Automotive decals and graphics have been around as long as anyone can remember. Since the early days of automobile racing, cars have been used as rolling billboards for sponsors. These days, one can find anything from manufacturers, stick-on flames, and Calvin "doing the deed" on a Ford logo displayed on cars of every shape, size, and color. It has been and always will be an economical and stylish way to add flair and pizzazz to one's automobile.
However, with the increasing popularity of stickers there is also a problem that is reaching epidemic proportions: Sticker Abuse. The other week, as I was getting myself lost on the freeways of Los Angeles, I noticed an FC chassis RX7 with DC Sports stickers all over the windshield and rear hatch. Correct me if I'm wrong, but my 2001 DC catalog doesn't have anything for an RX7 in it. This may be a testament to the popularity of the DC Sports name, but it does raise some moral and ethical questions, like "When is the right time to Just Say No to Vinyl?" Could it be when you pull into your local sticker shop and ask to have a "Powered by VTEC" sticker installed-on your VW Jetta? Or when you put Mugen decals on the rear spoiler-of your Eclipse? I think so.
Eric and Angel Getts of Hesperia, Calif., are the owners of Vinyl Mayhem, a custom graphics shop. They are also the owners of a 1999 Honda Civic Si, purchased from the dealership on the first day of California availability, and leaders in the Anti Sticker Abuse movement. While their Civic is used as a demo vehicle for their shop and for Focal Wheels, the graphics and logos on the car are all warranted by manufacturer support, whether in parts, sponsorship, or service. Every company logo has a corresponding part installed on or service performed for the vehicle, and it should-this car sees countless amounts of exposure in print ads, billboards, shows, and races. It is a veritable advertising workhorse.
DC Sports and AEM provide various bolt-on goodies: intake, header, exhaust system, fuel rail, cam gear, and pulley kit. Wings West makes its appearance with the addition of the Avenger body kit, sprayed with multiple coats of Ferrari Red PPG by 20/20 Autobody. Of course, the rest of the factory sheetmetal was color-matched, too. Lamborghini Red carpet replaced the Honda factory black, and Stitchcraft Custom Interiors re-designed and re-covered the rest of the cabin and the seats.
Putting a Honda sticker on the aptly-badged Civic would be redundant, even if the engine contains many JDM Honda parts, including the OEM Type R valve cover, ECU, and valvetrain components, so Eric decided to place only the name of the Honda dealership from where the car was purchased, Valley Hi Honda, and the installation and tuning center for the various engine parts, Dynamic Autosports in Lake Forest, Calif.
Focal Wheels, another major sponsor, gets head-to-toe coverage thanks to the contribution of not one but two sets of wheels - 18-in. Focal F10s for show perusing and 17-in. Focal F5s for street cruising. The OEM alloys get track duty (yes, this car sees the 1320 quite often), and all three sets of rims are wrapped exclusively with BF Goodrich tires, custom colored Scorchers for show and street, Comp T/A Drag Radials for the strip.
The list of shows, races, and other major events that Eric attends with his vehicle is quite extensive. SEMA, the Long Beach Grand Prix, Hot Import Nights, Hot Import Daze, IDRC, NIRA, IDRA, the NOPI Nationals, numerous print ads, more than 50 billboards in the L.A. metro area...the list goes on extensively. And Internet presence? Try Autobuzz.com,Speedoptions.com, 935Draggers.com, ClubSi.com, prettymuchanythingcarrelated.com. This Civic represents, and it represents hard. Did I mention that you probably saw it in "The Fast and the Furious?" Yeah, that's not just an over-glorified adhesive sign on the rear quarter window.
This Civic is a prime example of how we, as a united people, can curb the plague known as Sticker Abuse. If you support manufacturers by using their parts, be intelligent about how you let people know it. For more information on how you can help fight this terrible affliction, contact Eric and Angel at Vinyl Mayhem. Cash donations can be sent to Import Tuner magazine, ATTN: Arnold Needs a New Car Fund. Thank you for your time and remember, when it comes to Sticker Abuse, we can all Lick It before we Stick It.