If there is one tuning shop in Japan that is well worth a look during this month's Misfits & Mavericks theme it has to be Weld . A lot of people make the mistake of classifying it as just a regular tuner, but I've always thought Johnny at Weld does things differently. He has vision and he's never afraid to push boundaries when it comes
2009 proved to be a very exciting year for D1. Youichi Imamura became the first driver to win two championships, his first back in 2003 behind the wheel of the Apexi RX-7. His Auto Produce Boss built S15, based on Yasuyuki Kazama's old 2005 championship winner car, allowed him to grab points consistently at each round allowing him to finish ahead
These are the posts I love the most, allowing readers to get a more down-to-earth look into companies and personalities. Away from the limelight it is always so refreshing to see just how normal people are and the guys at T&E were a great bunch to spend the best part of a day with. I dropped by their main shop in Yokohama to try to get a behind
It was hard to pick a second D1 driver to do a small retrospective on, following the post on Ueo's career as a professional drifter. There are just so many great drivers in Japan to choose from, but after much deliberation it just had to be Nobuteru Taniguchi. Taniguchi is one driver I have great respect for, having managed to build a racing career
With the D1 Grand Prix all done for a good five months I thought it would be cool to take a look back over the last few years and more to the point at some of the top drifters that have participated in the Japanese drift championship. I've picked two names that are synonymous with D1, drivers that for some reason or another are no longer competing
The GP Sports kitted RSP13 from the D1 post seemed to go down well so I just prepared a wallpaper of it. You can grab the widescreen and standard resolution versions over on the desktops section. - Dino Dalle Carbonare
Photographer: Dino Dalle Carbonare Resolution: 1600x1200 Description: GP Sports kitted RSP13 at the 2009 D1-GP final in Fuji Speedway
Photographer: Dino Dalle Carbonare Resolution: 1920x1200 Description: GP Sports kitted RSP13 sitting in the paddock at the 2009 D1-GP final in Fuji Speedway
I really can't believe how fast the D1 Grand Prix season has gone by this year. The new twin-round format certainly makes it seem that way, but at least every race weekend was jam-packed full of action for 2009. Round 8 ended with the drivers thanking the crowds for their continuous support, with Imamura, the new Champion, taking the lead in a big
Before spending some time looking at the D1 Divisional Round in Mobara we were in the middle of last weekend's Tokyo Drift Exhibition coverage, held in Odaiba. To wrap things up I want to go back and check out some more action from this event, one that does a great job of promoting drifting to the masses. The House Nation Dancers where busy signing