blank slate - S3 Magazine
Transcription
blank slate - S3 Magazine
ISSUE 29 // 2014 C O N TENTS 14 76 92 FEATURES 30 38 46 54 60 68 84 FLAT IRON DEVIL’S ADVOCATE RIP IT BLANK SLATE KRAFTY PLAIN VANILLA ULTIMATE JIVING MACHINE Take the guess work out of suspension tuning with ST Sport Suspension kits. Complete packages professionally designed to meet the demands of both the enthusiast and the road with a ride quality that doesn’t compromise 98 IA FALL MEET 106 FIRST CLASS FITMENT 22 performance handling and grip. Constructed from high grade steel and galvanized for superior rust protection, ST demonstrates that is precision tuned for the ride of your life. To locate a dealer near you, call 800.445.3767 or visit online DESTINATION UNKNOWN www.stsuspensions.com ©2013 KW automotive North America, Inc. All rights reserved EDITORIAL YOU EARNED THE RESPECT... Motorsport. Defined. EDITORIAL/DESIGN Paul Walker was quoted saying, “If one day the speed kills me, do not cry because I was smiling.” Art Director Cody Wellons [email protected] Assistant Editors Gregg Bucell [email protected] Joe Coville [email protected] Ross Huber [email protected] And I’ve tried to follow his instruction. But you know what - I can’t. I AM crying. Yousef Alvi [email protected] Photography Editor Sean Bradford [email protected] Graphic Designers Alexander Grant Guy Haynie Simon Ly Contributors Adam Jabaay Brian Nguyen David Avila Dustin Kessler Garrett Wade Greg Szoda James Tippett Jay Baumgardner Jonathan Walker Joshuea Coleman Pat Lauder Rutledge Wood ADVERTISING /SALES Director of Advertising Mike Sanders [email protected] S3 MAGAZINE P.O. Box 1536 • Loganville, GA 30052 s3mag.com • s3magstore.com facebook.com/S3mag SUBSCRIPTIONS & BACK ISSUES [email protected] www.s3magstore.com S3 Magazine (ISSN 1543-1428) is published bimonthly by ourselves. Each issue is the result of our hard work and our ideas, and we hope you enjoy it - cause if not, there’s no refunds. Our address is P.O. Box 1536, Loganville, GA 30052. US subscriptions are $15.00 for 12 issues. Subscriptions outside US add $20.00 in US funds. Single copies are available for $4.99 US. Unsolicited pictures and manuscripts become the property of S3 Magazine LLC. Copyright 2013. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without prior written permission is prohibited. 6 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 I’m crying for who we lost: Probably one of THE most recognizable faces of our culture. And the truth is Paul Walker was one of the good ones. He was a good soul. He did us proud. We, as the tuner nation, knew that while he was alive, but unless you knew him personally… we really didn’t seem to know how deep his heart went. And - the part that really, really hits me hard… is that it took his death for a lot of that to start coming to surface. But at the same time I guess - there’s a certain poetry to it happening that way. So many of us out there lost a longtime role model and inspiration………. only to find out that the REAL person behind the character… was more genuine, and had more ‘character’ than anything Hollywood could ever create for a screen. Paul Walker WAS the real deal. Yeah - he was one of the good ones. I’m sure by now that most of us have heard about the Marine & his girl in the jewelry store 10+ years ago… dreaming about engagement rings that they couldn’t afford. Paul Walker was in that store that day. He overheard the conversation, took the clerk to the side, bought the couple the $10,000 ring of their dreams, told the clerk to keep it anonymous, and then walked out & went on about his day. It wasn’t until after Paul’s death, that the clerk finally spoke out about what he did that day… because she felt like the world needed to know the story… needed to know what kind of guy he was. Paul’s own dad didn’t even know about that ring. And Paul’s dad said he would do that kinda stuff ALLLLLL the time. I wonder how many more stories are out there that we’ll never know. I mean - if it hadn’t been for the clerk voicing what happened 10 years ago, that Marine & his now wife would STILL never know who gave them the ring that afternoon - who gave ‘em a jumpstart on their ‘forever’. What kind of heart does it take to pull a completely BOSS move like this… and never speak a word about it to anyone? How does it feel to be able to do that… and then just get back to your day knowing that you just made two peoples’ lives. Can you image the grin on his face when he jumped in his car and drove off. I can. It was probably a lot like the one where he told Tyrese to ‘put his blouse back on’. To me - that’s knowing what true wealth is all about. It’s not that shit you hear on the rap songs, or that garbage you see on the reality TV shows - this is it right here. And this is the guy who represented OUR culture to a world full of movie-goers. And then there is Reach Out Worldwide (ROWW), the charity that Paul Walker founded in 2010. Basically, ROWW is a group of guy/girls, a team/crew, who are there to help when disasters strike - anywhere across the world. They cut through the red tape of nonprofits or government aid. They cut through the bullshit… and they just go help. It’s a simple strategy. One that Paul set up, because he would get frustrated at the politics & delays behind helping a situation. He looked at it like a lifeguard would look at someone drowning in the undertow: If people need help, then you help them - now. You don’t wait for backup, or ‘call it in’. He had a big heart & a simple frame-ofmind when it came to this kind of stuff. But I didn’t know about ROWW until the day after Paul’s death. How is that possible? I’m embarrassed, and broken hearted that so few of us (worldwide) knew what he was doing in his off-time while he was still with us. But at the same time, it makes me proud, that while most celebrities would be on E News talking about & promoting their ’good cause’ from under full makeup & studio lights… Paul was out there getting his hands dirty like a man. Not fluffing a story to build up his Hollywood image. That’s not the kind of guy he was. Instead, he loved more natural things. Paul loved the ocean. His dad said Paul was drawn to it his whole life… mesmerized by its vastness, and it’s beauty, and its power, and its possibility. Matter of fact, before his acting career took off, Paul was a marine biology major. Some people find themselves when they’re near the ocean. And when you love the ocean, you jump in. And when you’re in the ocean, looking back on the land… your perspective changes, and you can’t help but to love the earth. And when you love the earth… your perspective changes again, and you can’t help but to love people. The standard in motorsport engineering with a storied history of innovation and elite performance spanning over 25 years, STACK represents the pinnacle of function and design. Trusting your passion to anything less is simply not an option. And finally – Paul Walker was a car guy. And THIS this we all knew very well. He was one of us. Not only onscreen, but offscreen too. And tragically, he died by the sword. And even though he says not to - I will cry for him. I will cry for his family. I will cry for his daughter. I will cry for the person that we ALL lost. I will cry because his influence within this culture stretched to all points of the globe. He was an honest actor; he could only really play ‘himself’. And that’s what the car guys loved about him. CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 World Class Instrumentation www.stackltd.com © 2013 Auto Meter Products, Inc. Editor Jonathan Wooley [email protected] SL29 EDITORIAL EDI TO RIA L I think a part of me, in time, will be able to smile at his exit. Because of the movies, we know & understand his obsession with speed. And because of the movies, we all know exactly how the thrill of speed looked on his face. We can all see his face in that Carrera GT with Rodas moments before… and it was smiling. It is bitter sweet & almost fitting… that he died eyes-wide, at speed, in a blaze of glory, alongside one of his best friends - living it. It just happened too soon for us, and it hit too close to home… that’s all. But because he died like this - he has validated the F&F movies. He has given them a sense of reality. A stamp in time. There will be a day for some of you way down the road, where some kid generations younger than yourself, will ask if it’s true: “Did that actor, Paul Walker, really die in a fiery blaze because they were street racing an exotic Porsche - really - in real life?” And you will say with a smirk - yep. And then you’ll tell the kid about a time in your youth, when men were men, and bad-boys were in fact good-guys once you looked beneath the surface. Paul Walker’s death was untimely. It has left us shocked, empty, blindsided, speechless, and a little unable to accept the reality. But let’s take the next few months, and regroup. Let’s find ways to make the most out of this tragedy - and honor the person what he was. And let’s make it stick - embed that into our culture for a lifetime - not just the season of his passing. Let’s use his loss… to remember what we stand for —— FAMILY. FAMILIA! It was a part of the movies, that was NOT over exaggerated by Hollywood. Family is what we are. And Paul’s family is our family now. His daughter is our daughter. This is how we live. No matter where she goes in life, we all have her back - today, tomorrow, 10 years from now. Paul would be honored by that. And she will be comforted to know what her dad meant to so many people. The same thing goes for Roger Rodas. He had a little boy, and now that little boy needs some family. He needs to grow up seeing all the positive things that his dad was a part of. To all you guys living in Southern California in their neighborhoods - take these kids under your wing. Let ‘em know. Paul’s charity, ROWW, is now our charity. Do not forget with time - how this loss impacted us & brought us together. DON’T let that feeling fade. I’d love to see what we could do with it. The import culture stretches all across this world. If we band together, join forces nationally AND internationally, and support ROWW, we can all be a symbol of strength in Paul’s memory. This is an opportunity for us to finish what he started - hands-on. Paul’s inspiration had reach, more than we knew. But so does this culture. And ROWW is how we can make him live on. The Fast & Furious meant a lot of things to a lot of people. Paul Walker meant a lot of things to a lot of people. Keep the scene united in his honor. JONATHAN WOOLEY EDITOR // [email protected] LIFE IS A CRAZY THING. When you’re a kid, it seems like it takes forever to grow up. Days can feel like years. Then, by your senior year of high school, it seems like time starts slipping by a little quicker. Next up, college. Before you know it, this whirlwind ride is flying by right before your eyes. If you think life moves fast now… wait till you have kids. My wife and I have two daughters and a third on the way. And I can tell you - life moves so fast, I can’t wrap my mind around it most days. But sometimes - life slows down. It can be from work, from family, from personal issues. And then sometimes - life stops completely. When I heard about the possibility of Paul Walker’s accident… time just froze. My phone started going off like crazy from friends asking if it was true or not. Paul was a guy that I never met, but we had many mutual friends. Roger Rodas was also a guy that I never met, but we too have mutual friends. It’s sad when anyone you know passes. But when people pass in an industry that’s very close to yours, it makes you question a lot more than just ‘how’ an accident could have happened. Being in the entertainment industry is an amazing thing. It’s what I always wanted to do… and somehow… it has happened. People want to believe that success is all about being in the right place and the right time. But you know what? It isn’t. It’s about hard work… and a LOT of it. It’s about not giving up. It’s about pushing so hard for what you want… that it’s hard to even get the storm of ideas that rush around constantly in your head to calm down long enough… so you can get other stuff done in a day. Paul was one of those guys. He worked for it. He gave his heart & soul in his projects and it showed. When you hear comments from fellow actors or people in the industry, they talk about how genuine Paul was. How much he liked cars, how humble he was, and about how hard he worked. It’s easy for other people to just see the glamour & glitz of his job and what he did. But the reality is - Paul worked his ass off for what he had, what he loved… and I believe he felt it was a reflection of who he was: a hard working, caring guy who loved acting, cars, and his family. 8 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Mortality isn’t an easy subject for a lot of people… me included. Because of working on Top Gear America, I have put myself in harms way (not on purpose) more than a few times. It’s never something we plan for… and something I hope we don’t find on that show. But - I know the opportunity that I have in front of me. This is truly a dream job, and I am going to follow that dream as hard as I can. One thing I can’t plan for though, is if something did happen to me, what will my legacy be? What will people remember most about me? My beard and glasses? My undying love of plaid (not flannel)? Possibly winning the Toyota Pro Celebrity Race and proving that I’m a better driver than people thought? Maybe. But I hope that people remember my love for my wife and our kids, and how much I love my family and friends. I hope that people who met me… knew I was the same guy they saw on tv. That I really love cars and people as much as they thought. I think that would be nice. So here’s the question I pose to you. What’s your legacy going to be? What do you want people to remember about you? Is it those wheels you’ve been saving for? That rattle canned paint job you did last weekend? Or that shell you’ve been building over the past year? Maybe, just maybe, it’s more than that. Maybe it’s not about what we ‘have’ at all? Maybe it’s just about who we are and how we make people feel while we’re here. I for one, am going to keep striving to try and make people feel good every chance I get. It’s the best feeling in the world, honestly. And no matter how big or how small the effort is, people notice. I promise you, people notice. So make a difference. Leave a legacy. But slow down and enjoy your life so that you don’t have to leave that legacy for years to come. RUTLEDGE WOOD S3 CONTRIBUTOR S **T YOU S HOU LD B U Y SYSB MACKIN The people over at Gram Light have just launched the all new 57FXX-Pro! It’s their first new 2-piece wheel in a few years now, and well… just look at ‘em! Do we really need to say more? I mean come on. You want them… I want you to have them. So go make this happen. It’s the American way. www.mackin-ind.com WILWOOD Are you looking for an awesome way to clean up your engine bay? Well - Wilwood is here to help you with their Side Mount Compact Master Cylinder. The beauty of this little sucker is that it is designed for wee little space clearance, but it is pumping out the exact same capacity as a full sized master cylinder. What that means for you, is that you won’t lose braking performance in your never ending quest to unclutter your engine bay! All of Wilwood’s performance master cylinders are loaded with cutting edge technology, built on decades of domination in world motorsports, and proven reliable through Zero PPM defect supply to OEM’s (what that means in English is… sh*t don’t break). www.wilwood.com BLUES AUDIO There is an awesome new speaker line out there called Blues! Here is one of their innovative products for you to behold! It’s called the Blues BC-65 2-way Component System, and it features a 6.5” midrange and a 1” balanced Mylar dome tweeter. Now if you don’t know that all means… it means you need these a lot more than you think you do. Some of us old folks remember a time way before tiny iPhone speakers & Beats By Dre lego headphones. A time where music was loud. Where it was not only heard… but felt. A time where we made the whoooole block have to listen to whatever we were booming… and it was great. All of this goodness for ONLY $139.95! www.bluesaudiousa.com SKUNK2 The Alpha Series Connecting Rods from Skunk2 are the ultimate in rod design (giggles) and performance. They feature forged 4340 chromoly steel and a straight H-beam design which gives you the ultimate strength-to-wait ratio… along with Skunk branded ARP bolts! If you want the best connecting rod out there for your Honda, you know where to go to. www.skunk2.com 10 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 S **T YOU S HOU LD SYSB B U Y POWERBASS Do y’all miss the thunderous boom that came from the epic systems back in the day? If not, then you miiiight want to reach down there and check on your penis… because it might have died. Truly - I miss seeing the vibrations of rearview mirrors that come when you’re pumping something obnoxious that will short-circuit the Prius next to you. PowerBass has introduced their ‘bass package’ PX-BP12. This package contains a 500 watt amp AND a pair of 12 inch subs to get you back into the game! The best part - it’s $199! www.powerbassusa.com ORACLE Do you want a slick, easy way to control your 12 volt accessories? Oracle just introduced their new Flush LED switch, and it looks awesome! It’s as simple as pushing it on and then off. But along with that, you also have a ‘momentary-on’ setting, which lets you also use it as a push-button… push down to turn on and just let go once you have had enough! It’s comes in a variety of illuminated LED colors for you to choose from! www.oraclelights.com DEZOD Dezod Motorsports has introduced their new Green header series for the Scion tC. This ingenious 4-1 header comes with a high flow cat, which is 49 state legal, and saves you from staring at the ever-annoying CEL. The power gains to be expected are about 8whp, and 6 ft/lbs of torque. www.dezod.com STILL HOOD I’m just going to be blunt and say it: Our shift knobs are awesome. We’ve put a lot of work & thought into these little suckers. They are beautiful to behold, weighted perfectly, and come in variety of colors to make you very, very happy. These are our newest colors, and you are going to buy both of them. While you’re at it… you’re also going to buy our Ricer T-Shirt as well. For a limited time, all Still Hood shirts are only $11.97. www.s3mag.com 12 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 14 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 15 There’s something about an old, shoebox-sized import with new chrome & straight lines. The Datsun 510, the Mk1 Rabbit, the BMW 2002. I’d be willing to bet that damn near all of us have looked one of those up at one point or another – checking prices, checking the aftermarket. There’s just something about ‘em. They’re cars that we can all agree on. You might not like the LS1 powered M3 in this issue. You might think the wing on it, and the RX8 for that matter, are flat icky. You might think the Accord is hella-idiotic, that the Evo is too ricey… or that the EP hatch looks like a Mario Bros cloud. It might not be your thing… and that’s ok. Creative variety is what gives this culture the endurance to be well… a sustaining culture… and not just a quick trend. But this Datsun is common ground for almost all of us. You want to slam & swap one, your old man wants to restore one… even your mom will admit that it’s ‘cute’. I guess when you’re square… it kind of makes you timeless in a way. So what do WE do that makes us timeless? Right now, there is a lot of hate going around in the import culture. That is NOT a sign of timelessness. And we need to man up and collectively squash that before it eats us alive. We have no right to hate – 2 quick reasons. 1) Most of the hate we see eating away at the import culture is nothing more than youth-ignorance, envy, arrogance, and pettiness… thrown up online… where everybody has a voice… even the people who do not deserve one yet. Point blank. I wish it went deeper than that, but it doesn’t. Go online, and you see people hating on things that they can’t afford… and hating on people whose lives they want. The growth of the import scene was timed well with the younger generation of enthusiasts… and it was also timed well with the coming of the digital age. That worked in our favor. But by acting stupid, we do ourselves no justice, as the younger generation. By acting stupid, we look stupid – end of story. 2) We’re not training for the Tour De France here. We’re just building cars & pushing them around. Yes, modifying cars does take endurance, in a way. And it does take strength, in a way. But a lot of guys out there with the ‘well built’ cars act as if they’ve trained a lifetime to get where they are. That doesn’t necessarily translate. Some of them (and I do mean only some) have developed skills as fabricators & mechanics & drivers… but for a large part of the ‘scene trendsetters’, the most brutal part of training for this sport... was opening up their wallet. So how do they justify their snotty judging & criticisms of other peoples’ rides… other peoples’ form of expression & enjoyment? I really want an answer to that. Who do they think we are? That’s like a guy with a $10,000 bicycle talking shit… but look behind the clean stretchy spandex, and you see chicken legs and a beer gut. Am I supposed to bow down to you because you had the money to blow and the nerdskill to find some rare JDM wheels that you bought online… and then installed on your car with 4-5 bolts. That doesn’t earn my respect. No. Online, secondhand purchasing is not a display of strength. What earns my respect is character… personal character. I will respect you for what YOU’RE made of… not your car. When we look amongst ourselves at the import scene, we need to see people first, and cars second. (Just like surfing is more focused around the lifestyle than the actual board they’re using that day.) If we only focus on the physical, then what we’re doing is shallow, materialistic, and meaningless. And with that environment… of course it’s going to lead to hate. 16 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 17 CREATIVE VARIETY IS WHAT GIVES TH IS CULTURE THE ENDURANCE TO BE A SUSTAINING CULTURE But add the people, their dedication, and their passions to the mix… and this becomes family by which we are all bonded. Family has common ground, and common history, and an understanding. And from time to time, you might talk a little shit about your family… but you don’t turn your back on ‘em. WE have the power to lure people into this culture… or we have the power to push them away. Anyway – this guy, Chris Houst, has been into 510s for a while now, and he’s had a few. It’s kind of a ‘thing’ with him. He used to track one for a time, then he sold it and moved to an Evo 8, which was his first legitimate ‘official’ badass car. And then sold that and moved to a 330ci, which was even nuttier. Both saw track-time regularly. But he felt the need to get back to his 510 roots… for a street car this time. (510 Roots equals awesome shop name.) He found a 4-door for sale in Dallas, and went to check it out. When he got there, turns out the guy was a full-blown Datsun guru, and had a bunch of old Datsun stuff around. He saw this RHD coupe sitting up in back. Chris said, “Hold on, I don’t want this 4-door anymore; I want that dusty coupe!” And the guy said, “Not for sale.” Chris said, “C’mon, everything’s for sale.” with a grin on his face. 18 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 And the guy said, “Not that coupe.” Chris let it go, and bought the 4-door as planned. He started building & driving the 4-door, and one day later, somebody backed into it like a jerk… crunching one of the four doors. Chris ended up calling the original owner back… to see if he had another door stocked up that he might sell. Guy said “Yeah come get it”. Chris came out to get the door, and the guy said with a sigh, “Ok, let’s talk about this coupe.” Long story short, they worked out a deal. Chris gave back the 4-door, handed over a wad of cash, and took this coupe home. He got to work right away, blocksanding the car, and getting it straight & sweet again. He pulled the original motor, prepped the bay, painted it gray, and then painted the car back to a custom shade of blue. He opted for a more modern, more powerful, affordable SR20DE swap… with a custom header for clearance, and a converted wiring harness made by Wiring Specialties. The Advan wheels were no problem… as they were actually already lying in Chris’s garage… just waiting for a car to go on. See – like many of us, Chris has an addiction to eBay, and has searches open morning, noon, and night… notifying him of any new obscure posts. Chris had actually picked up these wheels for $300 (set) before he ever had a car to put them on. Yes you heard that right - $300 for the set… maybe a little more with shipping… still definitely cheap enough to make you sick that you missed it. From there, he converted the rear to sweet Wilwood disc brakes… and did a 280z retrofit on the front. The 280s up front may not be quite as purdy or modern as the Wilwoods, but they were engineered to stop the heavier 280z… so they can triumphantly handle the lightweight little 510. Chris finished off the retro stance & suspension by sitting the car on a set of Techno Toy Tuning coilovers. The interior was restored & reupholstered periodcorrectly. And Chris’s eBay addiction scored him yet another appalling deal on the unworn, vintage Recaro seats. Ugh. It hurts. 1970 Datsun Bluebird Coupe 1800SSS ENGINE/TRANSMISSION Custom engine bay color (dove grey), SR20DE motor swap, SR20DE custom header, NISMO oil cap, Wiring Specialties engine harness, Custom radiator, Optima red top battery, Chrome wiper motor, Polished catch can, Restored inspection light EXTERIOR Custom blue Nissan paint (RAE), JDM lit plate, New SSS badge, Optional Rear supersonic badge, New bluebird badges WHEELS / BRAKES / SUSPENSION Advan Oni’s 16X7 +12 (Front) 16X7.5 +2 (Rear), Sickspeed neo-chrome extended lugs, Wilwood rear disc brake conversion, Wilwood proportioning valve, Brembo rear rotor, Hawk HP rear pads, 280zx front brake upgrade, Slotted front rotors, Ceramic front pads, New brake lines, Steel braided fuel lines, 280zx front suspension, Techno Toy Tuning coilovers, Eibach springs INTERIOR Prosport Gauges, Vintage Recaro front seats, Takata harness, Quick release, Nardi wood grain steering wheel, Custom seat brackets, New carpet, New headliner, New rear upholstery, NOS am radio THANKS TO... Wiring Specialties, Prosport Gauges, Kennys Kustoms, Sylvania 20 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 TEXT - WOOLEY // PHOTOS - PAT LAUDER // DESIGN - GUY HAYNIE 22 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 23 THE ROCK SAID ABOUT PAUL WALKER: “THIS DEVASTATING LOSS IS AN IMPORTANT REMINDER THAT THE BEST WAY WE CAN HONOR OUR LOST LOVED ONES - IS BY LIVING AND LOVING AS GREATLY AS POSSIBLE.” I think a lot of us in this tight import culture have been moved in these fresh days following that tragedy. In this life, we owe it to ourselves, and just as importantly, those close to us… to live greatly while we’re here, to love epically, and to strive for awesomeness. To stand for something positive, LIVE for something inspiring, and (no pun intended) be a rock for those around us. We’re only here for a short time, maybe even a lot shorter than we plan for in our heads. That’s reality. And it doesn’t matter whether all of life’s privileges are stacked up in your favor, or stacked up against you - it changes nothing. You’re still right here, right now, alive with options & possibilities… and that clock is still ticking. So what are we doing? Are we living passionately, energetically, lovingly, taking it all in, and going for broke - here in this life? Or are we slouching into a rut… wishing away the present day, because of present-day excuses & circumstances… and putting all that weight on the future. A future that’s not guaranteed. The Rock’s emotional, yet elemental words reflecting Paul’s passing are so easy to get teared up about in the moment… and then forget about moments later. Do NOT forget. Plant that seed within you. Say it to yourself when you wake up every morning, and then PROVE it to yourself during your day. And let that seed grow into something beautiful. I was having some trouble figuring out exactly what I was going to write in this article… until Paul’s passing… and until I saw how it affected so many of us so much more than we thought it would. The Rock’s words seem to reflect the inner motivation of Mark P, the guy who built this Mk4 R32. Mark is a man who thinks big and has grand ideas, and he doesn’t chop ‘em down to size either. He’s not 24 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 the kind of personality to ‘put it off’… or to ’wait & see how it might play out’. Some of us think about things too much, and dwell on ideas long enough for ‘practicality’ to weigh in & scare us away. Mark P never gives it that much time. :) Back in our younger years, when booming stereos were a must in every tuner build… Mark didn’t go with one or two subs - he had five. And yes - there were repercussions to his hearing ability, and there were repercussions to the glass in the back of his hatch. But through all the growing pains, Mark began to see it like this: if there are no repercussions… he must not have taken it far enough. And that would kind of shape his direction of thinking, and become his guideline for survival going forward. And so far - it seems to be working out ok. Mark sold the booming car long ago, and picked up a MK4 GTI… that would become his baby, and tie him into the Volkswagen scene on a national level. True to Mark’s nature, the GTI turned into a wild, limittesting, well-known build. But as his horsepower numbers went up & up & up… Mark wanted to get into the AWD game in order to be able to put all the power down. He was dog-like loyal to his boosted FWD GTI though, so he began to plot a way to do a one-off, high-profile AWD conversion. In the end, the cost of the conversion was going to outweigh all sanity & possibility, so Mark decided to pony-up & buy the already AWD MK4 R32… and experiment with boosting the R’s 6-cylinder for macho power. To make it feel like the soul of his FWD GTI lived on, he swapped all the already-shaved/molded panels to the R (and vice versa), then sold the GTI to a loving new owner, and went full-bore on the R32. ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 25 This is the kind of car, just like Mark, that is always grinding & evolving. In fact, it makes it difficult to even shoot for a magazine… because the car is always getting better. Just when you think you’ve got it pinned at its best… it gets better. And that goes to reflect Mark P’s determination to live greatly, in everything he sets his mind to. There is no ‘sort of’ with this guy. If you think it’s fast enough, he’ll prove you wrong and make it faster. If you think it’s as slick as it can be, he’ll tear it apart and redo it again to make it better. Mark is the first guy that I’ve personally talked to - who runs bags AND tracks the car. You can’t keep up with a guy like this, because his mind is chronically running 1,000mph on what to do next… and how to push himself. Mark is from Miami, which explains the groundpounding bass of his youth. But more recently, he moved out to San Jose, California, to chase down a dream/idea that he had for a television show (he’s not allowed to talk about it yet). It’s a bold move to cross the country for a hope & a promise. But hey - if you don’t sack up and commit to the moment… then you never really know what might have happened. And if you DO commit… then you just might find out that you’re strong enough to find a way to make it happen - somehow. Now that Mike is on the West Coast, it hasn’t slowed him down or mellowed him out. A lot of times, the West Coast car guys don’t get too far from home… simply because they have so many sources for influence & activity going on right in their own state. But for Mark P, the East Coast will always be in his blood. He jumped in the R, as it sits here, and drove the damn thing from Cali to Georgia for Southern Worthersee - a weekend event in the GA mountains. No crew, no caravan, no hyped-up videographer just him gunning for it. Then, only four short months later, he had the car shipped from Cali to Ocean City, Maryland for H20… where he flew out, and syncedup with the car, along with his East Coast car family. After the event, he flew back home, and had the car shipped back to his house.This car has been driven to events all over the country - all across the map side to side, AND top to bottom. You would think that the guy is heading a pro race team with this much travel. But he’s not. All the effort comes out of his own pocket, and comes out of his own free time. And whenever I question Mark about the expense and the inconvenience, he just shrugs it off, saying, “Yeah… but how else was I gonna get it there?” And that’s the truth & beauty behind Mark P’s mentality - he never lifts. He never gets complacent. He recognizes a missed opportunity, and he thrives off of hit opportunities. The more life & love that you put into ANY experience… the more that you’re gonna get back from it. Putting in nothing is guaranteed to yield nothing. But going all-in is guaranteed to yield ???? TRUST YOUR BRAKES TRUST DBA Designed and built in Australia XG150 High carbon alloy iron Innovative slot designs Kangaroo Paw ventilation system TSP Thermal treatment process www.dbausa.com 866-477-7071 26 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ENGINE WHEELS / BRAKES / SUSPENSION 3.2 24v AWD - with aftermarket turbo setup, HGP air-to-water intercooler and intake manifold, Garrett GTX 3076R turbo, Custom exhaust with MagnaFlow muffler, Head gasket spacer, 034motorsport tune, 450hp to all four wheels, Clutchmasters FX650 EXTERIOR Shaved Euro-R line front & rear bumpers, Shaved doors and rear quarters, Audi A6 door handles, Pulled & flared fender arches, Shaved hatch, Shaved hood with baby boser, Shaved antenna, Stubby mirrors, Inpro all red tail lights, OEM euro HIDs, Custom color: Fiat 500 punk grey INTERIOR OEM R32 interior, Bora R trim, Pioneer sat/nav, Liquid tt diagnostic screen 28 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Airlift XL front struts, Custom rear end, Accuair management with custom trunk install, IDF tubular control arms subframe and dogbone mount, Spherical rear upper & lower control arms, Spherical trailing arm bushing, Solid subframe bushings, Solid steering rack bushing, Fifteen52 Tarmac R40 wheels with brushed faces, brushed lips, and gold hardware & center cap (18x9.5 +6 front and 18x10.5 +8 rear), Toyo Proxy 4 tires (215/40/18 front and 225/40/18 rear, OEM R32 brakes with Tyrol spacers, Cobalt brake pads, “Adam’s Rotors” rotors, USP stainless brake lines THANKS TO... Fifteen52, 034motorsport, Accuair, Dorbritz Designs, Ace sullins Carstar, Wave track, Evolution Racewerks, Fourseason tuning, Clutchmasters FIXATION Words Wooley & Brian Nguyen Photos Sean Bradford 2004 HONDA RUCKUS 30 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29 :: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 31 Humans. At least some of us anyway - once we fixate on something, there’s not much that can fully take our mind off it. We can rationalize it down. We can make ourselves try to believe it’s unnecessary and pointless. We can put it on the back burner. We can keep living life almost as normal. Years can go by. But until we ultimately make it happen… it is not done. And whether or not it’s functional, practical, and/or useful to our lives doesn’t matter. Because we’ll find a way to adjust our life… in order to justify the need. Whether you admit it or not, that’s the mentality of most of us reading this magazine (and also working for it)… and that’s the mentality of Brian Nguyen. And hopefully, that will clear up any of the ‘But why?’ questions you may have about this little Honda scooter. Brian has always been a fan of Honda Ruckus’s & the scooter lifestyle coming out of Japan. But the reason he never picked one up until 2011… was because he was still building his E46 M3. Brian is a very meticulous kind of guy, very disciplined when it comes to his builds. And once he starts a project… he will see it through to completion – without going astray or getting himself off track. A true ‘one thing at a time’ kind of guy. So while the idea of a Ruckus was in the back of his head, he wanted to make sure he finished the M before he let himself give in to any new projects. Finally… he had the M just how he wanted it. “Coming from a Canibeat/Stanceworks/Hellaflush featured background with the M3… I now felt like everything else I built in the future had to be on par with the M.” Brian had big plans for this Ruckus from the moment he got it. But like anyone diving into new territory, he didn’t really know where to start. He had an overall vision for the bike… but all the new terms, all the new parts, and all the sources were totally foreign to him. He was lucky to have one valuable resource on his side - and that resource was his buddy, Kenny Cao, who is pretty much a full-blown Ruckus guru. Kenny stepped up and referred Brian to many new companies: Dorbyworks, Password JDM, Rucksters, Ruckhouse, MNNTHBX, Drowsports, and Japanwebike. I was really nervous on how it would come out. This could be a hit or a miss. At first, Brian had convinced himself that he was content (and actually determined) to just mod the Ruckus around the stock GET 49cc motor – no swap. He wanted to keep that Honda powerplant. And after months of planning, and mountains of UPS boxes stacking up, Brian’s build was turning out really nice. That is - until he finally met up & saw some of the other modded Ruckus’s in his area. GY6 150cc motors-swaps, 2-piece wheels, custom candy paint… you name it. Brian’s not the kind of dude who is comfortable at the back of the pack, and he became acutely aware of the immediate need to step his game up - again. “I HAD to build a Ruckus that set itself apart from all the others. That’s when I got with John Kokenda… he’s one of the best airbrush artists I have ever seen. I knew that with his art on my bike, I would truly have something that no one else could ever replicate. We both threw around many ideas on different paint schemes… but we just kept coming back to the Flying Tiger Shark Bomber. I’ve seen it done on cars, bikes, planes, boats, but never a scooter… and never a Ruckus. The flying tigers symbolize industry, 32 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 military, lethality, history, danger, Americana. It represents all these things… on a little scooter haha. To be honest though, I was really nervous on how it would come out. This could be a hit or a miss.” The scooter was torn apart, and everything was sent to John Kokenda for airbrushing. In the downtime, while the motor was out, something HAD to be done to get more power. Even with all the mods Brian had been throwing at it, the 49cc Honda GET motor was still NOT cutting it. Brian called Ying Wang from Dorbyworks to plot a new motor build. This time around, it was gonna have to be a swapped GY6 150cc. Ying Wang said, “Yeah yeah that’s cool, but do you want to do more? I can bore it out to 160cc, 170cc, 180, 190? However nuts you wanna get.” Ying advised Brian that he should really go 170cc big bore. It’s a huge difference, it would definitely run, and… he could still build it reliable enough to last. Naturally, Brian took the advice of the master, and Ying started the build in his lab. There was going to be a tormenting 2-month downtime scheduled for the paint & the motor build. That whole time Brian was driving around in his killer, jaw-dropping M3… but all he could think about was getting that little Ruckus back. Funny how that happens sometimes. When everything finally arrived - Brian and a couple of friends went straight to work in his basement, building the beast. This was their first time putting a GY6 together, so there was a lot of trial and error. But after about a week, the bike was complete. The first start-up was the best feeling in the world for Brian. He was off the ground! The Ruk seriously sounded like a Harley - not a pit bike. Hearing that rumbling & popping idle coming out of that scooter just doesn’t make sense to your brain… it’s like you’re looking for the chopper hidden behind a curtain or something. It’s awesome. Brian’s first ride put an ear-to-ear grin on his face, and it hasn’t left yet. The bike was indeed fast – really fast. Not a lot of people get off a scooter with their hands trembling… but this one will do it every time! To try and put it in perspective, Brian got a ticket for doing 77 in a 45 at H20 this year. Bookin’. “Over the past 2 years I have completed 2 builds with this Ruckus, and I am 100% happy with how it sits now. This thing would not be possible without the help of my friends: Kenny Cao, Jeffery Ky, Ying Wang, John Kokenda, Drew Kavounis, and Janine Scarcella. You guys don’t know how much your hard work and input mean to me. Also - thank you to Nina Angeles for inspiring me to finally go GY6. 34 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ENGINE 170cc Big Bore GY6 Built By Dorbyworks, Dr Pulley 10g/13g Roller Weights, Drowsports GY6 Carbon Air Scoop, Dorbyworks GP Exhaust, 30mm Carb + Air Filter, Open CVT Cover, Lightweight Flywheel, Turbo Fan, Extended Throttle Cable, Extended Brake Cable, MNNTHBX Oil Catch Can, Composimo Brushed Aluminum Starter Cover, Uni Filter Dual Layer Pod, Hoca 30mm Slide Carburetor, GY6 Performance Billet Intake Manifold, NCY Unlimited CDI, Smooth Drive Face, Daytona Belt, Performance GY6 Clutch Bell, Trail Tech Vapor Speedometer, ATR GY6 Wiring Harness, Ballistic 8 Cell Battery BRAKES & SUSPENSION ATR Low Stance Rear Coil Over Shock, RRGS Low Down Forks, Dorbyworks Titanium Rotor Bolts, RRGS Front Disc Brake System, RRGS Front Titanium Axle, Password JDM Axle Pullers, Password JDM Anti-Flex Bars FRAME Composimo Lower Headlight Bracket, Big Beat Front Fender, Password JDM Lower Seat Frame, Gas Tank Cover, Light Weight Lower Frame Brace With Folding Pegs, Dorbyworks 10” Stretch Mount Kit, NCY Low Kickstand, Rucksters Front Frame Plate CONTROLS Dorbyworks Billet Handle Bar Grips (black), CNC Brake Controls, Quick Throttle, Dorbyworks Controller – Horn, Turn Signals, Lights, Password JDM Handle Bar Plate + Clips EXTERIOR Flying Tiger Shark Bomber Theme (Airbrushed By John Kokenda), Wrinkle Black Frame And Gas Tank, Ostrich Cross-Stitched Seat, Rucksters Keyholder, Keyless Gas Cap, MNNTHBX Bottle Opener, Spike Bolts X4, Password JDM Carbon Fiber Cup Holder + Bracket, Washer Kit, CBR Tail Light, LED Battery Box Integrated Front Turn Signals WHEELS Dorbyworks Mesh Love Wheels, Lugs, Front Wheel Hub, Rear Wheel Hub 36 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 TEXT.Ross Huber PHOTOS.Dustin Kessler 38 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 39 They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover… and yet we do exactly that. All the time - we still pass judgment on a million things each day, solely based off only what our eyes relay back to our brains. Ever notice how all your friends on Instagram/Facebook seem to be on the VIP list of every club, every night, getting bottle service like a bunch of ballers? Or how all your favorite photographers, artists, drivers, and builders are all killing it… out doing amazing things around the world constantly? It’s maddening - if you can’t separate fact from fiction for a minute… and understand that there is not a ‘their life’ and a ‘your life.’ But rather - ‘life’… and your choice of 19 filter-effects and hashtags that allow you to create a persona much bigger than your own. Realize & be comfortable with the fact that: what we broadcast to the world… is what we consider to be the best & most interesting aspect of ourselves. Not the stuff in between. “ “ PEOPLE NEED TO REALIZE THEY CAN HAVE FUN WITHOUT GOING PRO It’s easy to suffer from “newsfeed depression”. It’s all-too-easy to get caught up in the immaculately painted exteriors and flawlessly fitted wheels. However, the Internet is like the Las Vegas of the car world. From ten feet away, all the glitz and glamour actually have you fooled. Then you snap back to reality and see it for what it is: tons of pizzazz and knock-off celebrity look-a-likes. We have all fallen victim to the cell phone-quality pictures on Craigslist ads… just to discover the car is someone else’s automotive abortion. Or we’ve seen the pictures of the stance cars laying frame and shooting sparks… but in reality, behind all the editing software and image filters, the car is haggard, miserable to drive, and a headache to own. And yet we allow ourselves to succumb to these hipshot judgments, just because we let our mind settle on the aesthetic, and not what’s actually behind the smoke and mirrors. If we were analyzing this RX-8 purely on the looks of the exterior and the engine bay, you would probably think Derek King is a total RX-8 junky. By the looks of it, he probably fell in love with the styling of the 8 in high school, saved up his paychecks working a summer job, and poured over hours of ‘How to Turbo your RX8’ forum threads until he found the best setup for his whip. You’d probably see him cruising to a meet and think, “Man that guy is crazy-badass for doing that to an RX-8.” You’d probably make a rash generalization about how RX-8s are tapped out from the factory and aren’t a true contender. However, similar to the judgment you’d pass on that incredibly mediocre girl now-turned-celeb-stunner thanks to the X Pro II filter, you would have been duped. In fact, much of the story Derek had to tell about this car, was LESS about the car itself, and MORE about his journey as a drifter and DIY mechanic leading up to owning this rotary beaut. Derek actually picked this slide piece up from a drifter buddy (who found golf to be a better suited past time) as a turn-key solution to mounting projects and his masochistic loyalty to rotary powered vehicles. In other words, he has some rotten luck keeping a dependable drift car during race season and sought this 8 as a newer, more refined, and more dependable alternative. Yes - you did just hear that correctly. Derek felt that an aftermarket turbo’d rotary would fill the above criteria. What else would you expect from a guy that bought an RX-7 as his FIRST car… and can’t recall how many he has owned since? Would it then come as a surprise 40 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 to know that Derek daily-drives a modified FD RX7… all while slaving away on yet another rotary 7 FC track car in his spare time? So here is Derek, a pro-licensed drifter, with a trackready RX-8. He hasn’t gotten down in a formal competition in a little while and yet seems so at peace with his current situation... with an underlying optimism for next season. This guy’s not falling for all the “newsfeed depression.” Rotary guys are good at staying patient and keeping a cool head. He knows he’ll get back on the track, and when he does, he will have all his ducks in a row. Maybe this is the difference between people who are genuinely motivated and in it for the long haul… versus people who lose sight & end up doing it more for e-famous cred. Drifting isn’t going out of style any time soon for Derek. He doesn’t need to make his claim, so he can bounce and wear it like a badge of honor. He doesn’t talk about being a game changer, or recall the exact date and time that one of his cars was featured on a photo blog. He’s part of the rare breed that builds and modifies his cars to race them, and race them hard. There is no timeline - no expiration date, or golden age, or ‘next season’ where he is going to just pack it up and move on. “Everyone in the drifting scene thinks they’re gunna go pro. They need a wake up call,” said Derek, “People need to realize they can have fun without going pro.” The most curious part about this RX-8 though, is that it’s kind of still at the bottom of the totem pole when it comes to power. Even with the outwardly-intimidating turbo kit, it’s still only making about 250whp. Not offensive for normal ‘street’ standards, but with power stats in the drift world forever climbing with every new season… 250 seems out-classed. Yes, we also realize Derek isn’t exactly an easy crowd to please either, when you consider the aforementioned FD turbo as a daily… and a modified R33 Skyline in his driveway (that was mentioned ever so subtly in conversation… what a guy!), but with a conservative 5psi of boost on the 8, Derek NEEDS to make damn good use of every ounce of power to keep this thing in the sweet spot… and sideways. With the Renesis 13B pretty much maxed from the factory, and the GReddy turbo kit tuning taken care of by the previous owner, Derek didn’t exactly have a lot options to add his own 2-cents on this build – and build power. He lucked out though, when a friend who builds GT Cup cars offered to trade him a 5.12 differential for his current setup. The shorter gearing provides a much more jumpy version of the virtually torque-less powerband… and gave Derek the bump in drivability that he needed to overcome the relatively low power figures. “The RX8 chassis are awesome, but the motors are slow. Even with the turbo on this one, it’s still pretty slow compared to some of my other cars,” said Derek with unflinching honesty. But that can’t make him stop loving it. This car is still one of his favorites to own & to drive. He loves the challenge of closing in on cars with twice the power. Sometimes a good car can’t be measured with numbers alone. The most enjoyable & obsessed-over cars on the planet are often not the fastest. Automotive meatheads may disagree… but ‘fast’ is just ONE part of the formula when it comes to engineering a ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 41 true enthusiast’s car. What a perfect ride for a guy who doesn’t buy into the hype, or put much stock in what the automotive trendsetters say. What a perfect ride for a guy who can separate himself from the stigma, and see the true potential behind something. Take a second and think about how similar this car is on paper to the likes of the critically acclaimed FRS and BRZ - high revving, great handling, RWD sports cars. Sound familiar? Sure, it may not have the juice, and gobs of potential that its ‘7’ predecessor has… or a 2J swap… or an LS swap. And it may not be as friendly to tune as a four cylinder turbo engine. But if you approach the platform with an open mind, you do have the ingredients for a damn fun mountain carver, or in Derek’s case, a slide car with decades of rotary heritage behind it. 42 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 2004 MAZDA RX8 ENGINE/TRANS. Greddy Turbo Kit, Rc 750cc Secondaries, 480cc Rear Primaries, Stock 290 Primaries , Greddy Oil Pan, Custom Stainless V-Band Exhaust, Magnaflow Straight-Thru Muffler, Cobb Accessport Dyno Tuned 240whp@6psi, Greddy Profec B. Koyo Radiator, 160º Thermostat, Fan Controller, Exedy Hyper Single Clutch, Kaaz 2-Way LSD, 5.12 Final Drive EXTERIOR THANKS Work Emotion Xt7, 18x9.5 +12, 225/40/18 Tires, Authentic Vertex Lang Aero With Front Splitters, Origin 3d Gt Wing My friends & family – for being the devil’s advocate sometimes… but also for being the devil on my shoulder when it comes to these nerdy cars I waste my money on. I can honestly say that drifting has built the family of friends that I have today. I rarely ever drive anymore, but being able to show up at any event or any city in passing, and have an amazing time on any given weekend… is hands-down because of all my friends. Thank you for that. INTERIOR Sparco Evo Seat, Momo 350mm Wheel With Quick Release, Stack Boost, Water Temp, Oil Temp, & Oil Pressure Gauges, AEM Wideband, Bose Stereo With Upgraded Speakers, 6-Point Cage SUSPENSION Stance GR+ Coilovers, Megan Traction Arms, Toe Arms, Delrin Bushings, Supernow Outer Tie Rod Ends 44 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ! t I p i R es n of dud whole to l human a t s ju ’t ica ren e by typ w , there a at group y at a first glanc , and Honda kne th in h it a x w e d t s n u o t B o . H n n w o as ne t… r good re pat. We k EP is jus ulation. re, and fo at I mean? The st formula down e practical pop e th t u o wh by th usia eads ya know Honda-h r granted d the enth f lifelong ing to the EP3… e 90’s, Honda ha le, and taken fo o t lo a There’s und circle-jerk 0’s through th ommon, sensib 8 c ro sitting a See, in the later oor’. They were d s. t x rd e a n d l n ir ta ‘g s were the us. They ER N KESSL I T S U D PHOTOS Y E L O TEXT WO 46 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 47 But at a second glance by the enthusiasts… they had the hot engine options, the gear ratios, swap-ability, dependability, and the simplistic beauty that made an entire generation fall in love. It was more than just a simplistic beauty… it was (and is) timeless design. But then the EP happened. And it wasn’t so obvious at first, but now that years have passed and we can look back with clarity… that’s kind of where the party stalled. It just didn’t have the same contagiousness. Maybe that’s because it was heavier/fatter than its nimble 90’s Si predecessors… and there was no swap out at the time that could make up for it. Maybe it’s because it looks like the cloud from Mario Brothers. Maybe it’s because tuners weren’t ready to accept the K-series. Maybe it’s because the new S2000 was getting all of the attention from the press and the tuners. But whatever the reason, it was a dud. But now much time has passed… and it’s still the ugly dud duckling. Haha but here’s the thing: If you’re a pretty competent builder with some decent resources, duds can be an awesome project. One reason is that the initial buy-in price of the car falls… sometimes even plummets. The other reason is because – you’re embarking on a sorta newish frontier, with kinda unpredictable possibilities and fresh options. And THAT’S an exciting place to be. See, when it comes down to it, trying to tell whether or not a chassis is REALLY a dud… is all just a boundary-less game between ‘the legitimate potential of the chassis design’, and ‘the aftermarket support available for it’. Some cars are duds because they’re duds – plain & simple. And/or they were originally marketed to be something that time has proven they’re not. Meanwhile other cars are just duds because they’re not popular or trendy right now… which doesn’t necessarily make them duds at all. It makes them gems. Dustin Millspaugh had been a Honda guy for a long time. But for this latest build, he decided to go out on a limb when he bought this EP3. He knows the EP isn’t the most popular Honda chassis out there… nor is he on a crusade to prove everyone wrong. But you’ve probably been there: A car will be completely off your radar for years… couldn’t care less about it. And then all the sudden you accidentally stumble across one for sale… and all the possibilities start to overflow out of control in your head. Obsession takes over. Reality doesn’t matter anymore. And it’s like the voice of God is willing you to buy this car. What can you do? You gotta follow the voice of God… right? So Dustin bought the Civic. 48 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 And the problem with the EP3 was never its lack of performance. The numbers are there, and the car handles like a cat on carpet even from the factory. The common criticisms, however, come from its abundance of weight, and its lack of excitement, soul, zest (and looks). So – Dustin set out to knock ‘em down, one by one. The first thing he did was an aggressive weight removal. The heavy EP SI seats came out of the car, as did everything behind the front seats. Those 60+lb factory seats were replaced with a muuuch lighter set of Corbeaus. Airbags were eliminated, OEM seatbelts are gone, the front & rear wiper motors were removed, the A/C was deleted, and the front & rear bumper supports were tossed – in place of much thinner custom bump guards. Dustin then surgically went through the chassis with a hole-saw, and removed small circular sections of metal throughout, where it wasn’t necessary for strength. Structural rigidity is not compromised, because of the custom welded cage heroically tying up all corners. To tie together the front of the car, Dustin used leftover roll cage tubing to weld his strut towers to his firewall. With all of the body/weight modifications, this EP weighs in at 2,350lbs with driver & a half tank – down from an original 2,750+. Nothing makes a motor (and braking system) happier & more reliable than getting to carry a lot less weight on its shoulders. But to make this engine even more energetic, Dustin built the motor, improved the cooling efficiency, and gave it better fuel delivery (see modlist). To further assist weight distribution & engine bay aesthetics, the battery was relocated to the trunk. Moving the battery freed up some additional room in the bay… which Dustin put to fine use with a 100% one-off custom race airbox made by Level 7. A forcefeed air tube was run from one of the air inlets in the front bumper, up to the Level 7 airbox. In finished form, this airbox setup is a piece of beauty, and a piece of functionality - bringing the intake temperatures all the way down to an ambient temperature level. That means, for example – if it’s 85-degrees outside… the temperature of the air going into that motor is about 85-degrees as well. Whereas before, the car was seeing about +50% temperature readings (an 85 degree day would previously put 125 degree temps in the in engine). Dustin says that this is one of the best things he ever did to free up the car’s performance. You could compare it to taking a mask off a marathon runner. On the suspension side of things, Dustin picked up a set up gently used coilovers, swapped everything over to poly bushings… and bought a set of SPC rear ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 49 lower control arms. The wheels are Rota grids, which none of us, including Dustin, are particularly stoked on. In the never-ending debate on real vs fake wheels, we have to ALWAYS push for an end-goal of quality & ingenuity… but we also have to at least recognize all the varying circumstances & points of view along the way. And these green Rotas serve their purpose for now. At this stage, if Dustin were to have gone with a new high-end set of wheels… he would have been forced budget-wise to make cuts, compromise, and/ or sacrifice other unique parts of the build. This is the path he chose, for the time being. And while knock-off wheels are more of a deal-breaker than a deal-maker when it comes to the magazine (or the overall good of the culture)… well… at least he’s not another dude running around on BBSs with a bone stock engine bay. So - with the weight reduction, motor build, and new/ used suspension arsenal, this EP3 was definitely starting to find the heart of the Hondas we know & love. The only thing left to bring it home – was to somehow make it NOT look like a thought-bubble anymore. But the wild-card factor about the EP3, is that it can go almost full-spectrum appearance wise. It run-a lot of people off at first because it look-a silly (temporary Japanese accent), but the EP’s initial flaws become its biggest assets when you start to mod the suspension & exterior of this thing. It’s like the Honda nobody wanted, until the right kinda confident person gets his/her hands on it. Then it becomes the Honda we can’t believe we missed all these years. 50 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 HONDA CIVIC SI - EP3 52 BODY ENGINE WHEELS & SUSPENSION Body kit, Custom front splitter, Custom canards, Custom winglets, Custom 6-point roll cage, Custom rear diffuser with a modded rear bumper, Corbeau racing seats, Custom fabbed seat brackets, RCI 5-point harnesses, Momo steering wheel with NRG quick release, Wink mirror K20, Level 7 Motorsports air box – with force feed cold-air tube, Battery relocated, Ktuned fuel rail, Ktuned shifter bushings, Port & polished intake manifold & head, Block guard, Wiseco pistons, Eagle H-beam rods, Knife edged crank, Hondata pro, BWR racing header, Buddy Club spec 2 exhaust, Walbro 255 fuel pump, Koyo aluminum radiator Buddy Club n+ coilovers, SPC rear lower control arms, King Strut lower tie brace, Custom CRV rear sway bar, 27mm front sway bar, Urethane bushings, Rota classic grid wheels 16X8 +0 offset with 225/45/16 tires, 10mm spacers, Extended studs WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 BLA N K S L A T E Text by Wooley & Photos by Jay Baumgardner From rock bottom, to the top of the world. This buildjourney, like many of your own out there, has had its highs and its lows. Fall of 2010, Jairo was caught slipping and/or trusting too much… the car was stolen right from under his nose, and stripped before sunrise. Police located the shell in a backstreet somewhere – nothing but bones. Jairo couldn’t let her go though. Ya know there are those moments in life, where you get a quick glimpse of what it would be like to lose something you love… and you shudder at the thought. It makes you get an instant surge of appreciation for life. It brings instant value to the short time that we have here. And it makes you want to see it through, and take advantage of every healthy moment. While most would let the ol’ girl go to the scrap yard & start again with something new, or even worse… get out of the game all together - Jairo was slapped with a different reality. Instead of being ruined, beaten, and negative – all of which are emotions that would be totally normal. Jairo was amped, which is not normal… but very cool. And I look up to his ability to see the situation with such positivity. He lost her. But now he had a second chance. A chance for redemption! And while it’s true, it was gonna be a real long road to recovery… Jairo took on the challenge with a reborn natural energy. He hadn’t done the best he could the first time around… and he saw that now. He had had put things on the back burner. Dreams and visions for the car… that he had no realistic strategy of seeing through. Just pipe dreams. He saw the script, and how it almost could have ended with no climax and no conclusion – without applause, without victory, without triumph. Not this time! Jairo stepped up his grind. Put in more hours, saved up his cash, and made a plan. The single cam that the thieves stole (score of a lifetime guys!!!) was forgotten, and replaced with an H22. Then, the H22 was yanked to make way for the Tits-McGee K24… along with a slew of parts from k-series companies whose name I can’t remember right now because they never advertise. Most everything that wasn’t welded to the car was replaced with SiR, ITR, CTR, JDM, or EDM versions. JCkustums did all the paint & body work to the exterior and to the bay. To make it even more impressive, they turned this job around in just a couple of weeks – nice one! Jairo then went to work at night by firelight and studied a variety of Native American chants to source a set of Gab Sport wheels in a 16x8 with the ITR 4x114 bolt pattern. For suspension, he just made a phone call to the loveable dudes at Skunk2. Cut to commercial break. 54 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 55 Come back from commercial break. Now it’s all back together like Legos… and he’s blindsided the scene with this comeback. Misfortune sucks. But it’s part of this life. And it’s damn sure part of this automotive lifestyle! You’ve just got to come to grips with the fact that: Sometimes misfortune ends up being the best motivator. So to the guys that stole this car… you did him a favor. But get caught doing us any more favors… and you’ll have some misfortune of your own to grow from. 56 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 57 EXTERIOR Custom painted light sky blue metallic (originally a black ‘97 EX), SiR front bumper, rear bumper, headlights, front lip, Ctr thin side moldings, EDM front grille, VTI optional rear lip, Carbon fiber window visors C REPLA P r e m i um O E M 2 -O H M ENGINE K24a2, RyWire harness, Hybrid Racing intake, fuel rail, fuel line tuck kit, RBC manifold, K-tuned radiator hoses, fuel pressure regulator, K-tuned fuel lines, tps sensor, Mugen oil cap, Hasport motor mounts, Bolt Boys bolt kit, S2k clutch cylinder, GReddy full exhaust, Complete tucked and shaved bay The Perfect Mix Of Power, Fit & Size Available now at car audio retailers (check www.powerbassusa.com/dealers for a dealer near you) THANKS First off - I want to thank my beautiful girlfriend for putting up with all the BS while putting this car together. My family also - for teaching me the value of hard work and how to appreciate all the great efforts that we put into the things we love. To my three best friends - Oscar, Choco, and Pelon… no matter the day or time, they always had a hand to help and a cold 12 pack lol. The guys over at JCkustums – they offer incredible paint & body work… and they always had everything ready and on time… even with me, who loves doing everything last minute. Thanks to Lil Joe for an awesome job on my brake line tuck, and always giving me thumbs up on my build. Cannot forget the great staff over at Hybrid Racing for letting me be part of their booth at Import alliance 2013. And S3 Magazine - for letting the car get some recognition. Last but not least - all the locals who are always there at the meets… sharing good times with the crowd. www.powerbassusa.com ©2014 PowerBass USA Inc. 58 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 L2 ERS AK 4x114 usdm ITR conversion, KYB adjustable shocks, Skunk 2 coilovers, camber kit, Function 7 lower control arms, Gab Sport 4x114 16x8 +32, Falken Ziex tires, Volk Racing lug nuts NT S ME P E WHEELS & SUSPENSION E | tel: 909.923.3868 | fax: 909.923.8048 Text by Wooley Photos by Sean Bradford 60 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29 :: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 61 As much as things can potentially go WRONG when buying & building an import… things sometimes have the tendency to go right as well. A lot of times, when things DO go our way, we take it for granted, let it go unnoticed… and don’t take enough time to bask in the win. It’s unfortunate that we just kinda plow through life that way because we need to take a step back and celebrate our little victories. You don’t have to gather the tribe & dance around bonfires all night if you don’t want to, but you should do yourself a favor, and at least let it sink in. It will improve your attitude, and your outlook. It’s those little victories that give us the strength to keep pushing. That surge you feel when something goes right? …it’s a big part of why we do this. This - is Nick Kraft’s emerald-green Evo. In order to tell the tale of his little victory… I kind of have to include the previous owners. Nick had been wanting an Evo forever and about a year and a half ago, he was in the right place to buy, he had found the one that he thought he wanted. It was this car… and at the time, it was red. But this car stood out to Nick from all the others, because it already had a nice set of newer BC Racing coilovers, a boost controller, headers, and exhaust. He figured the coilovers alone were at least 62 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 a $1600 investment that he wouldn’t have to immediately make ‘on top of’ the cost of the car… not to mention the other bolt-ons. So he went to check it out. If the deal went through, Nick would be the 4th owner. When he showed up to see the car, the 3rd owner didn’t know much about his Evo. He hadn’t had it too long, and all he knew was that it was too hard to sell weed out of a red Evo. It tended to attract a little too much attention. Nick had a hunch that something special was up with this car - it pulled HARD. So he decided to help our little drug dealer friend with his high-profile dilemma. As soon as Nick got the car home, he lowered the BC coilovers down a little bit to get it sitting pretty, as the previous owner lived on a dirt road, so he had ‘em raised up a bit for clearance & quick get-a-ways. Then Nick decided to go through his new mystery box to see exactly what he had purchased. Upon pulling up the rear seat cushion, Nick found eight 1-pound bundles of marijuana. He made a couple calls from a payphone, found a buyer, and was able to pay for all of the rest of the mods on this car with the profits. BOOM - sometimes things just fall into place! ISSUE 29 :: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 63 DANG I really should have just ended the article right there, and waited to see how it played out. But that’s not what happened. The car was, in fact, plant free. BUT – there were good fortunes to come. It turns out, that upon further investigation, this Evo had some magic under the hood! The 3rd owner must have been too stoned to ever drive it fast or know the difference. But apparently, the SECOND owner did some trick shit. Nick poked around, and found out the car had an FP Red turbocharger hidden in a ported Evo 9 housing… plus 280 cams! Not a bad day to find out that you just tripped into 100 extra horsepower. These are the kinds of ‘positive’ things that happen in our lives, from time to time, when we work on cars. Like I said, when they happen, we reeeally need to see it, appreciate it… and we need to take a minute 64 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 to thank the car gods. Hell - make a Facebook post about it… to balance out all the whiney ones, because sometimes we get MORE than we bargained for, like finding a 20-dollar bill from last year in your winter coat… sometimes we get that extra little bonus. We set the timing right the first time. Or - the axle just pops right out – no issues. Sometimes the bolt you dropped in the engine bay actually hits the ground. And – anytime you’re working on a car & NOT finding rust… it’s because it’s NOT rusty there! Congrats! We need to take a second, and appreciate the easy streets… ride that high… before we just dive right in searching for our next dilemma. Nick scored when he found those hidden mods – that’s for sure. It saved him money, and it pushed the build way forward in its progression. It became clear that the car must have had a good home with that second owner. So Nick kept the momentum going – by adding a Buschur intercooler, Mishimoto radiator, and a set of injectors to balance things out. Then he took the car to Mellon Racing in Virginia Beach to get tuned. Nick came back home with a fast, sorted, 414awhp car… and a grin on his face. The car was good-to-go from a drivers’ standpoint. However, take a picture of it, and it looked just like any other stock red Evo you’ve ever seen. That wasn’t gonna cut the mustard. So Nick fiddled with some wheels, some wider front fenders, and a variety of aero-accent pieces… then painted the car a metallic orange. Note: before the car was sprayed, he shaved the antenna & trunk key-hole… just to give it a smoother flow. The orange scheme was cool for a minute, until he did what all car guys do… changed his mind on a whim… and decided to wrap the car Emerald Green. So there you have it. Just don’t bite it. [email protected] // 1.888.ZENMOTO // 770.904.2868 www.zenmotorsllc.com // 3620 Burnette Park Dr., Suite D, Suwanee, GA 30024 Exterior Emerald Green Vinyl Wrap, AP GT300 Spoiler, Evo 9 JDM Tail Lights, JDM Rear Bumper, Rexpeed Carbon Fiber Rear Bumper Extensions, Carbon Fiber Side Skirts, Do-Luck Style Front Lip, B-Magic Wide Front Fenders, Evo 8 Front Bumper Nose Chop, Shaved Antenna Hole, Trunk Key Hole it don’t matter 2003 Mitsubishi Evolution GSR Interior Sparco Bucket Seats, 4-Pt Takata Harnesses, Auto Power 4-Pt Bolt-In Cage, Grip Royal Steering Wheel, Pillars & Headliner Wrapped In Suede, NRG Weighted Shift Knob Suspension BC Racing Adjustable Coilovers, Wheels 18x10 -5 & -10, 225/35/18 Tires, Agency Power Rear Lower Control Arms Thanks to Brandon Fugitt for helping wrap the car, Mellon Racing for the tune! 66 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 photo by: CHANGAROO photography Engine FP Red Turbo (414whp/347tq Tuned By Mellon), 880 Injectors, 280 Cams, Turbosmart Blow Off, HBC Boost Controller, K&N Intake, Mishimoto Radiator, Buschur 4” Intercooler, 3” Custom Exhaust W/ Magnaflow Muffler text Ross Huber photos Sean Bradford 68 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 69 In life, we have a few different pathways when it comes to decision making. You can be sensible & responsible (boring)… or you can follow your impulse and go for broke (radical). A lot of times, in the autoaftermarket world, these pathways end up intertwining in many complicated ways, and that’s why we get all the cool different types of variety that we see out there (that’s realistic). The car ends up being a result of the owner’s personality & lifestyle (giving it character). Also a lot of times, in the automotive world, when we flat-out go for broke… we end up using that word ‘broke’ quite literally… in more way than one (truth). It’s this reasoning that gives the Honda Accord a strange perception with today’s youth. For a lot of people — whether they want to admit it or not — the Honda Accord ‘sort of’ does what a lot of people look for in a car… even one they want to modify. It’s dependable, it’s fuel-efficient, it has fairly decent aftermarket support, and it has a relatively stylish exterior. However, the Accord’s drawback, is that it does no ONE thing extremely well. It doesn’t really stand out in any one area, other than its sensibility. It’s the car that people buy when they don’t really care about cars. As far as the aftermarket goes - it’s not the lightest choice, it’s not the sportiest choice, it’s not the most powerful choice, it’s got 4 doors… but it’s not RWD or AWD, etc, etc. and these are the places that the tuners are looking. 70 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 For those reasons, people in the tuner scene dismiss the Accord as unimpressive. The sensible, responsible option. We look at it like driving a cubicle. It’s the ultimate ‘sell it and get something better’ response on every message board, when you ask what the best first-steps to modifying it are. It’s the car that your thrifty, nerdy dad recommends over the 240sx at the local used car lot… and you hate him for it. It’s the carbureted 90whp econobox you inherit from your sister in college (speaking from experience here). On the flipside - it’s one of those cars that came in a coupe or sedan option, and a I-4 or V6 option. It also had the option for a 5-speed manual transmission, and most importantly for the tuning youth: some VTEC. Each Accord generation has held true to the test of time. And while it might not be the car that you expect to see in the winner’s circle… it could still be the car that still surprises you – when done right. For Leo Garcia, his 2003 Accord was way more than just a ‘safe bet’… but rather, a total no-brainer. Leo was never a street racer… not one to be in too much of a hurry. He’s not the kind of guy to strip his interior, slap harnesses in a car, and swap a motor. But he does love the import scene, and he does his part to represent the plush end of the spectrum. When his 1996 Acura RL started giving him grief back in 2008, Leo consulted some of his friends who worked at the local Honda dealerships. Like almost every story surrounding a newly purchased car, Leo had very modest intentions for the car: HIDs, tint, wheels, and suspension. However, as Leo puts it, “That’s a promise never kept.” Just like any male with a history of playing Gran Turismo… Leo knew that buying new parts — often — made for a more enjoyable ownership of his 7th gen Accord. As a huge fan of the JDM VIP car scene, Leo knew exactly the direction that he wanted to push towards. “One thing I keep in mind is to be original. Even though my Accord is not a typical VIP platform, I still went ahead just to be different,” said Leo. Leo sought to build a car that not only infused the outrageous fitment and stance of the VIP scene, but also infused the reliability and drivability demanded of any car that resides in the heart of New York City. He relies on a perfect match of Ksport bags and an Accuair Elevel management system to maneuver the disastrous Tristate area roads. BUT – with that same system, Leo can also dial-in the perfect fitment for his VIP Modular VX210 wheels… and lay those flawless Balloon White Lamborghini clad bumpers on the asphalt. “This car sees potholes & road-rot everyday, which was one of the main reasons I went for air suspension. The car also experiences frequent long distance trips. I am always attending out of states shows and meets to see different faces.” So it seems we have reached an impasse. Most of us can agree that the Accord has a long history of getting by… of adapting. In the import culture, it has never gotten the spotlight. It’s never been exceptional… but it survives when others die off. It’s like a New York City pigeon. The question is: Does that make it soft, or tough. Is that its drawback, or its genius? ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 71 This Accord is so far off the grid, that’s it’s difficult for your brain to even register it as an ‘Accord’ anymore. Most OEM Accords slide by completely off our radar. Whereas here - our senses are re-sharpened to the curves, lines, & styling cues that have, for so long, been ignored. Remember – that this is a 10-year-old midsize sedan that we’re looking at here. To me – that’s a testament to Leo’s job well done. He took plain vanilla, and gave it taste again… gave it some serious curb appeal. If you’re still hard-pressed to decide for yourself, maybe Leo’s company Serious Innovations can sway your opinion. Not only do Leo and his automotive co-conspirators use Serious Innovations as an outlet to express themselves and their scene through cars, music, and fashion… but they truly live by their mission statement. An ideology that preaches of quality, originality, and attention to detail: commonly spoken values in this culture – but commonly problematic for many. 72 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 A M P L I F I E R S C O A X I A L S C O M P O N E N T S S U B W O O F E R S C A R A U D I O Our Unique Poly Coated Paper Cones in our Subwoofers and Speakers Offer An Unrivaled Smooth Response 2003 HONDA ACCORD V6 74 EXTERIOR INTERIOR SUSPENSION Balloon White – Lamborghini, Custom Fabricated Metal Quarter-Panel Flares, Custom Lower Front Grill from a Fiat, VIP Led Puddle Lights, Accord Sedan Front Bumper, Accord Front Lip, Accord OEM Trunk Spoiler, Accord Coupe HFP Rear Lip, Honda Inspire Door Handles, Honda Inspire Side Mirrors, Honda Inspire Black Chrome Fog Lights, Honda Inspire Black Chrome Headlights, 6k Hid Low Beams, High Beams, Fogs, & Reverse Full Custom Interior - Burgundy Diamond Stitch - Vip Styled, Full Custom Audio, Custom Door Panels, 4”10s EVS, 4” 6s Beymas, 2 12s Orion HCCA Subs, Suede Burgundy Roof Lining Vip Modular - Vx210 18x10.5 +9 Front 18x11.5 -1 Rear, Federal Tires SS595 – 225/35/18, Front 255/35/18 Rear, Accuair E-Level Management System, 3-Gal Tank + OB2 Compressor, Ksport Bags Struts, Megan Front Camber Kit, Ingalls Rear Camber Kit, Tl-S Front Sway Bars – Front & Rear, Greddy Strut Bar WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ENGINE Fujita Cold Air Intake, P2R Throttle Body Spacer And Manifold Thermal Gasket, 3.5 Intake Manifold From 08-11 Honda Accord, Ingall Stiffy Torque Dampening, Full Custom 2.5-Inch Exhaust (all Resonator Delete), 5zigen Fireball Exhaust ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 75 // SPEED Some of us are obsessed with it. Addicted to it. And we’ll scratch that itch any way we can. It’s the feeling of diving into a turn, executing the apex, and coming out of the corner while laying into the throttle… already set up for the next bend. It’s the way it razor-sharpens our senses… and yet calms us at the same time. Our heartbeat speeds up and slows down almost simultaneously. We are in a flow… in the hunt. We don’t see what’s going by us… only what lies ahead. We have slid into the rhythm of instinct. So close to the edge, yet still in control. In one way it’s completely chaotic and dangerous. But in another way – it’s totally soothing and peaceful. And it’s a feeling that never gets dull… we’re never over it, or bored with it. It’s almost like – we need this, in order to stay sane in the world. Our therapy. Like a surfer just needs to be out there in the ocean… even if the waves are nowhere to be found. This is how we recharge, it’s how we prioritize, it’s how we meditate. 76 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 77 For Nick Brocha & Ernie Vigil, the two guys on these bikes, these truths are a part of them that they know all too well. (Orange bike = Ernie; Yellow bike = Nick) Habitual car guys & tuners since they could legally drive, Ernie & Nick finally started to add sport riding to the routine about 10 years ago. And unlike a lot of riders out there, Nick and Ernie picked up the hobby to ride FOR SPORT. They treated it as A SPORT. It was not just a means of transportation, or a means to show off & show out. They would ride together, choose their course, and get away from the world. They did not ride to go run mundane errands… half-assed and/or half paying attention in t-shirts & shorts. Throughout the last decade, they have become careful/skillful masters of their trade - capable of drifting 200hp bikes at will. True world class riders on any level. It DOES NOT happen overnight, any experienced rider will tell you that. It is an ever-evolving mastery of your senses. But as you begin to gain true control, there is no other feeling like it in the world. It’s like everything else you’re ever experienced so far in life… has been experienced with a condom on. For their latest builds, Nick & Ernie went in on these beautiful, boner-inspiring 2012 Triumph 675 Daytona R’s. They are light bikes - very precise. Highly maneuverable. And to give them an absolute excess of speed, Ernie, Nick, and Fuel Forged (out of Vegas) equipped each bike with a Garrett GT2052 turbocharger, and air-to-water intercoolers. So the end game here, are lighter bikes, with more power… and they want to eat you. Over the last decade-ish, sport bikes have been evolving & changing incrementally - getting a little better and a little faster here and there. But then you have this. In order to try and imagine what boost on a bike might be like, think about an 80’s 911 Turbo. A RWD, rear engine, high performance car, long before traction control, stability control, ABS, airbags… and all the other modern conveniences that save drivers from themselves. If you’re at the limit in a corner with an old Porsche, and you lift… you’re going around. Likewise, on these bikes, if you’re hard in a corner and you lift, you’re gonna eat shit (highside). On the other end of the spectrum, if you’re in mid-corner in an old 911 Turbo, and you put your foot in it & that car hits boost… you better be ready, because it’s gonna try reeeeal hard to come out on you. No different with these Daytona R’s. With the Garrett 2052’s, these bikes have an incredible top-end surge. ////// NICK BROCHA 78 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 79 Hence the swingarm. Changing the length of the swingarm increase/decreases the wheelbase, and effectively changes the pivot point. For Nick & Ernie, this was an experiment of trial & error - since drifting on two wheels is still such a dark art. With a stock-length swingarm, the bikes were difficult to initiate into a drift. They were twitchy, wanted to grip, and did not want to step out. A super-long swingarm made the bikes more stable & tranquilized, but at the same time, the bikes were still hard to get into a solid drift for a new set of reasons - this time because the rear wheel was too far behind the bike to be able to kick it out. And when it finally did slide, the rear wheel skipped & chattered. Using the Myrtle West 0-6” over stock swingarm seems to be the perfect balance for Ernie & Nick on the Daytonas. It’s long enough that it will slide out, yet short enough that it will keep hanging out there. And - still long enough to transfer your weight forward and smoke ‘em on demand. If you haven’t yet seen any of the Driftpocalypse videos on Youtube - seriously go check them out. The Driftpocalypse 3 video was the one that was filmed on these bikes. Nick & Ernie aren’t out there following the current trends in the bike scene - they’re making new ones and thank God for that. Drifting bikes?!? I mean - I know it sounds cliche in a feature to say ‘they’re not following trends; they’re making new ones.’ But c’mon. Does it really get any radder than drifting bikes?!? Drifting… and controlling… 400lb, 200hp, turbocharged, two-wheeled machines calls for immediate admittance into the International Big Balls Committee if I’ve ever seen it. These guys are clowns - yeah. They’re funny, and they have infectious spirits - true. But don’t get misled by the goof… because the reality behind the helmet, is that they are unbelievably calculated, and they take their sport very seriously. Ernie & Nick are out there testing their own limits… just because they’re driven to feel like limits need testing. They’re riding for their own fulfillment & their own enjoyment… and they’re subsequently pushing the possibilities of their sport forward into entirely new directions. Respect for that. ////// ERNIE VIGIL 80 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 2x 2012 TRIUMPH 675 DAYTONA R SUSPENSION ENGINE Ohlins adjustable NIX30 forks – front, Ohlins adjustable TTX36 – rear, Myrtle West Cycles adjustable 0-6” over stock swingarm Horsepower: 204 @ 10psi, Stock 675cc inline triple, Garrett GT2052 turbocharger with air to water intercooler, Turbo kit built by Fuel Forged in Las Vegas, NV, Dynojet Power Commander 5 with Autotune and LCD Screen, Stock 6-speed with Triumph quickshifter ACCESSORIES Paint by Outlawz Customs of Albuquerque, NM designed by Icon Motosport, Galfer brake lines, Driven adjustable clip-ons, Driven adjustable rear sets, HT Moto seats TIRES Front: Avon VP2 Xtreme, Rear: Avon Storm 3D Ultra STOM FINISHES MOTEGI RACING CU personalized look. uely a uniq Custom colors create hes rs a wide range of finis The Custom Shop offe paint colors, powder of k stoc e nsiv exte including an tching. at and vehicle paint ma coating, tinted clearco NEW MR127 | SATIN BLACK MR118 | RED FLAG MR119 | YELLOW FLAG MR120 | PRETTY PINK MR118 | PASSION PURPLE MR122 | GO GREEN MR125 | COMPETITION ORANGE MR274 | SUNBURST GOLD For more information and fitments visit www.motegiracing.com 82 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 MOTEGIRACING MOTEGIRACING 1999 BMW M3 Owner: Matt Waln The Ultimate Jiving Machine Text by Adam Jabaay Photos by Sean Bradford For some people afflicted with the virus of car-enthusiasm, it can be tough to not work on whatever is parked near their tools. Matt Waln’s E36 M3 BMW is an obvious example of this wrenching affliction. Sometimes, having a fast street car is the motivation. 84 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Exciting stoplight battles or that great lumpy idle as you pull into the crowded local parking lot can be the motivating vision. Some car dorks love sitting the staging lanes at the drag strip, waiting for the next pass to try and run that number they have tirelessly worked towards. Maybe a car show or two is the force that gets someone you know, or yourself greasy. For others, charging around racetracks or drift venues all over the country drives their passion for this ridiculous hobby. Sometimes, a bit of all those things can push someone to build a car. The creations that result from someone interested in ALL the venues in which you can have fun with an automobile are usually the ones you remember. More often than not, these cars are constantly evolving in different ways. ISSUE 29 :: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 85 Lightweight V8 American Simplicity “I’ll never be done with it… unless it gets wrecked or stolen” is a phrase you’ve probably heard if you know someone truly deep into the obsession. When it fires up, the M3 you see on these pages sounds a little different from what you might expect. The silky smooth sound of a BMW straight-6 is downright tame compared to the bark that emits from this car. Nothing is more distinct than the sound of a healthy V8. Pushrods replace things like dual overhead cams. VANOS systems were ditched in favor of lightweight V8 American simplicity. Fifty years of refinement and changes to GM V8‘s really packaged a lot of technology into a relatively small & potent package. Older 350-based GM V8’s were heavy and larger, typically because of an all-iron construction. In comparison to other nearly-6-liter 86 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 TORQUE SPINS TIRES Gets cars moving. engines, the LS1 and the rest of its direct descendants are downright tiny. Powerful, reliable, compact, and simple are all great things to say about a drivetrain… and are part of the reason you see variants of the LS engine family stuffed into about every type of rear-wheel-drive vehicle that has ever been produced. These engines benefit from a huge array of aftermarket support, and General Motors put these V8’s into everything from Corvettes to work trucks. This particular V8 setup uses a Vorshlag mount kit to install the LS1 swap into the 3-Series, and American Racing long tube headers feed the custom 3“ dual exhaust. Backing the engine is an LS7 clutch and flywheel, and a T56 transmission. The decidedly non-BMW engine is fed by Aeromotive fuel rails and an Aeromotive regulator. Torque spins tires and gets cars moving. In other words, torque brings fun… and fun is what this car is all about. ISSUE 29 :: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 87 Keeping this car more-or-less on the ground as it slides around a track, or pounds the street, is a set of Broadway Static digressive coilovers by Fortune Auto. ‘Shaft speed’ refers to the actual movement of the strut or shock shaft in relation to the body of the shock or strut. When you drive around a curve, the movement of the shaft is relatively slow, as the car tips and dives and the strut dampens that movement. Conversely, when you hit a bump or hole, the shaft speed is almost immediate, and very fast. With these, and many other higher-end ‘digressive’ race suspensions, ‘Low speed’ rebound is stiff and controlled, but ‘high speed’ bumps or pot-holes are soft… making for a usable suspension in basically any environment you can imagine… even the obstacleriddled streets in between the track and Matt’s garage. An SLR half-angle kit, E46 BMW control arms, and flares provide greater range of steering for the Cosmis Racing XT-005 wheels (18x9 front & 18x10 rear). 88 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Walls, rails, & other painful obstacles are much less of an intimidation with proper safety gear. Inside this car, a custom roll cage by Lee Alexander of Alexander Fabrication keeps things secure when paired with Bride Low Max seats and Crow Enterprises harnesses. Mr. Matt Waln manhandles the car through the controls of the Grip Royal steering wheel, NRG quick release, and ISIS handbrake. A quick yank of that handbrake and a stab of the throttle is enough to send this E36 sideways on command… and put a devious grin on Matt’s face. And then there’s the matter of that monstrous, towering Big Country Labs wing. If you have an issue with that kind of giant wing on a BMW… then you’re reading the wroooong magazine. Heh. Yeah - you don’t usually see BMW’s with wings like this at the euro get-togethers. You aren’t soon going to forget this one though. Hell - the only way you’d miss it is if the smoke clouds are too thick, billowing past you while this car barks & snorts its way around the intersection I mean track. This wonderful marriage of German design and American strength might not be something you see every day… and it might not be something that the gentle purists embrace. But they’re gonna brace themselves and remember what they saw when this car rumbles past ‘em. Engine. Exterior & Suspension. 5.7L LS1 swap (Vorshlag Bolt-in Kit), American Racing Long Tube Headers, Custom Dual 3” Exhaust, LS7 Clutch and Flywheel, Aeromotive Fuel Rails and Pressure Regulator Big Country Labs GT Wing, Broadway Static Coilovers, SLR Half Angle Kit, E46 Control Arms, Cosmis Racing XT-005r Wheels - 18x9 18x10 90 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Interior. Bride Low Max Seats, Grip Royal Steering Wheel, NRG Quick Release, Roll cage by Lee Alexander (of Alexander Fabrication), ISIS Handbrake, Crow Enterprise Harnesses ADD TO CART W O R D S : W O O L E Y / P H O T O S : G A R R E T T WA D E 92 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 ISSUE 29:: 2014 WWW.S3MAG.COM 93 THESE CARS WILL PROBABLY BE TALKED ABOUT BY ENTHUSIASTS FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES. You wanna know what the big deal is about this car? …Aside from the Origin wide body kit? The cool thing about this exact car… is that it is a pioneer for the aftermarket. Yes - this exact car will directly lead to better performance parts for your own FRS/BRZ. Even if you don’t own one yet. Ok so here’s the back story: This car is owned by Ken Harrison… who also owns Enjuku Racing. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Enjuku, they are a highly experienced shop & national aftermarket parts retail center based out of Orlando. They can get anything for anything, but the RWD import performance market is their heart & soul. It’s their roots. So for Ken, when the new FRS/BRZ came out, the car was as necessary of a purchase for his business as a cell phone… or an ‘open’ sign. Seriously. The FRS/BRZ is perhaps the first REALLY significant, compact RWD tuner platform being sold in the America since the Schassis Nissans. That makes them a big deal. And not only are they a big deal now because they’re new & fresh… but this FRS/BRZ chassis could potentially be a big deal for 30+ years to come. Think about that – you’re going to be a senior citizen… and your generation, aaaannd the 2-to-3 generations below you, are going to be trying to find these cars to buy, lower, kit-up… and slam into a guard rail. Unless something drastic happens within the automotive industry, these 94 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 cars will probably be talked about by enthusiasts for the rest of our lives. So Ken got the car to do some first-hand research & development… since it’s a pretty sure bet that this chassis will bring in a lot of customers, questions, and potential business for Enjuku. First things first, Ken sourced this stunning Origin Lab widebody kit, just to separate this car from all the others popping up across the country… and to offer an alternative to the also-killer, but more well known & more recognizable Rocket Bunny. Since the car is going to represent Enjuku Racing, Ken wanted to distinguish this FRS from all the others coming through on the social media news-feeds these days. But he didn’t put the Origin kit on just yet. First, Ken went to work finetuning the suspension to see how the car would really behave in real life… and to see if it had the potential to live up to all the hype. ISIS developed & tested their pro series coilovers around this very car. With the ISIS drop in place and performing impressively, Ken felt comfortable going forward with the widebody install. And with the widebody mounted, Ken & Enjuku went back to work with more suspension tuning & testing on the rear. They found satisfaction in a set of DME adjustable rear LCAs, and DME adjustable rear toe rods. Good stuff. Now Ken could properly & correctly fit a set of Miro 398 wheels in 18x9.5 +34. To stiffen the front of the chassis, they bolted up a Cusco engine bay power brace, and the Cusco front strut bar. The car is a rip to drive in OEM fitment. And now, seeing as how the car has gotten substantially stronger with the added suspension mods, the FRS’s real potential is becoming intensely addicting. Up until this point, Ken & Enjuku have been tuning the car around the stock boxer engine, and the stock power numbers. They wanted to get a feel for the car’s natural balance & handling characteristics, BEFORE an abundance of power was added to skew the data. Now – the plan is to move forward into the engine, and help ISIS develop & test a decent array of performance parts for the FRS/BRZ. Just as was done with the suspension, Enjuku is now poking at & exploring the potential of the new boxer motor. And just as it was with the ISIS coilovers… their research & testing will lead to tangible, proven ISIS parts for your own FRS/BRS… should you chose to finally break down and buy one. And my prediction, knowing Enjuku’s history, is that after all knowledge is gained from the boxer power plant, Enjuku will most likely rip that thing out… and swap in a single-turbo 2JZ… or a boosted LSx. At which point you most likely going to see a follow-up feature in this mag… and me doing one of these - :). 2013 SCION FRS Origin Lab Wide Body Kit Seibon Carbon TA front lip Seibon Carbon trunk spoiler Miro 398 Wheels 18x9.5 +34 5x100 ISIS HR pro series coilovers DME adjustable rear lower control arms DME adjustable rear toe rods CUSCO front strut bar CUSCO engine bay power brace Whiteline rear camber bushings ISIS silicone radiator hoses 96 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 98 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 100 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 premium EVO series • NEW waterproof boost sender • 4 colors in 1 gauge • Plug and play wiring • Daisy chainable • Dimmable (6 stages) • Peak recall “We recognize SPC rear control arms and toe arms as true race parts that have a wide adjustment window and allow for very quick pit adjustment, which is extremely crucial in a real race setting where time is precious. These arms Fredric Asabo proved a great addition 3-time 2013 Gatebil Powerslide Winner 2013 Formula Drift Fan Favorite & to our Speedhunters 4th Place Season Finish Toyota 86-X!” ©2014 Niwot Corp. dba Specialty Products Co.® ISSUE 29 :: 2014 11930 31st Court North St. Petersburg, FL 33716 • 60mm (2-3/8“) PROSPORTGAUGES.COM WWW.S3MAG.COM 727-572-9011 • Fully programmable warning feature S3_2014_1-2pg_Asabo_Layout 1 1/2/14 9:17 AM Page 1 [email protected] 102 Place your order online or over the phone TURN 14’S GOT IT. SPEC CLUTCHES & FLYWHEELS (FILL IN THE BLANK) Turn 14 Distribution is a performance wholesale warehouse distributor, with a massive 52,000 sq. ft. warehouse facility which house our huge inventory of performance products. So the next time you need a part, whether it’s a performance clutch, exhaust system or anything in between, remember, TURN 14’s GOT IT! There at Every Turn 104 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 Call 1-877-7TURN14 Visit TURN14.com @turn14 /turn14distribution PHOTOS: SEAN BRADFORD CANIBEAT FIRST CLASS FITMENT PRINCETON AIRPORT, NJ // OCTOBER 19, 2013 106 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 FIRST CLASS FITMENT 108 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 FIRST CLASS FITMENT NEW Triple SEMA Award Winning Ethanol Content Analyzer ECA-2 $179 PROJECT MK6 STAGE 1 FLASH +32WHP +42WTQ... WITHOUT TURNING A WRENCH HERE’S HOW... Ok – so back to this GTI. When I first got the car, I swiftly put a set of KW Suspension Variant 2 coilovers on it, along with forged TSW Interlagos wheels (18x8 +45), and Toyo T1-Sport tires. Going into THIS tech article, the motor was 100% bone stock OEM. Not even a new air filter. We took the car to TOPSPEED in Atlanta, GA (technically Alpharetta, GA) to get the baseline dyno numbers. It ran 190whp and 206wtq on their Dynojet dyno. Then, I sent the ECU down to the guys at FORGE MOTORSPORT in Orlando, FL... where they plugged the ECU into their computer & put a GIAC Stage 1 flash on it. When it comes to the GIAC flash options - if you don’t want to have to pull the ECU, send it in, and have the car down for a few days... you can find a local retailer online, make an appointment, and drive the car to them. It’s a quick procedure - just a couple of clicks on a computer... and you drive out faster. I opted to send my ECU to FORGE in Orlando, because I know them & trust them. They did their magic, and overnighted the ECU back to me. I plugged it back into the car, and went back to TOPSPEED for another dyno pull. The new dyno numbers were 222whp, and 248wtq. That’s a +32 horsepower increase... and a +42 torque increase - without turning a wrench! And that’s just the initial stage 1 flash... aka the ‘little’ flash just to get you started. When it comes to turbo cars, torque is what ‘moves’ you. Torque is that suck-you-in-the-seat feeling you get when boost kicks in. And this sub $20,000 slightly used Mk6 GTI, with a $400 GIAC flash, is now making ballpark numbers with a stock Evo or STI... and still getting OEM miles-per-gallon (about 29-30). Next up: turbo-back exhaust & intake... followed by the GIAC Stage 2 upgrade. Note: Pull the positive & negative battery cables, touch them together for 20 seconds, and it will clear any dash lights if you decide to pull the ECU and send it in. THANKS TO... 112 WWW.S3MAG.COM ISSUE 29 :: 2014 www.ZT-2.com [email protected] (310) 328 1234 QUALITY FIRST ! JU N K IN TH E T RU N K Type 380 PERFORMANCE REQUIRES BALANCE ZINC ADHESIVE WHEEL WEIGHT • AVAILABLE IN NINE COLORS Used by racers all over the world, the HOFMANN name is known for performance. The HOFMANN Power Weight Type 380 premium balancing weight was developed for motor sports and offers the highest performance available for the road and track. 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