RI students in Perth revved up by souped-up cars
Prapti Widinugraheni, Contributor, Perth, Australia
A shiny black Lexus emblazoned with racing car stickers glided into the car park, its body almost scraping the asphalt. The driver's eyes, nose and forehead were visible over the dashboard and all noise was drowned out by the deep rumbling of its engine.
At every road hump, the car slowed down almost to a stop, the driver being ever so careful not to scratch the road with the front bumper -- or the whole undercarriage for that matter.
It seemed an arduous and pointless task compared to driving a standard vehicle, since cars could run just as well without having their wheels and hubcaps changed, bodies lowered, engines revved up or audio systems made hi-tech.
But when you have a bit of money, you are allowed to find joy in the most exceptional of things.
M. Razi Abdullah, the 18-year-old owner and driver of the slick Lexus, says he has always liked modifying cars since his high school days in Jakarta.
"I get together with like-minded friends here and continue the hobby," said the student of Curtin University of Technology's commerce diploma course.
Razi is one of many Indonesian students in Perth who are passionate about modifying their cars. The students own the latest classes of Mercedes-Benz, BMWs, Audis, Hondas and other cars whose similarity lies not only in price terms (give and take several thousand dollars), but in the amount of time and money spent modifying them.
Like Razi, most of them bring the "hobby" to Perth from back home and -- thanks to deep-pocketed, generous parents -- they are able to continue it here.
Agus, who does not wish to be known by his real name, is a 20- year-old student, studying for a marketing degree at Curtin. He has been living in Perth for two years and now owns a Mercedes CLK.
Since buying his Mercedes a year ago, he has modified it to a tune of A$10,000 -- a sum taken out from the pocket money his parents send from Jakarta.
As a teenager in Jakarta, he belonged to an auto club called Solid. Shortly after arriving in Perth, he started a club with the same name along with six other friends. The club's main activity, he added was "hanging out".
And because it's not the type of club with a formal structure, the only real benefit from "hanging out" is that members can be up-to-date with the latest modification trends.
Solid is one of about 15 auto clubs with Indonesian connections in Perth. Others have names like S1MPL3, Team Stealth, Mobil, Unknown and Xklusiv; they have anywhere between five and 20 members.
Despite the big bucks involved, Agus denies there is any oneupmanship among the modified car owners.
"I don't think there's any competition in terms of type or degree of modifications. There are so many things you can do to a car and so many cars with which to do it."
Razi could not agree more. Since his arrival in Perth 18 months ago, he has spent between $15,000 and $20,000 (excluding the cost of the brand new car) to modify his Lexus. He lives in his family's home in the city's northern suburbs with his older brother, who is also a sucker for modified cars.
Razi claims he is so attached to his car that he has little interest in anything else. The former Global Jaya student does not like Perth -- or the rest of Australia for that matter -- and considers the place boring. Jakarta is home and that is the place to be, he says, explaining why he has gone home eight times since living in Perth.
The only time he has been outside of Perth for some touristy sightseeing was when his parents came to visit. At the time, they also went to Sydney. He doesn't see the point in going there again.
"Why go to Sydney, which is six hours away, when I can go to Jakarta? It's only 3.5 hours away, there's a house, car and places to hang out."
Razi cannot wait to finish his course and return to Jakarta. In the meantime, he knows he will have to kill time by finishing his diploma course and, of course, modifying his car.
Agus and Razi, like most other Indonesian modified car owners here, do up their vehicles in auto salons or commercial garages. Thus the hobby is, curiously, not so much in doing the modifications as in admiring the result of someone else's work.
Razi says he would sometimes leave his Lexus at the garage for weeks or months at a time to get modifications done.
One of the biggest incentives to modify a car is to be able to participate in auto shows. These shows, which happen once or twice a year in Perth, are the ultimate opportunity for car owners to show off their pet projects and win titles like "That's a Sick Body Kit", "Look What He's Done to the Engine Bay", "Bachelor of Babes" and "Driver with Attitude".
Auto clubs compete for categories that include "Gee, Look at This Club". Then there are titles according to car make like "Sexy Suzuki", "Tear-ass Toyota" and "Horny Holden".
Razi says that preparing for an auto show involves a lot of time and money. A show held last month in Perth required him to fork out about $4,000 for perking up his car and preparing the vehicle display at the show. For the same event, Agus spent about $1,500.
Razi and Agus only go for what they believe are the best auto salons in town. They take their vehicles to different garages for different things, whether it is to modify the engine, change the wheels, decorate and alter the body and interior or perk up the audio system.
Audio Art is a garage specializing in audio systems modifications, owned and managed by Bandung-born Perth businessman Yanddy Limadinata. Agus says he chooses Audio Art because they do a good job; not because of their Indonesian connections.
Yanddy has lived in Perth for 13 years and has seen the many up-and down-trends of Indonesian car enthusiasts. The years 1993 to 1995 were good times; this was when rich Indonesian students were infamous for flaunting their extravagant, party-going lifestyle. The 1997 economic crisis saw a significant drop in the number of car enthusiasts.
"But things have picked up since and now everything's going strong, although perhaps not reaching the giddy levels of '94 to '95."
The 30 year old started Audio Art in 1997 after finishing a commerce and law degree at Perth's Murdoch University. Yanddy says that starting the company was tough, particularly in terms of understanding Australian business regulations.
"We were a small company and there was a lot of competition -- in fact, Western Australia has one of the highest number of car audio shops per population in the world."
Despite the odds, Audio Art has grown to become a well- respected company in the industry. And Yanddy is happy to keep the business in Perth, with no plans to expand to Indonesia though he knows that in many ways, it is easier to make a dollar in Indonesia.
"People have stronger purchasing power in Indonesia; customers there would pay the same price I charge clients here for the same job. At the same time, labor costs and accessory prices are much lower than they are here -- mainly because there are no taxes.
"But I still feel more comfortable doing business in Australia because although labor makes up 30 to 40 percent of costs, regulations are clear and everything is straight forward."
Yanddy charges between $55 and $75 per hour for customizing vehicles. About half his clientele are Indonesian; the other half consists of other Asian nationals -- mainly Malaysian and Singaporean -- and Australian, especially those of Italian descent.
About one-third of his customers are professionals, including doctors and lawyers, but the bulk of his business comes from students and young people between the ages of 18 and 35.
Although big money is spent on modifications, many Indonesian car enthusiasts like Agus and Razi modify for "artistic" purposes; they are not keen on increasing the speed capability of their vehicles.
Agus says he stays away from drag racing on the streets, a practice that local authorities have deemed dangerous as they often end in fatal accidents. Rising death tolls from drag races prompted the authorities to introduce tough "anti-hoon" laws in September.
"I modify my car for the look; a bit like a fashion statement," Agus says, making his point.
Razi says he has been to Perth's official drag racing circuit several times but only to accompany friends. Many artistic modifications, he points out, actually prove a drag on speed, so vehicles like his would not be ideal for drag racing anyway.
But the local police are using a blanket approach in implementing the "anti-hoon" laws by examining all modified cars on the streets, regardless of the drivers' on-road behavior.
Razi says he has been fined A$52 for having a lower-than- standard car height. He fixed and standardized the height within weeks, but after reporting the changes to the police, he lowered the body again.
"I know about the laws, but I don't care."
He says the police also checked on engine parts and the presence of a spare wheel in the boot.
"I didn't have a spare wheel because the audio system took up all the space, but they let me go."
Perhaps the police would not be so worried if they knew that some modifications were quite harmless and, in fact, could potentially defeat the purpose of having a car at all.
"If my car was lowered any more, I probably wouldn't be able to get a jack underneath the body or go up the driveway. Then the car would be stuck in the garage and I wouldn't be able to get to my classes," Razi said.