Pimp My Ride


Pimp My Ride is an American television series produced by MTV and hosted by rapper Xzibit, which ran on MTV for six seasons from 2004 to 2007. Each episode consists of taking one car in poor condition and restoring it, as well as customizing it. The restoration and customizing were done by West Coast Customs for the first four seasons, then Galpin Auto Sports for seasons 5–6.
The show had several international adaptations, including Pimp My Ride UK, Pimp My Ride International, and other adaptations in Brazil, Indonesia and the Baltic countries. It also spawned imitators, including the CMT series Trick My Truck.

Format

This show picks young car owners living in Los Angeles or elsewhere in Southern California. An episode of Pimp My Ride generally begins with the participant showing his or her car off, and convincing MTV that it needs to be "pimped". After this segment, the host shows up at the participant's house, takes a look at the car himself, makes wisecracks about the particular things that are wrong with it, and promises the owner a complete makeover of the vehicle.
After examining the car, Xzibit takes it to a custom body shop, in Corona, California, in Seasons 1–4; replaced by Galpin Auto Sports, where the shop team generally replaces most of the components and rebuilds the interior and exterior from scratch.
Each car is a custom "pimp", tailored to the personalities and interests of the owners. For example, a ' fan had his car painted to look like one specially customized in the ' game, while a bowler had a ball spinner installed in his trunk, a badminton player had a badminton net installed in the back of his Dodge Caravan, and a surfer got a clothes dryer in the back of his Volkswagen Type 2. Work usually includes new paint, accessories, chrome, tires, and rims, and internal electronics. Most changes are only cosmetic, and mechanical work is generally only done to enable the car to run; the show has replaced entire engines with new engines. Both WCC and GAS are well known for putting their own whimsical touches in their work, such as the aforementioned dryer, or an electric fireplace in the trunk of another vehicle.
At the end of the show, the car is revealed to its owner, as well as all the details of the renovation and the custom features; in addition, the participant is usually given a gift somehow related to the car or the owner's hobby.

Episodes

Cast

Seasons 1–4

The West Coast Customs employees shown on the series included:
After the third season, WCC manager "Q" announced that he would not be willing to take a role in the show anymore. Q cited a desire to expand the company's business with a customs shop in St. Louis, Missouri called Coast 2 Coast Customs. Ryan Friedlinghaus, the owner of WCC, was featured in Season 4 as the "lead" for discussions on customizing the cars.

Seasons 5–6

In the fifth season, the show moved to another garage, Galpin Auto Sports, as Ryan, the WCC Owner, moved his shop to Corona, California and signed a deal with another television production company. However, the show retained Mad Mike, now dubbed a "car customization specialist". The new cast consisted of:
On three occasions – all season finales – did the show not "pimp" the original automobile.
In all these instances, the vehicles of the participants were replaced with brand new cars, with extensive modifications made to customize each new car for the owner.

Worldwide popularity

Pimp My Ride was one of MTV's most popular shows with nearly all of its worldwide viewers, and also in the U.S., where it ranked second only to The Real World.
Canada's music network, MuchMusic, aired the show until MTV Networks signed a deal with CTV, which resulted in MuchMusic losing their rights to MTV programs. MuchMusic's French-language sister station, MusiquePlus, aired the show subtitled in French under the title Pimp mon char. The show would eventually re-air on Much in the Summer of 2008, showing the later seasons.
Pimp My Ride was broadcast in Arab countries on both MTV Arabia and MBC Action.

Accusations of fakery

Various participants who had their cars overhauled on Pimp My Ride have stated that elements of the show were faked. These include cars getting their paint removed and additional litter put in before taping in order to make their starting condition look worse; cars getting outfitted with elements that were removed right after taping, like a robotic arm; and contestants being coached to act more enthusiastically than they would normally act after the final "reveal". Participants have also said that the overhaul process, implied in the show to last no more than a few days, actually lasted 6–8 months.

DVD releases

U.S. version

International adaptations

Official adaptations of Pimp My Ride, produced or co-produced by international MTV affiliates, include:

For cars

Viacom, the owner of the Pimp My Ride franchise, has made legal threats against a number of small business owners over the use of the words Pimp My... in business names. Businesses using the names Pimp My Pet and Pimp My Snack have been threatened with legal action for an alleged breach of a trademark owned by Viacom. The website Pimp My Snack is now known as Pimp That Snack.

Similar programs

United States