Boy racer

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the legendary AJS 7R 350 cc "Boy Racer"

Renault Clio and "Boy Racer" culture.

Poser Mobile, a parody of common mods.

Originally Boy racer was the name of the AJS 7 R, the 1951 to 1962 350-cc-racemodell. In that time the term was only used for the motorcycle. Since then the term has taken on a very different meaning.

Boy racer is a New Zealand and British colloquial term for a person, usually a male in his late teens or early twenties, who drives his car in an intimidating or dangerous way for fun. Their cars are most often regular models customised with spoilers, wide tires, flared fenders and go-faster stripes. Cars driven by boy racers are often small, and it's not uncommon that they are "all show and no go". An example of a boy racer car of the old generation is the Ford Escort (both the early rear wheel drive versions such as the RS2000 and the later XR3i variants) due to their low cost and easily tuned engine, while modern boy racers generally use hot hatchbacks such as the Honda Civic or the Nova SR. According to the stereotype the new generation doesn't know much about tuning the engine. Movies like The Fast and the Furious have caused additional interest in boy racing.

Americans often use the somewhat derogatory term "rice burner" or ricer to describe the same concept. In Australia, the term hoon means the same thing. In Canada, the term "rice" is commonly substituted with the term "French", especially in eastern Ontario near the border of the French-speaking province of Quebec, except in Quebec, where they use the US term Ricer. In some parts of the United Kingdom, where car culture is often seen as being inextricably linked to chav culture, the term Barry Boy can sometimes be used. It is interesting to note that because of the obvious links between chav culture and car culture the word chav may be used in reference to boy racers. During the height of the XR3's popularities in the eighties and early nineties as they were a choice of boy racers, they and owners were referred to as XR3 Moron

Boy racers in the UK are easy to spot, the complete look comprises oversized alloy wheels, an enlarged exhaust system, front foglights on (illegally) day and night, sometimes silly blue lights on the bonnet (great way to attract the police) a dull boom boom tuneless beat from the stereo, all spotty occupants wearing baseball caps, some girls in their early teens occupying the back seats, in some tiny car like a Saxo or Nova 1.0 litre - mockingly referred to as the '1.0 supercar'. A list of characteristics can be seen on the Characteristics section of the Rice burner page.

Queen mentions boy racers in their song "I'm in Love With My Car" off their 1975 album A Night at the Opera.

Morrissey had a 1995 hit with "The Boy Racer".

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Boy racer

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