Unpimp My Ride

XZIBIT and Tim Westwood would be disappointed. The first thing I've done with my new MX-5 is to look at the bling accessories on offer and decide not to fit them.

In fact I'm almost going the other way, because at least four of the bits added on by previous owners - the alloy wheels, the steering wheel, the gearknob and the front splitter - are all coming off. As you can probably gather from the photo above, I'm going for a slightly more traditional look.

The wheel on the left is the one that came with the car, and while I know plenty of people like that sort of thing sprouting from their steering column I couldn't shake the Sega Rally connotations, so it had to come off. As anyone who reads this column will already know, one of the things I love most about my MGB GT is its wonderfully traditional wooden wheel, which is why I've fitted a very similar one to the Mazzer. It not only looks the part, but feels it too.

I've also swapped the five-spoke aftermarket alloys for the smaller, standard MX-5 ones (which not only look better, and give a softer ride too) but the not-at-all-gaudy blue gearknob is being replaced by something a little more fitting for a retro sports car, and there's some wooden trim on the way to make the interior slightly more sumptuous.

Don't get me wrong, I don't dissaprove at all of modifying cars, but it'd be a dull old world if we all liked the same things and I just think a traditionalist sports car looks better with wood, leather and chrome than boy racer alloys and a Playstation steering wheel. Hopefully the finished result will look as good in the pictures as I imagine it!

It's amazing how a few bits bought relatively cheaply can take your classic from The Fast and The Furious to Heartbeat in an instant.