Back again with another JDM Style Tuning forum spotlight for your viewing pleasure. This time we’ve got an NC MX5, an AW11 MR2, an FC RX7, and a 4-door R32 Skyline. So here’s 4 more of my favourite builds, coming right up…
Bagged Porsche Dually
Not the kind of title you’d see every day, right? After overwhelming feedback on the Facebook page, I bring you this very unique piece of machinery. What was originally a Porsche 911 is now merely a Stuttgart shell sitting atop a Chevy pickup dually chassis, with a 454 V8 and 4-speed, riding on air. The build isn’t finished, the thread goes cold after just over 2 pages. If anyone knows what ever happened to this thing, please let me know!
Thanks to Samuli for submitting. Click here for more Porsche builds.
Fabricated Ford F150
What is it about off-road guys that makes them churn out pr0n-quality fabrication? Is it the fact that their parts need to endure high levels of abuse, or do they just like leaving the rest of us in awe? I could just post a bunch of welding pics from this thread without actually showing the car and people would be highly entertained. This Ford F150 is transformed into a rolling collection of beefy one-off hand made parts, culminating in a vehicle so robust that it could probably survive an atom bomb.
Thanks to Cody for submitting.
VH41 V8 airbagged Cedric
There’s really no introduction I can type up for this car that will do it justice, so I’m just going to give you the facts, because they’re way more impressive than anything I could muster up. Nissan/Datsun Cedric, VH41 V8 conversion, custom-made cast ITB’s with carbon velocity stacks, airbags on all 4 corners with tubular crossmembers and arms, 4 link rear end, and some of my favourite oldschool JDM rims; August Feroce’s. Oh man, I’m getting a cold sweat just thinking about it. It’s also gracing the cover of the June 2013 issue of NZ Performance Car Magazine.
Thanks to Nils for submitting, who also submitted the K20 1st Gen Civic.
Electric S2000
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I was very happy to see this one pop into my inbox, not just because it’s been a while since the last electric build, but because an S2000 is a very unlikely candidate for an electric engine conversion.
Thanks to Tito for submitting. Click here for more electric builds.
Forum spotlight: JDMST (pt2)
Here’s Part 2 of my insight into some of my favourite builds from the JDM Style Tuning forums.
For Part 1, click here.
1969 AMX
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I love seeing pictures of cars that are in various stages of assembly, even more than the finished item. I just love seeing that raw metal, with missing panels showing off the mechanical underpinnings, the car sitting low to the ground with an abundance of tyre tread on display due to lack of guards/fenders, and the combination of factory parts with hand-made additions. It’s that very love of tough-looking yet incomplete cars that drew me to this build, with it’s “minimal metal/maximum tyre” appearance. The builder of this AMX has actually graced these pages before, being the man behind the $5,000 budget Mustang (another great thread for those of you who’ve never seen it).
Click here for more Pro Touring builds.
4 struts, 17 inches, 2 switches: MKIII Jetta
I’ll admit it, when I first received a link to this thread, I thought “oh no, I can’t feature a car whose main purpose is to get as low as possible, the fans will destroy me in the comments!”, but then I dug a little deeper. As build thread aficionados, I think we all agree that the journey is more important than the destination, and this car takes one hell of a journey, regardless of it’s intended purpose. Among the many modifications, the owner/builder installs a front subframe into the rear of the car to achieve his ride height goals, and then custom fabricates a set of hydraulically controlled adjustable spring perches for his coilovers. There’s also plenty of milling, lathing, welding, general fabrication, bodywork, spray painting, lots of tool porn (I hope you like hammers!), and plenty of high quality details, like the ARP bolts being used for engine accessories. I mean, the guy even hammers out his own damn shoe-horn from a piece of 16ga stainless steel! Once the suspension is finalised, the car is torn down and it’s rebuild is currently in progress. This build has held my attention on-and-off for over a week now, and I’ve loved every page of it, plus the name of his blog is Wrinkle Red, and we all know I’m a fan of wrinkle red paint!
Submitted by one of the owners friends who wishes to remain anonymous. Click here for more MKIII builds.
Continue reading “4 struts, 17 inches, 2 switches: MKIII Jetta”
Forum spotlight: JDMST (pt1)
I’m a member of many different forums, but I’m not much of a poster. JDM Style Tuning was one of the first forums that I really got involved in, posting regularly and attending meets. While I don’t post there much these days, I still like to read the forum almost daily and make the odd post every now and then. There are a number of great builds on the forum, so I thought I’d do a little spotlight on some of my favourites in no particular order. Please note, this is not a “best of”, it’s just the ones that tickle my fancy. There’s a few builds to get through, so I’ll split them up over a few different posts over the next couple of months in between regular build features.
Satan’s Lady Bug
Residing amongst the sea of first-gen Camaro’s on the Pro Touring forum lies this very special bug, one that I’ve had my eye on for a few years. After owning an assortment of muscle cars, the owner realises his childhood dream of owning a V8-powered VW Beetle by buying one already complete. Once he takes a closer look, though, he decides the circa-1980s construction methods weren’t up to his standards, so begins the tear-down and rebuild in a more modern Pro-Touring style.
Thanks to Martijn for reminding me about it. Click here for more Beetle builds.