RECOGNITION: A RITE OF PASSAGE

Finishing just in time for the 2014 SEMA Show was an accomplishment in and of itself. But to be the centerpiece of the Garrett Turbochargers booth was one of Manansala’s greatest honors. Many reputable builders in the industry including the likes of Chip Foose, the Ring Brothers, Neil Tjin, Bisi Ezerioha and Toca stopped at the booth to admire his work. Even Kazunori Yamauchi, the producer of the Gran Turismo game series gave his approval of the car. Then, Manansala received an unexpected surprise when Troy Sumitomo of FIVE:AD called to inform him that the GT-R had been nominated for the Gran Turismo Awards. Having built show cars throughout his career, Manansala is not a stranger to having his builds judged. But putting together his first performance project and being judged by his peers was more than he had expected. The call that got him came from Carter Jung, informing him that he had won the Gran Turismo award for “Best Asian Import”.

[pullquote]THE PLAN IS TO PARTICIPATE IN VARIOUS TIME ATTACKS[/pullquote]With the conclusion of SEMA, he returned to California, where GReddy will put the finishing touches on the tuning before the GT-R begins traveling across the United States. The plan is to participate in various time attack events like Global Time Attack, promote the GReddy/Garrett alliance and to showcase the GTX-R upgrade to the GT-R community. Manansala concludes, “I’m completely blown away by the admiration and attention that my GT-R has drawn. Without the support of some great friends in the industry, I don’t see how I could have ever made this happen. I also have a great support system in my younger brother and my wife that have carried me through the challenges of the build. For all of these people I am grateful.” Passion and sacrifice, the burden shouldered by many, manifest in one impressive GT-R. Manansala expresses his gratitude to the entire team of individuals who supported this build from start to finish, including Kenji and Aaron at GReddy, Yukio at Garrett, Harry at Nitto Tire, Eddie at Mackin Industries, Pete and Chelsea at BC Racing and all of the vehicle’s sponsors. Finally, he extends a thank you to his little brother and his wife for their support and understanding throughout the build process.