Japan Arrival

This pallet weight almost 400 pounds.. wonder what's inside...  ;)

Sweet Schmieden

Nissan GT-R carbon lip from Schmieden is one very expensive piece of fiberglass and cf art. The fit and finish is second to none. I cannot wait to see this installed.

Stay tuned!

Orange Cream Olds

1961 Olds Super 88 rockin' Pagan Gold paint, air bags and a white leather interior. Well done.

Super Slammed Suburban

The 2010 Arrival

Wait and see.

Raderwerks Wheels

Raderwerks, another wheel company added to the already dense mix of the aftermarket alloy industry. But, what makes these guys stand out is their dedication to steplip design.

Originally founded within the VW culture, Raderwerks are generating serious hype alongside DubKorps and Wagenwerks.

They offer 1-piece inexpensive wheels to true 3-piece steplip rollers with cast centers. Price is very reasonable for what you are getting.

Check it out: Raderwerks.com

Hot Rod Stance

The stance and flush movement is still going strong in the Import/Euro scene. But has it crossed over to the American Classic and Hot Rodders?

This '32 Ford was spotted at the Nashville Nationals over the weekend rolling the black on red theme with some killer Daytons. Check out that rear flush-action. Most hot rods roll very safe offsets and the fiberglass swoopies tend to rock air suspension. This example is all coilover! HAWT.

'69 Green Machine

How many different ways can a '69 Camaro be modified?

Here's a fantastic example of old & new. This Camaro is rocking carbon fiber hood, trunk, and wing. The latest 6-piston Corvette brakes bring this muscle machine to a halt on all 4-corners. Last, the bad-ass Rushforth wheels round out the corners giving this Camaro that updated modern appeal. With the green on black concept, this is truly a step forward for these old school collector cars.

*Notice the matte black front bumper and static coilover stance, it doesn't get any better!

What is wrong with this picture?!?!

Cor Forged 22" inch Step Lip

Cor Forged is now offereing 22" inches of rolled step-lips. For all you LS460s, 7-series, and S-classes.. this is your wheel.
Although, is doesn't have the classic euro outer lip, it is still a step on a 22" pie.

Cor Forged, check 'em out!

LV Identity Crisis

Is it WALD, Junction Produce, or BN Sport..?!?!?!

Love the kit, not the hood or all the logos.

Overall = excellent stance.

(sourced from BN Sport US website)

Eat Sleep Race

At the Asian Heritage event in San Francisco all the usual faces were present reppin' the Norcal tuning world. While going through JSJBrothers.com images, this sinister S2K stopped me dead in my track. The attention to detail with a bold theme earns aces in my book. While 99% of most builders simply follow trends or the next member on a forum, there are that 1% that truly breaks out with something totally originally. This S2K is FRESH!

EatSleepRace.com looks to be an East Coast company that's been blowing-up. Peep their website for apparel, tees and stickers.

Celsior 30 Strut bar and CF cover

TOM's Taiwan offers a clean looking strut bar for the UCF30 chassis. Anceltion, also a Taiwan developed brand once offered a carbon fiber engine cover. The design is smooth and clean, very nicely created. Too bad, these products are discontinued and never to be seen again.

Celsior UCF30 custom trunk & rear

Before ever purchasing my current Project Celsior30, I gathered many ideas from VIP tuners like JP and JOB Design. So one day, I decided to do a chop of the rear to add some uniqueness. Many of the VIP builds in Japan are over the top and very custom, ranging from EXE to headlight/taillight conversions.

I had the idea to relocate the license area to the lower bumper, similar to the Acura RL's and shave off the trunk lid completely smooth. Surely that would look unfinished with such a large surface exposed. Then why not take the "Celsior" emblem, separate each letter and space it out evenly where it fills the shaved area nicely. A slight smoked taillight would add the finishing touch.

It wasn't until after the chop, that I realize this has never been attempted in Japan nor the US. The taillights start to look like a older generation Mercedes 500SEL or a Toyota Avalon. Personally, I believe this would be totally unique and a step closer to standing out from the rest of the crowd.

Maybe I will give this a try. Wait and see.

Vinyl Wrapped Porsche 996 TT

I was at the Diablo Country Club a year ago representing Goodguys at their annual car show. There was a good range of cars from Hot Rods to Exotics. Late into the day, a crazy looking Porsche 996 came rolling onto the grass. It wasn't until I got closer was when I realized it was a fully vinyl wrap car on HRE wheels and race version monoblock Brembo BBK. Indeed the stealth looking twin-turbo machine caught much attention all afternoon.

Vinyl wrapping is a not for the average DIY tuner. It takes so much patience not to mention understanding X, Y, Z of form. Learning where to trim is another skill in itself. But with much practice and patience anyone can get good at vinyl wrapping.

Ikeya Formula Suspension Arms

I remember stumbling upon Ikeya Formula years ago when I was building my Altezza. It was in one of the Hyper Revs issues that coverage an array of performance parts already offered in Japan. Like many, I would study each page one by one, trying to decipher the Japanese language.

For VIP cars or Drift builds, adjustable arms are helpful if one is looking to rock serious aggressive wheels or total control of suspension tuning. There are 2 popular companies known here in the States. VIP owners prefer the Nagisa Auto products and the sideways-sliders like Ikeya Formula. Infact, most professional JDM drift machines recommend Ikeya.

Looking at their years of experience and the amount of proven abuse on race cars, I too am a believer of their products.

Ikeya Formula

Forgestar Alloy - Flow Form

Forgestar was launched at SEMA 2009 under the parent company, iForged wheels. Their newest technology is called Flow Forming that is a light and stronger process than the conventional cast wheels. One of their line-up under this new brand is the F10. Why am I a fan? Easy, classic step lip, also known as euro step lip. What makes this step lip different? If you look at the very outer edge, the metal protrudes outward. This is the old school lip design. In my book, it adds that much more personality and also creates an illusion of another step.

Forgestar's are already a huge hit with tuners nationwide. Look for new spoke designs to come very soon.

www.Forgestar.com

JOB Design Hybrid UCF30 photoshoot

With the recent completion of the Hybrid aero kit for the early stlye Celsior30 or the US LS430 version, VIP Style and VIP CAR quickly got a chance to photoshot the car for a feature in the up and coming issues. Here are the images from each of the photo sessions.

**Photo credit goes to JO's staff blog**

JO X SOLO back in 2007

Job Design JO just blogged about how SOLO and JO first met. It was SEMA 2007 at the Scion Party, where out of the darkness came a huge castle and grabbed JO by the arm. Click here to read this funny story.

Google Translated

**Photo credit goes to ROLO for the club images**

Twin Turbo LS1 Skyline R34

This GTR is absolutely NUTS!!!!

Matte White Ferrari F360

Matte white finish and slammed stance with tires-tucking. Doesn't get any better than that!

Underground Racing - Twin Turbo Exotics

These guys know a thing or two about turbo powered exotics.. absolutely INSANE!!

Underground Racing

Mavizen - Electric Sport Bikes

Look through the site - it has specs, parts and a racing schedule. The weird thing is that the rider who tested the bike heard nothing but wind... apparently they have installed a horn on the bike for honking when they come into the pit area.

Doesn't sound like a very exciting race without the bike noise.

More info Here.

(Source: KR)

The Man's Garage

Identity Crisis

Here is an example of an rendering that has too many directions. First it started life as a Camaro. Then it clearly rocks the Firebird theme, which makes it a Pontiac. Lastly, the ITB sticking out from the hood hints on a V10 motors.. Viper???

Identity Crisis.

Lamp Art

Found this on 6speedonline.com. This was a members night lamp.. hella-Rad!

DieHard Honda Garage

LFA vs GTR: 1/4 mile blast!

Audi W12 Luxury Interior

Grassroot Camber