Pimp My Ride The amazing technicolour dream car
Polo fan has 16 options to choose from
A LESS understanding woman than Yogini Moonee might demand that Avinash Rambaram choose between her and his amazing technicolour dream car.
But Moonee, from Kwadukuza, loves her 23-year-old beau’s 2009 VW Polo almost as much as he does — especially when Rambaram adjusts its psychedelic lights system to her favourite hue. “When it’s at her house, it has only pink lights,” said Ramabaram.
The lights are the latest feature to be added to what he admits is an ongoing project.
“They were first added a few months ago. It’s something I’ve always wanted from watching movies as a child, specifically The Fast and the
Furious.
“The car that inspired me as a kid was the green Mitsubishi Eclipse from the first movie.”
“There are a lot of spontaneous ideas. I’ve done some stuff I never thought I would do. With the lights, for instance — even though I’ve wanted them since I was a kid, I didn’t think I would get them because of the price. It was about R2 000 just for the underlights. It has a 16-colour-changing system and works with remote control.”
The car, his first, was a gift from his father after he finished school. “Everybody buys hatchbacks, but I opted for the sedan to stand out a bit. I don’t like to be like the rest of the crowd.
“The first change I made on the day that I picked it up was the body kit and rims.”
Rambaram usually consults his friend and technician, Vishal Rambali, regarding changes to the car. So far, it sports a Doug Wallace exhaust system — “the sound it makes is unlike any other Polo I’ve ever heard”— and an air-induction system. Its front bumper was changed to a cup racing one.
“Other changes I’ve made include the radio. It’s a JVC 7-inch double-din system. It has two 12-inch Targa subwoofers playing off a 3 500W Audio-bank amplifier. I have an amplifier as well for the door speakers — 1 800W, four-channel.”
The vehicle has a custom, hand-built Polo GTi grill without a badge.
The only other person in Rambaram’s family who shares his enthusiasm for car modification is his 26year-old brother, Haresh.
“He’s also passionate about it, but he’s more into speed and I’m more into looks — standing out and looking nice.”
He estimates that he has spent about R100 000 on his car. “My parents don’t think so, but it’s definitely worth every penny. It’s all I do — treat either my car or my girlfriend.”
His love for the VW brand is one thing he has in common with his father.
“My father’s second car was a VW, and ever since then I’ve liked it. I personally find it flexible. You can do more custom work to it.”
He is happiest when his ride turns heads wherever he goes.
“I get a lot of people stopping me to see the car — a lot of waves on the road. I’m the first one in my family to have such work done on the car.”