During the practice event leading up to Attack Tsukuba, we had the opportunity to get a very early look at the new GTR35 demo car from the Tochigi based shop, Friends Racing. Toru Inose and his crew have been busy over the last year or two building the GTR up to sit along side their immaculate demo car fleet of Silvia’s, S15 and S14, and their Subaru VAB STi. They unveiled the new build at a time where many are realizing that the GTR is quickly becoming an ideal platform to take on Tsukuba’s TC2000 specifically. Inose’s deep roots in drag racing have provided him the knowledge to make reliable, high powered engines – something Tsukuba rewards greatly. There’s still a lot we don’t know about this build, as Inose has been quiet throughout the entire build process. However, his first time out on track yielded a 55 second flat lap time with plenty of time left on the table. Compared to his S15 demo car, which posted a best of 53.821 in 2016, a 1.2 second differential with a single event is incredible.
Inose and his team’s ability to remain consistent in build quality, aesthetic, and performance across the range of their shop builds is commendable. The vision he has for his company and how he presents it is nothing short of incredible. It serves as a large source of inspiration for me and NDF.
I included some of the notable modifications that I noticed while filming in the video, but I’m looking forward to discovering more about this build from the source. When I do, you’ll be the first to hear about it. Enjoy the video and the detailed shots of the build.
That engine bay is sick