This show-stopping Spoon Integra DC2 has been a twelve-year labour of love for Michiel Roden. Taking inspiration from the iconic Spoon Sports, it’s a mixture of track-biased upgrades and scene-stealing aesthetics which slips down like a spoonful of sugar…

Feature taken from Banzai magazine. Words: Dan Bevis Photos: Ron V

The ‘R’ in Type R stands for ‘racing’. We know this. When Honda were sketching out the spec list for the DC2 Integra Type R, drawing heavily on the successful format of the featherweight EK9 Civic, the idea of fusing ample power with ultra-low weight to accentuate driving dynamics was always front-of-mind. Those early Type Rs, the late-1990s models, they were uncompromising creations – so light you could practically lift them up by hand, mated to engines with such aggressive VTEC crossovers that it was like piloting a racing car down your favourite B-road.

Rewinding back a further decade or so in time, we find a fella by the name of Tatsuru Ichishima experiencing similar pangs of track-biased excitement. Ichishima-san had started his fledgling racing career in a Civic, and in 1988 he founded Spoon Sports as a specialist outfit for tuning Honda engines. As the company grew, it started developing further race-bred products and prepping entire cars for competition, until we arrive at the late-nineties (around the time the DC2 Integra was breaking onto the scene) when Spoon Sports were selling crate B-Series motors, branching out into other engine families, and offering all manner of proprietary aero parts, brake upgrades, suspension, wheels and all sorts. And the name of the company? Yes, it actually is named after a spoon… or the shape of one, at least; turn 13 at the Suzuka circuit is a long curve shaped like the head of a spoon, and it’s this legendary corner that Ichishima-san chose to name his company for.

Since we’re skipping back and forth through time, let’s now fast-forward to the late-2000s, when this particular DC2 Integra Type R was around a decade old. Its Belgian owner, Michiel Roden, had certainly been paying attention to this all-pervading racer-for-the-road enthusiasm, both from Honda and Spoon Sports, and had set his sights on preserving and accentuating the glory of both. Even more impressively, this Integra was actually his very first car.

“Well, there was another cheap runabout before this that my parents bought for me to learn to drive in,” he says, “but this Type R was my first ‘proper’ car – and I’ve owned it for twelve years now.”

Stellar stuff indeed, as this is far more serious than most youngsters’ first cars. Naturally video games are to blame here, and Michiel readily admits that it was a childhood spent playing Need for Speed that instilled within him a deep-seated yearning for racy Japanese rides. While out searching for a car with his old man, he popped by the local Honda dealer, who just so happened to have a Championship White ’Teg on the lot, and it almost seemed like fate. And while it may have seemed like a bizarre and troubling decision to his folks at the time, the fact that Michiel’s stuck with the car for a dozen-odd years serves to highlight that he was thinking with absolute clarity.

And as if video games hadn’t proven to be enough of a sneaky influence, the good old internet knocked things up a notch. “Via Google I came across a lot of information about Spoon Sports, and various Spoon-inspired builds across the world,” he says. “These track-ready projects appealed to me immediately, although at the same time I’ve always been impressed by the super-clean engine bays of American Honda builds – so what I really wanted to do with my Integra was to combine the two. I wanted to make it show-ready, but ready to race, too”
Glancing over the photos and the specs it’s clear that he’s been successful in this goal, and the further we delve into the details the more we learn about just what a focused thinker Michiel is. Perfection is the watchword, and nothing less will suffice. “Yeah, I probably am a bit of a perfectionist,” he laughs. “And that’s what made many elements of this project so stressful. Sometimes it wasn’t easy to fit all the different parts together, and there were number of custom modifications needed here and there to tuck everything neatly. I had particularly underestimated how much effort it would take to achieve the shaved bay!”

Those endless hours of welding, grinding and smoothing have paid off though, as the bay looks glorious, particularly given Michiel’s keen eye for well-chosen mods and upgrades. As well as cleaning every individual element and replacing a raft of OEM parts, ancillaries and accessories, he’s also added a Tegiwa carbon airbox, Edelbrock Performer X intake and Skunk2 throttle body, along with Spoon cams topped off with a custom chopped and shaved valve cover. The eagerness to stir in a little Spoon magic is readily evident under the bonnet, with the iconic branding apparent on the radiator hoses, plug cover and wires, oil and radiator caps, rad brackets, and the rorty exhaust system which works hand-in-hand with a PLM Tri-Y exhaust manifold. It may not be a Spoon engine per se, but the noise, the power and the vibe are all very much in-keeping with Ichishima-san’s vision.

You can’t really argue with the aggression of the aesthetics either. The shell has been fully repainted in its original NH0-code Championship White (“The perfect colour for a Type R,” Michiel reasons, and we’re not about to argue), and the Euro nose was chopped away and replaced for the more menacing JDM front end. This sports a carbon fibre Spoon lip, and he’s also added Spoon mirrors, a JDM rear bumper, and fitted a carbon extension to the OEM rear spoiler. The ever-present spectre of Spoon can indeed be found everywhere you look; those arches are filled by genuine Spoon SW388 wheels, wrapped in Advan semi-slicks to really underline the sense of purpose. The got-got-need for Nippon cutlery continues inside, as you’d probably imagine; a set of genuine Spoon seats is on the shopping list for the near future (when he can find some), but for now Michiel can enjoy his Spoon steering wheel and Spoon rear-view mirror – and of course he’s ripped out all the audio and the airbag, hashtag-because-racecar.

The result of all these endeavours – which have involved herculean levels of global parts-hunting – is an Integra which builds upon Honda’s own imprint of Type R majesty and kicks everything up to the next level. The Spoon DNA ensures that this hot-to-trot DC2 can more than hold its own on track, helped no end by Michiel’s addition of D2 coilovers, Hardrace front and rear camber arms, and enough fresh bushes to populate a modestly-sized forest. Everything throughout the chassis has been renewed, with every joint and bearing being boxfresh and all the arms powder-coated. He’s been a busy boy. But then, he did say he was a perfectionist…

“Shaving the bay definitely took the longest, that was a big task,” he muses. “Because I wanted to use as little filler as possible, it was time-consuming to keep all the sheet metal neat during welding. Unfortunately something went wrong while spraying the bay too, meaning that everything had to be sanded again… but the second time it was spot-on!” The form is every bit as important as the function, because this road-racer attends a whole lot of shows with his flawless creation – Honda EuroMeet in France is a must every year, as well as a lot of local meets in Belgium, and the fruits of Michiel’s labours are always keenly on display. It’s not just fellow Euro modders’ hearts he’s winning either. See that squiggle of marker pen under the bonnet? “That’s the signature of Mr. Tatsuru Ichishima, the big boss and founder of Spoon Sports,” beams Michiel, near-enough physically bursting with pride. As well he deserves to. “During the 2018 edition of Honda EuroMeet, I had the unique opportunity to meet Ichishima-san in person. This was a great honour for me, and he even found the time to sign my Integra, concluding with the words ‘nice car’.” And from such a revered figure, there really is no higher praise. Michiel had been aspiring to the beguiling track-bred wiles of the Spoon Sports legend from the very start; the fact that his own Spoon tribute has earned the approval of the founder himself can be considered very much mission accomplished. He strove for perfection, and now Michiel has had it all signed off by the boss.

Tech Spec: Spoon Integra DC2

Engine:

B18C6 1.8-litre VTEC, Spoon first-gen cams, Toda cam gears, Edelbrock Performer X intake, Skunk2 throttle body, Downstar engine hardware kit, Downstar engine mount kit, Downstar shock tower hardware kit, Innovative engine mounts, Rywire engine harness, custom power harness, Odyssey battery – relocated under dashboard, S2000 clutch master cylinder, Hel clutch line, power steering deleted, ABS deleted, Tegiwa carbon airbox, Tegiwa radiator with slimline fan, AEM fuel rail, AEM pressure regulator, AEM fuel pump, custom AN fuel lines, new OEM oil pump and pickup, OEM spring-type LMAs, half-cut and shaved valve cover, PLM Tri-Y exhaust manifold, Spoon exhaust system, Spoon radiator hoses, Spoon plug wires, Spoon plug cover, Spoon oil cap, Spoon radiator cap, Spoon radiator brackets, Fidanza aluminium flywheel, Exedy Stage 1 clutch, Exedy clutch slave cylinder, Hondata S300 ECU, wire-tucked engine bay – shaved and painted Championship White

Chassis:

15-inch Spoon SW388 wheels – refinished in matte black, 205/50 Yokohama Advan A048 tyres, D2 coilovers, Hardrace front and rear camber arms and bushes, EBC front discs, Hel braided lines, suspension arms powder-coated

Interior:

Spoon steering wheel and hub, Spoon rear-view mirror, Spoon gearknob, AEM wideband, STRi oil temp and pressure gauge, airbag delete, audio delete

Exterior:

Championship White, JDM front end conversion, Spoon carbon lip, Spoon mirrors, JDM rear bumper, OEM rear spoiler with carbon extension

Some people reckon you can have too much of a good thing but we disagree because a 5.0-litre V10 is a lot of engine and stuffing it into an E30 M3 might seem like a bit too much, but the end result is just the right amount of everything.

Feature taken from Performance BMW. Words: Elizabeth de Latour. Photos: Chris Frosin

E30s and engine swaps go together like strawberries and cream; of course, we’re all for originality but, when it comes to adding a bit more go to the classic Three, an engine swap is always a good option and we love to see something bit more muscular stuffed into the engine bay. Over the years we’ve seen a huge variety of different engines inserted into the retro 3 Series and the sky really is the limit but, even so, seeing a V10 barely contained by an E30 engine bay will never fail to blow absolutely everyone away and Keith Waterhouse gets to play with a V10-swapped E30 M3 every single day. Yeah, we’re a bit jealous…

Let’s begin by saying that Keith is not your typical PBMW feature car owner; there’s definitely a general sort of age range that most of the owners of cars that we feature fall into and, at “55 years young,” it’s fair to say that Keith is a little north of the average and we love that. It’s always great to see people still loving cars and modding them no matter their age, and Keith’s the kind of guy we want to be when we grow up. We have some serious catching up to do in terms of cars though, as he reckons he’s owned about 60(!) BMWs over the years. These have included six Alpinas, among those an E39 B10 V8 and an E30 C2 2.7, an E93 M3 and a 1M, so it’s fair to say that he’s a pretty hardcore BMW enthusiast, but he just loves cars in general, having also owned two Ferraris and two 911 Turbos.

“My first car was a 1967 Mini Cooper S with a 1380cc engine which I wrote off and then re-shelled,” Keith tells us, “and my first BMW was a fully specced E30 323i with a dog-leg gearbox back when E30s were current; the build quality was streets ahead of the fast Fords I was used to,” he says and it’s clear that the E30 made an impact on him. “I have had four E30 Alpinas,” he grins, “and I fancied another one to do as a project. While searching I came across the E30 Zone forum and I found Glenn Baker’s M3 V10 build thread and the car which was to become mine. I contacted Glenn and went to have a look at the car; initially, we couldn’t agree on a price but I went back with a better offer and bought the car despite the fact he had only driven it for a few hundred miles. Apparently, on the day of collection he managed to nearly get the speedo needle to make a second sweep of the clock!” he chuckles. “The car was roadworthy and looked lovely in its fresh paint but it was a bit of a culture shock driving a modified 30-year-old car after driving modern cars. I didn’t really have a plan for it but I have basically put my own stamp on it by changing things to how I wanted them and Glenn has been a great help, I’m still phoning him up now asking for info!” he chuckles. Keith may not have been looking for a V10 E30 M3, but when an opportunity like this presents itself and you’re fortunate enough to be able to jump on it then there’s only one option. And, great as the car was, Keith has spent five years and 100s of hours working on it to tweak and refine it and the results speak for themselves.

Obviously, the core and heart of this build is that engine. The S85 V10 – all 5.0-litres of it – makes 507hp and 384lb ft of torque and those are big numbers, really big numbers that were enough to make the E60 M5 one of the fastest super saloons of its day. Back in 2005, the idea of putting a V10 into a family saloon, regardless of it being an M5, was frankly insane, which makes the idea of putting one into an E30 completely unhinged. When the E60 M5 came along, super saloons were all running V8s – aside from some wild tuner specials – and the V10 was – and actually still is – one of the rarest road car engine configurations. Aside from making an appearance in a handful of notable machines, the V10 has never been a mainstream engine choice and, judging by the direction in which things are heading, it never will be and BMW was the first car company to fit what is essentially an incredibly exotic supercar engine into a ‘normal’ car. While we’ve seen a few V10 E30 over the years, they never lose any of their impact and are never anything less than completely awesome.

In Keith’s car, the S85 has been mated to a ZF Type G six-speed manual gearbox from an E9x M3, and while the engine itself is standard Keith has made some changes to the setup in the time that he’s owned the car. “Last winter I changed the rod bearings to ACL ones with ARP bolts, the internal Vanos line and the Vanos pump chain and tensioners. At the same time I cut the front sump bowl and remade the crossmember to give a better location for the steering rack,” he explains. “I also changed the engine management to SCS Delta, which involved rewiring the engine and parts of the car. I had some annoying glitches with the modified OEM engine ECU so I decided to rip it out and the car definitely feels quicker with the SCS ECU, particularly in the 5000-8250rpm range,” he grins. The car’s fuel system comprises the original E60 M5 pumps grafted into the E30 fuel tank with a 5 bar fuel pressure regulator and a filter hidden behind the rear doorcard, while the drivetrain features a modified E60 M5 propshaft with an uprated flange and a secondary diff mount, the 188mm 3.15 final drive diff has been rebuilt with 40% lock, which Keith says has greatly improved traction, and finally, there are new GKN driveshafts. Of course, the stock E60 M5 exhaust would never fit an E30 M3 and so there is a custom de-catted exhaust and, needless to say, it’s absolutely awesome and really lets that V10 sing, making this M3 sound like an exotic supercar.

The chassis has obviously undergone some serious upgrades to ensure that it can cope with all the power and torque from that mighty V10, both ensuring that the car can effectively deploy it all to the tarmac as well being fun to drive. “The front suspension has been rebuilt last winter with rebuilt coilovers, poly bushes, engine mounts and a front subframe fabricated by me,” says Keith and this little lot has combined to deliver sharp and precise handling that makes this M3 even more of a blast to drive than the stock car, and it ensures the chassis is tight and more than capable of dealing with that monster power output. Big power also demands big brakes because, light as the E30 may be, with over 500hp on tap you’re going to be arriving at corners that much faster and so they’re absolutely an essential part of the package, and this M3 boasts some serious stopping power. “The brakes have been through a few changes,” Keith tells us, “last year I ripped out my previous efforts and installed a Tilton pedal box, E46 M3 325mm front discs with refurbished E31 front four-pot Brembos, while the rear has 296mm vented discs with Porsche four-pot Brembos. I’ve also added a bias adjuster and it’s fitted where the headlight adjuster switch would normally sit,” he says and that is an impressively comprehensive and suitably substantial setup. The four-pot calipers front and rear deliver serious stopping power whenever Keith requires it, and they also happen to look seriously sexy and the red calipers match the paintwork perfectly.

In terms of styling, this build is very much an exercise in restraint in almost every single area, with only a few subtle additions that help to accentuate the car’s natural muscularity. It feels like we’ve definitely been enjoying some more OEM+ builds in the mag recently, but when they’re based on classic beauties like this it’s only ever a good thing. On the outside, you’ve got that dazzling Imola red bodywork and the very subtle additions of an Evo 2 front spoiler and a Sport Evo rear item, and they combine to just give the car that little more presence and aggression. The wheels, however, make a big statement and while they may be period-perfect for this car, that doesn’t make them any less dazzling. “Initially the car had Style 5 two-piece split rims,” Keith tells us, “I repainted and polished them and ran those for a few years. I fancied a wheel change, so I bought a set of BBS Le Mans splits and then, while waiting for a pair of 9” barrels to come up, these Hartge rims appeared and I bought them. I had them repainted in two-pack paint and polished them myself, which was a very time-consuming task,” he says but the end result was most definitely worth it. The wheels are 17” Hartge Type C three-piece splits, one of the most perfect wheel choices for a classic BM, and they look so good on this car with their polished stepped lips and just suit the whole aesthetic perfectly.

The interior, meanwhile, has a little bit more going on but it too is very much in keeping with the whole style and look of the car and it all works together so well. “The interior has been through a few changes,” Keith tells us, “initially it had black leather Recaro SRDs with a black leather rear seat and I then fitted some Corsa VXR front seats. Ata Khan from the E30 Zone then sold me his retrimmed, unused interior out of his S62-powered E30 M3 after he decided to go down the track car route. I have Recaro SRD seats up front and the whole interior is trimmed in black leather with Alcantara centres, including the door trims, and an Alcantara rear shelf,” he says and it looks stunning. The SRDs look so good in the E30’s cabin and the leather and Alcantara combo is a stunning one, with the M tricolour logo details on the front and rear seats adding that little special touch, and the doorcards are no less beautiful. There’s also a Nardi Blackline steering wheel and no less than five additional gauges – in the centre console sit three for the fuel pressure, oil pressure and voltage, while ahead of the gear lever are two for the gearbox and diff oil temperature. Aside from that nothing else has been added but what’s here is enough to make the interior feel special and nothing else was needed, this is perfect.

This magnificent V10-swapped E30 M3 is truly a masterpiece and a masterclass in minimalist modding in some areas, but absolute maximalism in others and the two work together in perfect harmony. Every aspect of the car looks right, every mod is perfect, there’s just the right amount of everything to make this M3 stand out from the crowd without drawing too much attention to itself, and it’s only the engine itself that causes any sort of a ruckus here, but when it shouts about its presence everyone pays attention.

Owning an E30 M3 is without a doubt a huge goal for a lot of BM enthusiasts out there and, maybe for some of them, the idea of stuffing a V10 into what is widely regarded as BMW’s purest driver’s car might seem something akin to sacrilege, but for the rest of us, it’s an epic engine swap and makes for a simply awesome build. Keith said he wanted to put his own stamp on the car and he’s most definitely done that, and over the past five years it has evolved significantly and it is a truly exceptional machine in every respect. “Modified cars are never complete but I have done most of the things I wanted to do and I’ve got no real plans for the car, apart from enjoying it!” grins Keith and that’s the best thing you can do with a V10 E30 M3. There are so many different ways to modify an E30 that it’s impossible to call any one car truly perfect but, in our eyes at least, this E30 M3 has got to be about as close as you can get.

Tech Spec: V10 E30 M3

Engine & Transmission:

5.0-litre V10 S85B50, custom-fabricated engine mounts, ACL rod bearings, ARP bolts, custom fuel pump system comprising original E60 M5 fuel pumps built into the E30 fuel tank, 5 bar pressure regulator and filter hidden behind the rear doorcard, custom de-cat exhaust, SCS Delta ECU. ZF Type G six-speed manual gearbox from E9x M3, custom propshaft from E60 M5 with uprated diff flange and secondary diff mount, 3.15 differential with 40% lock, GKN driveshafts

Chassis:

8×17” (front) and 9×17” (rear) Hartge Type C three-piece wheels with 215/40 (front) and 235/40 (rear) Yokohama Advan Neova AD08R tyres, coilovers, custom-fabricated front subframe, refurbished E31 8 Series Brembo four-piston calipers and 325mm E46 M3 discs (front), Porsche four-piston Brembo calipers and 296mm vented discs (rear)

Exterior:

Imola red, Evo 2 front and Sport Evo rear spoilers

Interior:

Recaro SRD seats, seats, parcel shelf and doorcards finished in leather and Alcantara, Nardi Blackline steering wheel, VDO oil pressure, voltage, fuel pressure, gearbox and diff temperature gauges

Back in 2012, Omar Cabrera bought his dream car – an S14A. since then it’s been on a constant journey of modification, with each distinct look building on the success of the last. That’s evolution baby. Here’s his modified S14A Silvia.

Feature taken from Banzai magazine. Words: Dan Bevis. Photos: Viktor Benyi

It’s often said that the lifecycle of the human being can be neatly subdivided into four distinct phases. The first phase is birth, infancy and childhood, the time when you’re beginning from a blank slate and learning all of your reference points from scratch. Phase two is adolescence and early adulthood – the period when you learn to stand on your own two feet and really grow into being your own person. The third phase is adulthood, mid-life and mature adulthood – the meaty bit of your existence when you mark out all of your main achievements. And the fourth stage is retirement and old age, the time when you look back over your existence with the wisdom of years. If you’ve procreated at some point then the lifecycle can begin anew with your offspring; if not, you cash in your chips and that’s you done. A life well lived.

With all this in mind, we can satisfyingly consider Omar Cabrera’s Nissan 240SX to act as an interesting symbol for the very nature of life itself. You see, this is a project that’s developed over a number of years through various distinct phases, each one identifiable by its unique characteristics, and each acting as a learning stage to push onward to the next evolutionary step. “I’ve pretty much been building cars since I was in my teen years,” he explains. “I started out with S13s, and eventually got the car of my dreams – the S14A – back in 2012. When I bought this car it was a bone-stock, family-owned example, and the only flaws it had were a bent front lower control arm and the odd spot of oxidised paint.”

A solid starting point, for sure – and since this had been Omar’s dream car since he was ten years old, he had a pretty clear vision of what he wanted it to become. We can look on this as the first lifecycle phase of the S14A build, the infancy stage; he started out with the usual touchpoints, wheels and coilovers and some aero parts, before carrying out a kouki conversion with yet more OEM aero.

Then things started to level up: “Since the car was black and had the horrible oxidised paint, I decided to do a colour change,” he recalls. “I ended up painting it red, and got some new rims for it when it came back from paint – a set of white WORK VS KF wheels – and that was my phase two setup.” It certainly made a bold statement, as the colour he’d chosen was a shade of red from the Lamborghini Aventador palette. The project’s adolescent stage was progressing into adulthood in fine style. And with the car’s stature growing, so were the aspirations.

“After attending plenty of big shows with the car, it just pushed me harder and I wanted my Nissan to really kill the competition,” he recalls. “I started planning my phase three evolution, and it wasn’t going to be an easy task. So I decided to do the right-hand-drive conversion…”

Now, this is a pretty bold way for the build to step firmly into its own personal interpretation of adulthood. You see, authenticity is a powerful tool; peeping through the window of this car today, you’ll spot that the steering wheel is indeed now on the ‘correct’ right-hand side, which is wholly at odds with the California license plates. This is a USDM 240SX that’s been reconfigured back to JDM layout, and it takes a huge amount of work to do this; it’s not just a case of swapping in a new dash, you’ve got to get down and dirty with linkages and columns and pedals and all sorts, but the kudos points among the aficionados make it all more than worthwhile. Driving a right-hand drive Japanese car in the USA carries a lot of respect: everyone knows you’ve had to put the graft in, and get it inspected and blue-tagged by the authorities to prove it’s legit. The quality of work here really is outstanding too, there are no squeaks or rattles or whiffs of adhesive like you find in a lot of backstreet lash-ups, Omar’s modified S14A Silvia sports OEM-like levels of fit-and-finish.

This third phase also saw some other seismic alterations, not least a set of Art In Motion MA5 wheels and Recaro SPG seats. “I attended more shows, and took home some wins and some losses,” he continues. “And I knew that in order for me to start winning even more, my stock motor had to come out.”

And so we arrive at the fourth life stage; for humankind this is the point at which we re-evaluate our past decisions from a timeworn perspective of wisdom; for the S14A, it meant a heart transplant. And Omar went all-in, balls-to-the-wall with this one, swapping in an RB26 straight-six from a Nissan Skyline GT-R. Which is a pretty aggressive way to behave.

As you might imagine, the car was wowing the populace and scooping all manner of silverware by this point. A fitting way for the project to reach the conclusion of its lifecycle and slip into retirement, yes? Ah, well, no actually – because unlike us mere mortals, this S14 has further phases of evolution to play out. Omar was far from done with the build, he’s always having new ideas and there’s always a fresh idea bubbling away. And so we reach phase five, the ethereal afterlife evolution: “I ended up chroming the RB26, getting new WORK Meister wheels, installing air-ride, fitting the wide-body kit, and adding the big wing,” he grins, nonchalantly reeling off a fairly incredible list of upgrades that’d be a life’s work for some people. Omar just doesn’t know when to stop, his approach to success is half-rollercoaster, half-steamroller. Full on to the max.

“Version 5 blew up the internet, and so much hard work was finally getting noticed,” he beams. “I took home my first trophy from Wekfest in August 2018, and got my first magazine cover feature.” But he wasn’t done. Of course he wasn’t. Never one to rest on his laurels, Omar did a few more shows with the car in its fifth phase, and then following the Tuner Evo show in February 2019 he headed back home to Dinuba, CA and started tearing the Nissan down again. The wheels, bonnet and seats all got sold… and so did the engine. Clearly something massive was afoot, and the plans for phase six involved stepping into some other-worldly past-afterlife realm that we can’t even begin to imagine.

“In April, I collected my new wide wings, new aero, and picked up the new engine from my good friend David at JDM of California,” he goes on. And what engine had he chosen? Why, the revered Toyota 2JZ-GTE – a choice so offbeat for an S14 that it was sure to break necks. Not only that, but he opted to go single-turbo thanks to a Driftmotion billet 6262 upgrade, fully rebuilding the engine and mating it to a Nissan 370Z manual transmission. “All of the car’s progress has been carried out at home in my garage,” he assures us. “By July the motor was in, along with the new seats, aero and a few other parts. I attended Wekfest in August 2019, and took home 1st Place – Best Nissan again, two years in a row! I feel blessed to have my hard work pay off. In November I got the opportunity to attend SEMA in Las Vegas with the car, and this has been a long-time goal of mine. I got to meet so many people, along with the opportunity to be featured in Banzai, truly a blessing. People’s reactions when they see my build are pure love, I get so many compliments; my goal has always been to inspire with this build… and yes, I still have a few more incarnations to go! I hope to have my S14A remembered as one of the greatest. So, a lot more is coming.”

This man, it seems, simply cannot be stopped. Having acquired his dream car, Omar set about reimagining a whole new storybook of dreams, and the result is a car that transcends the mortal world and ascends into the heady heights of the extraordinary. How many more lives can this motor live? Not even Omar knows the answer to that… but what we do know is that he’ll keep putting on a hell of a show.

Tech Spec: Modified S14A Silvia

Engine:

2JZ-GTE VVTi 3.0-litre straight-six, Driftmotion single-turbo conversion with billet 6262 turbo, chrome valve covers, carbon fibre coil pack cover, Driftmotion pulley set, Supertech valve seals, custom intercooler piping, HKS SSQV blow-off valve, custom 3-inch up-pipe, K&N filter, Mishimoto radiator, Mishimoto fan switch, Collins engine mounts, Nissan 370Z 6-speed transmission with Collins Performance adapter plate, Stage 4 clutch, Collins transmission mounts, Collins custom propshaft, Z Speed clutch slave, Collins short-shift

Chassis:

11×18-inch +12 RAYS Volk TE37 Saga wheels, 265/35 (front) and 305/30 (rear) Achilles ATR Sport 2 tyres, Cadillac CTS-V Brembo brakes, Air Lift suspension with 3P management, custom front lower control arms, fully adjustable rear upper control arms, toe arms and tension arms

Interior:

Right-hand drive conversion, fully stripped, Cusco 6-point rollcage, Bride Euroster II seats, Cusco harnesses, Cusco drift button, Bride seat rails, NRG harness bar, NRG steering wheel hub with quick-release, Personal steering wheel, LRB Speed rear seat delete, Tamale boost, AFR and water temp gauges

Exterior:

Lamborghini Aventador red paint, Origin Labo Aggressive bodykit with 75mm-wider front and rear wings, Big Country Labs rear spoiler with APR carbon end plates, APR carbon front splitter, DMAX taillights, DMAX rear window visor, Spyder headlights