We've heard many people say the import scene has hit a flat line and growth is winding down to just the die hard enthusiasts while the number of newcomers are fading out.
To these doubters we say go to the HIN in Seattle for two years in a row then give us your opinion. Once a year Seattle's Exhibition Center gears up for its annual Hot Import Nights car show presented by Toyo Tires. As we have seen in many different States that are blessed with having an HIN show, trends tend to differ from city to city and it's not until you visit the same place the next year that you see the trends change. While the East Coast has airbrush and chrome and the Midwest has wide body kits and stereos, most of the tuners in the West Coast seem to always have a very simple look to their cars. Mild, clean, powerful and street worthy seems to be the motto and this trend continues on as far Northwest as Seattle. It was here that we found show goers are breaking up their recipe with 50-percent horsepower and 50-percent looks, making the car 100-percent streetable. In other words, no trailer queens here.
One thing that differed from last year's show was the size of the venue. In 2002 the show took up half the space the Exhibition Center could offer, with half of that space being vendor rows and the other half displaying show cars. A year has gone by and now the venue has doubled with a quarter of the show being vendors and three quarters of the space occupied by show cars. This just proves that imports have not flat lined. It also shows that trends can change within a year. Buckle up for the wild ride next year is sure to bring.