Words: Aron Norris | Photography: Marcel Waldhauser

What do car meets mean to you? For us, car meets are where it all started. The RollHard you see today has a lot to thank the local car meet for.

Modified Car Meets.

Back when we started getting into cars, there was a “Euro” car group called EU Mania, which to be fair to it, was the first proper non-VAG car forum. Forums I hear you ask? Yes, that’s how car guys and girls talked cars and shared ideas back then, oh how times have changed. It's all about the RollHard Instagram these days.



Meets might not be as glossy as "proper" shows, but that's exactly why they're great, just as long as everyone behaves themselves (anyone remember Southend cruise?).

The Rise of Non-VAG.

As a result of being involved with EU Mania; attending shows and meets, we soon realised that we weren’t the only ones in our area with a big love of non-VAG low cars. At the time, there were very specific “owners club” groups for VW, BMW, Ford, Vauxhall, etc, but nothing for people who just like cars sitting low on wide wheels, regardless of the bonnet badge. It was easy to feel like the odd one out, owning a Vauxhall but being heavily influenced by the VW scene reading Performance Volkswagen magazine religiously and applying “VW logic” to our non-VAG cars.

Dan and I started attending VW shows in our non-VAG cars, which was a baptism of fire for both of us. People didn’t hide behind a keyboard back then, they literally shouted out/heckled us as we entered the show ground at the DC show - it certainly was a bizarre experience, looking back.

Upsetting the Purists.

Despite the blinkers surrounding us, we started to build our circle of similarly sadistic individuals who enjoyed upsetting the “purist mindset” with our cars. We didn't care what anyone else thought about us. We were a group of car guys who loved super clean OE+ bodywork, low suspension and expensive wheels. We just enjoyed doing our own thing, and that’s how RollHard was born. The community you see here today is as grass roots as it ever was, it’s what RollHard will always represent.

RollHard is Belgium.

Belgium is like our second home here at RollHard. Since our first European road-trip to the VAG Opel event back in 2008 (if my memory serves me correct), we’ve loved the country and the people. Oh yeah, and Belgians build killer cars, too. Things in Belgium have grown such that our very own Belgian Chapter event now represents the very best in Belgian car culture.

This brings us back to the importance of the local car meet. Don’t underestimate what goes on at these events because whilst we might not all have the same tastes and styles when it comes to building cars, the friendships and community that result extend so much further. Embrace your local car community.



Dropped Meet, Heusden-Zolder.

One such meet that caught our attention was the Dropped event in Belgium. Held in Heusden-Zolder. There was entry selection to keep the quality high. We’re big fans of events with a mix of quality cars. We’re finding it hard to pick our favourite car from Dropped 2018, what do you think, which car would you want to drive home in?