Pimp My Ride

Pimp My Ride is a TV show originally shown on MTV, with the first episode airing on March 4, 2004. The concept is simple — one takes a car that is old, thought to be unfashionable, falling apart, or some combination thereof, and "pimps" it (i.e., the car is restored and customized). The show picks young car owners (requirements limit participants to their early 20's) living in the Los Angeles/Southern California area.

The show features rapper Xzibit, who takes the cars to the custom body shop of West Coast Customs (WCC), where the WCC team generally replaces most of the components and rebuilds the interior and exterior from scratch.

Each car is a custom "pimp", tailored to the personalities and interests of the owners. For example, a Need for Speed: Underground 2 fan had his car painted to look like one in the game, while a bowler had a ball washer installed in his trunk, and a surfer got a full-size dryer (or at least one that fit) in the back of his Volkswagen van. Work usually includes new paint, accessories, chrome, tires and rims, and internal electronics (even, and especially, DVD players, video games, TFT screens of excessive size and other top notch gadgets). Customization and extra gifts usually total around US$20,000 (though the show usually doesn't put much emphasis on costs). However, WCC is well-known for putting their own whimsical touches in their work, such as the aforementioned dryer, or an electric fireplace in the trunk of another vehicle.

On only two occasions did WCC not "pimp" the automobile. In the first instance (the last episode of Year 1), the car-to-be-pimped was actually two Ford Escorts welded together, and was considered unsafe. In the second instance (Episode 8 of Year 2) the "Pimpee" was studying to be an auto mechanic, and WCC decided to let him "pimp" his car as a study project. In both instances, the "Pimpees" were given brand new cars, with extensive WCC modifications to customize the new car for the owner.

Much of the appeal of the show comes from the personalities involved. The WCC employees are an eclectic mix of outgoing personalities, such as:

• the appropriately named Big Dane,
• electronics (and outrageous engineering) expert Mad Mike,
• tough-looking interior and fabric maven Ish, and
• the heavily pierced tire-specialist Alex.

Xzibit, the show's host, has found a new audience of fans, who appreciate his sense of humor and obvious love of his job. Both he and WCC have experienced boosts in business due to the show: Xzibit has gained wider attention for his music career (as well as hosting and movie gigs), and WCC had to expand their facilities, due to the international exposure Pimp My Ride gave their work. After the second season however, WCC manager "Q" announced that he would not be willing to take a role in the show anymore. He cited a desire to expand the company's business with a customs shop in St. Louis, Missouri. Ryan Haus, the owner of WCC, has been featured in season 3 as the "lead" for discussions on what customizing will be done on the incoming cars.

WCC has faced problems with some of their modifications. In December 2004 the shop was fined $16,000 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (along with fellow shop Unique Autosports) for removing airbags from cars and replacing them with DVD monitors, although this modification was not done on the TV show.

MTV has announced that Pimp My Ride will no longer be with WCC. Ryan, the WCC manager has moved his shop to Corona, CA and is worried about his ability to both do the show and have another shop. The producers of the show will continue new episodes with another garage to be announced in early 2006. Discovery Channel will be showing a new series (unamed) that features WCC's car built in the garage more than, as Ryan Haus says "over-the-top cars". The series should begin early 2006.

Pimp My Ride worldwide

Pimp My Ride is one of MTV's most popular shows in nearly all of its worldwide subsidiaries (numbering nearly 100), the only exception being the U.S., where it is second place to The Real World (which is generally much less known outside of the United States).

A UK version of the show launched on 26 June 2005, presented by the DJ Tim Westwood. Carisma Automotive are the customisers for the UK version.

The German-language MTV Central Europe has two adaptions of the show called Pimp My Fahrrad (English: "Pimp My Bicycle") and Pimp My Whatever. On Pimp My Fahrrad [1], the bike shop Elbcoast Psycles redoes almost the entire bicycle, usually leaving only the frame intact. While the show could be seen as a parody of the American original, it is also a loving tribute, using all the elements of the American show with a bicycle twist. It is hosted by German actor Oliver Korittke. In Pimp My Whatever [2] ElbCoast Psycles return once more to pimp anything from a bathroom and a doghouse to a Birthday Party or even someone's brother. Pimp My Whatever is hosted by MTV's presenter Patrice Bouédibéla. Both shows are located in Hamburg.
The original US Pimp My Ride is shown in English language with German subtitles.

MTV Italy also features a different version of Pimp My Ride, called Pimp My Wheels. Hosted by the Italian hip hop group Gemelli DiVersi, Pimp My Wheels turns old rusty motorscooters or motorcycles into brand-new shiny vehicles.

Cars featured on the show

U.S. Version

Season 1

1. Daihatsu Hi-Jet (1988)
2. Cadillac Sedan de Ville (1978)
3. Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme (1986)
4. Honda Civic (1992)
5. Mitsubishi Mirage (1989)
6. Ford Mustang (1967)
7. Ford Ranger (1985)
8. Pontiac Trans Am (1981)
   • When the Trans Am was being pimped, some of the WCC crew made references to Smokey and the Bandit. This pimped-out vehicle had a coffee maker installed in a center console and a chandelier in place of the dome light.
9. Chevrolet LUV Truck (1974)
10. Mustang Convertible (1989)
11. Nissan Maxima Station Wagon (1984)
    • The Nissan was referred to as the 'identity crisis' because of the Datsun and Nissan badges.
12. Volkswagen Baja Bug (1969)
13. Honda CRX (1987)
14. Toyota Land Cruiser (1972)
15. Ford Escort (1989)
    • This was two Escorts welded together, and was deemed unsafe for the road, so WCC and Xzibit procured a 2004 Scion xB and "pimped" that instead.

Season 2

1. Cadillac Eldorado (1984)
   • The wheels on it were 24 carat gold, which were worth more than the car itself
2. Ford Escort (1991)
   • Turned into a knock-off replica of a BMW M3
3. Volkswagen Bus (1958)
4. Chevrolet Suburban (1985)
5. Chevrolet S-10 Blazer (1987)
6. Acura Legend (1988)
7. Nissan 240SX (1989)
   • Produced as a replica tie-in with the video game Need for Speed: Underground 2. Of note is that the game uses a fastback, while the pimped car was a coupe.
8. Ford Fairlane (1963)
   • The 19-year old owner was hoping to become a mechanic, so WCC and Xzibit decided to let him restore his car himself and procured a 2005 Toyota 4Runner to "pimp".

Season 3

1. Ford Econoline (1985)
2. Chevrolet S10
3. Chevrolet Cavalier Convertible (1991)
4. Chevrolet Caprice (1996)
   • This was a former Police car.
5. Honda Civic (1988)
6. Chevrolet Bel Air (1955)
7. Toyota Van LE (1986)
8. Mitsubishi Eclipse (1998)

Season 4

1. AMC Pacer (1976)
2. Toyota Corolla (2003)
3. Chevrolet C10 (1986)
4. Dodge Caravan (1988)
5. Chevrolet Chevelle convertible (1968)
6. Ford Taurus (1989)
7. Buick Century (1986)
8. Chevrolet Panel Truck (1957)

Special

1. Jeep Wrangler
   • This car was "pimped" for The Tonight Show announcer John Melendez.

UK Version

Season 1

1. Morris Minor (1961)
2. Volkswagen Golf (1989)
3. Ford Granada (1983)
4. Fiat Panda (1987)
5. Ford Capri (1986)
6. Hackney Carriage (1986)

Spoofs

MAD Magazine

A PMR spoof appeared in MAD #456, called Dump My Ride. The car, "dumped" by "Messed-up Customs", was (apparently) a 1977 AMC Gremlin, which was outfitted with multiple television sets, a miniature race-car track, a deep fryer, and a koi pond. The spoof ultimately ended with the car being vandalized and left on blocks in a parking lot when the owner went into a store.

AirFerg

An AirFerg sketch featured Ferg pimp a boy's mother to become a full-fledged whore with an automatic coochie among other things.

Jimmy Kimmel Live

A PMR spoof appeared in Jimmy Kimmel Live, called Pimp My Bride featuring Xzibit himself and written by Kimmel's team. This short skit shows Xzibit entering a church and excited to see the bride who is getting pimped - after which, Xzibit tells the groom to come to the alley with him and reveals the bride, who, as expected, is done up like a prostitute and has a television installed on her back.

Chav My Motor

A PMR spoof appeared on VH1 in the UK, called Chav My Motor. Chav My Motor was a spoof of PMR, and although there was advertising for the show, it was never shown. This is because it turned out to be an April Fools joke. At midday, a picture spoofing the test card (with the word "fool" written on the blackboard) was shown with an announcement that Chav my Motor would not be shown due to "ongoing police investigations", and would be shown on 1st April next year.

Robot Chicken

Spoofing PMR, Robot Chicken's version was Pimp My Sister, where a pimp and his stable turned a kid's nice, average sister into a whore for the kid to pimp.

Weebl and Bob

The Weebl and Bob episode "joust2" features the car belonging to the character Bob being "pimped" for a joust, by a jar of jam and a talking fried egg known as "Eggsy Bit".

Wizard

An issue of Wizard featured an article in which superheros and their "supermobiles" (e.g-Batman and the Batmobile, Wonder Woman and her invisible jet, Optimus Prime) were pimped.

Date Movie

The film Date Movie features a part where Julia Jones (Alyson Hannigan), the main character, gets "pimped", complete with gold teeth.