Back in early December of 2015, before Street Outlaws star Justin “Big Chief” Shearer had even  officially unveiled his new ‘CrowMod’ to the world, we posed a question here on Dragzine regarding the potential influx of long, low, and light Pro Modified-style cars on the show — asking whether fans would accept them or not, and what effect, if any, their presence might have on its future popularity. The response was, to say the least, overwhelming, with hundreds of comments and messages flooding in, some of them rather impassioned, with their thoughts on the topic.

On Monday night, the show wrapped up its eighth season, which gave viewers their first taste of what the 405’s Pro Mod-esque cars, notably that of Shearer and Jeff Lutz, looked like on the small screen and how they’d perform against their steel body counterparts. To be fair, neither car was flat-out dominant — both lost a race or two, and both won races that were a lot closer than one might have guessed on paper. And, as the show’s numbers prove, no one that said they’d stop watching actually stopped watching. In fact, on average, more people are watching.

As has been known for several months and was finally made official on Monday’s season finale, Oklahoma City’s roster is moving to do away with the Pro Mod-style cars in future seasons, meaning its cast, and presumably the show’s producers, as well, believe it’s long-term viability hinges to some degree on maintaining the ‘real car’ spirit that many of its fans have been vocal about. In that finale, neither Shearer nor Lutz appeared with their cars, and based on what we know, neither the ‘CrowMod’ or Mad Max’ are likely to be seen on the next season of the show or perhaps at any time in the future.

After watching this season unfold, is that a good move in your opinion? Is a requirement to use an original steel body enough, in your mind, to keep the spirit of the cars alive and extend the popularity and the attraction of the show? Or do you still feel that anything is fair game, so long as it can hook up and go quicker than the next guy?