1:30pm: Makeup Day
Making up for the previous days test drive due to the cancellation, TEIN decided to use the same test vehicles from the track to give us editors the feel of transitioning from one type of suspension to another. Starting off with the TEIN Flex coilovers the suspension was eventually swapped out in favor of the Type RA in the TEIN RX-8, EVO 8, Nissan 350Z, and WRX STi. Comparing the two suspensions side by side the Type RA is a mono-tube A7050 aluminum construction tuned for the circuit minded enthusiast, displaying a more aggressive suspension of the two while the Flex is a twin tube steel construction that was conceptualized for the weekend track warrior but also driven on the roads. Side by side comparisons of the Flex and Type RA show the RA is the more lightweight of the two while providing larger valving and displays a larger oil capacity. While the RA does not have separate preload adjustments, the Flex unit possesses both separate preload and ride height adjustments. Unfortunately because we editors lacked the necessary international licenses, we were forced to perform duties as a passenger while fiddling around with the EDFC controller on the city streets. Although the main purpose of the demonstration is to give us editors a feel of the different types of suspension, it was a rather difficult task to accomplish while sitting shotgun but nonetheless a valiant effort by TEIN.
4:00pm: Thank You Dinner
Free beer! And might I add; who more deserving than us hard working editors after a long day on the job! Gathered together at a (Izakaya) Japanese Pub called Watami, we ate and drank small kegs of beer to celebrate the day before our final day in Japan. Feeling cocky, I challenged Shinichiro "Crazy Guy" Ashizawa- TEIN employee, to a drinkers dual for bragging rights to determine which country had the top drinkers. Now mind you Ashizawa-san didn't have the nickname crazy guy for nothing as he proceeded to continuously pound his mugs of beer without a sign of hesitation, while his face turned beet red. Within a few hours he eventually drank me under the table. Spiteful with defeat, I ran outside to prove my manhood, proceeding to steal a bicycle parked in front of the restaurant while riding around the block a few times to work off the alcohol. I returned the bike to its rightful owner and make my way back to the hotel for a nights rest.
Day 8
7:30am: Shop tours
9:30am: SHIFT Performance
Cruising though the Yokohama district, the short bus barreled down the highway in speeds excess of 140khm with our infamous rally driver Sato behind the wheel. We arrived at our first shop SHIFT CO. LTD., located in the city of Fujisawa. SHIFT has been long associated with Super Taikyu racing, campaigning racecars such as the Falken Skyline GT-R 34 Nur-spec and the Falken 911 Porsche, which was brought to Ebisu the day before. In talking with the owner Tetsuo Suzuki, he stated the crew was currently building a new Skyline GT-R from the ground up in preparations for the upcoming Super Taikyu season. Leading us to the back room, we were awarded a sneak peek at the Skyline project in the works. Stripped down to the chassis, the GT-R frame showed recent signs of being stitch welded while the finishing stages of a roll cage were in the works. Sitting off to the side of the vehicle were a number of dry carbon components ranging from side skirts to fenders. "Everything on the body of the vehicle is dry carbon," states Suzuki-san. "We had to rebuild a new vehicle because our previous Taikyu GT-R was totaled at the most recent Nissan Festival."
...
>>next page