There are many facets to car culture that prove just what a diverse group of humans car enthusiasts can be. We don’t all have to like the same thing, and it’s that mixture of different facets of car culture that really makes all of this worth it. I love seeing cars that are unlike anything else out there, and this MX-5 certainly fits that bill. I’ve seen the car floating around on Instagram for the last year or so, and the progress being made is intense and interesting to follow. It’s an NA Miata with a motorcycle muffler that looks like it belongs in Akira, what’s not to like?
Dubbed Project Chimera, this car is the artistic expression of Chris Watson. In a post on Instagram, he described his reasons for building this car as follows:
I think what makes me different from the others in the car scene is that I’m not really that into performance or engines. I’ve done swaps and turbos before and it took me a while to realize I was only doing that because that’s what this scene was telling me to do, not because I actually cared about it.
Since then I’ve tried to break off from that mindset and stop letting others expectations shape my builds.
I get called a ricer almost constantly because I’m comfortable admitting that I like designing bodykits and making cars that simply look cool or different. And I don’t even care. At the end of the day what a car is to me is a canvas. I have a history with art and model making and so moving to cars was just me scaling up that hobby.
It’s refreshing to see someone building something for himself, rather than subscribing to a particular niche. While there is sure to be some negative attention out there surrounding this kind of build, I really appreciate the creativity and ingenuity that goes into a car like this, even if it’s not particularly something I would want to own or drive.
Custom for the sake of creativity is a dying breed. Attacking your car build the way an artist attacks a canvas should be encouraged. There’s no reason not to be a little more outside-the-box. The world doesn’t need another low-mile garage queen or matte-black-wrapped Challenger Hellcats. Be more like Brian, but do it by being different.