THE CREATORS OF THE HIT TV SERIES GLEE MADE IT THEIR DUTY TO repeatedly put two good songs together to make a bad one. This music mashup phase of mixing music into a clashing listening experience had burned out as quickly as it blew up. Somehow it was decided that […]
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Quick Tech: Staged Filter Tech
EVERY YEAR, WE TAKE OUR 36-FOOT SPORTFISHER named “No Deadlines” to seek out bluefin and yellowfin tuna. Traveling 120 miles south from Huntington Harbour, California, we end up in Mexican waters more than 70 miles away from land. The last thing we want is a problem with the engines. While […]
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400 WHP Supercharged S2000 Built Right
C.O.P. NOT THE POLICE, BUT AN ACRONYM FOR clueless, overbuilt, pointless. These descriptors, respectively, identify certain vehicle owners, their cars and the modifications that they’ve performed. Some buy parts based on recommendations, others based on what they’ve read. Still, others make modifications that simply don’t make sense. For Tom Tang, […]
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Sin City Supra: 800 WHP Stock-Block Sure Bet
LAS VEGAS, LOST WAGES, GLITTER GULCH OR SIN CITY. The entertainment and gambling capital of the world is known by many names and famous for its many unique attractions. From five-star hotels and world-renowned restaurants on the strip to the dollar-deals of downtown, there’s something for everyone in Las Vegas. […]
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Switzer’s P800 Upgrade Kit Pushes a Stock GT-R to the Limit
THERE’S NO QUESTION ABOUT IT. NISSAN’S R35 GT-R is the performance bargain of the century. When it was originally introduced, its $69,850 base price was definitely more attractive than its current starting price of $101,770. Due to this 45-percent increase in price, enthusiasts looking to make the jump behind the […]
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MAX OUT: E85 VS C85
SO YOU’VE ALREADY MADE the conversion from pump gas to E85 on your forced induction car and you love it. For less than the price of pump gas, E85 allows you to run race gas levels of boost for maximum performance. On top of that, turbo response and midrange torque […]
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1,600 Horsepower BRZ Drag Car Aims for 7’s and the RWD Record
AIMING FOR THE RECORD IN ANYTHING requires a plan of great ambition, extensive research and preparation. Like the world record-setting Red Bull Stratos Project, where Felix Baumgartner skydived to Earth from the stratosphere, a number of aspects needed to be addressed and issues anticipated in order to successfully complete the […]
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920 WHP EVO VIII Goes From Meltdown to Monster Power
SUFFERING A TOUGH DEFEAT WILL EITHER BREAK A COMPETITOR OR MAKE them come back stronger than ever. For Tristan Smith’s EVO, the defeat came at the Shift S3ctor Airstrip Attack half-mile drag race. In September 2011, Smith purchased a turn-key 700-horsepower EVO VIII streetcar. With “get-me-intotrouble” horsepower available at the […]
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Quick Tech: NX Nitrous Plate FR-S/BRZ
ACCORDING TO ONE FRIEND, “SHE’S SMART, SEXY AND LOW-MAINTENANCE.” According to another, “She’s evil. She’ll break your heart and your bank account.” Ask a group of performance enthusiasts about their opinion on nitrous-oxide injection and you’re likely to hear two very different stories. Some opinions can easily be dismissed as […]
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D’GARAGE CRX: Honda Twin-cam Swap Part 2
BE IT A JUNKYARD BARGAIN FIND OR A COMPLETELY REBUILT ENGINE FROM THE ground up, swapping in a B-series engine will generally require the same parts, procedures and pain-in-the-you-know-what. Within the family of B-series VTEC engines, small di fferences like the intake manifold, deck height, combustion chamber and sensor placement distinguish […]
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SR-powered 510 Bred for the Track, But Shines at the Show
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AMBITIONS SURPASS expectations and completely derail the original plan? That’s what we call overachievement. It’s hard to fault ambition though. Afterall, it’s a driving force, motivating the human spirit to aspire and achieve. However, overshooting an objective can sometime force a change of direction that was not […]
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Toyota S-FR Racing Concept
Toyota S-FR Becomes a Lean, Mean Racing Machine for Tokyo Auto Salon 2016 Text and Photos from Toyota With its sporty yet simple design, the Toyota S-FR turned heads when it made its global premiere at the Tokyo Motor Show in October. Now, Toyota GAZOO Racing plans to reimagine the […]
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1,284 WHP Home Built Blood Boiler Supra
DON’T BE FOOLED BY THE TITLE, THIS ISN’T A CRIME DRAMA starring Burt Reynolds and Rachel Ward. This is a garage project starring a rare 1998 Royal Sapphire Pearl JZA80 Supra Turbo. This pristine example is said to be one of only 31 6-speed models that were sold stateside in […]
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617 WHP 350Z Gets Big-Blocked and Boosted
TRUE NISSAN FANATICS ALMOST IMMEDIATELY revere any platform that wears the “Z” badge. From the first 240Z to hit American shores to the latest 370Z, every successive Zcar combines some elements of its past combined with the latest “next big thing.” This tradition of passing on and adding to the […]
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A Stiffer Chassis? Vehicle Torsional Rigidity Explained
When a new generation of a vehicle is released you will always hear “The new chassis is XX-percent stiffer.” Instead of saying “That’s impressive,” the more common response is to simply think “So what?” While 99-percent of automotive buyers understand the advantage of more power, nearly the same percentage wouldn’t […]
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