Written by special guest editor Carter Jung, editor of Import Tuner. Carter is an automotive enthusiast, journalist and photographer.
The most stressful part of the holidays, other than forgetting where you parked your car at the mall while shopping for the perfect present, is coming up with gift ideas. Not just any old present, but a gift that the recipient will remember, cherish and hopefully use, rather than end up in the dreaded re-gift bin for 2010. While we don’t have the answers for everyone on your list, we do have some ideas for the auto enthusiast in your life that can fit into any budget. And if you decide to splurge and buy something for yourself, we promise not to tell. After all, ‘tis the season for giving’, so why not give a little to yourself?
Price range: $25 and under
- What: FM Transmitter
Want to listen to music from your MP3 player in your car? Sick of burning CDs? With an FM transmitter hooked up to your MP3 device, you can stream music via a localized FM signal directly to your vehicle’s radio antenna, granting you access to your playlist. Think of it as your own tiny radio station. The sound quality may not be hi-fi, but neither is the MP3 or the install. Simply plug the jack into your headset port, find the broadcasting FM station on your head unit, and rock out.- What: Shell Holiday Gift Card
Whether a person is a car nut or not, as long as the recipient owns a motorized vehicle of some sort, the Shell Holiday Gift Card is the perfect stocking stuffer. The Shell Holiday Gift Card is good for all purchases at Shell-branded stations, such as food and drinks, car washes, repair services, and Shell Nitrogen Enriched gasolines. The Shell Gift Card works at any of the 14,000-plus Shell-branded stations across the U.S and is available in denominations of $10, $25 and $100. And unlike your glass of frothy eggnog, Shell Holiday Gift Cards never expire or charge dormancy fees.
Price range: $50
- What: Forza Motorsport 3
Fresh for the ’09 holiday season is the latest in the Forza video game franchise for the Xbox 360. Boasting HD graphics, over 100 globe-spanning tracks and 400 digitally modeled cars, the critically acclaimed Forza Motorsport 3 appeals to car aficionados of all makes, models and most importantly, budget.- What: Counter-Weight Shift Knob
A popular interior dress-up item is an upgraded shift knob. Nothing flaunts “I know how to drive a manual transmission” like a shiny piece of aluminum, smack-dab in the middle of your cabin. There are tons of options, but the extra mass in counter-weighted shift knobs help to enhance the throw, ensuring crisp and unmissed shifts.
Price range: $100
- What: Turbo Timer
Turbo timers are great for turbocharged cars or for drivers with a lead foot. A turbo timer’s role is to allow the engine to run for a preset amount of time after the key is pulled out of the ignition, allowing the engine to properly cycle and cool before shutting off, preventing heat-related engine damage.- What: Radiator Cooling Plate
Installed above the radiator, cooling plates improve your engine’s cooling efficiency by redirecting the air stream from the front bumper, and channeling it through the radiator. Handsome in design and constructed of aluminum or carbon fiber, cooling plates also help add bling to your engine bay.
Price range: $500
- What: Portable Navigation
For the majority of people who don’t have it from the factory, a handy gift idea is a portable navigation unit. Versatile and easily installed, key options to look for are screen size, real-time traffic and fuel price updates, Bluetooth connectivity for cell phones, text-to-speech directions, audio playback, and voice control. Thanks to modern GPS, the days of reading scribbled notes and refolding maps have gone the way of typewriters, horse and buggy, and Friendster.- What: Lowering Springs
One of the most popular modifications done to a car is lowering springs. Why? Not only do they lower your chassis’ center of gravity and improve ride handling, springs improve the stance of your car making it look tough. When shopping, look for lowering springs that are progressive in design, giving the optimal balance of driving comfort under normal operation, and taut performance under hard cornering.
Price range: $1000
- What: Exhaust System
Like a predator’s growl, nothing exudes power on a car more than a deep exhaust note. Most aftermarket exhausts are engineered to bring out your engine’s sonorous roar, while improving performance by decreasing power-robbing exhaust backpressure. For longevity, look for exhausts built of stainless steel or titanium to prevent corrosion and provide stylish looks.- What: Bucket Seats
Whether carving canyons or an apex on track day, how well a seat keeps you in place is paramount. Sliding the car around corners is fun but having to hold onto the steering wheel to keep from sliding out of your seat – not so much. To keep you seated firmly in place, aftermarket bucket seats with high knee and larger side bolsters provide drivers much needed support, both on the track and off.
