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I flew out to L.A. this week to spend Christmas with my family, which gave me the opportunity to meet up with Antonio Alvendia and Edward Uche for the first time. Of course cars were a topic covered quite a bit as the night went on and RX7 project cars were brought to light… This of course brought on the discussion of dream builds and this video I am posting now. I honestly can not give you a solid figure of how many times I have watched this video ever since it was posted on Youtube. I would guess Edward couldn’t give you a guesstimate either.
What I can tell you is the car was built by Trial Tuning Spirit. The FD3S has a 3 rotor swap, running ITBs and and a slew of custom parts all done to make it a beast of a track car. Just listen to the beautiful music it makes – who wouldn’t want this in their garage???
I must say though. On my wedding day, I want a car much like this waiting for me at the end of the ceremony to take us away. Hopefully, rotors will be tied behind the car on rope to drag down the street behind us.
:: Scottie Scheetz
PS: Below is the car’s spec sheet, posted in Janglish (gotta keep it legit!) by the original poster of the video. (gamikoulas@hcn.zaq.ne.jp) (more…)
I was just surfing around on Facebook right now and found this Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM) video, posted by a guy named Samuel Oune. I had the privilege to attend a DTM race at Nurburgring last summer… but as exciting and fun as it was, it was nothing like this! Just look at the Mercedes Benzes flying through the air!!! A W E S O M E.
Aside from me, who wants a Mercedes Benz 190E 2.3 16valve and an E30 M3 now?!
:: Antonio Alvendia
Bisimoto+700whp+D16Z+1990+Honda+Civic+Turbo+Wagova
It seems a LOT of people were pretty hyped after seeing Bisi Ezerioha’s turbocharged Honda Civic EF Wagovan in our previous post about the Norm Reeves Honda Meet. I was hyped when I first saw it too! It’s pretty crazy to have a front wheel drive car with that much horsepower… especially a car that gets driven on the street! And it has aggressive wheel fitment. =)
Here’s a pretty simple and straightforward video that was shot off the cuff and unrehearsed. It’s not really the type of video that shows off the MotorMavens ability behind a lens, but I think it still works because it’s simple and we get to see all the details of the car. I think these simple hand held/unedited video features are going to become more and more popular… it’s kind of like videoblogging vs. preplanned, high production/edited videos. The funny thing is, I first started shooting this video just so I could remember the details of the car without having to actually write down notes. However, when I got home and watched it again, I thought Bisi did such a great job explaining everything on the car (and pointing out parts from his sponsors, haha)… I just decided to post it up anyway.
Hehe, since I wasn’t originally planning to post this, I was saying a lot of ridiculous non-related things in the video! LOL don’t mind me. I didn’t have an external microphone or anything with me to amplify Bisi’s sound levels. Oh well, whatever… the only good thing about it is you can see the details of Bisi’s car! If you want to see professional photos of this Bisimoto EF Wagovan, go to the bookstore and buy an issue of Super Street Magazine.
:: Antonio Alvendia
***** THIS JUST IN!!!
Apparently, some aftermarket car parts companies have decided to participate in the Schikane Clothing x Tokyo Drive Productions x Driftwell x Motor Mavens Christmas Party tonight! COME TO THE PARTY and win a radiator from Mishimoto, some goods from Buddy Club USA, and a bunch of oil from Eneos!
—–>Our friends at JACK DANIELS and JAGERMEISTER have just confirmed that they will come out to the party and give away a bunch of gifts too! Hell yeahhhhh! I want a bottle of Gentleman Jack and a Jagermeister Porsche! =)
To all friends and family of Motor Mavens in the Los Angeles area! We’re having a party tonight, and we’d like you to come! This was originally planned as a small, close knit Christmas party between my personal close friends (it’s an annual thing)… but earlier today, we talked about it, and said hell… we consider anyone and everyone who has supported us this year as our friends… so let’s just invite everyone!
If you’re local to Southern Cali, come down to the Schikane Clothing x Tokyo Drive Productions x Driftwell x Motor Mavens Christmas Party tonight!
This is not going to be one of those pretentious “dress shoes and VIP wristband required” events. Everyone is invited! Act like Nirvana, and come as you are… this will be a cool opportunity to “meet and greet” many of our industry friends and many of the people behind this blog!
Here’s the info!
CORNER BAR
924 S. San Fernando Rd
Burbank CA 91502
TIME: From 9pm until the bar closes!
Dress code strictly enforced. No dress shoes allowed. Hats, sneakers and other fashionable attire are encouraged. (A message to the Ladies only: No shirt, No shoes, No problem!)
Comment this post to let us know if you’re coming!
:: Motor Mavens
I spotted this 1978 Saab 99 Turbo owned by John Webber at the 2009 Carlisle Import/Kit-Replicar Nationals back in May. It sits lowered on a set of 16″ Saab 9000 wheels and sports a custom front air dam for a pretty aggressive yet clean look. The bright orange 99T definitely stood out amongst all the other Saabs in attendance.
I don’t think we’ve ever featured any Saabs on Motormavens before, but I thought it would be appropriate considering today’s news. Following two decades of mismanaging and after nearly a year of failed attempts to find a buyer for Saab, GM announced earlier that the quirky Scandinavian automaker would begin shutting down operations.
I’ve never really been that into Saabs but I did appreciate their, for lack of a better term, quirkiness (I tried using a thesaurus but there simply is no better word to describe the brand).
RIP
:: Dan Hsu
Norm Reeves Honda Car Show & Toy Drive 2009 from BOWLS on Vimeo.
To go along with our coverage from the event, I thought I’d post this great video from BOWLS LA. The Bowls crew really did a fantastic job of capturing the vibe of the Norm Reeves Honda Show/Toy Drive. This edit has great style to it, between the shots, cuts, and West Coast soundtrack. Take a look!
:: Andy Sapp
BOWLS LA
1223 S. San Gabriel Blvd.
San Marino, CA 91108
Hours of Operation
Monday – Sunday
1200 – 1900 Hours
Closed Thursdays
P +1 626 614 0068
F +1 626 614 0020
E intel [at] bowlsla.com
I’m not sure if all of our readers watch the new (reformatted/renamed) Jay Leno Show, or Jay Leno’s Garage… but personally, I’m a big fan of Jay Leno, but unfortunately I’ve never had the chance to run into him, even though the studio where they tape his show is less than five minutes away from my office.
Everyone who knows about Jay Leno knows that he is a huge fan of automobiles, and has a humongous car collection; he has so many cars that he even has his own personal hangars at the airport that are solely dedicated to housing his incredible collection of cars. It’s like having a bunch of Hot Wheels die cast, only Jay’s collection is 1:1 scale, and he can drive every single one of them!
Well, since he is Jay Leno after all, Mercedes gave him a chance to test drive their new SLS AMG Gullwing on the streets, and again since he is Jay Leno, he was able to have a film crew document it. (He didn’t need to shoot it guerrilla style by himself with a Canon point&shoot camera, like some other car lovers we know.) He even started out the video with a clip of his own 1955 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing!
That’s soooo dope! Once Toyota comes out with the FT86 in the USA, I need to shoot one of those with one of my own AE86s!
::Antonio Alvendia
Jay Leno’s Garage
More Mercedes SLS AMG stories on MOTORMAVENS
Here’s a video I got from my boy Travis that had me and some of my boys on the East Coast straight trippin. We just don’t see stuff like this over here too often – especially not when we have potholes as big as moon craters that suck up whole caravans of cars without so much as a burp. If this is how they roll in Japan, I’m sold – I’m completely down with citizenship.
I spent way too much time just watching it over and over with my mouth hanging open – it’s so short and when you see the camber and fitment on the Odyssey…INCREDIBLE! It’s the little things that mean so much. I mean, it’s one thing to slam a car and hard park it – but, driving it on the highway like these guys is another thing entirely. Whoever these guys are – they get mad love for KILLIN this Odyssey shakotan-style! And whatever that is running with the Odyssey – DOPE!
Take a second and snatch a peak. It’s like those chips – betcha can’t watch just once!
::Avon Bellamy
Taka Aono 2009 Formula D video from Ross Fairfield on Vimeo.
When Ross Fairfield told me that his new video featuring Taka Aono and his AE86 was almost complete, I immediately told him to send me the link as soon as it was finished… I couldn’t wait to put this video up on the site, even though I had never before seen it until now. After all, Taka Aono is one of my favorite AE86 drivers ever… he is hardcore, and drives his AE86 with every ounce of commitment and heart that a driver could put into their car or their driving effort.
Taka Aono is one of those drivers that doesn’t need to get on top of the podium at every Formula Drift event in order to have a huge fanbase. Just look… there are plenty of guys who podium all the time, yet fans love to hate them, right? Taka isn’t one of those guys. Taka doesn’t measure his results by the trophies he’s earned or the amount of media exposure he’s gotten. Instead, he concentrates on being there. Taka is out at almost every grassroots drifting event in California, either as a driver or as a judge or an instructor. He focuses his efforts on making a real difference in the grassroots drifting community, and we can see that. We love Taka Aono! Hopefully more of the bigtime drifters follow in Taka’s footsteps and focus more of their efforts on giving back to the grassroots drifting community, building new drifters and helping new drivers come up through the ranks!
Support Taka Aono in 2010! Big ups to Ross Fairfield for choosing to debut this video on Motor Mavens!
:: Antonio Alvendia
If you’re trying to figure out what to do this upcoming weekend, here’s an idea for you… Forget wasting time and money at the mall for your Christmas shopping… instead, get some FAT discounts on parts at the GReddy Garage Sale in Irvine CA, happening this Saturday Dec 12, 2009 from 9am-4pm.
Stock up on exhaust systems, electronics, oil filter relocation kits, turbo systems, or suspension pieces! I’m thinking of heading down there as well, because I’m curious to see what they’re gonna be blowing out over there. I could use a set of AE86 coilovers for the new car I’m building, and probably an oil filter relocation kit.
If you guys make it out to the sale, please make sure to tell them you saw this post on Motor Mavens!
The good folks at GReddy have just updated their Official GReddy Blog with more details on the stuff they’ll be selling. Click through for the flyer with more event details, address, and other info after the jump!
SLS AMG DTM, OMG! This morning when I was checking my email, I noticed that AdamB18C, one of our readers, sent an email in telling us about the new race car concept rendering of the Mercedes SLS AMG DTM that was just rendered by Mattro Design.
It’s no secret that several of us in the Motor Mavens camp are infatuated by the sleek, sexy lines of the SLS AMG, so seeing a DTM inspired mockup of the car definitely has us hyped!
In the rendering, a careful eye will show that Mattro has revised the following:
-Front fascia, grill
-Echoes of the 1950s 300SL Panamericana paint scheme above the headlights, BUT carbon fiber vents instead
-Headlight modification with yellow LEDs added
-Front splitter
-Front canards
-Vent “gill” removals
-Rear spoiler
-Trunk mod (BMW Vorsteiner CSL style)
-Race mirrors
-Race Decals/Paint scheme
-Modified rockers
-Side exhaust (fire included)
Also, check out the cool shift knobs on sale at the Mattro Design website. I think they’re pretty cool because they actually have weight, which gives a better shifting feeling (in my opinion anyway). I have a pretty large collection of shift knobs for my cars, and I gotta say, I tend to prefer the heavier shift knob, especially since the TRD shifter on my AE86 rattles like crazy since TRD removed the weight in the actual shifter. There are some times that more weight in a car are desirable, and in my opinion, this is one of them. I think I’m going to try one of those Mattro shift knobs out.
::Antonio Alvendia
Mattro Design
ZeroToHundred
More Mercedes SLS AMG stories on MOTORMAVENS
When a buddy of mine (thanks Royce!) first showed me this video, I was floored. It’s so cool that we get to see the Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya “brapping” around in a circuit spec 1972 Mazda RX3 (Savanna GT) at the start of this vid. I felt so excited that a driver such as Tsuchiya, who we all know has driven some really amazing vehicles, found himself piloting such an iconic rotary – the legendary SA22C RX7!
Man, and does he drive this car! So dope. He smashed on that Nissan DR30 in full disrespct of it’s Skyline presence. It’s great seeing this type of performance on a race course from a Mazda.
Now I want a first gen RX7 haha….I’m positive you will too after seeing this. Observe Keiichi’s rotary aggression!
:: Edward Uche
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