Archive Throwback ........ 2011

To me 2011 doesn't feel all that long ago but looking back at these pictures it definitely depicts a certain time in history for styling and when now sought after cars could be snapped up for next to nothing

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I remember when Dan got his PS13, at the time it was semi strong money but with a solid spec list, Works CR Kai's, Cusco cage, Bride seats and the old faithful SR20

Around the same time Jay did a deal on on this absolute monster of an R32 GTR. As far as we knew it was an ex demo car from Japan and was looked after by Tweenie Rob (iykyk) prior to his ownership

It basically had the HKS catalogue thrown at it, 6 speed Getrag gearbox and wide bodykit that hid the 19" Volk CE28 Wheels.

The car made over 600bhp and filled its Nismo 320km/h gauges with ease

The grey theme continues when I got a message from Ross who had recently purchased a 3 door STI Impreza

A serious B-Road weapon, a respectable 400bhp propelled the 18" BBS Ch-R's upto speed and a HKS Super Dragger provided the legendary Scooby rumble

I met Marc and Keiran through a mutual friend and knew we had to get together for some pictures, over the years I would end up shooting the cars a few times more for various websites and publications but this was the first time ....

Marcs car was ahead of the curve at the time, it was low and "stanced" before it became the huge thing it is now

The car was originally a UK N/A Mk4 Supra, Marc converted it to turbo with some stage 1 mods good for over 300bhp with a sprinkling of carbon parts and the blood red leather interior trim

Keiron's supra was very much the style at the time for the driver who wanted the looks but also the ability to go bashing back roads on the way home from work. A nearly standard exterior hid the more powerful engine set up with over 320bhp.

A large TRD spoiler dominated the back of the car, mated to a carbon rear diffuser to ensure the rear end was planted, the wheels were WheelMania Vortex in 19" (IIRC).

Arguably my best photo of 2011, would go on to cause much hassle locally when It was used to advertise something that none of us was part of .......

Bigniks S14a, another car that ended up being shot multiple times in the future, these particular pictures were for the now defunct Total Nissan. Myself and Niks had been friends for a while up to this point and have been good friends ever since. I must remember to shoot his Lexus again ........

The Works Meisters really made this car special, along with the Vertex kit, this was the style everyone now creates when the build an S14.

The engine had received some basic bolt ons at this point giving the car a slight power increase over standard. This particular chassis was a JDM import that was fresh as the day it came out the factory. Niks ended up selling the car for less than £6k, imagine being able to get a car like this for that kinda money in 2021.........

Selling it wasn't all bad as it led on to Niks obsession with the VIP life which we will no doubt end up touching on in future flash backs.

Last but by no means least is/was Mint's MX5. This was the second chassis he bought after the first one basically crumbled in front of him. A standard JDM import from one older gentleman owner would be perfect for building a BOSO spec opinion divider

This was the car he drunkenly bought mega spec Watanabes for while he was in Japan and worried about how they would fit later, it didn't stay this way for long, it had a brief spell painted matt purple for JAE in Kettering but after he returned from that show it entered its final form

This was personally my favourite stage of this particular MX5, Project G goodies galore, full Watanabe footwork

The peoples most overdone light set - the Lexus rear light even made an appearance but Mint added his own spin on it. The roof wing and duckbill would provide inspiration for the Gundam Aero kits.

The car met an untimely death at Crail when Mint barrel rolled over a huge potato transport crate. It was a sad time but it gave him time to concentrate on his freshly imported JZX100 Chaser that will without doubt make an appearance in the future

Looking back, I now realise that I'm old and that the "scene" has changed from cool older JDM imports to PCP boring corp air bagged copy cats but I get it ....... well kinda. With GTR's and Supra's now commanding more money than a super car, some of these cars are now unattainable for a normal person but at least for a small time I was part of the generation who got to enjoy them.

Until the next flashback .......

Thacko