Why it DOESN'T suck to be a petrolhead in Portugal

As I arrive home from another superb weekend of hooning around, I find myself reading CarThrottle. Yet again, I read the same kind of articles: “Why it sucks to be a car guy in X”. I wonder to myself, we Portuguese people complain so much and put ourselves through so many risks, and have countless problems with the law… But does it really suck to be a petrolhead here?

Let me tell you why being a petrolhead in Portugal is freaking awesome!

Interesting cars are rare!

So you will pretty much be sure to never see one that lacks the proper love and care.
Elsewhere in the world, owning something as common as an MX5 (Miata for the people across the Atlantic) is normal, and the cars are cheap. Over here they are almost regarded as collector’s items. And something as usually unassuming as a Civic Type-R or an S13 will always be looked after, with the best care and the best parts.

There is a great aftermarket support, both locally and in other countries, and people here LOVE to add a little something personal to their cars.

The laws are forbidding!

However, not many petrolheads really pay attention to that. If you were to do a strict interpretation of our laws, something as simple as replacing a radio with an aftermarket unit is considered, for all intents and purposes, illegal. If you really want to go into it and consider the European law, then most modifications could be made legal, but the police would still harass you for all they could. Some huge effort has been made in the past few years to make modifications more and more legal, but the law is lacking in every single possible way.

Even so, it does not deter people from modifying their cars. Some very poorly (enter the diesel coal rolling crowd), some with questionable taste to me (mainly stancers), and some simply by-the-book, following the usual recipes, up to the finest, most well equipped track car. In any case, modifications, despite illegal, are pretty much alive, and people tend to want to make things “as legal as possible”.

New cars are expensive!

We pay over 50% tax on new cars, and an equally outrageous amount on the fuel prices. So while a new car, especially middle segment to more expensive cars, are off most people’s pockets, you can be sure the older ones are very cherished and well looked after. While you may not see many new Porsches, especially outside the city, you are sure to see old ones around, and very well taken care of. An AE86 here is a true relic! And MX5 NA prices have been on the rise for the past few years, as you begin to see less and less of them.

Still, people will still buy the more affordable cars that every petrolhead loves, and which are usually dismissed by most commoners. An Abarth 500 is really not a rare sight. Even a Cliosport, or a Corsa OPC, or a Megane RS are pretty easy to find if you so feel inclined. And the people who buy them are usually the people who will put them to good use instead of grocery shopping. Don’t find it strange if that suit on the other lane driving his boring BMW 318d is giving you strange looks for driving your noisy Civic Type-R.

Street racing is a crime!

And although it never does disappear completely, it has come to a point where you cannot have a casual meet with a few petrolhead friends at a local coffee shop. Not without the police showing up 10 minutes later anyway.
Personally, I support their work and so far they have shown consideration towards me. I have been intercepted by the police at several meets, and I explain to them we are responsible people, and they usually let me off with only a warning, if as much. However, I have had tickets for car modifications too: A fine for modifications can easily reach a month’s wager, if you factor in the cost of the fine, the cost of an inspection, and whatever else is involved.

For this reason, the past few years have seen an increase in organized trackdays, as well as drag races. Nowadays you can find events every other month and I, for example, actively participate in them, as the cost is not prohibitive. I don’t know if it has contributed to abolish street racing, but I would like to believe so.

There is a vast community!

And while we may not all get along, it certainly helps keep our spirits up. If one has a problem, a few others come out to help. Friendships are made. And this is really, in the end, what makes it worth all the trouble we go through!

Whenever you feel like you live in the worst possible place to be a petrolhead… Think about what you would be missing if you didn’t!

(All the photos in this article except the first one were taken by Hugo Silva. You might want to check out his awesome design works!)