we admired the moonlight for some time. I could see they were a lot more organised than most people wanting to race around, yet they were cautious of my presence. 

 

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Yet, somehow I trusted these people. They had a friendly and welcoming attitude, and were very open to conversation, something I'd have never anticipated to an outsider. They'd go on to answer all of my questions and educate me in their scene. These were "drifters", a subcategory of the scene that weren't interested in racing, but more about entertaining their driving skills in different ways. It became apparent to me rather fast how these people were different than the plan old street racers, when we were taking cliffside corners going 70..80..100 sideways. All three lined in close formation around this track they'd written up. They had specifically found a spot with minimal traffic, and even when someone would drive past, all three would line up on the side of the road and allow them to pass. I found this rather interesting, and decided to speak to the drivers about it.

 

I asked them how they got into a hobby like this, and their reactions were varied. But it seemed to me they were all interested because of their history with automotives from a young age. Growing up with a car culture focused on Japanese drifting groups, they wished to replicate in this city as soon as they had the chance, and if someone wanted into the scene and needed help, they'd be the ones to help. It was like a large communion, 

 

I was interested in asking if they are worried about someone from the outside being injured by their driving. They told me they really do care about other drivers on the road, and try their best never to endanger them, a sort of unwritten law between the group they felt set them apart from the rest. They looked down upon other drivers in the city, risking other peoples lives by driving dangerously, and wished they'd keep it to more secluded areas. I saw this as a fair middle ground between taking on a hobby, and keeping people safe, although not entirely eliminating the issue. Crashes still occur, and this was expressed to me when I examined their cars further. There were signs of small impacts, yet these drivers told me it was through fault of someone else. 

 

I left them that night on a high note, knowing that this could be an opening into this underground culture for me to dig further into, and I did just that.

 

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A couple of nights pass, and I don't hear too much more. A couple of garages I go to decline to answer my comments on the scene, the people I do find are clearly just there to cause trouble for the police, and car meetups and cruises become quiet as everyone readies themselves for Christmas. However, by pure luck I take a wrong turn into an alleyway, and find a male sat next to his neon green and pink hatchback. He seems very open to my questions, and invites his other friend over to speak too. Their vehicles look quite in contrast between each other, yet their two drivers could not be more alike. Two chilled out, fun loving people who instantly welcome me in. Both of them work in a garage just off a main road, and are happy to express themselves in person and in their cars.

 

I started off by speaking to the girl in the group, she was your everyday normal citizen, and owned a slightly old yet completely immaculate 4 door sports car. It seemed like a lot of work had gone into the little details, and she expressed her affinity for it towards me. She told me of her roots, back in the UK, as she'd often tag along with her father's mechanic business and learn about vehicles through him. It seemed this had a large impact on her interest, as she quoted this as her entrance into the automotive culture.

 

The male in the group was a lot more simple. He had a love of art and saw vehicles as just expression of his hobby. His vehicle was brightly coloured, with a lot of attention to the small details. They both expressed to me their distaste in driving dangerously or partaking in unsanctioned racing, and told me they drive just for the love of driving. Even though they were a part of the car culture, they did not want to be seen as part of a problem. My interview with these two was more relaxed than I'd had with others, and was a little more eye opening. I left them to their business and thanked them for their time, setting out again to find the main people in this scene.

 

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A couple more nights pass and I realise the part of the scene I'm wanting to get to would be near impossible. The main people on the streets, causing havoc and provoking officers, were always just too fast or lawless for me to find them again. I'd see them for a split second, and they'd disappear again. When I did find them, they were usually in handcuffs or declined to comment. Instead, I went to the root of the scene from a different perspective; a Los Santos Police Officer. 

 

The officer I spoke to was happy to answer my questions, however asking for anonymity. He seemed like a very relaxed person, and gave me a clearer insight into how the LSPD treat people in this culture. He started off by explaining how he deals with punishments for people partaking in dangerous driving, telling me that although not everyone in the LSPD offer them same attitude, he believes in educating people on the dangers of their activities, and depending on the scenario, offering the benefit of the doubt for people he believes will change. He explained to me how although a healthy attitude to keep, not everyone agrees with his actions. He, however further expressed how serious accidents are and told me that there is not much lenience that can be offered when someone else has been injured or put in danger by another persons actions. 

 

Moving on further towards his take on the current attitude of the car culture in Los Santos, he believed people may express their hobbies, but through legal outlets like R-Motorsports instead. He promoted the idea of car meets and cruises, so long as illicit behaviour wasn't promoted, and felt like as it stands, the current car culture in the city was being expressed in healthy ways.

 

Although I'd have still loved to have met any one of these street racers I've heard so much about, they seem to be too illusive to get a grip onto. So, I'm left now to draw my conclusion in the current car culture of Los Santos.

 

In conclusion, Los Santos has a much larger and diverse car culture than you would first think. They're mostly underground in their ways, yet some of the most friendly people I've met when I've been able to catch them. They'll do their best to make you feel included and share their hobby with you, yet have a sort of internal conflict between how they express their hobby and where they do it. Some people here don't want to hurt others, and to others it's just part of the job that can't be avoided, but everyone in the scene seems united by their love of cars and interest in driving, and tomorrow's upcoming rally event held by R-Motorsport may be a little more interesting than first thought to be. As much as the car culture shines in the night, this may be the first time to see it in the daylight, and learn more about these sorts of people.

 

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NGHT is a media outlet documenting urban affairs within Los Santos and the surrounding areas covering stories, rather than events. We're interested in finding peoples narratives and motives, and if you feel like you have a good idea for one of our next articles, you can find our contact details here. NGHT does not profit from their work, and as such, any donations are welcome. Please contact us from the same tag if you are interested in supporting our work.

 

Edited by Liquicity
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Name: J.M.

Comment: The article is nice. I love the pictures. I think the car culture in LS is mostly based on JDM riced out vehicles built with simple Ebay parts. I've met some true car people in LS, but most people don't seem to have a true passion for cars at all. I've seen supercars racing through LS, giving supercar owners, in general, a bad name. 

 

There's a group on FaceBrowser called the San Andreas Oldtimer association for people who want to share their passion for older vehicles. https://face.gta.world/Oldtimer

  • Upvote 1
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  • 2 weeks later...

Username: JLixx

Comment: I can tell you why none of nighttime ghosts will tell you anything. Cause there is nothing to tell. They speed through the city with cops on their tail precisely for that. To thoroughly enjoy that feeling being chased at high speed. Educating them? Bah they all know it well, Don't go educate them about dangers, they know it well. Besides all these people use sleeper cars mostly. Expensive, plain on the outside but fully stacked engine and everything hidden inside. What you found is a pop culture. Tracks like Banham or Galileo aren't that hot when it comes to police so you can find quite some people around there. What you possibly hoped to find are people that run races through the city itself, well no, there is no such scene. People you are talking about are sensation hunters. 

Edited by Engelbert
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