How to Have Hydraulics Added to Your Car

There's a growing community of enthusiasts doing all sorts of things to their cars, from adding chrome wheels to hydraulics that make the cars jump. If you want to go the ultimate and have your car dance, here's how.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Hydraulics

1. Read "Lowrider." The magazine has articles on how to build a low rider car, and that would include adding hydraulics. These stories will teach you about the process, how many hydraulics might be necessary for your car, and so forth. Look at the advertisements and articles to identify shops you can go to, or at least call for advice.

2. Go to the low rider shows in your area and question the competitors at the shows. Inspect the hydraulics in their cars and see how the job was done. Don't be afraid to ask questions and get them to recommend shops.

3. Visit Internet message boards that focus on low riders. There is one at http://lowrider.com.

4. Surf the Internet for chat rooms whose main topic is low riders and/or cars.

5. Expect to pay between $2,000 and $3,000 for the work.

6. Visit the shops you have identified. Ask them how long they've been in business and how many cars they've done. If a shop does 50 cars a year, that's pretty good.

7. Watch the installer do the work. Is the work clean?

8. Ask about photo albums. Review the albums and have the sales representative tell you what the photos show.

9. Ask the sales rep and/or installer exactly what they intend to do with your car. Their explanations should be detailed. You don't want surprises.

10. Ask about warranties and guarantees. Be prepared for the fact that things are going to break when you get hydraulics that are meant to make your car jump up and down, and/or side to side.

11. Choose the shop you feel most comfortable with.