A Stance Car Park-Off at FNB Stadium

2Summers | 28 November 2023
johannesburg soweto driving cars

Some of you might remember a post I wrote last year about bicycle spinning and stance in Soweto. The bicycle stance subculture, which is the art of transforming regular bikes into flamboyant showpieces that ride very close to the ground, stemmed from the car stance culture – same thing, but with cars.

A great example of a stance car – a classic Toyota Tazz. As you can see, the undercarriage hovers just centimeters above the tarmac and the tires are almost all rim, with very little rubber.

On Sunday I went to a stance car “Park-Off”, also referred to as “Stance Church”, in a parking lot just off Nasrec Road across from FNB Statdium. Five of us – Percy, bicycle stance aficionado and @Sentech_Croozers founder who tipped us off to the Park-Off, Kristen, Nigel, Sipho, and me – squeezed into Greylene and made the short drive from Brixton to Nasrec. We spent a few hours roaming the parking lot, admiring the low-slung cars, listening to revving engines and popping exhaust pipes, trying to figure out what the heck was going on.

Park Off with FNB Stadium in the background
The Park-Off. FNB Stadium, also known as Soccer City, is in the background. The event was hosted by @Equipped_Worx_Official.
Our crew with Greylene
Our crew (left to right: Nigel, Percy, Sipho, and Kristen) with Greylene, who, with her comfortably high clearance, is the opposite of a stance car.
Tailgating with Greylene
Tailgating with Kristen and Greylene. (Photo: Percy Zimuto)

I won’t try too hard to explain what stance is about, as I will inevitably get it wrong and sound like an idiot. Instead I will show you lots of pictures that Percy and I took. (Percy is also a photographer and we took turns shooting with my camera.)

Bluetooth car
Bluetooth, ready to pair.
Tall man, short car.
VW Beetle interior
This VW Beetle has one of my favorite interiors.
Reflections in a rim
Stance reflections.
Citigolf with pink interior
This car wins the 2Summers Park-Off award for prettiest color scheme – love it.
Pink Citigolf interior
The upholstery evokes the inside of a womb.
Fiat with amazing rims
The 2Summers Park-Off winner for best rims.
Percy and a Citigolf
Percy wins the 2Summers Park-Off award for best dressed, and we found a car that matched him. For more pictures of this car, check out @mikhail_esbaxh.
White Citigolfs on display
The VW Golf, probably South Africa’s most beloved car, was obviously well-represented at the Park-Off. But stance isn’t limited to vintage VWs and Toyotas. We saw modern Ford hatchbacks, Renaults, Hyundais, Fiats, and many more.
I love the low-slung bakkies (pickups).
This car’s name is Papa Smurf. (Photo: Percy Zimuto)
Very lowslung car
You may be wondering, as I did, how these cars actually move. I obviously don’t have the technical knowledge to properly explain it, but the cars have air compressor systems that the driver uses to automatically raise and lower the car’s suspension. Nonetheless, we often heard the nails-on-chalkboard sound of undercarriage scraping pavement. Making that sound seems to be part of the thrill. (Photo: Percy Zimuto)
Orange car
I like this color too – hue of a pollution-laced Jozi sunset.
Hyundai i10
Hyundai i10 in the house.
Stance cars at Nasrec
stance car at competition outside FNB Stadium
Stance sunset.

The Low Limbo Stance Competition

We had hoped to see some spinning, but Percy suspected that wouldn’t start until much later in the evening. We did, however, catch the delightful “Low Limbo” competition, which is pretty much exactly the way it sounds: the Limbo for cars. A makeshift Limbo pole is erected in the parking lot and cars try to squeeze under the pole at its lowest possible height. The judges carry tape measures to confirm the winner.

Papa Smurf does the Low Limbo
Papa Smurf does the Low Limbo.
Limbo-ing
There was a lot of good-natured chaos occurring around this competition – I have no idea who won. But it was so much fun. The drivers often lowered their suspension as we watched.
Trying to make a car lower for the low limbo
Spectators pile inside – and on top of – the cars to weigh them down and make them lower. (Photo: Percy Zimuto)
Low limbo competition
This one made it under.
Low Limbo competitor
Everyone, win or lose, seemed to have a great time.
Low Limbo spectators
Low Limbo spectators who came all the way from Pretoria. Hubbly Bubbly (or hookah) was the number one pastime at the Park-Off; the air was thick with flavored smoke.

Stance culture seemingly makes no sense in a place like Joburg, where potholes proliferate and the roads aren’t always even paved. But maybe that’s exactly why this trend is so big here: because Joburgers relish a good challenge. We live our lives like low-slung Citigolfs, navigating dark, pock-marked city streets, surviving and thriving despite all odds. Whatever the reason for it, I applaud the effort.

These events happen regularly on Sunday afternoons and the venue is easy to find. If you want to stay informed, @Stance_Church_Worldwide and @Equipped_Worx_Official are good accounts to follow.

It’s a lifestyle.