Tweet
Hello, StanceWorks!
Long time lurker (circa 2014) and first-time poster!
I’m going to get into my build here in a sec, but I wanted to start off with a little story about how Stanceworks played a huge part in my life back in 2014 (and still continues today).
So, back in 2014, I was a sophomore at a tiny college in South Carolina. I was working a summer job as a graphic design intern and I was driving a 2008 Saab 9-3 that I absolutely adored. I decided with my summer money that I was going to get some new stuff for my car (shit-tier wheels and a bike rack). I quickly realized the best thing to make my car the best it could be was to lower it, even though I had no idea how to even do that or why I wanted it. Anyways, I didn’t know anyone who could help me with this, so I searched around on Facebook and messaged a mutual friend of a friend.
That’s how I met Ben.
Well, you may know him as “benznotmercedes” or, on here, “rightfullrudder.” I shot him a facebook message and we ended up hitting it off. We talked constantly about cars. I was so ecstatic when I went back to school in the fall and found out Ben was living two floors above me. At the time, I was dating a very lost, unkind, and possessive man. (I won’t get into all of the stupid shit I put up with, dealt with, and settled for, but every person has been there.) I wasn’t allowed to have male friends, but I wanted nothing more than to talk to Ben. So, Ben and I hid our friendship here, on StanceWorks. We messaged each other back and forth, sending memes and build threads. Hell, I’m tearing up at work reading the stupid memey, cringey messages we sent to each other back then.
After a while, Ben and I started dating. I had known I wanted to be with him the moment we met in person. Because I had just gotten out of a relationship, he told me we should wait, just to be sure. Finally, he said yes and we decided to be "official." (That weird dumb thing you had to say in college.)
The next two years of college were amazing. We skipped class to drive 12 hours in a hurricane to h2oi, spent our weekends at shows all over the Southeast, and so much more.
When we went down to Atlanta for the weekend for Ben and his Mazda to participate in Slammedenuff, I fell in love with the Focus ST. It was the most fun little car I’d ever seen, and even though I couldn’t drive stick, I sold my old Saab and bought one.
Okay, now I’m getting into the build. I promise.
I moved to Atlanta a few months after graduating from college. It was just my Focus ST and I in a new city, and it was really nerve-wracking. Ben was in graduate school in North Carolina, but we still met up to go to Helen and see our other car friends. In July of 2018, after having my car for over two years, I finally bought my first set of coilovers.
They were Bilsteins, and I got them for super cheap brand new. They were more performance, so I definitely didn’t get the drop I really wanted. They made the car so much fun to drive, but I really wanted to go even lower. I didn't have a job at the time, and I was still in grad school, so that would have to wait.
Next came the wheels. I had always said I was going to do monoblocks on them, but I was still gravitating towards three-piece wheels. I picked up a lovely set of 19” Weds Kranze Glossas from my friend Jake at threepiece.us and had them redrilled to fit my wonky bolt pattern!
After that, I installed some little wing risers from Velossa Tech to give my hot hatch a more aggressive look.
That all led up to this weekend. Finally, after nearly three years, I had a job and a house with a garage and the stars had aligned. Ben and I (well, mostly Ben and his friends), installed some brand new air ride from Bag Riders! I couldn’t be happier with the outcome.
I still have a lot to do to finish the vision I have for this little spit of a car. But, I definitely feel like it’s getting there.
Thanks for taking the time to read my build thread! I’ll keep updating it as I add on to my car.
And, thank you to StanceWorks for being a place that my best friend, partner in crime, and love of my life could talk about all the stupid shit that brought us together in the first place.
~Kenz
Long time lurker (circa 2014) and first-time poster!
I’m going to get into my build here in a sec, but I wanted to start off with a little story about how Stanceworks played a huge part in my life back in 2014 (and still continues today).
So, back in 2014, I was a sophomore at a tiny college in South Carolina. I was working a summer job as a graphic design intern and I was driving a 2008 Saab 9-3 that I absolutely adored. I decided with my summer money that I was going to get some new stuff for my car (shit-tier wheels and a bike rack). I quickly realized the best thing to make my car the best it could be was to lower it, even though I had no idea how to even do that or why I wanted it. Anyways, I didn’t know anyone who could help me with this, so I searched around on Facebook and messaged a mutual friend of a friend.
That’s how I met Ben.
Well, you may know him as “benznotmercedes” or, on here, “rightfullrudder.” I shot him a facebook message and we ended up hitting it off. We talked constantly about cars. I was so ecstatic when I went back to school in the fall and found out Ben was living two floors above me. At the time, I was dating a very lost, unkind, and possessive man. (I won’t get into all of the stupid shit I put up with, dealt with, and settled for, but every person has been there.) I wasn’t allowed to have male friends, but I wanted nothing more than to talk to Ben. So, Ben and I hid our friendship here, on StanceWorks. We messaged each other back and forth, sending memes and build threads. Hell, I’m tearing up at work reading the stupid memey, cringey messages we sent to each other back then.
After a while, Ben and I started dating. I had known I wanted to be with him the moment we met in person. Because I had just gotten out of a relationship, he told me we should wait, just to be sure. Finally, he said yes and we decided to be "official." (That weird dumb thing you had to say in college.)
The next two years of college were amazing. We skipped class to drive 12 hours in a hurricane to h2oi, spent our weekends at shows all over the Southeast, and so much more.
When we went down to Atlanta for the weekend for Ben and his Mazda to participate in Slammedenuff, I fell in love with the Focus ST. It was the most fun little car I’d ever seen, and even though I couldn’t drive stick, I sold my old Saab and bought one.
Okay, now I’m getting into the build. I promise.
I moved to Atlanta a few months after graduating from college. It was just my Focus ST and I in a new city, and it was really nerve-wracking. Ben was in graduate school in North Carolina, but we still met up to go to Helen and see our other car friends. In July of 2018, after having my car for over two years, I finally bought my first set of coilovers.
They were Bilsteins, and I got them for super cheap brand new. They were more performance, so I definitely didn’t get the drop I really wanted. They made the car so much fun to drive, but I really wanted to go even lower. I didn't have a job at the time, and I was still in grad school, so that would have to wait.
Next came the wheels. I had always said I was going to do monoblocks on them, but I was still gravitating towards three-piece wheels. I picked up a lovely set of 19” Weds Kranze Glossas from my friend Jake at threepiece.us and had them redrilled to fit my wonky bolt pattern!
After that, I installed some little wing risers from Velossa Tech to give my hot hatch a more aggressive look.
That all led up to this weekend. Finally, after nearly three years, I had a job and a house with a garage and the stars had aligned. Ben and I (well, mostly Ben and his friends), installed some brand new air ride from Bag Riders! I couldn’t be happier with the outcome.
I still have a lot to do to finish the vision I have for this little spit of a car. But, I definitely feel like it’s getting there.
Thanks for taking the time to read my build thread! I’ll keep updating it as I add on to my car.
And, thank you to StanceWorks for being a place that my best friend, partner in crime, and love of my life could talk about all the stupid shit that brought us together in the first place.
~Kenz
"Effy" E60 BMW 530xi 6MT [N52] 
Comment