“Second hand” implies used, sometimes abused, and usually far from perfect. Few of us enjoy the good fortune of being the first owner of a tuner car. When a car “sold in relatively low volume, as was the case with Toyota’s JZA80 Supra, finding a clean second or even third […]
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Daily-Driven Top Secret R34 GT-R Delivers Maximum Response and 641whp
One can never fully anticipate where a career path will lead them, especially when it’s a career in the military. When Paul Castillo graduated high school in 1995 and enlisted in the Air Force, he couldn’t have guessed where his duties would take him. When assigned to Yokota Air Base, […]
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693 WHP EVO VIII Street Assassin
A strange thing happens to one’s mind and soul after driving a mega-horsepower car on the streets. The mind rationalizes the need for the power while the soul feeds on the performance. For Todd Allen, dominating the streets has become the norm. Recognized by some for his 1,300 horsepower twin-turbocharged […]
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Autobanh’s “Big Red” Supra Sports Big Turbos For 1645 WHP
Few of today’s sportscars can challenge the performance potential of Toyota’s JZA80 Supra Turbo. The fourth-generation Supra is arguably one of Japan’s top sportscars ever built. Much of the vehicle’s popularity is due to the incredible 2JZ-GTE engine design. No other Japanese engine has ever challenged the 2JZ in terms […]
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Wide Body Mazda RX-7 Still Catching Glances | Restored to Glory
Show car builds are meant to be eye candy. Some of the lengths that builders will go to in order to satisfy judging requirements would even make Liberace cringe. On the other hand, manufacturers work with tuning shops to build demo vehicles that take the “Best of Show” cars and […]
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SR-Powered AE86 Makes An Impact In Formula Drift’s Arena
The banked turn that seemed a fair distance away closes rapidly as the engine roars to redline. In an instant, a clutch kick, yank of the hand brake and full lock counter steer makes the bank viewable through the side window instead of the windshield. Today, a lack of restrictions […]
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407 WHP Turbocharged NSX Under Pressure | Highway to the Danger Zone
Aircraft pilots live for thrills on a different level. Some individuals like Bob Fahnestock enjoy flight both on and off the ground. Fahnestock has logged numerous hours in the air and has taken his passion for flying to another level. He’s been involved with aviation for over three decades, establishing […]
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Innovation Delivers a Tame Infiniti G35 that Turns into a Monster on Command
Show cars rarely demonstrate mechanical creativity delivering both form and function. Engineering innovation is traditionally bred within motorsports in the name of edging out the competition. Street car tuners typically adapt, rather than pioneer, racing equipment for enthusiast use. However, some “show cars” that actually see time on the street […]
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Part 15 PROJECT RH9 GT-R | 834 WHP at 35 PSI of Boost Pressure
As we close out this November issue, we look ahead to the next opportunity to bring our GT-R to the dragstrip. If you remember from last issue, our GT-R managed a 10.34- second elapsed time. While this accomplishment is extraordinary on many levels, we have still not reached our primary […]
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Part 14 PROJECT RH9 GT-R | Into the 10’s with 9’s Not Far Away
Photos by Sami Sharaf // Text by Michael Ferrara Wednesday, July 20th, 2005 During the weekly DSport magazine meeting, it is decided that we will try to get as many vehicles race-ready for an upcoming import drag racing event at California Speedway in Fontana, California. Our plan is to have […]
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Part 13: PROJECT RH9 GT-R | 10-Second Power, 11-Second Timeslips 11.25@ 133.7mph
“Should have…could have…would have…” Our most recent trip to the strip with our Project GT-R proved to be full of both trials and tribulations. While many questions were answered, a number of new questions and concerns surfaced. Text & Photos by Michael Ferrara Persistence Pays The original plan was to […]
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1014 Horsepower, 9-sec EVO VIII
Imagine a world without boost. High-performance street engines would make around 100 horsepower per liter. Racing engines would only be able to squeeze out 130 horsepower per liter. In this boost-free world, a five- hundred horsepower streetcar would need an engine that is over five liters in displacement. Heavy, large- […]
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Part 12: Ported & Flowed: Part 3 | Computer Models Versus the Dyno on our RB26 GT-R
In our last installment of Ported & Flowed (October 2004), we mentioned that our next step would be to put the computer model to the test. This test would occur when we installed the ported cylinder head along with the camshafts on our GT-R. Then we would optimize the fuel […]
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Part 11: Ported & Flowed: Part 2 | Flow Numbers, Flow Velocity and Horsepower with our GT-R
You’ve probably been told or heard from someone that “an internal combustion automotive engine is just a sophisticated air pump.” Here’s the truth. What you have been told isn’t entirely accurate. First, a pump is a device used to move fluids and it operates at relatively low pressures. Air is […]
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Part 10: PROJECT RH9 GT-R | Pump Gas: 505whp Attained, 600whp Possible?
Last issue, we said “when we get back on the dyno, we won’t be surprised to see 500-plus horsepower on 91-octane with a boost and power curves that we never believed possible with turbos so big. As predicted, we accomplished our mission with 505 horsepower registering on the dyno after […]
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