When awaiting the final release of something big, a sneak peek can often go a long way in helping people hold their breath. For example, when I first saw the trailer for Casino Royale, the most recent James Bond film, I knew the movie was going to be amazing. I had read that the filmmakers re-tooled the story to be more action-oriented and a bit rougher around the edges while maintaining the sheer coolness of the Bond character, and the preview certainly kept me anticipating the full showing for months on end. Similarly, upon visiting Tokyo and seeing all the latest cars that were in the process of being tuned-but not quite ready-on display by various manufacturers, I found myself anxiously wanting to see what would come of these awe-inspiring vehicles. For instance, the latest manifestation of Subaru's Impreza STI dressed to the nines by ings+1. At this point, the car is mainly an outer shell of what is to come, but it is definitely not a bad outer shell to be in. Have an exclusive first look at what is sure to be a lean, mean and super clean STI.

Get Off In Two Pages
Faster Facts
'08 Subaru Impreza STI (GRB)
Owner ings+1
Under The Hood 2.0L EJ207 engine, 5Zigen Proracer custom exhaust
Stiff Stuff Zeal Function Xs coilovers
Stoppers Endless System Inch Up kit
Rollers ings+1 TS06 (F+R) 18x8, 5J+30; Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R 245/40R18 rubber
Outside ings+1 front/rear bumper, side step, front canard, windshield wipers
Inside Bride Zeta III seats, Takata 4-point harness

WWW bridgestone.com;
endlessusa.com;
ings-net.com;
takataracingproducts.com;
tees-usa.com

When awaiting the final release of something big, a sneak peek can often go a long way in helping people hold their breath. For example, when I first saw the trailer for Casino Royale, the most recent James Bond film, I knew the movie was going to be amazing. I had read that the filmmakers re-tooled the story to be more action-oriented and a bit rougher around the edges while maintaining the sheer coolness of the Bond character, and the preview certainly kept me anticipating the full showing for months on end. Similarly, upon visiting Tokyo and seeing all the latest cars that were in the process of being tuned-but not quite ready-on display by various manufacturers, I found myself anxiously wanting to see what would come of these awe-inspiring vehicles. For instance, the latest manifestation of Subaru's Impreza STI dressed to the nines by ings+1. At this point, the car is mainly an outer shell of what is to come, but it is definitely not a bad outer shell to be in. Have an exclusive first look at what is sure to be a lean, mean and super clean STI.

Get Off In Two Pages
Faster Facts
'08 Subaru Impreza STI (GRB)
Owner ings+1
Under The Hood 2.0L EJ207 engine, 5Zigen Proracer custom exhaust
Stiff Stuff Zeal Function Xs coilovers
Stoppers Endless System Inch Up kit
Rollers ings+1 TS06 (F+R) 18x8, 5J+30; Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R 245/40R18 rubber
Outside ings+1 front/rear bumper, side step, front canard, windshield wipers
Inside Bride Zeta III seats, Takata 4-point harness

WWW bridgestone.com;
endlessusa.com;
ings-net.com;
takataracingproducts.com;
tees-usa.com

The one car on everyone's minds at this year's Tokyo Auto Salon was the one car that everyone's been dreaming about since Nissan unveiled it at last year's Tokyo Motor Show: the R35 GT-R. We knew that it would serve as the halo car for any premiere tuner but how modified they would be we weren't sure. There were strong rumors that Nissan Japan put out an executive call to all tuners to not tune these; they didn't want 1,000hp successors to the legendary R34. Some even hinted that Nissan would void any warranties if the onboard GPS sensors detected that the car had visited any of the racetracks in the country*; others claimed warranties would be void if new wheels were installed or if parts were removed**. Suddenly, the chances of seeing any tuned GT-Rs were becoming few-to-none.

But luckily, the R35 GT-R came out strong at TAS and, as expected, most were mildly tuned, given the fact that the car had only been released in November, which meant zero time for product development. On one side of the spectrum, companies who were more show/aesthetics oriented gave the R35 a set of wheels and light graphics; the more hardcore tuners or parts manufacturers did the same but added in key essentials, like bolt in blow-off valves, exhaust, suspension pieces or brake kits. Most found little trouble in the parts they had developed up until then and it looks like those warranties are still unaffected. We overheard one tuner was contacted because they had taken the dashboard out, but it did not necessitate any warranty issues. Few had aero parts and it's hard to see why anyone would want to mess with the factory goods (this will inevitably change in the near future). That's why we give major props to GReddy for turning out a very clean version 1.0 of the GT-R.

Why? Even though some tuners have posted quick lap times at Tsukuba, those cars still look as if they've never been touched. You couldn't miss GReddy's GT-R because it was the best all-around, considering it had the most ostentatious look with its new all-over killer graphics design (keep in mind most GT-Rs looked bone stock) that really made it stand out, a fat Tan-ei-sya wheel package and a lightweight, titanium exhaust that'll kick you into boner jam mode with a quickness. If Version 1.0 of GReddy's GT-R is this good, then we're sure the update with more performance parts will be red hot.

It's a good thing those R35 tuning rumors were just that-rumors. Well, to a certain degree. So far it seems the tuning urban legends are valid in Japan; our fate has yet to be determined.

Fast Facts
'08 Nissan GT-R R35
Owner GReddy Japan
Hometownnarita, Japan
Daily Grind Parts developer
Under The Hood 3.8L VR38DETT engine; GReddy Power Extreme titanium exhaust
Stiff Stuff OEM Nissan
Stoppers OEM Brembo
Rollers Tan-ei-sya RATSEL S18 wheels; Bridgestone Potenza tires
Outside GReddy graphics
www greddy.com; taneisya.co.jp