Carolina Squat; The Good The Bad And The Ugly

Subjecting vehicles to their owners restyling has been on the rise in recent years. With all manner of off factory styling and upgrades just to suit, the owners appeal while others are done for other specific purposes. We’ve seen the rise of stance, slammed cars, and a lot more, now is the Carolina squat another “car condition” we will like to talk about.

Carolina Squat which originated from southern California and is referred to as California (Cali) Lean or the Tennessee lean can be seen in two different ways, first, it can be seen from the owners perspective of giving his/her vehicle (truck) the appearance that they feel best suits it by raising the front of the truck and lowering the rear thereby altering the actual design of the manufacturers. Secondly, to compete in Baja racing which was popular in the desert terrains of California. This hilly surface race required a lot of jumps from the vehicles involved so the idea is, when a Baja truck hits a jump at a higher speed, to land its rear first, thus avoiding nose-dive, which could potentially total the truck and would mean the end of the race for that competitor.

To put it in the simplest of terms, the Carolina squat is a trend where a vehicle, most commonly a truck, is modified (factory diversion) in a way so that the front end is lifted, while at the same time, the rear is lowered. This results in the front end of the truck pointing slightly upwards, while the rear end is closer to the ground, which makes the truck look like it’s doing squats. Hence the name “The Carolina squat”.

The Baja Experience
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The goal in Baja racing is to design, build and race off-road vehicles that can withstand the harshest elements of rough terrain. This yearly event has promoted a series of modifications in the automobile world and the Carolina squat is one of such but the emphasis should be that they do not operate upon any highway or public vehicular area as their stance is only made to suit the competition and not just for the “riding in style” vibe that comes with Squat riding.

Welcome to the social media world
The Carolina Squat was and is still heavily making waves on social media as its followers are in their thousands as the day passes by, the scope get widen and this can only be attributed to the impact created by social media in our world today as there are numerous Instagram, Facebook, and other social media pages, dedicated to the Carolina squat. You can find the trend with other names such as the truck squat, Carolina lean, truck lean, squatted truck, and others.

Danger is coming
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Looking at it from a competitive standpoint, squatting your truck does not bring any competitive edge in the real world. Yes, it does result in the truck having a larger rake, which might improve the approach angle, but other than that there are no useful features to this alteration. Since, most trucks already come with a good approach angle, due to them having small overhangs and high ground clearance. Excessive squatting may likely result in colossal damage to the truck and even to its occupant as well.

Why the ban on Carolina Squat is imminent
While squatting can sound so lovely to enthusiasts, it can also spell doom for other commuters as well as pedestrians who may be going about their normal activities only to come across a truck or SUV whose suspension modifications impede forward visibility, while also negatively impacting braking and handling. The misaimed headlight is a serious call for concern as it tends to blind other drivers on the road thereby endangering the lives of innocent pedestrians. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has signed House Bill 692 into law. Effective December 1st, 2021, the owners of squatted vehicles will be considered in violation of state requirements and could face penalties that include fines and a one-year driver’s license suspension.

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