With a history spanning back almost four decades, the annual Tokyo Auto Salon (TAS) aftermarket and tuning show has become a must-see for any enthusiast. The show is as unique as the market it attempts to promote,: varied, eccentric at times surprising and confusing, but always with an underlying purpose of fun.
The V12 Vantage takes styling cues from the GT3 car with wide fenders, a ducktail spoiler and wicked rear diffuser.
There is a style for everyone, from your more conventional modified cars like the turbocharged Mazda MX-5 Miata we found at the Blitz booth, to the very fashion-oriented overfender craze that over the last year has swept across Japan — and the word. The newest addition to the fender-pumping brigade has been the Ferrari 488 as displayed by Liberty Walk, while ACR Performance showed us how to inject GT3 race car spirit into the Aston Martin Vantage.
We knew it wouldn’t take Liberty Walk long to “stance” the Ferrari 488 GTB, which has stylized the 458 Italia, F430 and 360 Modena.
With HKS having released a complete turbo kit for the Honda S660, it wasn’t a surprise that almost everyone had one of the convertible kei cars as part of their display; the question here is when is Honda going to start bringing these fun and affordable sports cars Stateside (we’re still holding out hope).
These wild rims come from RAYS, a Japanese wheel manufacturer. Made out of Duralumin, the strong alloy allows the back and sides of the 6-spoke design to be machined out, saving weight.
And on the subject of Honda, the NSX has been getting some attention from tuners, but so far nothing beyond simple dress-up goodies and big over-styled wheels. RAYS, famed Japanese wheel manufacturer released an alloy wheel made of extra strong Duralumin, an alloy so rigid it allowed them to machine out most of the back and sides of the 6-spoke design shaving off 300 gr per 20-inch wheel.
Nope. Still no turbocharger for the Subaru BRZ STI Sport.
STI, Subaru’s tuning and racing arm, showed us the soon-to-be-released BRZ STI Sport, which aside from a polished aluminum paint job and a set of wheels brings nothing new to the table — certainly not a turbocharged version of its flat-4 motor everyone has been waiting for.
Nitto showed off its NT555 G2 rubber recipe wrapped around Donning Work Wheels’ new Meister L1 design on this Mustang.
It might not be as big as SEMA but what TAS lacks in size it makes up for with lots of character; it’s sensory overload at its finest, and it’s precisely why it is so loved by enthusiasts the world over.