Next up on the Me, My Square & I segment is Tom Ralph! Take a read below on what makes Tom & his square tick!
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INTRODUCE YOURSELF
Hi all, I'm Tom Ralph. I'm 24 and from Eastleigh, Southampton. To pay for my square I am currently working as an equipment technician for a marine construction company.
My square in question is a 2001 Toyota bB
My first memory of being interested in cars, was on my 7th birthday. I remember going to the Haynes motor museum, and I saw the max power car they had there! My first car was a 1995 1.2 Vauxhall Corsa that had gone though the family with the name, Connie. I found myself loving it due to the freedom it gave me. After this I had a 2010 1.4 Fiat Punto Evo ACTIVE. She (Payton) created so many memories for me. My first meets, shows, holidays, speeding ticket ect. I then got myself a 2007 2.0TDI Seat Leon FR. Lola was her name and speed was her game. She was great fun, created more memories, including a trip through Europe and a lap round the nurburgring for both myself and my girlfriend. And then the square, more to come on that later.
Square society isn't the only group/club I'm part of. For those of you that own a bB, the Facebook group "Toyota bB UK" is great for information and community. I am also a member of manhood classics. This club allows anyone with an interest in vehicles to join. They have a monthly 'bring what you own" meet, where anything is allowed.
WHAT SQUARE DO YOU OWN?
So, on to my square! I own a 2001 1.3 Toyota bB. She answers to the name, Betty. I adopted her from a lovely family based in Cornwall who loved her too much to see her not being driven. The adoption process started with a search notification on ebay which is when I instantly fell in love. The next day, she was gone!! Turns out the previous parents weren't sure about selling her. Due to a post on Toyota bB UK, I found the owner and messaged on the off chance they may still sell. After a lot of messages and calls, a holiday in Paignton was booked and my girlfriend and I were off! I originally realised I was a square head about 6 years ago, when I first saw a Toyota bB on my way to a meet in the Punto. I joined the group and when I found that bB was for sale I instantly messaged the owner and almost bought that one. Unfortunately, due to being made redundant, and other rubbish circumstances, the sale couldn't go ahead. Ever since I have been obsessed, Betty came along at the perfect moment. The Leon was failing due to short journeys everyday and dodgy dpf/injectors. This was more expense than I was willing to pay, and the search was on. I was looking at loads of other cars but knew Betty was the only answer.
WHAT MODS HAVE YOU DONE TO YOUR SQUARE?
When I bought her, Betty already had a couple of modifications. She had a body kit made by Fabulous in Japan and some awesome unknown Japanese alloys. In the time I have had her, I have done a basic boot build, a cheap android radio, footwell lights, underglow, upgraded grooved disks and ebc pads on the front, upgraded to toyo t1r at the back and Toyo tr1 at the front, and 4D plates.
ANY FUTURE PLANS/MODS FOR YOUR SQUARE?
I have a large list of modifications planned but just to name a few probable mods for this year; exhaust, private plates, android auto radio, improved boot build, sequential led side indicators and maybe the matching fabulous spoiler (or a copy) and some central locking. I would love to have air suspension and get rid of some arch gap but I can't see that happening soon due to budget.
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP 3 SONGS YOU'D LIKE TO LISTEN TO IN YOUR SQUARE?
While on road trips, whether short or long I do like to have some music on and maybe a sing along (sorry if you've ever heard) It is very difficult to pick a top three! But, if I had to choose:
Wellerman by The Longest John's
Granddaddy's Gun by Blake Shelton
People Are Crazy by Billy Currington
IF MONEY WAS NO OBJECT THEN WHAT WOULD YOUR TOP 5 DREAM CARS BE?
Now to the fun part...top five dream cars!!
Let's just say a man can dream - First would have to be a Lamborghini Aventador SV
Second would be a 1950s VW Campervan, always wanted one ever since I can remember!
Third is a 1930 model A Cummings rat rod.
Forth is a large engine swapped first gen bB, maybe some sort of v8, with the roof cut off from the b pillar, and turned into a mini pickup.
And last but not least is a heavily modified Toyota Alphard, sleeper style!
ANY HONORABLE MENTIONS OR SHOUTOUTS?
So that's enough about me, now for the mentions. I would firstly like to thank Emily Griffiths, Tommy Luckson and Tom " HFD" Nowakowsky for the help and support they gave me in finding the right bB and not letting me stop searching! I would also like the thank the bB community at Toyota bB UK for helping me when I get stuck with anything on the bB. Finally, every square head I have met through meets, shows and online for being a great family!!
One final thing. I would like to highly recommend SJP in North Baddesley for any work or MOTs you need to have carried out to any car.
A big thank you to Tom Ralph for writing out his blog article feature, if you or your business is interested in being featured then give us a message on our Facebook page or Instagram page and we'll send you the info on what you'll need to be featured. We have an organised queuing system that allows us to monitor when you're post will be up.
You can listen to all of the songs that everyone has picked as their Top 3 in our official Square Society Blog's Top 3 Playlist on Spotify!
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