. . Alexi at Nori Yaro posted a link to this really old video that TwinTurboRS uploaded to You Tube recently. It’s basically an abnormally large group of Kanjo racers in EF hatches ripping through […]
Author: Sean
Break: UP Garage Aobodai
. UP Garage moved there main store from Machida to Aobodai, so last time I was in Japan I decided to go check it out. I think time stopped for Addy because we must have […]
Encounter: Z33 vs. Non-Step Bus
. These guys were racing…seriously. The bus was pulling on him. Ha, I like how laid back both drivers look. Taken somewhere in Yokohama. Anyone know what front bumper that is?! .
Encounter: Untouched R34
In the same lot that I spotted the FD I posted last week was this completely stock R34. I can’t even remember the last time I saw one of these without any modification. Looking at it from the side, it looks a little too tall for my tastes – but how perfect would this thing be if it were lowered just a bit? I got a few more shots past the break.
Close-Up: ASM in Orange
I recently visited the ASM showroom in Yokohama to snag some shots for a ‘Locale’ post, and happened across this orange highlighted AP1 sitting out front. Simple, but tastefully modified with a choice of ASM parts; tow hook, vented hood, Recaro’s (of course), rear wing and wheels. The white body makes the orange painted parts stand out even more, and although not my style, doesn’t look too bad. At least it’s not way overdone. Click past the break for a few more.
Encounter: B120 Sunny
. I saw this B120 towards the back of Masaru Tanaka’s photostream. The B120 was introduced in the late 70’s, and it was based off of the B110 car chassis. I’m a sucker for old […]
Encounter: Matsuya Miata
. I can’t believe I haven’t posted this yet. This was taken in Tokyo sometime back in 2007 when CE28’s were just coming onto the scene. I spotted this clean hard-top roadster in front of […]
Site News: 10 Grand
. I just checked out the site statistics for 2011 and, to my surprise, we got over 10,000 views in the month of January alone! Thanks to everyone who checks in to browse and leave […]
Encounter: Work RX-7
Saw this mildly tuned FD upon leaving Autobacs one morning. Although I’m not a fan of Work Emotion CR-KAI’s because of the lack of lip, they do look alright here. The rear could use some spacers though. Click the break for a rear shot.
Video: Meihan Residents – TEAM BURST and Friends
. . Found this from a quick search on Vimeo; shot by InertiaMS. It’s a great video with some cool editing, and great clips. .
Feature: Nakamura’s S13
I like Team Burst. You probably like them too. I’d even venture to say that out of all the organized drift ‘teams’ in Japan, that Team Burst is the most recognized. This is largely due in part to Naoki Nakamura’s drift skill and media attention; whether it’s wanted or not. I’m sure that you’ve heard by now all the recent news that has surrounded Naoki, but if you haven’t click here, and then here. With that in mind, I thought it would be cool to do a little spotlight on the cars he drives in regularly, and for D1SL. I shot these on the last day of TAS, and you can see that the D1 banners have been removed already. Click past the break for the gallery.
Video: Gazoo Racing LFA at Fuji Speedway
. . Told you I’d find it! Turn your speakers up and thank NihonCar for bringing us such a cool vid. The sound this car makes leaving the pits (@ 1min. 10sec.) is incredible. .
Close-Up: Super GT at TAS 2011
OK so I lied about the whole ‘no more TAS’ thing; but I never got a chance to post up the Super GT Special. TAS is a trade show, and what better way to market your product than to slap it on a full blown, competition race car? There isn’t really, so, to my pleasant surprise, the Salon grounds were sprinkled with Super GT cars; like the Nismo built Motul/Autech GT-R. Super GT is a fairly unique series that puts excitement first. Only allowing pit stops during certain time frames, mandatory ballast for winning cars, and intake air restrictors all add to competition. Click past the break for more Super GT.
News: BURST is BACK!
. *Taken from 7tune – FYI 7tune is a super legit blog, def. check them out if you haven’t yet. News comes to us from the international staff at Tomei Powered in Machida that Naoki […]
Encounter: Cream of Fit
Saw this Fit when we were walking towards Autobacs Yokohama and decided to snap a few pics. It was pretty beat, but I think it added to the charm. It had this rear lip, but the sides, front and wing were missing; and it was rocking some straight thrashed TE37’s. Click the break for a few more.
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 v.5
I have a feeling this last installment is going to be filled with R35 goodness. Mine’s, Endless, HKS, Option; they all had GT-R’s on display, and they were all fantastic. For a closer look at the Mine’s built GT-R pictured above, check out Taka’s video @ JDM Clips. This thing is pushing out near 800hp. Although this may be the last ‘walk around’ TAS post, I’ll have a few more specific shots coming soon however. It’s kind of sad to see it come to an end. Click past the break to see more of the final coverage post from Tokyo Auto Salon.
One Shot: Model Madness
. Thought I’d post this for a few laughs. Definitive proof that there were people there for reasons other than cars. Not one person is looking at the 86 in this shot. The UP Garage […]
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 v.4
Alright, I honestly thought that this would be the last post from TAS I would put out, but it looks like that’s not the case. I’ll be making it a series of 5 for full coverage; one more to go. Anyway, runner up for best model would be from Gontaya. I really don’t have anything to say about this one…click past the break for more TAS goodness.
Mail Call!
. Went downstairs to grab my bills, err, I mean my mail, and was super excited to see a package from JDM Ego. Thanks for the hook up Jay! Will return the favor soon. -Sean
News: J’s Racing President Arrested for Attempted Murder
. This was taken from GT Channel According to Japanese websites, J’s Racing president Junichi Umemoto has been arrested for attempted murder. Full translation: http://news.tv-asahi.co.jp/news/web/html/210124004.html The police have arrest a 43 year old […]
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 – RH9
Describing RH9 in one word would be easy; Power. The Record Holder 9 club is exclusive to those cars capable of running 9’s in the quarter mile, the 1320, 0-400m; whatever you wanna call it, these things can do it fast. Once confined only to GT-R’s, it seems like they’ve expanded to other platforms as well; like the almighty Garage G Force X above. When you think of Japanese tuning, you’ll probably think of a few companies that take part in this club; and you’ll see some of their creations here. It’s not uncommon to see RH9 badged parts created by these companies as well. When I picked through these, I realized a lot were on the CF card that had failed on me. As a result I’m missing some (unhappy face). There are a few other sites though that have coverage of the RH9 too, so all is well. Enjoy.
Close Up: Yellow Factory EG6
I think that this may have been the most overlooked car at the Salon; no exaggeration. I actually did a double take when I saw this because I couldn’t believe an EG6 was at Auto Salon in the year 2011. Aside from the actual Honda booth, finding a tuned Honda (other than a CR-Z) at this years Salon was like finding a needle in a haystack; if the hay were made out of Nissans and Toyotas. After drifting blew up, the market obviously gravitated toward S-Chassis’ and the like. RWD engulfed Honda’s FWD prior dominance and left them to the devoted few. After I came to my senses I decided that I needed to spend a few moments with this thing. Check out more past the break.
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 v.3
I hope you guys are still with me on this coverage! I know it’s taking awhile, but I’m busy with work. I’ll begin this post with a few shots of this slammed R33 clad in an anime livery. To my surprise, there were a lot of ‘Itasha’ styled cars at the Salon. For those who are unaware of this movement, Itasha is a term used to describe the otaku fad of modifying cars in an anime or manga theme; mainly with giant decals on the exterior. I’ve already admitted to my liking it for reasons unknown to me. It’s become quite popular in Japan recently, and there are regularly held meets throughout Tokyo. This particular Skyline was wrapped in 萌えコレ!(Moe Colle) vinyl. 三栄書房 (San-Ei Shobo) is a huge Japanese magazine publisher. If you’re a fan of this car, check out the wallpaper section. Click past the break for more.
Encounter: Final Konnexion/Tanaka Eng Z33
I literally just went through another 100 photos from TAS, and I’m sick of editing. I’ll break up the coverage a little with a look at this Final Konnexion Z33. Of all the Fairlady’s at the show, this one just floored me. I can’t really find much info on it though. It’s flow is so tasty… Click past the break to see another shot.
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 v.2
After an hour or so I seemed to get my bearings around the gigantic convention center, and realized the scope of what laid ahead of me. To cover a show of this magnitude on my own would take some serious moving around; so I did just that. Keeping an eye out for certain booths I really wanted to see, I set out on a mission to cover as much as the show as I could. I found out that the two other halls held more of the stuff I was looking for. The next two posts will contain some spectacular builds from the tuners we all know and love. Check it out past the break.
Event: Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 v.1
Tokyo Auto Salon is a sort of misleading name for this event. If we could modify the title to something like, ‘Tokyo Model Salon’, it would read more accurate. Seriously, you couldn’t get a mile away from any car if there was a model in front of it. As soon as a girl appeared, a mob of hormonally charged Japanese men would crowd so close that I couldn’t get anywhere near the booth to shoot the car. Because of this, my coverage isn’t as organized as I would have wanted, but I’ll try my best to post in the directions in which I walked. OK, with all that out of the way, I will say that this show was nothing short of epic. It was my third time attending but my first time shooting for the website, and I gotta say it’s a lot more stressful trying to take it all in – again though, I wasn’t disappointed in the turnout. Sure, there were 30 billion people there, but it just added to the atmosphere. In the posts to follow I’ll do my best to cover not just cars, but booth and product displays as well. Click past the break for more.
Close Up: Streets Nissan March
OK, so I didn’t realize just how many photos that I have to sift through and edit. I ended up taking close to 20 Gigs this last trip, and I’ve just arrived at my apartment to start sorting them. I would have had some coverage up sooner, but the last part of my vacation was spent with family. So while I get some posts of TAS together, I’ll let you munch of this for a little while. We spotted this March walking back from Autobacs. It was actually at a Nissan dealership; maybe the owner works there. It had some tasteful mods, which is fairly common for these kei cars, but since we don’t have these in the states, thought I’d grab some shots. Click past the break for more.
Video: 1JZ Drift Meet @ Fuji Speedway
. Great! A vimeo video actually works on WordPress! I found this trolling around on Nori Yaro (I am pleased to see this site back up after a crash). You can actually see Alexi in […]
Feature: Keihin Real Racing HSV-010 GT
When Honda announced the end of the NSX’s participation in the Super GT due to new regulations only allowing front-engine, rear-driven cars, fans around the world winced a little. Little did we know what Honda had cooking in their chemistry lab of motorsport awesomeness. They announced their new GT spec car towards the end of 2009 as a successor to the popular mid-engined NSX, that was to compete in the GT-500 class in 2010. I believe there were four teams that utilized the HSV; Epson, Weider, Autobacs, and Keihin. Of these teams, Keihin managed the best performance of the season. You can watch the race at Sportsland Sugo here; the spectacular ending, and win for the Keihin team, was a highlight of this season. This win helped them to acheive 3rd place in the championship. If that’s not enough HSV-ness, click over to JDM Clips to see the Keihin HSV in action in Motegi. Thanks to JDM Clips for some great shots.
Site News: NDF Goes to TAS! 東京オートサロン!
. I’m excited to say that we’ll be headed for Japan next weekend to attend the Tokyo Auto Salon. Stay tuned for coverage of the greatest Japanese automotive event of the year! -Sean
Action: Mugen Circuit Challenge S2000
Ever wonder what it would feel like to fly around Tsukuba, strapped into a Mugen built machine, driven by a former F1 driver and current Super GT driver? If so, the Mugen Circuit Challenge at Tsukuba Circuit is the place you need to go. Taka from JDM Clips sent these images over to help us get as close as we can to the action. He has attended this event multiple times, and really has a feel for what a company like Mugen can achieve. Perfectly matching power output with chassis limitations, Mugen can take performance to an entirely new level. Having a reliable car equipped with parts that work in harmony with the chassis is ideal for maintaining control on track; and Mugen does just that. Most people don’t realize just how much experience Mugen has in building cars and engines. Click past the break for more on-track shots.
Close Up: Honda-Tuning/Evasive CR-Z
With the CR-Z being fairly new, there isn’t really an extensive catalog of aftermarket parts to choose from; especially in the aero department. However, the CR-Z that Honda-Tuning put together shows that you don’t need that much to make something that looks great. The C-West lip kit that adorns the outside of the Honda turns the ordinary CR-Z body, into an overall more aggressive looking car. Click past the break to see what else is up with this car.
Desktop: Amuse S2000 GT1
. 1680x This was a pretty popular post, topping nearly 1,000 views, so I decided it would be fitting for a desktop post. Here’s a 1680x shot for your viewing pleasure. . .
Feature: Anthony’s Downforce NSX
Of all the cars at the Cerritos Honda car show last weekend, I think I liked this NSX the most. I spotted it early on and got to snap some shots before the crowds came. It’s ridiculously clean, and although only has a handful of mods, they all flow together perfectly. As I was wrapping my visit up, I was lucky enough to run into the owner; Anthony. He’s a nice, laid back guy, and I’m glad I could talk to him for a short while. I got some more info on the NSX, and he was kind enough to let me post up a little feature here. Enjoy the shots!
FEATURE: Power House Amuse S2000 GT1
The JDM Clips/NDF collaboration delivers the goods once again with this feature on the legendary Amuse S2000 GT1. This car is one of the greatest tuning achievements of Mr. Hideki Tanabe’s lifetime, and for good reason. It’s looks are not only unforgettable, but it’s mechanical prowess has been proven on both street and track. The insanely wide body kit brings order to chaos and gives the car the aerodynamic performance close to that of a full race car. Click past the break to check out the car in more detail.
Event: Cerritos Honda Toy Drive & Car Show V.2
In the continuing coverage from Sunday’s toy drive & car show at Cerritos Honda, we’ll check out all the other great entrants; like the immaculate RyWire CRX. I recognized a handful of So-Cal regulars, but was happy to see some new builds as well. Click past the break for more.
Event: Cerritos Honda Toy Drive & Car Show V.1
Tis’ the season for giving, and what better way to kick off the holidays than with a toy drive & car show? December 12th marked Norm Reeves Honda’s 5th annual toy drive and car show and, much like last year, it was a great turnout. I grabbed my toy donations and dropped by pretty early; luckily, most of the entrants were already setup so I was able to get some good coverage. There was a bit of everything on display and more S2000s than I think I’ve ever seen in one place before (definitely not a bad thing). In this first post I’m going to focus on just S2000’s, and I’ll follow up with the rest of the lot. If I missed your car, my apologies, I was in a rush to get back to work. Click past the break for more.
Feature: Power House Amuse 370Z Vestito
Japanese mega tuner Power House Amuse was on site at Super Autobacs Yokohama recently to demo their new aero kit for the Z34; the Vestito. Lucky for us, Taka was there as well to capture it all. Amuse has long been producing unique and aggressive aero kits for a variety of chassis. This is their latest offering for the Z platform; preceded by the Superleggera kit for the Z33 chassis. I believe Amuse took a less domineering approach to this kit, and put more emphasis on flowing lines and function; and flat out on the track the Vestito proves that it does more than just look good. Click past the break for more display shots.
Desktop: Castrol NSX GT Spec
I apologize for the lack of posts this month. I’ve been super busy with life (& GT5), and have really been putting off finding content. I was supposed to head to Irwindale today after work to check out Industry Day, but got tipped off that it wasn’t all that (thanks Addy). To hold you over I’ll post this desktop that Taka sent over of the Japan GT Castrol NSX. Click past the break for some desktop links.
Locale: Twin Ring Motegi – Beams Endurance Integra
In this post I’d like to both thank, and welcome Taka to the NDF Blog team. Taka runs the JDM Clips channel, and is now a contributor to Narita Dog Fight. He sent these pictures of the Beams Tokachi 24-hour endurance race car from the Twin Ring Motegi Honda collection hall. In 2003, when Honda became the sole engine provider for the INDY series, Motegi was added to the IRL schedule, and is famous in Japan for being the only oval ring circuit. When there are no events going on though, the Honda Collection Hall is the place to go. Many old and current race cars are displayed for the public to view; this Integra being one of them.