| Just because your car is small, doesn't mean that it | | | | been a fan favorite for over thirty years. Its teeny |
| has to be slow. In fact, some of the fastest cars on | | | | 1.8L engine pushes out an impressive 140 horses. The |
| the road today are subcompacts. How so? Because | | | | new Civic is a far cry from the "pregnant roller" skate |
| their owners have modified them to the point where | | | | look of the first Civics. Owners are grateful. |
| they can squeeze out additional horsepower and | | | | Scion tC - Unlike its two boxy brethren, the tC is |
| acceleration. Let's take a look at six cars that qualify | | | | sleek looking and has a rocket demeanor. With a 2.3L |
| as genuine "pocket rockets." | | | | under its hood, the tC has the second largest engine |
| For the sake of argument, here are some ground | | | | of any car in this class. You net 160 horses with the |
| rules for a pocket rocket: | | | | Scion. |
| The car must be a compact or smaller. | | | | Subaru Impreza - The biggest car in this class has the |
| The engine must be normally aspirated; no turbo | | | | most powerful engine, a 2.5L boxter engine producing |
| charged cars - four cylinders only. | | | | 173 horses. Very competitive with larger and more |
| New versions of the car must all retail for less than | | | | powerful cars, but a favorite among "pocket rocket" |
| $20,000. | | | | fans nevertheless. |
| The following six cars all qualify as pocket rockets | | | | VW Golf - A 2.0L 115hp drives the Golf, but the car's |
| when each of the above stipulations has been met: | | | | light weight allows for it to buzz down the highway |
| Dodge Neon; Ford Focus; Honda Civic; Scion tC; | | | | at a fairly good clip. |
| Subaru Impreza; and Volkswagen Golf. | | | | Favorite ways of squeezing out additional power for |
| Unfortunately, the Mitsubishi Eclipse retails for just | | | | pocket rocket owners include installing the following |
| above $20,000 so it does not qualify. Besides, it looks | | | | hot selling aftermarket parts: |
| too much like a sports car; we are only examining | | | | Reusable air filters; top providers include: K&N and |
| those vehicles that are somewhat plain before being | | | | Green. |
| transformed by aftermarket parts. | | | | Cold air intake systems; favorites include: K&N, AEM, |
| Dodge Neon - Technically, the Neon is no longer in | | | | and Airaid. |
| production as 2005 was its last model year. Still, with | | | | Cat-back exhaust systems; leading manufacturers |
| a 2.0L 132hp engine, the Neon remains an affordable | | | | include: Magnaflow and Vibrant. |
| favorite of the youth set who enjoy customizing | | | | Performance chips; Hypertech and Jet Chips lead the |
| their vehicles | | | | way. |
| Ford Focus - A lemon no more! Earlier models of the | | | | Performance level increases are measured in |
| Focus were problem plagued, but the car has made | | | | horsepower, thrust, and acceleration. Depending on |
| significant strides in the past few years and has | | | | the parts installed and model selected, improvements |
| received Consumer Report's recommended buy label | | | | can range from slight to significant. Regardless, all six |
| too. The stubby ZX3 produces 136 horses with its | | | | models have the potential of becoming true pocket |
| 2.0L engine. | | | | rockets and that is part of the thrill in owning one. |
| Honda Civic - Redesigned for 2006, the Civic has | | | | |