Tommy Bednarik’s 2002 Jetta Wagon is a study in minimalism…and minimum clearance. You’d have a tough time fitting a pack of smokes under that car when fully lowered. But what impresses me most about Bednarik’s ride isn’t the stance, though it is a beautiful thing, it is the careful elimination of clutter both on the exterior and the engine bay.

Clean and Tidy

A lot of tuners create “look at me” rides with huge spoilers, bright colors, loud exhausts, tons of chrome and racy looking body kits. Now, I’m all for that too. But, Bednarik on the other hand, has actually made his car a lot more clean looking with his modifications with just enough contrast and pop to keep it interesting. The Gold and Chrome Rays Engineering Payton Place Queen 17 inch rims (which Bednarik thinks might be the last set in existence) add the perfect accent to the deep blue paint. And, in my opinion, the 17 inch rims look perfect on this car. Any bigger, or smaller for that matter, and this Jetta’s perfect proportions would be upset. Bednarik has also removed the VW badges from the front and rear. This has become fairly common, but when applied here gives the car an ultra clean look. Even the stickers on the back window are clean and organized!

On to the engine bay. Words cannot describe it. Bednarik’s minimal approach has been applied very well here. The paint matched engine cover, tucked blue wires and custom intake make this engine compartment a thing of beauty. Again, no shiny polished chrome intake here. That would just mess things up. And talk about clean, you could eat off any surface.

Love Story

You can tell that Tommy Bednarik loves his car. Each modification has been carefully selected and impeccably placed. It kinda makes me wonder what his house looks like. If it’s anything like his car, it could probably be featured in a design magazine.

This is what makes cars so great. Everyone has their own taste. Their own style. And they can express that with their ride. Bednarik took a grocery getter and turned it into something special. When asked about performance, Bednarik replies, “I haven’t been concerned with performance.” With this car, who cares? It is truly form over function. And what does he like most about his ride? “The fact that its a wagon which makes it stand out a little more,” states Bednarik. And stand out it does. Just not in the “I’ve-modded-the-crap-out-of-my-car-and-I-want-everyone-to-notice-me” kind of way.

Rolling Beauty

So how did Tommy Bednarik create such a moving work of art? Here are just some of the modifications:

Wish List

So what’s next on the to-do list? “Next on the list is custom upholstery and some other new interior features,” says Bednarik. Well, keep us posted! Tommy has shown his car at Dubs at the Beach in 2009, H2Ointernational in 2008 and 2009, Show-n-go in 2010 and Waterfest in 2010 where he won 2nd place in the Mod 2 VR6 Jetta class. Something tells me that the new upholstery and interior mods just may generate some more wins.

So Tommy, if you could modify any car, what would it be? “I would buy and customize a 1997 Toyota Supra. That has always been my dream car.”

Photos courtesy of Alex Bednarik

Share Your Story

If you’d like us to feature your car, please contact us.