This is my personal piece of 90′s heaven, my 1997 Type X Nissan 180sx with time correct styling cues, such as the Blitz 03 wheels, Kouki OEM aero and all metal fenders.
Like all cars this one is a work in progress, I plan to enjoy driving and modifying for this car for a long time, or at least until I right it off on some circuit.

The full list of modifications are below, excuse the backdrop; these photos were taken on my driveway (click the photos below for larger versions).

The 180sx really is such a timeless car.

Blitz 03 wheels tucking under the guards.

Windows are reserved for your friends.

Engine / Running gear
—————————————-
Rebuilt engine by Kazama Yasuyuki
HKS Camshafts
Rocker Arm Stoppers
Z32 AFM
SARD 550cc Injectors
GTR Fuel Pump
Trust T517Z Turbo
Trust/Tial Wastegate (Custom fit)
Apexi Power FC, Commander and boost con Solenoid
Nismo Coppermix Clutch and Flywheel
Tomei LSD
GTR Front Calipers
5 Stud Hubs
Project Mu Rear Brake Pads
APP Stain mesh Brake Lines
Dual Front Pipe
Kakimoto Racing Exhaust System
ARC Extended Sump
Metal Sump Guard
Blitz Oil Cooler and Filter Relocation Kit
Aftermarket Catalyser
2 Layer Yashio Factory Radiator
Engine Torque Damper
Apexi Air Cleaner
Metal Suction Pipe
Greddy Intercooler

Suspension / Bracing
—————————————-
Zenky Coilovers
Aftermarket Traction Rods
Cusco Toe Control Rods
Zenky Camber arms
Zenky Castor rods
Rear Subframe Collars
Front And Rear Strut Brace
Miracle Cross Bar
Saito Roll Cage

Interior
Omori Oil Temp Gauge
Omori Water Temp Gauge
Omori EGT Gauge
Omori Oil Pressure Gauge
Momo Steering Wheel
Drift Use Handbrake Button
Razo Drift Shift Knob
Blitz Turbo Timer

Exterior  / Styling

Blitz 03 wheels
Kouki Aero (Side Skirts, Bumper, Spoiler)
Raybrig Headlight Lenses
HID Headlights

The chassis are all Aussie-built, with the car weighing in at between 1200-1300kg.

The rear is shrouded in composite materials to ensure the weight is kept right down.  The Woodstock Holden driven by Andy Booth mentioned that with a field of 16 signed on for the championship, set to stretch out to 24 cars next season.

The office is tidy too.  Digital display, clean and uncluttered makes for a nice place to sit.  The rollcage in these cars is extensive and an impressive work of art.

If the bonnet wasn’t up then the lines would have you almost fooled into the fact that this WAS a Aussie V8 Supercar.  Although once you peek into the engine bay it’s quite a suprise.

You won’t find a 5.0 L Ford “Boss 302” SVO or a 5.0 L Chevrolet small block like the Aussie-run cars.  These NZ monsters are running 7.0 L ”small block” all aluminium, fuel injected V8ST control spec engine from a Corvette.  Sitting right back in the engine bay these motors will make 575BHP @ 6,200 rpm.  With the engine situated a bit further back it means you can drive them a little more angry, for added biff and bash as the front section is all bolt on.

It might have the Holden badge and sticker on the front but I will let you into a little secret.  It’s ‘not’ a Holden.  A control-chassis is given to teams and the ‘holden’ clothing is all riveted onto the chassis to give the final shape.  This way everything really is kept close and ensures the action on track is close too.  Each motor is within 5HP of another and it is a lottery on which one you get.  Doesn’t get more fair than that.

With high technology, a GM engine, and some big rubber what isn’t to like about these racecars?  A big thanks to Andy Booth for all the info on the cars and best of luck for the upcoming round at Manfeild Park this weekend.

Oh oops, zoom stuck on 24x buddy?

We hope you enjoyed the TAS 2012 media, until next year it’s goodbye!

This BNR32 with it’s RB26 DET found me muttering to myself ‘no f*****g way…’, I had to remind myself, this IS Autosalon….

For some it may just be a Datsun with some nice leather seats, but this one is just a little bit more…Nobu Taniguchi’s personal carbon street legal track weapon.

Taisan Racing’s GT Porsche caught my attention.  Big brakes, big rubber, big arches, my kind of car.

This Liberty Walk car was inspired by RWB Porsches…

Liberty Walk also had their freshly finished gold Murcielago roadster on display.

The 2nd Ben Sopra GT-R.

The BR-Z was stirring up a lot of attention…

Veilside’s V12 SL was sitting pretty, this one is a biturbo edition…

Nice to see an LFA sporting some different shoes, courtesty of RAYS wheels.

This could well be the world’s most sexy hybrid car ever?

Hearing this car running was without one of the highlights of TAS for me…

Nakamura’s cars are always immaculately presented, despite the ‘balls to the wall’ way he drives each of them!

The Calsonic GT-R, these Super GT cars are amazing close-up.  Real track weapons.

Tarzan’s Cyber Evo has everything a staunch Mitsi needs, just look at those lines.

Old school cool was harder to find this year, although this Honda wagon was looking super clean with it’s matte paint and perfect stance.

It might be a track weapon although everytime I see a Subaru Impreza I can’t help but look for the mudflaps and a Norwegian and Finnish flag on the side windows…

The SLS AMG is a great looking car, and S & Company had the only one there, done in a goldRush livery.

If there was one car at TAS this year which ticked all the boxes it would be without a doubt the Bee Dragon Cima, it just oozes ‘cool’.

With the ‘onicamber’ patoka a very close second.

Wouldn’t have much luck chasing down the ‘midnight wangan’ lads but would look tough doing it!

R.Y.O. S13 ‘Odyvia’ is another car that you could just stand and look at for hours, carbon accents, TE37′s, and that awesome pink!

It’s always great to see the old school lurking amongst their younger technological siblings…

Who could forget the rotaries, RE-Amemiya and their FD3S N/A with a serious aero-job…

Coming up in our final post we have a few more sets of wheels, and of course all the promo girls from TAS!

Shooting with nobody around is pure heaven and a rare chance especially at TAS!

Full carbon is the order of the day with RE-Amemiya!

Amongst all the cool you will always find the pink/kawaii wheels on offer…I’ll pass thanks.

RR Goodness, the pastel colours and carbon accents were a rather nice touch!

Honda’s JGTC racing purebred was lurking off to the side…

These GT-R’s seemed to have a magnetic pull which found me seemingly gravitating toward them anytime they were within 100 metres…

Is it just me or has the designer of this Copen been looking at Toshi Ichiraku’s ‘Rough Rhythm’ RWB993?

This testing livery had me crosseyed, thank goodness the camera managed to stay on the straight and narrow…

Something about the ‘shakotan/boso’ flares on this make it cool, unusual combination perhaps?

Petronas Lexus track weapon.

VIP goodness, Japan is the perfect environment for these cars, no speedbumps!

Even Jeremy Clarkson would have to admit ‘this’ Prius is VERY cool!

McLaren SLR with Roberuta.

Why bother with a big camera when you can tour the whole show and shoot with your iphone 4S? Great for updating your Facebook on the spot!

Hello boys!

Coming up in the next post some of the option magazine cars, and some of Maiham Media’s favourite rides from TAS 2012…oh and racequeens!

Tezuka was enjoying running his new D1GP machine, giving the car it’s second shakedown.

Kuma had the big Laurel at TAS, and as always was leaving plenty of rubber on the pavement, and smoke-screening the crowd to pieces!

Nomu-Ken was enjoying himself, point a lens at the man and wait for the silliness to begin.

Tetsuya Hibino brought along his AE86 with insane front camber, but he also had a new toy…

Say hello to the newest addition to the Droo-P family…

A new FT-86 drift car.  It has not been completed yet although has most of the running gear nailed down.  Interior is yet to be transformed however.

As the official announcements ended the battles were ready to kick off.

It was only a demo-run although the boys were taking it as seriously as a final round!

A good amount of tyre and pieces of D1 car were laid all around the track by the time things were over.  Kunny’z tyre-frier contributed at least 18% toward the total amount of rubber laid in the carpark.

Sweet drifts!

Hibino then took a liking to a convertible LFA and took that for a skid too.

After the D1 was the motorsport part.  FT-86 was out and generating a lot of interest.

Many are buzzing about the car, it personally does very little for me.  Am I too old school?

After the sweeper machine had cleaned the carpark, the GAZOO Lexus went and made a mess of things all over again…

Emissions free? Yeah right, this might be powered by batteries but it makes plenty of tyre smoke!

Toshi Arai brought his Impreza rally car for a spin too.

The freezing cold temperatures were challenging although then I heard the sound I had been waiting for…

Mazda shipped their two 787B’s up from Hiroshima to come and wow the crowds.  The noise these cars make are unexplainable.

As a motorsport purist, it didn’t get any better than this.  TAS 2012 had just got a whole lot better.  Although numb hands meant one thing, time to head back inside!

More of inside when we return in the next installment.

This polished RX8 had me coming back more than once to ensure I had captured it properly.  A real show-stopper!

It doesn’t matter how many times you go, the Hiaces are always well repped.  This one was looking very tidy.

How to ruin a Lexus in 3..2..1..

Add a little ‘kawaii’ and stir well…oops too much maybe?

I am not a fan of everything pink although perhaps this Aristo owned by a JDM chick was just what the doctor ordered?  Taryn from iheartstance will certainly approve of this whip!

Icanhazonicamber? Just a little though…

This Fairlady and RX8 stood out like a sore thumb, being bold is everything at TAS.

The king of Meihan was spotted sifting around with the crowds…

Stance stance stance…

Liberty Walk was on-hand with one of the coolest booths of TAS 2012…

They had this Limo sporting 16-pot brakes! Insane!

The Ben Sopra GT-R with all it’s stunning curves!

Bit of old school badass with this aluminium body lowrider…

Despite the new FT-86 being present, the older ‘hachi’s’ were still being taken care of too.

Subaru’s new BR-Z track weapon was on show too.

This car has some great lines, can’t wait to see it out on track!

Kato-san from Libery Walk was a busy guy all weekend running interviews and chatting with everyone.

LFA goodness.

Even the racequeens were letting their hair down!

More action and JDM goodness following in part 4!  Stay tuned.

Not only the latest stuff is on showcase, historical machines such as the Mazda 787B were along to wow the fans.

Knight Sports had their RX8 there, this is one evil looking car, and I am sure it goes as well as it looks!

Car? What car? Ohhh….

RE-Amemiya was back with another show stopper.  This FD3S was an N/A and they were pushing the envelope with their bodykits once again.

Rocky Auto was representing with the old school machines and their Z.

The clean interior of Amemiya’s ride…

The showstoppers were the Ben Sopra GT-R’s.  Stunning works of art.  This one was gracing the GReddy stand.

HKS was there with their own GTR showcasing their line of parts.

Making a choice is the hardest part!

The FD3S Kiwi drifter ‘Mad Mike’ will contest D1GP was on show in it’s traditional camo livery.

One of my favourite cars of the show, this Daihatsu just looked evil from all angles.

The Cyber GTR was sitting pretty on the red carpet…

A Drift Muscle FD3S was to be spotted in it’s stunning metallic flake purple.

Despite a crudely-cut bonnet, this Skyline was attracting a lot of attention due to the powerplant poking out of the hole up front.

As always the promo girls were out in force!

These particular promo girls were receiving a lot of attention due to their bright green hotpants, although more of their hotpants in a future post!

As a photographer I am often astounded by the amount of ‘L glass’ and high tech gear that comes along to the Auto Salon for capturing the eye candy.

Racequeen hunting is not something to be taken lightly in Japan.  It’s all or nothing.

No zoom to capture the details of the outfits? No worries!

Some are so obsessed with the racequeens they try to become them…

Framing is everything too!

A photo is worth a thousand words but HD video is worth at least a billion!

An integral part of racequeen hunting is having the latest camera with X-ray technology…

SLR cameras, HD video cameras and even iPads are effective.

His excuse was the people behind couldn’t see…

Just when you think your videocamera screen is safe…I come along.  Captured!

It’s all about the fine details.  Or was this an extreme close-up photo stitch in progress?

Armpit fetish anyone?

I’m pretty sure there are no midget models here buddy…

Zoom out button is on the right sir…

The models have to have security with them for their 10 minute stints, the odd ‘fanatic’ will always take it too far.

The utmost concentration is required…

But when you get that ‘perfect’ shot it will just make your day…

To finish up we asked Nomu-Ken what he thought about it all, he was more interested in the car-side of things however.

Coming soon –  that ‘car’ side of things….

Hidden away in the workshop glistening in the setting sun this 964 is original for a few reasons…

It still has the wide fenders which are standard kit on all the RWB weapons.

As well as the shark-fin bodywork on the front of the car.

It’s when you get around to the back of this 964 that things have taken a different direction to the usual track weapons we see.

Looking at this particular RWB ride, the rear wing is what sets it apart.  Mr Nakai mentioned to me that back when the car was first designed they managed to make something that was as he described ‘timelessly stylish’.  Can’t disagree with him there.

The attention to detail on this car is just as you would expect from any RWB creation.  Second to none!  The amount of time Mr Nakai sits, dragging on a cigarette just looking is almost as much as building.  He seeks perfection in everything he does.

It doesn’t matter what light you put this Carrera in, it will look good even when dimly lit!

While I was there all the bodywork had freshly been put onto the car.  Now the sealants were being applied to ensure the flush finish was attained in all the gaps.

When the smell of solvents and fresh paint is floating around you know it means one thing, completion is close!

The lines on this particular 964 have been executed so well, from standard to wide-body the flow of the original car has been very well kept.  Perfecting on perfection?

Adorned with the traditional RAUH-Welt windscreen sticker for the finishing touch.

Sitting pretty on it’s Work Brombacher wheels which suit it oh so well.

A birds eye view, no two RWB’s are the same colour so this owner really does have a one-off whip.

With the start of 2012 each RWB is to have a special serial number plate attached to it.  This will be the very first Japan RWB branded #JP11001.

It took me a while to get accustomed to the lack of wing, although I very soon came to love this 964 as it stands out as one of the more different styles of RWB purebred’s.

You might squeeze half a finger in there…

It might look finished although any imperfections will not escape the trained eye of Nakai-san.  So much time and thought goes into creating these masterpieces that it pays to stand back and just marvel at the craftsmanship, for there will not be another one exactly like it again…