# Mod Nats 2013 pics + write up



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)

Hey guys, right then, after a few people were requesting Mod Nats pics on here, and seeing as how epic the event actually was this year, I thought i'd put some of my mate Matt's pictures from the show up now that he has his watermark on them. While I was at it, thought I may as well whack my write-up and personal view of events in here as well. Now this is copied from my forum, so won't make too much sense to folk on here in parts but hopefully it'll provide some insight for you (if you aren't put off by how long-winded it is....I tend to get carried away with these things at times.....  ) anyways, enjoy! 





After the washout that was Mod Nats 2012, my hopes and expectations for the 2013 show were not particularly high. But, keeping with tradition, the PowerCruisers family decided we would be in attendance no matter what as this was not an event to be missed.

Preparations began, predictably, with buying a truckload of jammy dodgers, booze, and the obligatory Bombay bad boy pot noodles. Once these essentials were sorted, we could focus on the less important tasks at hand....like preparing the cars for the show. Jokes aside, this year was an important year despite the fact we did not have a PC stand, as Danny's Corsa B had been selected for the Top 50 display just outside the main show arena. The night before, myself and Danny worked meticulously to get the car ready, I was determined to run a clay bar over it before it was displayed to the public, and surprisingly for how clean the car is, the clay still managed to remove a fair amount of bonded contaminants. This just goes to show the importance of claying a car around once every six months. It really is the perfect step between washing and polishing. Danny decided to get some last minute mods done while I was preparing the car....modding while detailing, officially gangsta as ****! 

As I awoke Friday morning (well I say awoke, don't think my eyes were actually closed any longer than what could be described as a 'delayed blink' in actuality) it suddenly dawned on me that this was Mod Nats weekend, and I was suddenly hit by a surge of adrenaline, and a crippling urge to pass wind (pot noodles before bedtime folks, don't do it!). Before I knew it, Danny was outside and we were on our way. A quick service break mid way (vanilla latte ftw!) meant we were fully refuelled for the day ahead. 

Upon arriving at the familiar sight of the Peterborough Arena, we were greeted with the arrival of two things that have become synonymous with the show itself: a ****load of modified metal waiting to get in, and lots and lots of lovely rain! Well the rain may have dampened the mud, but it did not dampen our spirits, as after a slight perlava getting into the actual camping ground, we met up with the rest of the travelling PC crew: Tom, Matt, and Mitch. Both Mitch and Tom had new rides to showcase at the event, and combined with Danny's newly sprayed rims, it made for a fresh look for PowerCruisers. Unfortunately, the Friday, like Sunday last year, was destined to be a complete monsoon for the entire day (although it did bizarrely stop long enough for us to eat our pizzas, which was convenient), so we decided to hit the hay and wake up early for the main show day, but not before saying a quick prayer for better weather.

Saturday soon arrived, and as I sat up in my tent I could hear the sound I had been dreading all week, no not someone fapping away in an adjacent tent, but the pitter patter of rainfall....or was it? Nervously, I opened the zips to the front of the tent, and was damn near blinded by some strange orange ball shaped nonsense in the sky. What the ******** is this? the sun? at Mod Nats? *****?! After literally leaping out of the sleeping bag (which would have been more impressive had I have not got stuck half way...****!) I emerged outside to see the other members of PC looking equally astounded to see the ball of orange matter above us.

Excitedly, we piled into the motors and drove to the showground. This year, Sharon, from Wicked Rides UK had kindly invited Tom and Mitch to show their cars on her stand, so we left the cars there while I headed over to help Danny get the B prepped for the Top 50. Now, the Top 50 was a sight that not even I could believe....parked next to Danny was a proper old skool Datsun Cedric lowrider! I literally couldn't believe it, not only a proper rare retro ride (which I love) but a retro lowrider (which I love even more!) awesomeness!! Looking around, there were also some other very smart looking cars in amongst us this year, including a couple of other sorted Corsa B's. There was a nice mix in the Top 50, which was nice to see, maybe too many Dubs though haha! I think it's fair to say that Danny's Corsa definitely held it's own, and the new rims were clealy a big talking point as I lost count of the amount of people staring at them! 

Once the B was sparkling, we headed over to detail our other cars. Now the combo van was looking a bit worse for wear in the paint department prior to the show it must be said. But after a heavy coat of resin and some HD wax, the damn thing looked like a different van! It was an unbelievable transformation that left more than a few people gobsmacked. It looked like a hall of mirrors once we had finished polishing. Tom's avenger didn't need as much attention, as being quite new it was already mint, but that didn't stop Tom detailing it anyway with a little help from Danny and Matt. Fair play for detailing while obviously not being very well mate...dedication to the cause!

With all three motors gleaming, it was decided that a trip inside was in order. Now, I've gotta be honest here, the Top 25 this year was a bit meh in my opinion. There's nothing exciting about seeing the same cars over and over again, when half of them didn't even have new mods. Full credit must go to the orange Hyundai Accent here, for A) being completely unique, and B) taking us a ****ing age to work out what the hell it actually was (when was the last time you can honestly say a car has done that??) Despite the lack of interest in the Top 25, sitting amongst the indoor stands this year were some awesome macines including a mint-tastic kandy red mk1 escort, and an impeccable sierra cossie with a fully gold plated engine bay! Needless to say, we were impressed!

Moving towards the back of the hall, we were comfronted with a few American cars, which were absolutely awesome! I had almost forgotten that there was a hot rod style event running parallel with ours this year. As cool as these cars were, I couldn't help but think there could have been more of them......until we found THE hall.....

Now we found this hall by chance, a simple innocent stroll towards the dodgems turned up some of the best and most bat **** bonkers metalwork I have ever seen in my life! We entered the American hall to be confronted by the finest muscle cars, lowriders, hot rods, rat rods, and custom concept cars from the good ol US of A. I think all of us had to double take at some of the cars on display here. This was a serious addition to the show, and was just epic beyond words! The lowriders looked like they had just rolled out of south central LA, while the muscle cars sat menacingly all around us (Danny also very nearly found his dream car....if only it was orange eh?). The quality and mix of rides here will take some serious beating at any future events. All of us left this area with big, **** eating grins on our faces!

The final day was soon upon us, and after being completely overwhelmed by the Saturday, we didn't know how much more awesomeness we could take! As the familiar smell of polish hit our nostrils, so did another, altogether unfamiliar smell, the smell of burning flesh.....lots of it! yes, unbelievably, Sunday also turned out to be an absolute scorcher of a day, and we had not packed sunscreen as no one had envisaged this madness. Needless to say, by the end of the day we all looked a little worse for wear....my nose would now not look out of place on a fry up, and I saw people walking round whose entire backs/shoulders/faces were just as bad.....ouch!! 

Sadly, Tom had to depart earlier than expected, leaving Saturday evening due to illness. We were all gutted for you mate, hope you're better soon! the Sunday was mainly spent chilling out on Sharon's stand, getting to know a few people and taking in yet more awesome cars (full marks goes to the freshly finished blue clio here!) The show had a really chilled vibe this year, and was exactly like a car show should be. Alas, all good things must come to and end, and Mod Nats 2013 was no exception, so we took our burned selves back to the campsite for the final time. 

After packing up all our stuff, and Matt leaving yet another tent behind (new tradition maybe  ) we headed for home. This year was simply unforgettable as far as I'm concerned. One of the best car shows I have ever had the joy of attending. Was this the best ever Mod Nats? All I know is next years show had better be giving away free money growing trees and bars of gold to top this!


Personal Highlights:

- The Datsun lowrider.....just cool as!
- Counting no less than 5 (yes 5) seriously mint mk.1 escorts around the showground....you're lucky to see that many at a bloody Ford event!
- The American show area....next level awesome!
- The sound as anything guy I bought the magazine off, what a top bloke!
- The dj's playing slowed down versions of songs.....to great effect!
- the return of drum and bass and old skool garage
- the banter! great stuff as usual!


----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)




----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)




----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)




----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)




----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)

and finally, some of our members cars:


----------



## Paintmaster1982 (Oct 23, 2007)

Are people really into the bling engine bays and whacky body kits these days?

Not my cuppa tea but good write up.


----------



## JDMMattMatt (Jun 11, 2013)

Not everyone, they're slowly working their way out of the scene.


----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)

> Are people really into the bling engine bays and whacky body kits these days?


some are some aren't tbh, but that's how modding has always been. Fair enough it's not gonna be everyone's bag. The main scenes within modding now would be either the cleaned/Euro look or OEM+



> but good write up


cheers!, you're a trooper for reading through all of it!


----------



## Kiashuma (May 4, 2011)

Great pics some clean cars there.

What was orange car, looks a bit like a Hyundai Accent?


----------



## Seanseansean (Jan 8, 2012)

Looked a great show! 
I need to start going to more shows. 
I still hate the cheesy window stickers though


----------



## RefleKtion (Mar 26, 2011)

cheers for the comments guys.



> What was orange car, looks a bit like a Hyundai Accent?


that's because it is, believe it or not! haha (think I mentioned it in my write up). took me a while to work out, what gave it away was the shape of the rear quarter windows. the back end had a fiat brava light conversion so was just a bonkers from the rear. I know a lot of people hate on this kind of thing now but it was refreshing to see summit that was all out and not following any current trends.

*EDIT - knew i'd mentioned it somewhere*

"Full credit must go to the orange Hyundai Accent here, for A) being completely unique, and B) taking us a ****ing age to work out what the hell it actually was (when was the last time you can honestly say a car has done that??)"


----------

