Caught on the road
July 10th 2010 02:47
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MPV on eurobippu style 2
July 10th 2010 02:29
Some great mpv on eurobippu style for sharing.
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
Takahiro Taketomi
July 1st 2010 05:54
Standing in the middle of a convention hall outside of Philadelphia, Takahiro Taketomi looks a bit like Bogey. His eyes are stern and focused and ringed by the charcoal hue of lost sleep. His short black hair is neat and smoothed and shines. He doesn’t smile. In fact, he speaks with a grimace and like he is always about to light a cigarette.
Taketomi is one of the self-proclaimed founders of VIP style, the next great Japanese micro-trend to surface in America. “Bippu style,” as it is colorfully known in Japan, starts with a high-power luxury sedan. The car is slammed on ultra-thin tires and trimmed with boxy body kits. At first glance, a VIP style car might look like any tuner sedan on its way to Hot Import Nights, but there are specific details that set it apart.
A VIP style car might have a billet grille or metallic trim lines or polished wood inside. Window curtains are big. So are aftermarket emblems and hood ornaments. The look is a bit like Scarface Goes to Japan. And legend has it VIP style has roots in the yakuza (organized crime in Japan). True or not, Taketomi makes a strong case on its behalf.
Through a translator, Taketomi tells us he built his first VIP style car, a Nissan Cedric, in 1993. Three years later he founded Junction Produce, which specializes in products for VIP style cars. Today it is one of the best-known marques in VIP tuning and has its brand on everything from body kits to wheels to cuff links and bracelets. Junction Produce is also the first company of its kind to make a big push into the United States.
According to Taketomi, true VIP style tuning is limited to only 10 Nissan and Toyota models: Nissan President, Cima, Gloria, Cedric and Fuga; Toyota Celsior, Century, Aristo, Crown and Majesta. That’s it. Since most of those models come with powerful turbocharged engines in Japan, VIP style cars are rarely tuned for performance. More important is that they’re slammed as low as they can go on the widest wheels possible. Most of the other tuning parts somehow assist in this goal.
VIP stylers use air suspensions to raise their cars to install the wheels and tires and then lower the car on top. Tires are stretched beyond their limits to fit on oversized wheels. Extreme offsets are used so the wheel lips kiss the fenders. And it’s not unusual to see 245/30R tires on 19x10.5-inch wheels—the tuning equivalent of Fat Albert wearing the shorts of his enunciation-challenged friend Mushmouth.
Kelvin Tohar of Falken Tires, which is helping to spread the word in America, says, “It’s not the safest thing to do and Falken doesn’t recommend you do it for daily driving, but it’s the style.” Falken has partnered with Junction Produce to hawk its line of FR452 tires. In exchange Falken promotes Junction Produce at tuner shows and SEMA events, like the International Auto Salon, where we met Taketomi.
Tohar, who has his own VIP style Lexus GS 300 that he calls by its Japanese moniker Aristo, tells me elegance is the underlying statement. “At car shows, most [owners] won’t raise their hoods because it disrupts the flow of the car,” he says. “Even the Junction Produce exhaust is more of an aesthetic.”
Elegance is the word that’s repeated like a mantra by VIP style owners and companies. But it’s a strange sort of elegance. VIP style companies like Junction Produce, Wald and Auto Couture have logos that look vaguely Oxford Street but are more a Japanese version of mafia royalty, without any ironic subtext, like you’d imagine the parts delivered in purple velvet bags, à la Crown Royal.
And the parts aren’t cheap. Outfitting a car VIP style can run up to $20,000 and beyond. But as Tony Montana says in Scarface, “You gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women.”
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Air suspension for low ride
June 16th 2010 06:28
Just wondering why their ride is so damn low?? Of course using air suspension system. Here's some explaination of this system.
Air suspension is a type of vehicle suspension powered by an engine driven or electric air pump or compressor. This pump pressurizes the air, using compressed air as a spring. Air suspension replaces conventional steel springs. If the engine is left off for an extended period, the car will settle to the ground. The purpose of air suspension is to provide a smooth ride quality and in some cases self-leveling.
[ Click here to read more ]
Air suspension is a type of vehicle suspension powered by an engine driven or electric air pump or compressor. This pump pressurizes the air, using compressed air as a spring. Air suspension replaces conventional steel springs. If the engine is left off for an extended period, the car will settle to the ground. The purpose of air suspension is to provide a smooth ride quality and in some cases self-leveling.
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
Intro of taking over blog
June 1st 2010 05:27
Today, it's officially that I'm taking over this "autoblogging" blog since this log is inactive mode. Feel free to follow my blog as it lots of info plus pictures regarding motoring industries especially VIPsytle stuff and latest update on automotive industries. Basicly this blog will emphasize on promoting vipstyle culture and keep on posting awesome pic for all guys out there as a guide towards vipstyle culture
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
Simple guide for being VIP
May 31st 2010 09:05
VIP, what is it? Is it a type of car, a style or is it a way of life? I am here to put all those questions to rest and show you how you can be VIP 4 Sho!
VIP is actually determined by the possession of material items, nothing more. The real trick is which material items. Thankfully I will show you how to tell if an item is VIP or not. This can be applied to anything, but we are going to focus on car related items[ Click here to read more ]
VIP is actually determined by the possession of material items, nothing more. The real trick is which material items. Thankfully I will show you how to tell if an item is VIP or not. This can be applied to anything, but we are going to focus on car related items
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
2000 Lexus GS300 - The Return Of The Stance Master
May 30th 2010 12:02
It no time in the history of automobile customization has wheel offset and stance been more important than it is right now. Whether it's the hellaflush craze or a tucked-and-bagged, super-low VIP stance, nailing the perfect combo of wheel fitment and ride height is essential if hard-parking is your scene. The thing is, we're all about performance here at Modified, so this type of fashion-over-function styling doesn't usually appeal to us. But when a stance master and all-around automotive styling genius like Jayson Pizarro builds a GM LS1 V-8-swapped JZS160 Lexus GS300 that blows the doors off Vipers and Elises at the track while snapping necks in the parking lot, we can't help but take notice.
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
VIP styling
May 30th 2010 11:04
VIP styling is taking the aspects that was started in Japan with the VIP Cars and merging them onto cars that aren't really considered VIP car platforms. Some platforms that are gaining popularity are the K-cars (Vitz, Scion, and other econo-box cars), vans (Odyssey and Previas) and many other vehicles (G35, IS300, 300Zs) that have been heavily influenced by the VIP Style. That also has trickled into our US domestic market with the larger cars like the Chrysler 300C and Dodge Magnum.
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
VIP Culture
May 30th 2010 05:03
VIP Culture:
When VIP car enthusiasts in Japan build their car, they immerse themselves in the culture of VIP Car. Accessories like Noburi Flags, clothing, lighters, teddy bears, fans, and every accessory that a company makes are purchased and proudly displayed. Some items normally only found in wealthy homes are found, right at home, inside their cars. Many automotive events and gatherings in Japan are steeped in the tradition of the VIP culture. Simple gatherings of enthusiasts can turn into major events. As usual in the Japanese culture, the cars are the stars, but socializing and even food are main attractions. VIP Car has a sense of pride within the Japanese community on its luxury vehicles. It all follows the fascination for those who uphold the code of living in the lap of luxury.
When VIP car enthusiasts in Japan build their car, they immerse themselves in the culture of VIP Car. Accessories like Noburi Flags, clothing, lighters, teddy bears, fans, and every accessory that a company makes are purchased and proudly displayed. Some items normally only found in wealthy homes are found, right at home, inside their cars. Many automotive events and gatherings in Japan are steeped in the tradition of the VIP culture. Simple gatherings of enthusiasts can turn into major events. As usual in the Japanese culture, the cars are the stars, but socializing and even food are main attractions. VIP Car has a sense of pride within the Japanese community on its luxury vehicles. It all follows the fascination for those who uphold the code of living in the lap of luxury.
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Posted By: sweatloozee - Category: No Category
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