Houston Slab car culture is the latest trend to hit the mainstream Here’s why I think it’s not just long wire wheels on a car and is a pretty respectable trend.
Disclaimer: I’m just some blogger who literally looked all this stuff up half an hour ago so please don’t take my word for gospel.
Technically, a slab , according to the authority on all things Slab Culture, Dr. Langston Collins Wilkins, is an “older model American sedan (Cadillac, Lincoln, Oldsmobile, Buick etc.) and it’s embellished with various types of body additions, the first and most important being the rims called swangers, an explosive stereo system, and a trunk display that conveys a particular message.”
The wheels, called 83s and 84s, have an equally as interesting story. As per Urban Dictionary which gives one of the best description of what these wheels are
“These are the 30 spoke wire wheels that were a very rarely chosen upgrade option avail. on 1983, 1984 FWD Cadillac Eldorado’s and made by Cragar wire wheels for a very short time period, hence the terms 83’s, 84’s, which denotes their model year made.”
For a more nuanced and full description of what a Slab is, I encourage you to watch this video by Insider put up earlier this year that describes Slab culture, in a nutshell, and is where I got the quote above.
Dr. Collins Wilkins first mentions that Slab culture came out of the late 80’s and early 90’s drug culture that permeated the United States, more specifically, in the Houston, Texas area. Flush with cash and how so many car trends start, this is how this particular sub-culture decided to outfit their cars to impress their neighbors and the competition.
After drugs peaked, declined and reached a plateau, Slab culture seeped into Houston Rap music just like these videos show below.
As such, Slab Culture evolved to include newer model cars, extravagant paint jobs, and more powerful audio systems as audio technology progressed.
Unlike lowrider culture which birthed itself all throughout the United States with its genesis in Southern California, Slab Culture is specific to Houston, and as such, you’re probably not going to find a Slab Car outside of Texas.
I mean, you could technically build yourself a SLAB Car anywhere in the world, but until Slab car culture hits popular culture outside of the Houston area, frankly you’ll get some weird stares. But, if you really don’t care about what other people think, by all means, order up a set of Texan Wire Wheels as they ship to all 50 states.
Speaking of, there is only one company that has the claim to fame for being the sole provider of a set of authentic Swangas and that’s Texan Wire Wheels which originally started out in Houston but has their manufacturing base in Beverly Hills, California.
Prices for new Swangas start at around $6,000 for a full set and can go as high as $16,000 before tires and additional accessories. Ya, these Texan Wire Wheels are a lot more expensive than those most expensive JDM wheels I know.
Why I think this is a legitimate car trend.
When other people see Slab culture, like me, a Californian, they might be quick to write off this car culture as nothing more than a fad, and a silly one at that.
That’s where you’re wrong.
First, there’s some real deal history behind Slab cars, although a bit underworldy as it may be, some of the best car cultures come from taking a part of something outside of the law.
Consider this new Kanjo style of modified Hondas, born from Japanese Honda Civic owners who specifically run a particular loop of highway in Japan in direct violation of any and all road laws with their high-speeds.
Or, more in line with how Slab culture was born, VIP car culture was a direct result of the Japanese Yakuza (mafia) modifying their big, body Japanese and German sedans to look more befitting to their particular line of business.
Then there’s the most important part of being a legitimate car culture in my book, the execution. A slab car is a total package of a premium paint job, authentic Texan Wire Wheels, only the best and loudest audio, and an as equally clean interior. Altogether, as a package, a Slab car almost approaches the level of art seen in a lowrider build, although it may seem that comparing the two car cultures might be offensive.
Take the two, some real deal history and the right execution, and you have a car trend that I can get behind, something that’ll be around for as long as the Big 3 sell cars.
What do you think about Slab Car culture? Let me know in the comments below.
A “slab” is just a vehicle that is basically a Pimpmobile and/or Super Fly car.
Since you spoke about Drug Dealing going on in the 1980s in Houston , Texas. That was actually nationwide.
Go further in the 1970s and 60s, Pimps , Hustlas, Mafias, Drug Dealers , Gangsters in parts of the USA including large cities such as New York City, Chicago, Detriot, Los Angeles etc, wanted their vehicles to me modded out with chrome along with stereo systems and such as extras.
If you wanted your vehicle to get all that especially a Cadillac , Lincoln etc, you mainly go to shops such as Les Dunham Coach in Clinton , New Jersey. It is operated by Les Dunham whom also built the Cadillac for a New York Pimp, which the same Cadillac appeared in the film “SuperFly” in 1972. Which that was filmed and based in Mew York City.
From Wikipedia:
“A pimpmobile is a large luxury vehicle, usually a 1960s, ’70s or ’80s-model Lincoln, Cadillac, Buick or Chrysler vehicle, that has been customized in a garish, extravagant and kitsch or campy style. The style is largely an American phenomenon.
Aftermarket features or modifications such as headlight covers, hood ornaments, expensive stereo systems, unusual paint colors, and shag carpet interiors were used by car owners to advertise their wealth and importance. Once considered a pejorative,[1] these customized vehicles were popular with pimps, drug dealers, and gang leaders in the ghettos of large cities of the United States in the late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, especially New York City, Kansas City, Chicago, Oakland and Los Angeles as a symbol of their wealth and power. By the 1990s and 2000s, pimpmobiles included any large, extravagantly customized vehicle, including SUVs and trucks.”
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Pimpmobiles became part of popular culture when they were depicted in 1970s blaxploitation films that targeted the urban black audience with black actors and soundtracks of funk and soul music. Blaxploitation films tend to take place in the ghetto, dealing with pimps and drug dealers, often with stereotyped depiction of blacks. Heavily-customized pimpmobiles appeared in blaxploitation films such as Super Fly, The Mack, and Willie Dynamite as well as mainstream films like Magnum Force, D.C. Cab, Escape from New York, and the James Bond movie Live and Let Die. In the 2000s, they appeared in the 2002 comedies Austin Powers in Goldmember and Undercover Brother. The conversions became popular with Americans of all races, and several companies manufactured kits to convert late-model cars to pimpmobiles.
The most popular cars for this customization were Cadillacs and Lincolns, especially the Cadillac Eldorado and Lincoln Continental produced between 1971 and 1978. However, lower luxury models such as Chryslers, Buicks and Oldsmobiles were also common. The cars used for these conversions were originally targeted at well-to-do retirees who wanted a large luxury vehicle; however, with the “pimpmobile” conversions, the cars came to signify menace, mystique, and glamor. One notable exception is the “Corvorado” used in the movie Live and Let Die, which was a Chevrolet Corvette C3 with Eldorado body panels. Conversion was done by custom car shops across the country such as George Barris, E & G Classics and Auto Gard, Inc., as well as many smaller shops. A well-known pimpmobile fabricator was Les Dunham of Dunham Coachworks in Boonton, New Jersey. Les built the cars in Super Fly, as well as the “Corvorado” and the Cadillac Fleetwood in the James Bond film.
A pimpmobile was referenced in William DeVaughn’s song “Be Thankful for What You Got”: “Diamond in the back, sunroof top, diggin’ the scene with a gangsta lean. Gangsta whitewalls, TV antennas in the back.”
Also.
“Typically, a pimpmobile conversion includes such items as round headlight covers (commonly known as “Superfly” headlights), grille caps, a 1941 “goddess”-style hood ornament, “Lake pipes”, thick padded vinyl tops, wide whitewall tires (nicknamed “Gangsta Walls”), chrome hubcaps with spokes, custom-designed, high-end stereo systems, and shag or velour interiors. The dashboard area might be enhanced with aftermarket steering wheels or tachometers mounted on top of the dash. Custom paint jobs were common, often in non-traditional or garish colors like purple or orange, with special touches such as using two colors of paint (for the upper and lower parts of the body), metal flake or pearlescent paint, or pinstriping. Some car owners also added custom murals or airbrushed images on the hood. The most status-obsessed customizers even added small crystal chandeliers for interior lighting and small 12 volt-powered colour TVs, VCRs, bar-size refrigerators, and, in a few rare cases, in which former hearses were converted into pimpmobiles, a small bed in the backseat area.
Customizing shops included Dunham Coach in Boonton, New Jersey; Wisco, Harper and Universal in Detroit; and E&G in Baltimore. While individuals could add some of the simpler “dress up” options themselves or have them added by a local mechanic, these specialized shops handled more expensive, complicated modifications, such as extending the fenders or hood, converting a four-door sedan into a two-door car, and having bumpers or other parts re-chrome plated. In Southern California, custom hydraulic suspensions (as usual with lowriders) were also popular. While many pimpmobile modifications are done with the goal of “dressing up” the appearance, some people also do engine modifications to increase engine performance, such as overboring cylinders or adding aftermarket intake manifolds, carburetors, or dual exhaust systems with “cherry bomb”-style mufflers.
“Large luxury sedans have been on a decline since the early 1980s where sport utilities (SUVs) such as the Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator have been used for pimpmobile conversions. Non-American cars, including Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce and Lexus have replaced large cars as latter-day pimpmobiles. During the transition, pimpmobiles still retain the aftermarket grille conversions, although aftermarket rims have built inroads (e.g. 22″ to 30″ rims are most popular, although smaller, usually 14″ or 15” wire wheels are still popular). The TV show Pimp My Ride would usually customize a vehicle other than a Cadillac or Lincoln (for example, Chevrolet Caprice or Ford Crown Victoria). The vehicles created were “pimped” or extravagantly customized, but not always made into classic pimpmobiles. With Cadillac Escalades, modifications are done both by third-party private shops and by Cadillac factories, which accept modification orders such as larger wheels, increased engine performance and custom paint. Cadillac Escalades are seen in many hip hop music videos, and the comedian Bernie Mac was seen driving an Escalade on his sitcom.”
Plus, on Facebook there is a page call “1970s Super Fly Cadillac”. Go there.
It features all types of vehicles , owned by real owners, inspired by Super Fly Pimpcars, which that includes “slabs” which that is in the Category.
Better post than the actual article.