Beyond the magazine's pages, Max Power was the heartbeat of a real-world scene in the late '90s and early 2000s. The magazine didn't just document car culture—it actively created and shaped it through massive events, community building, and a distinctive lifestyle that gave young car enthusiasts a sense of identity and belonging.
From the legendary Max Power Live shows at Birmingham's NEC to the countless cruises and meets that took place across the UK every weekend, the Max Power phenomenon transcended print media to become a living, breathing subculture with its own language, fashion, and rituals.
Max Power Live
Starting in 1995, the magazine organized Max Power Live – a massive annual car show at Birmingham's NEC arena that quickly became the premier event in the modified car calendar. It combined car exhibits with live stunt shows, burnout pits, model competitions, loud music, and a party atmosphere that perfectly captured the magazine's ethos.
By the early 2000s, it drew tens of thousands of attendees; in its peak year, over 50,000 enthusiasts flooded the NEC to see the wildest modified cars in the UK. The magazine's coverage of the show – massive photo spreads of club stands and award winners – spurred readers to get their cars show-ready for the next year.
It became a virtuous cycle: the magazine made the shows bigger, and the shows made the magazine more popular. For many builders, getting their car featured on the Max Power stand at the NEC was the ultimate achievement in the modified scene.
Major UK Car Shows
Trax
Held at the iconic Silverstone Circuit, Trax was a performance car show that combined static displays with track action. Max Power had a significant presence at the event, with the magazine often sponsoring driving experiences and hosting its own display area. The event offered attendees the rare opportunity to drive their own cars on the famous Formula 1 circuit.
Doncaster Show ("Donny")
Known affectionately as "Donny," the Doncaster Show was famous for its custom cars and concours competition. It had a reputation for showcasing the most extreme modifications and highest quality builds in the UK. Many cars that debuted at Donny would later be featured in Max Power's pages, with the magazine's staff actively scouting for feature cars.
USC (Ultimate Street Car)
Held at Santa Pod Raceway, USC combined a traditional show with quarter-mile drag racing. It was the perfect event for Max Power's audience, who could see high-performance street cars not just looking good but proving their power on the strip. The show embodied the "go as well as show" ethos that Max Power promoted in its later years.
Online Forums & Digital Community
Max Power thrived just before the era of social media and YouTube, but online car forums were already on the rise. Enthusiasts formed web communities like Cruise-Southwest, BarryBoys.co.uk (a satirical site mocking bad modded cars), and countless owner's clubs such as Saxo Sports Club and the FiestaTurbo forum to share photos and plan meets.
Max Power itself launched a website and forums in the 2000s but found it challenging to compete with the grassroots communities that had grown organically. These online spaces extended the Max Power community beyond the magazine's monthly publishing schedule, allowing constant interaction between enthusiasts.
In a sign of how much the brand had penetrated popular culture, the Max Power team even stood a candidate (staff member Dan Anslow) in the 2005 UK general election as a joke "Max Power Party" candidate for Southend West – blurring the line between community and parody.
BarryBoys.co.uk
A satirical site documenting the worst modified cars in the UK, with a tongue-in-cheek attitude that both celebrated and gently mocked the Max Power scene.
Cruise-Southwest
Regional forum for organizing meets across the southwestern UK, featuring event calendars and photo galleries from local cruises.
Saxo Sports Club
Dedicated to the Citroën Saxo, a popular Max Power car, with technical guides and modification advice for owners.
FiestaTurbo.co.uk
Technical forum focusing on Ford Fiesta RS Turbos, XR2s, and other performance variants, with a strong community of builders.
Max Power Culture & Identity
The "Barry Boy" Identity
Max Power helped popularize the term "Barry" or "Barry Boy" – a joking name for a stereotypical young man with a modified car (used both endearingly and insultingly). They even jokingly rated the "level of Barry" at events. The term became part of the UK lexicon and reflected the culture's self-aware, sometimes self-deprecating humor.
Fashion & Style
The Max Power scene had its own distinctive look: flame-pattern shirts, baggy "Carisma" hoodies with car brand logos, gelled spiky hair, and the infamous Burberry baseball cap. This style became so associated with modified cars that Burberry reportedly considered legal action when Max Power painted an entire car in Burberry plaid, dubbing it the "Vauxhall Chavalier."
Lifestyle & Identity
For many young people, Max Power provided more than just car advice – it offered a complete identity and lifestyle. The magazine created a world where ordinary teenagers from modest backgrounds could feel part of something exciting, rebellious, and creative through their passion for cars.
Community Voices
"People of all ages came together over a shared passion for cars... it was endorphin-inducing for the crowd that called this their chosen family. Twenty years on, veterans of the scene still recall how Max Power meets gave them lifelong friends."
"Max Power gave voice to hordes of male car enthusiasts who loved burnouts, massive in-car stereos and pictures of scantily clad women. It wasn't just a magazine—it was a subculture with its own codes, language, and identity."
"Looking back, what made Max Power special wasn't the cars or the modifications—it was the community. Kids from council estates suddenly found themselves part of this nationwide movement. It was democratizing in a way that seems obvious now but was revolutionary then."
"The Max Power Party election stunt in 2005 summed up what we were about—having fun while giving our readers a voice and identity. Our candidate didn't win Southend West, but the fact that people took it semi-seriously showed how much the brand had become part of British culture."
Community Gallery
