The authors studied thirty hot rod drivers. The hot rod driver, like other delinquents, suffers from feelings of inadequacy, dependency needs which he must repudiate, strong aggressive urges that he cannot handle in a socially acceptable manner, and superego lacunae that permit acting out. Hot rod driving affords the driver a counterphobic way of handling intense anxiety and an enhancement of his body image through identification with the car. It gives him also membership in a hot rod gang which implies status and virility.