We are excited to introduce Nathan Wood as the next competitor in our Import Meet Street Car Competition. The IMSCC is an event that will compare 10 import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) in August 2013.
The next competitor will be announced on June 21, 2013. For notifications, join the Facebook event.
Nathan Wood, an electrical engineer from Washington, builds his car the same way he tackles a problem at work. He compares the effect vs. the cost and goes with the components that will give him the most benefit for the least amount of money. He even has a list made up for weight removal. This list takes into account the location on the car that the weight is being removed from and the cost of removal. Everything he has done to his car has been deliberate and well thought out.
“Aimless/misguided modding or horsepower goal modding are all well and good for some people but don’t make sense to me. Personally, I like to make sure that every modification is the next best in terms of effect/cost ratio than the previous one,” Nathan says.
Text by Matt Haugness. Photos by Matt Haugness and Ryan Cutuli. Video by Ryan Kam (RK Films).
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We are pleased to introduce Karalee Quinton as the next competitor in our Import Meet Street Car Competition. The IMSCC is an event that will compare 10 import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) in August 2013.
A new competitor will be announced each week leading up to the competition so be sure to check back next week. For notifications, join the Facebook event.
Karalee Quinton, soon to be Karalee Christensen, was first introduced to the import car scene by her fiancé, Quentin. While being supportive of his interests, her own passion for import cars started after her first autocross event.
“I did the Bremerton Sports Car Club autocross novice school just this last year,” she said.
While she may be a rookie driver when it comes to racing events, her 2009 Nissan GT-R was built from the factory to perform well regardless of driver skill level.
Text by Matt Haugness. Photos by Matt Haugness and Ryan Cutuli. Video by Ryan Kam (RK Films).
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We’re excited to introduce Stu Hagen as the next competitor in our Import Meet Street Car Competition. The IMSCC is an event that will compare 10 import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) in August 2013.
A new competitor will be announced each week leading up to the competition so be sure to check back next week. For notifications, join the Facebook event.
The Toyota Supra has been a dream car for many people since the first time they saw the original Fast and the Furious. During the summer of 2001, Stu Hagen reached a point in his life that he was ready to own a sports car. His son, being 16 and into import cars at the time, recommended that he test drive an RX-7, a 300ZX, an NSX, and a Supra. Stu test drove all of the cars but instantly fell in love with the ergonomics and feel of the Supra. Seeing the first Fast and the Furious sealed the deal and he purchased a nearly new 1997 Toyota Supra Turbo that August.
Text by Matt Haugness. Photos by Matt Haugness and Ryan Cutuli. Video by Ryan Kam (RK Films).
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We’re excited to introduce Katie Smith as the next competitor in our Import Meet Street Car Competition. The IMSCC is an event that will compare 10 import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) in August 2013.
A new competitor will be announced each week leading up to the competition so be sure to check back next week. For notifications, join the Facebook event.
If you’re reading this article, there’s a good chance that one of your favorite toys growing up was a Hot Wheels car. Katie Smith was no different. From an early age she knew that she wanted to build a car of her own someday.
Text by Matt Haugness. Photos by Ryan Cutuli. Video by Ryan Kam (RK Films).
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We’re happy to introduce Johnny as the first competitor in our Import Meet Street Car Competition. The IMSCC is an event that will compare 10 import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) in August 2013.
A new competitor will be announced each week leading up to the competition so be sure to check back next week. For notifications, join the Facebook event.
Johnny has a thing for Skylines. Attending high school in Okinawa, Japan and being stationed there during his time with the US Air Force turned Johnny into a self-proclaimed Skyline freak. Having been involved in the import car scene for over 35 years, Johnny has built a wide variety of other Japanese cars (mostly Fairlady Nissans). It wasn’t until he reached the later years in life that he was able to afford a Skyline. He picked up an R33 in December 2011 and then this R34 in July of 2012. Not soon after buying it did Johnny gave it the nickname The Blue Dragon. This name came from his high school days in Japan where the school mascot was a dragon.
Text by Matt Haugness. Photos by Matt Haugness and Ryan Cutuli. Video by Ryan Kam (RK Films).
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Building a Volvo S40 is no easy task. This is why they aren’t seen very often within the tuning community. Parts are hard to come by so it takes someone willing to embrace the challenge to build one.
Kyle Pike has been building import cars since the age of 17. While training to be a mechanic after high school, the first car he built was a turbocharged LS Acura Integra. His primary goal for the car was for it to be a weekend track warrior. Throughout the entire build he couldn’t get over the desire to go against the grain and do things differently. This was difficult to do with such a common chassis. Kyle decided to look for a new platform.
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For many import car enthusiasts the R33 Skyline is still one of the most beautiful machines ever produced. Even as new models of cars are developed and older ones are updated, the clean lines and unique design elements of Skylines continue to make them stand out from most other cars on the road.
Eric (wasuber) had wanted an R33 for years and when the opportunity came to own one nearly 4 years ago he had to jump on it. His first priority on the build was to focus on performance rather than try to change its appearance – something he was already happy with. This is why aside from a set of Volk Racing CE28N's and Tein RS coilovers, the rest of the exterior remains the same as it was when it rolled off of the assembly line in Japan.
Photos by Matt Haugness and Ryan Cutuli. Article by Matt Haugness.
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It's not often that an owner knows the full history of the cars they modify. They get a car mid way through its life and that's where the build begins. In Tyler's (mapleleafautobody) case, this Civic has been in his family for the last 20 years. It was bought brand new at Northwest Honda in Bellingham, WA back in 1992 by Tyler's older brother. He drove it for 10 years before contemplating trading it in for something newer. The dealership offered him next to nothing for the car back and instead of trading it in he passed it onto Tyler.
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