Cost Efficient Ways to ‘Pimp Your Ride’

Before you consider starting any work on your pride and joy, make sure any damages or scratches you have are repaired, otherwise the finished product won’t look as impressive. Also consider your budgets and how much you have to spend. Don’t bother spending money on something that doesn’t need upgrading or that you can’t finish. Installing elements that enhance your vehicle will add interest and personality.

Perhaps you have a theme in mind. Maybe you’d like to update your car so that it looks a little more sporty, or perchance you’d like to add a splash of blue and add eyelashes to the headlights. Whatever it may be, do your research and seek out the best people to do the job. You wouldn’t be pleased if the end result wasn’t the vision you intended, so be sensible and speak to the experts.

Interior

You can change the interior of your car by reupholstering the seats or even by installing colourful slipcovers or floor mats if you are on a budget. Choose a fabric that follows your theme and chat to a professional who can advise and install it for you. Depending on your budget, you can really be as creative as you like with the interior.

Steering wheel

If you want to add another cool modification to your interior, why not try a brand new steering wheel? You can either do this by getting a bespoke steering wheel cover produced to match your upholstered seats, or you can go the extra mile and install a whole new wheel. These days, you can purchase a multitude of different steering wheels, from plastic to wood, and even metal

Windows

Tinted windows can definitely add something to your car’s aesthetics, however there are laws that dictate how dark your windows can be. According to Gov.uk, the restrictions for tinting your windows depends on when the car was first used. This only applies to the front windows and side windows; there are no restrictions set in place for the rear windscreen or passenger windows. Vehicles first used on 1 April 1985 or later must let at least 75% of light through the front windscreen and 70% through the front side windows. If your vehicle was first used before 1 April 1985 then the front windscreen and front side windows must allow at least 70% of light through them.

Whether you do this yourself or go to a garage to get this done for you, make sure you are complying to government rules, or you may find yourself with a prohibition notice, which means you cannot use the vehicle until the tint is removed or follows regulations.

Lights

LED lights are a fantastic method of customising your car. You can purchase an LED lighting kit for under £50 and they are relatively easy to install. Please be aware that these kits are for the sole purpose of creating light effects, so there is no need to replace your legally required lights.

HID lightbulbs are also a very economic way to customise your car, whilst updating it at the same time. Replacing your car’s headlamps is easy and you can usually find the instructions to do so in your car’s manual. It is also important to ensure that you purchase the correct bulbs for the make and model of your vehicle.

Wheels

Why not transform your car by replacing your standard wheel trims and hubcaps to something a little more exciting? There are plenty of outlets that sell unique wheel trims, but we would recommend shopping around on the web to find the perfect ones. There are so many to choose from!

Plates

Now, you either love or hate personalised number plates. But who can deny they wouldn’t love to stamp their name on their own car? The legal way to approach this would be to contact the DVLA, as they offer a personalised plate service where you can find and register your ideal plate. Personalised number plates allow you to select a combination of letters and numbers that are unique to you. You can be as creative as you like!

Decals and car wraps

Paintshop tips, it is not entirely necessary to spend thousands on a customised paint job when an exclusive look can be achieved by adding decals or car wraps. Car wraps are fast becoming more on trend, as this is an inexpensive way to accomplish a freshly resprayed look. The tremendous thing is, you don’t need to inform the DVLA about the colour change, as they see this as being reversible.

So there we have it, 7 cool and cost effective ways to ‘pimp your ride’. Let your imaginations run wild, be creative as you can and be sure to send us images of your finished, custom built ride. We would love to see what you’ve done.