For a long time I’ve been waiting for someone stateside to build a Corolla just like this one and at TORC’s Toyotafest I finally did. Cesar Fernandez’s orange AE71 was one of the most impressive cars at the show. I have to admit, my first car was one of these generation Corollas (but a coupe), and I hated it. But long after I got rid of it, I started to realize they had some serious potential. Maybe even more potential than the Honda I traded up for.

Photo Gallery: 1983 Toyota Corolla AE71 – 4A-GE Engine – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 1983 Toyota Corolla AE71 – 4A-GE Engine – Super Street Magazine

Let’s face the facts once and for all: when Subaru came out with this hatchback on ‘roids and slapped on an STi badge on the back, don’t even front like you weren’t as shocked as I was. I remembered distinctly how much I was flabbergasted when I first saw the photos of the new version. I think it was a Monday morning as I worked out my delts, balancing atop a bed of nails, surfing the Interweb when I came across a picture that Elliott Moran sent to me. It was a photo of what seemed like a cross between a Ford Escort and the Saab my uncle used to drive. When I saw the badge names and slowly realized that Subaru done gone wild like a college sorority sister, I nearly pissed myself. I was flabbergasted, so much so that I checked my flabbers and found that they were indeed thoroughly gasted.inline_mediumwraptextright30719613/featuredvehicles/130_0911_2008_subaru_impreza_wrx_sti_grb_asstp_0911_01+2008_subaru_impreza_wrx_sti_grb_a+front_right.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi GRB-A – L’aunsport Japan – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi GRB-A – L’aunsport Japan – Super Street Magazine

I keep hearing that the extreme side of the Japanese aftermarket-tuning scene is quickly becoming a thing of the past. I was beginning to think this was the case until I made the trek down to Osaka in the Kansai region of the country. It is amazing how much difference a few hundred kilometers can make in Japan, while most cities look pretty much exactly the same it is the people and their attitudes that change completely. People in Kansai are very open, friendly, always willing to chat no matter where you go. This general attitude reflects greatly on their cars, with tuning and customizing being far more diffused than in the north. With this chilled out atmosphere also being shared by the police, which seems far more passive than up in Tokyo, it isn’t surprising that people and of course shops, take advantage. Final Motion, situated in the heart of Osaka city, is a place we have been meaning to visit for a while, and in particular take a look at some of the cars they build. The crazy R34 Skyline GT-R you see here was built for a customer, who can be often seen blasting around Central Circuit as well as the streets of the city!inline_mediumwraptextright26518144/featuredvehicles/sstp_0911_nissan_skyline_gtr_r34sstp_0911_01+nissan_skyline_gtr_r34+left_rear.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 – Carbon-Kevlar Hood – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 – Carbon-Kevlar Hood – Super Street Magazine

In the 240SX game, stance is usually everything. It can practically make or break the car. First impressions between owners are judged by overall stance and wheel fitment. If you go widebody, that’s even more evident. Wheel wells today are stuffed with as much rim as possible and not just with cotton like years past. Jared knew that he had to come correct so he contacted Fortune Auto for a set of their 40-way adjustable coilovers. The Fortune Auto units give Jared the flexibility to go as low as he wants and to close the distance between the fenders and the staggered 17×9.5/18×10.5 Enkei RPF-1s.inline_mediumwraptextright30720735/featuredvehicles/sstp_0911_1989_nissan_240sxsstp_0911_07+1989_nissan_240sx+enkei_rpf1_wheels.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 1989 Nissan 240SX – JDM Restorod – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 1989 Nissan 240SX – JDM Restorod – Super Street Magazine

Every time I meet the nice folks at American Honda, I ask when the new CRX is coming. And every time, they give me a look that roughly translates to “Go away, little Super Street man.”inline_mediumwraptextright26250364/featuredvehicles/sstp_9904_1989_honda_crx_r_versionsstp_9904_01_z+1989_honda_crx_si+side_view.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 1989 Honda CRX – R Version – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 1989 Honda CRX – R Version – Super Street Magazine

Ask anyone in the industry what they think about Wicked Racing, and you’ll probably get that shrug common in responses to the obvious. That followed by the obvious: that they are the most elite Honda team in California, if not the entire country. So, why did Ed Bergenholtz hesitate before joining them back in 1996?inline_mediumwraptextright26249569/featuredvehicles/sstp_9904_1989_honda_crx_wicked_racingsstp_9904_02_z+1989_honda_crx+front_view.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 1989 Honda CRX – Wicked Racing- Super Street Magazine

Hondas have really made a return to the spotlight in a big way. Not so much for all the hoopla and obsession over what’s “JDM” and what’s not. That’s old news. And no, big body kits have not made a comeback either, despite what some guy on whatever internet forum claims will happen. Hondas are back in a big way because people have gone past just simply purchasing JDM parts and have taken customization to a whole new level. Custom fabrication is the weapon of choice now and enthusiasts have really gone above and beyond to set themselves apart-particularly in their engine bays. A simple wire-tuck just doesn’t cut it anymore. People are shaving engine bays, tucking brake lines, and doing custom fuel line set-ups. Many have gone as far as to do full brake booster deletes and clutch master cylinder tucks. Doing engine bay wire-tucks are almost as common now as lowering a car and getting wheels. The new hotness right now isn’t even tucking wires. Enthusiasts are showing wires now but in “mil-spec” form. Mil-spec harnesses are custom engine wiring harnesses that have tefzel wiring, new pins and plugs; all shrouded in Raychem heat shrink. The coolest thing about it is the mil-spec disconnect is that it’s visible on the firewall. No mil-spec harness is complete unless you get to show off the quick-disconnect. If you’re wondering what that plug looks like, just imagine the big plug that OCP used to shove into the side of Robocop’s head.inline_mediumwraptextright30269379/featuredvehicles/sstp_0910_1988_honda_crx_k20sstp_0910_01_z+1988_honda_crx+rear_view.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 1988 Honda CRX K20 – Rywired – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 1988 Honda CRX K20 – Rywired – Super Street Magazine

The showstopper’s SI is the first FD civic to rock all the JDM goods and thensome, but it didn’t come without its headachesinline_mediumwraptextright25455769/featuredvehicles/sstp_0910_2007_honda_civic_si_4_doorsstp_0910_01_z+2007_honda_civic_si_4_door+front_driver_side.jpgTrue

Photo Gallery: 2007 Honda Civic Si 4-Door – K20Z3 Engine – Super Street Magazine

Photo Gallery: 2007 Honda Civic Si 4-Door – K20Z3 Engine – Super Street Magazine

Tuning Honda Civics has come a long way in the 21st century. It almost seems as though there is a set formula that one must abide by in order to be deemed “cool” by Internet forum sticklers. It’s all about getting the “rare” JDM parts, the context of rare is usually determined by the price someone pays for an item rather than the actual difficulty of attaining said part(s). For example, an EG Civic with a “rare” Spoon wing and some “rare” Regamaster Evos might earn you a “damn doggie that’s tight :thumbup:” from a forum maven with over 20,000 posts (a :thumbup: gesture is one of highest approval). Anything less might engage what most fear more than death – an Internet hating frenzy that many refer to as a “flame war.”

Photo Gallery: 1990 Honda Civic STD – Adam Jabaay – Super Street Magazine