Live and Learn

Ouch! This was the THIRD time that the aftermarket front suspension broke on Dave Valfer’s ’71 Plymouth ‘Cuda from Richardson, and all he was doing was backing into a parking spot. This could have been much worse, and he was not a happy camper. The rest of the car was top notch with a modern Hemi and a black and red leather interior.

Certain things should never break, especially when related to suspension. Not to mention the same part breaking 3 times. Hopefully Dave learned his lesson for the final time.

JOB Design Hybrid • NEO LS430

JOB Design just released their latest creation of the UCF30/31 platform. JO calls this the Hybrid • NEO generation kit. It features the updated Euro inspired designs throughout the kit. With round sportier fog lights the Celsior sure looks more aggressive than what this car intended to be rolling out of the Toyota plant.

Side skirts hang low to accent the big-bodied stance. I was concerned about the rear bumper since JO has gone pretty extreme with other Hybrid kits, but this particular rear bumper design was a complete homerun. It is clean and subtle with AMG looking tail pipes. The slight use of gunmetal throughout to accent certain areas are spot on. Not too much but yet enough to grab some attention. Notice the rear bumper opening even mirrors the trunk bar shape and size.

JO is a fantastic designer. Since meeting him 3 yrs ago, I have seen JO continue to push this talent and contribute to the automotive scene. He is truly a pioneer in the VIP sport and I look forward to more of his designs to come in the future.

Thanks JO for giving the gen3 Celsior/LS more hope.


JOB Design

Twin Turbo 3UZFE by TTC Motorsport

With the recent trend for V8 swap in Supras, TTC Performance in Florida has stepped up with their bolt on TT kits for the 3UZ motors. We all know the 3UZ motor is proven in the Lexus flagship LS platform, but primary in the Super GT series in Japan. Yes, the Supras in the Super GT series run V8 motors.

The excitement will be for LS owners wanted for a performance route other than the RMM supercharger. Looking at the quality and detail of the TTC twin turbo kit will tell you these guys sure know a thing or two about building high-horsepower motors.

I for one will be very interest in a similar setup possibly for my daily beater-boat.

Check out the custom intake manifold and exhaust manifold. Motor sculpturing at its' best.

TTC Motorsport


* While digging into the TTC website I notice a familiar car used for the IS300 category.

Godzilla-Stang by Pure Vision Design

Unique and creative builds are rare to find these days. Most projects are corporate backed with endless dollar amounts. The problem is those cars lack direction and are a dime-a-dozen. Enter Pure Vison Design.

Their latest rendering illustrates a '67 Mustang with quite the rare look of a Datsun track prepped car. First you will realize the fender flares not molded into the body complimented by steplip track looking wheels. Stance is incredible with the correct offset. The lower front lip screams SCCA with the x-pattern on the headlights. Other elements that caught my attention were the fender mounted side-mirrors. Their inspiration came from the early days Nissan GT-R. Yes, these diehard domestic hot rod builders went to study the original Japanese cars for this latest concept. Crazy!

If the finished car can look anywhere close to the rendering, these guys would have entered new territories and raised the level of creativity and concept.

Kenisis K57 tribute by CCW

When Kenisis Wheels were bought out by a certain DUB brand, many were slightly disappointed to see such a reputable brand go quietly. I have always wanted a set of K57 in 18s just to collect. CCW wheels have built a tribute to this wheel. They are even calling it the K57. But they have made subtle changes to the classic wheel. The center has a new hard-edge circle cut similar to the Spoon racing wheels. The spokes concave back into the center unlike the old design. CCW has done a fantastic job recreating that titanium finish and I think they got it just right.

Good job guys!
CCW is by far one of best custom wheels companies available.

CCW Wheels

Fender Rolling at its' Best

You guys are Heros. Keep the grassroot scene alive.

FTW

Baracuda X Volk Racing

At the Chicagoland Nationals, we found an odd combo near the track. This is '67 Baracuda with 17" inch Volk Racing GT-C finished in gunmetal centers. Why did this catch my attention? It's super rare to see a Domestic classic car rock Japanese wheels. If you were to build a nostalgic look, period-correct you would probably got Cragers with a rake. But this particular owner opt out for a fresh set of early 2000 Volk Racing wheel made by none-other than RAYS Engineering.

Another reason why you are reading this post, I once had a set of these on my Altezza back in 2002. Nostalgic and frozen in time; both wheel and car.