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MODIFIED HONDA NSX: HYPEBEAST

You all know the reputation the NSX has – it’s a rare beast, and requires a tuner with serious chutzpah to take it on. And with a colourful background in Honda modding, Shaun Quinn was just the man for making the ultimate modified Honda NSX.

Feature first appeared in Fast Car magazine. Words: Dan Bevis. Photos: Original Persona

Reputations are made or broken on rumours and hearsay. This is truer today than it’s ever been, in the era of immediate social media smack-downs and speak-before-you-think scatter gun opinion showers. But sometimes, just sometimes, the rumours are true. And the Honda NSX is one of those rare examples where you can believe the hype. Yes, it genuinely did annoy Ferrari when it was launched, because the world suddenly saw that it was possible to have supercar performance in a reliable daily-driver package, meaning that the old-guard Italians would have to try a bit harder. Yes, Ayrton Senna was involved in the development of the Honda NSX, and yes, Gordon Murray, Eddie Jordan, Tom Cruise, Alex Zanardi, Scottie Pippen and Chuck Yeager all owned NSXs. They’re that good. Believe what you’ve heard.

It’s no surprise that these fabulous mid-engined sports cars have passed into the pantheon of modern legend. When the Honda NSX was unveiled at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show, it was met with genuine confusion: a supposed supercar with a Honda badge? Just what were these Japanese upstarts up to, exactly? But Honda was deadly serious – the NSX may have shared a badge with your mum’s Civic, but it had a few tricks up its exquisitely tailored sleeve. The all-aluminium quad-cam VTEC V6 mounted behind the seats produced an urgent 270bhp at 7,300rpm, which was more than enough to overwhelm the rear tyres in an aluminium silhouette weighing just 1,340kg wet. The chassis was specifically designed to offer a sublime duality for the driver: supercar tactility with Civic-esque ease of use, making a hero of the average Joe. Unfortunately for Honda, cachet is a significant element in the supercar matrix and they were never likely to coax too many people from Ferrari showrooms, no matter how capable the offering; in a surprisingly lengthy sixteen-year production run, fewer than 20,000 examples were sold. But today people have started to realise that the NSX is far superior to its contemporary supercar rivals – while the likes of the Ferrari 348 are all piddling oil in their heated garages, NSXs are still usable daily drivers.

Let’s not pretend that the modified Honda NSX we’ve got in front of the camera today is totally sensible, though. Honda’s formula has always stirred a little lunacy into the scientific ingredients, and Shaun Quinn’s approach here has been to amplify the lunatic side rather than focusing on such trivialities as day-to-day practicality or mpg figures. That stuff’s all baked into a Honda anyway, so why not go a bit nuts with it?

It’s worth pointing out here that Shaun’s got form with this sort of thing. Regular readers may be familiar with his EK Civic, a car so beautifully crafted and keen to evolve that it’s had no less than four features in the mag over the years. And that says a lot about how he operates, because getting two features out of one car is pretty much unheard of. Four never happens. Cast your mind back to 2016, and we see a ninja-purple EK with S2000 styling, a built H22 motor, staggered OZ Futuras and carbon Bride recliners; fast-forward to its latest feature and the Civic is bright AMG green with custom wide arches, an almighty carbon wing and unique double-stepped SSR wheels. The evidence is abundant that when this dude gets his hands on a Honda, things are getting hectic. And with the NSX, he wasn’t going to deviate from this deviant behaviour.

“The Civic was my first car, and I guess most people know me for that one,” says Shaun. “I’ve been modifying the EK for fourteen years now; it’s been to shows all over the UK, and the latest reincarnation of it was to be its last, simply because I don’t see how it could get any better.” Fair enough, but it’s quite a step up from a hatchback to a supercar, isn’t it? How on earth did the NSX plan come about?

“Well, ever since I was a wee guy, the NSX was my poster car, I just always thought it was a mega looking supercar,” he smiles, “and the fact that I’ve always loved Hondas means that it ticked all of my boxes. So at this point I found myself looking at NSXs constantly, daydreaming of owning one and planning all the things I’d do to it if I was ever lucky enough to get one of my own. But the more I looked, the more I realised it was becoming an unreachable dream, as the prices were getting ridiculous. I began to look at smashed ones, but even then they were very pricey… so, slightly disheartened, I started to give up on my dream.” Thankfully, before our hero’s head began to hang too low, fate extended an olive branch.

“A few weeks later, I was chatting to my best mate Baz at work and he said ‘so, what did you think of that NSX I sent you?’,” Shaun recalls. “Unbeknownst to him, he hadn’t actually sent me anything, so then he was frantically trying to get the ad up on his phone to show me… and there it was: my NSX. I knew I had to have it as soon as I saw it. After a few phone calls to the seller later that night, a plan was made to take a trip to Newcastle to see it as soon as I could.”

The car had been imported from Japan back in 2014, and it was already wearing a few modifications when it made its journey across the globe. It was a bit rough and ready, with some bodywork damage, faded paint, missing interior trim and so on, but none of that mattered. Firstly, it was at a price that Shaun could afford; secondly, he was planning to replace and upgrade all of that stuff anyway; thirdly, and most importantly, it was a goddamn NSX. The dream was coming true!

“I drove the car home, then went out for a blast to go show my mates,” he says. “The NSX got a wee trip the following week into work to show the lads, then it was time to get my teeth into it. We bagged the car the following week, then started to strip it – full body strip-down, full interior strip-out. Time to make this my car…”

The air-ride is a real statement of intent here, although the purists can suck it up as this was hardly a concours example to begin with. Originally red, it had been repainted white in Japan, along with having various parts swapped out – in essence, it was always the car’s destiny to be turned into something unusual, and what better artisan than Shaun to help it fulfil its potential?

“All the work was carried out by myself and a few good mates,” he assures us. “I’ve always wanted to paint my own car, as I helped out with the Civic’s last three paint jobs, working weekends in a bodyshop to learn the skills. And I thought now was the time to do it; I’d decided on the way home from collecting the NSX that it was going yellow – Lexus Naples Yellow Pearl, to be exact – so maybe it wasn’t the best decision to learn to paint on a super-rare car… but everything can be fixed if I fuck it up! And being a bit mental I thought ‘well, let’s just do a three-stage pearl paint job for my first time’.”

You’ve got to admire the confidence, and it’s clear that when this fella puts his mind to something, he’s damn sure going to succeed. This is just as well, as you can’t really pick a harder base car to start with for a modding project than an NSX. It’s not as if aftermarket parts are available on the shelf in your local Halfords. Pretty much everything on this build has had to be either custom-made or severely modified. The Zero Force carbon widebody is a savage bit of kit, and this has been heavily reworked by Shaun and his mates to give it some brutal custom flares. There are custom carbon bits everywhere, and you can see by the fitment of all the body upgrades, as well as the quality of that flawless pearl paint, that nothing has been done by halves here. The rear hatch, the roof scoop, the exhaust system, these are all custom pieces, all one-offs, and perhaps the wheels sum up the over-arching approach best: Shaun started with a set of staggered-diameter one-piece cast wheels, 8×18-inch at the front and 10×19-inch at the rear – these were then redesigned, cut apart, machined and rebuilt to turn them into unique three-piece split rims, measuring 9.5×20 at the front and 11.5×21 out back.

“There’s no rule book, no how-to guides for this sort of thing,” he says. “I just do it all with a ‘f*** it, let’s try it’ attitude. NSX parts are very hard to come by and very pricey, so most things on the car are custom; again, it’s all carried out in-house by myself and a few mates. This is definitely the only NSX running these kind of specs!”

He’s not kidding. You’ve never seen a modified Honda NSX like this before; Honda’s supercar earned its reputation on merit, and the same can be said for Shaun Quinn’s custom skills. Believe the hype.

Source

February 11, 2021
HONDA K20C1 CRATE ENGINE AVAILABLE

A Honda K20C1 crate engine has now been made available for members of the public in the US having previously only been available for motorsport.

On sale from 1st May 2021, the turbocharged four-pot K20C1 crate engine comes with the turbocharger, alternator and starter motor. You can pay more and receive the Controls Package, which consists of a wiring harness, throttle pedal and Honda Performance Development ECU. Power is rated at 306bhp and 295lb ft of torque.

The engine first appeared in the Honda Civic Type R FK2 and subsequent FK8.

It’s not cheap, though, with the basic crate engine coming in at $6790 and an extra $2210 for the Controls Package. That brings the overall total to $9000 and given Mopar will sell you a 392 Hemi V8 for $8249, you might be left feeling a little short changed.

Just 93 examples of the Honda K20C1 crate engine will be available through four Honda Performance Development approved dealers: United Speed Racing, Science of Speed, Mountune USA and 4Piston Racing.

“We at HPD are proud to offer Honda power in an affordable and versatile package. Our K20C1 engines have won many races in club and professional series and is now available for a wide range of applications. The new limited-edition crate engine package is part of HPD’s strategy to leverage our pinnacle expertise for the benefit of Honda fans of all ages and motorsports categories”, John Whiteman, Manager, HPD Commercial Motorsports.

Source

February 11, 2021
PANDEM 335i E93: VISION AND EXECUTION

Idea, vision and execution. The most overlooked part of many builds and it doesn’t even cost a thing… not in the case of this Pandem 335i E93, though.

Feature first appeared in Fast Car magazine. Words and Photos: Paddy McGrath

It has become such a regular occurrence, that I sometimes think we either don’t notice it any more or purposely choose to overlook it.

I’m talking about cars which suffer with an identity crisis, cars which don’t really know what they’re trying to be. Show cars pretending to be track cars, or track cars built to such a high standard that their owners are frightened to take them out on track. Often this comes about due to improper planning and foresight; when we don’t look far enough down the road to try and see what we really want to build for ourselves.

What normally happens is that we start out excited and eager to put our mark on a new project. Our intentions are always good, but somewhere along the way we get distracted. Sometimes, we do things because we just fancy a change. Other times, we’re sold on a new product that while it doesn’t actually suit our own builds we just want that endorphin kick from buying new parts. I think we would struggle to find anyone who hasn’t been guilty of this at some stage, present company included.

None of this is particularly bad in the grand scale of things, but it’s a defining factor in what separates a good build from a great one. That ability to know from the very start what the long term plan is, and to stick with it religiously until it’s achieved. It takes discipline, for sure, including a lot of self restraint to ensure that you don’t veer off course. Knowing when to stop, is another underrated skill.

BMW 335i E93: The Journey

I don’t think any of this is a problem that Darren Coleman has ever had. He’s a man with a history of great builds behind him, and always knows exactly what he wants to achieve, often before he has even taken ownership of his next project.

BMW’s E93 3-Series convertible might not be the obvious choice in a model range which offers every variant you could ever want; be it coupe, convertible, saloon or estate. It was however the perfect base for what Darren had in mind. For him, he gets his car joy not just from attending and displaying at shows, but the road trip there with friends and family. It doesn’t matter if it’s a show in his home country in Ireland, or if he as to take a ferry across to the UK, half the fun is the
drive there.

Ultimately, this was a car that couldn’t just look the part, but it had to be fun to drive along with being usable on long journeys. Further to all of this, it had to be uniquely Darren’s as well. It’s a pretty long list of requirements, which only served to sharpen his focus.

Your first thought might be that this BMW has a heavy JDM influence, and you would be correct. Darren’s previous project was a Toyota Supra, and he’s surrounded by the Japanese cars of his friends and family. By integrating Japanese touches onto a German car, he has already taken this build in a different direction to most.

To best appreciate this car, I think we should start from the ground up with the 19-inch WORK VSXX which measure in at 14.5-inches at the rear, and 12.5-inches up front. The satin black centres with gloss lips almost disguise their incredible width. Almost. Still, I wouldn’t exactly call them subtle.

There would be zero hope of fitting these under factory bodywork, so Japanese legend Kei Miura (AKA Mr. Rocket Bunny) was called in to supply his full Pandem kit. This kit features exaggerated box-arches, which perfectly complement the E93’s factory lines, as opposed to the more typical rounded arch extensions. To add further aggression to the exterior, an M3 bonnet and rear bumper have been used. The paint, is a custom shade of blue.

Even with the right wheels and bodywork in place, ride height is key to pulling these elements together. As someone who wants to regularly drive his car to obscure places, a static setup would never have worked. Never mind the poor roads around these parts, but best of luck trying to crab your way onto a ferry at low-tide without removing your entire bodykit beforehand.

Thankfully, it’s 2020 (words I don’t believe anyone has written so far this year) and we have been blessed with companies like Air Lift Performance, who will allow you to have your cake and eat it, too. In other words, an air suspension system which offers the perfect static height for shows, a usable driving height for getting there and even the option to raise the car further to clear obstacles or board a ferry, all at the press of a button. What a time to be alive.

On the subject of driving, you might have noticed this isn’t an M3. There’s a good reason for that, which I’ll explain elsewhere, but this Pandem 335i E93 isn’t lacking in power. Some mild upgrades see the 3.0-litre twin-turbo motor produce 450hp, including the subtle addition of twin-HKS mushroom filters. Most impressive is that this car was originally automatic, but has been converted to a six-speed manual.

Inside Job

Inside, things remain deceptively subtle. The standard BMW front seats have been swapped for a pair of lower Recaro seats, sourced from a Honda and appropriately re-trimmed to match the interior. There’s a Nardi steering wheel, some custom carbon fibre trim and a not-so-subtle yellow half-cage.

This last piece is purely functional, and not a ‘show cage’. Otherwise, the first thing to meet the road in case of a rollover with the roof down, would be the top of Darren’s head. Let’s be honest, that doesn’t sound like a good time.

It’s not a huge spec list, but it’s a perfect example that more isn’t always better. The car features absolutely everything it needs to make it special, and not a nut or bolt more. It’s a car which is as comfortable aired out centre stage at any show, as it is on a Sunday drive.

While I’m sure that there are BMW enthusiasts who are thinking it’s sacrilege to go down the JDM route, and Japanese car fans who are probably thinking why didn’t he just start with a Japanese car in the first place, I think that bringing these two worlds together has produced a much more interesting result. It’s not the first time this has been done, but it’s something I hope we see more of in the future.

Above all else, it’s a car which is the result of having a vision. I’m certain that before Darren even drove the car for the first time, he knew that at some stage it would look exactly like this. It didn’t happen overnight – it took him a couple of years – but by plugging away at it, and resisting the temptation to veer off course, he has produced something truly memorable with his Pandem 335i E93.

Tech Spec: Pandem 335i E93

Styling:

Custom blue paint work, full original Pandem wide-body kit, M3 bonnet, M3 rear bumper, Pandem rear spoiler.

Tuning:

N54 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged inline-six, six-speed manual gearbox conversion, HKS intercooler with custom pipework, cat-less downpipes, custom exhaust system, R8 coilpacks with custom made loom, colour coded engine covers, HKS air filters, custom engine mapping by MHD, 450hp.

Chassis:

19×12.5-inch (front) and 19×14.5-inch (rear) WORK VSXX, Air Lift Performance suspension with 3P management, K Sport 8-piston (front) and 6-piston (rear) brakes

Interior:

Custom re-trimmed Recaro front seats, Nardi steering wheel, custom carbon fibre interior trim, custom half-cage, fire extinguisher.

Source

February 10, 2021