When I questioned Henry about the ghost I was very surprised to find out it wasn't a meaningless accoutrement. As it turns out the ghost is what the Japanese refer to as a teru-teru-bozu and it's an interesting tool used for superstition. The amulet is thought to have special powers that bring good weather and are particularly useful for stopping rain. I couldn't help but smile at the appropriateness of this decoration given Norcal's climate where the weather can change in the blink of an eye. Literally no more than twenty minutes before I shot a photo of the ghost the rain was coming down in sheets and I thought I'd have to call the shoot off altogether.
When it came time to wrap up the shoot I told Henry that I wanted to get a couple photos of him with the car since his personality was bleeding from it. I asked him how he wanted to be photographed and he looked at me puzzled and said "I don't know, what do people normally do?" I told him to just do whatever he felt comfortable doing and after a minute of thinking he asked "how about I get in the back seat?" I laughed because it was ingenious, it was different and creative and the answer was there the whole time - yet in the seven some odd years I've never once had someone think of the idea. It was almost a metaphor for the car in a single photo.
Shooting Henry's car and seeing the enthusiasm he has for tuning was really a great experience. It has inspired me to get back to having fun and enjoying my car and working on it. While in San Francisco I was fortunate enough to meet some of the other guys in Heartbreaker, his "club" if you will, and they all live by the same mindset, "having good friends, looking good and having fun!" If that's not a motto to live by I don't know what is.
Tuning Menu
1985 Nissan 200SX Turbo
Owner Henry Nguyen
Hometown Gilroy, CA
Occupation Student
Engine 2.4L naturally-aspirated KA24DE; Walbro 255lph fuel pump; custom intake, exhaust with Aspec blast pipes tip, oil catch tank; T.Pro's header; NGK plugs and wires; Mishimoto S13 radiator; hockey puck motor mounts; Top Speed aluminum crank pulley
Drivetrain Nissan 71C 5-speed transmission; ACT stage 2 clutch; solid construction urethane filled transmission and differential mounts; S13 front drive shaft mated to S12 tailshaft
Footwork & Chassis Powered by Max S13 coilovers; 10kg/mm spring front, 450lb spring rear; Day Motorsports weld-on threaded perch for rear spring; S13/Z31 Energy Suspension and Prothane urethane bushings throughout; S13 SPL tension rods; S13 front lower control arms, S13 front knuckle and hub; A1 S13 conversion tie rod ends; PBM steering rack spacer; ARP wheel studs
Brakes Infiniti Q45 2 piston front calipers; Hawk pads
Wheels & Tires
15X7'' -1 (front) 15X9'' -27 (rear) SSR
Longchamp XR4 wheels; 195/55/15
BF-Goodrich G-Force Sport tires (front); 205/50/15 Falken Ziex 512 tires (rear); 8mm spacer for front wheels
Exterior OEM paint, Turbo model side skirts and rear wing, SE V6 lip; rolled and pulled fenders
Interior Bride Vios 3 seat; modified stock seat rail to accept Bride seat; HKS mechanical water temp and oil pressure gauges; SEGA/NAMCO arcade steering wheel; NISMO ball shift knob; battleship grey paint; S13 rearview mirror; Razor scooter grip covered e-brake handle
Thanks you Cecilia Vo, my Mom for letting me ruin the garage, Trinh Phan for reluctantly letting me work on my car instead of taking her out, Yuta Akaishi, Sterling Picton, Hung Pham, Gabe Nguyen, Francis Estrada, Grayson Yokota, Matt Garrisson, Joe Mendes, HEARTBREAKER! If I forgot you, then you too!
www ssr-wheels.com; tees-usa.com (Bride); gtfactory.jp
(Powered by Max); http://jumbosandbox.blogspot.com
(Henry's blog)