Japan's Grass Greener Than America's, and Vice VersaJapan's Big End Racing Club (BERC), established in 1993, has taken American pop culture into a whole new level. Much like the American tuners emulating all things Japanese, the BERC members enjoy big-engine hot rods just like Billy Bob from Alabama. Organized by the Motorcycle Federation of Japan (MFJ), BERC also has a drag racing series, where they race musclecars on tracks like Twin Ring Motegi and Suzuka. With five races scheduled for this year, the BERC Drag Race series is a sure-shot hit among its U.S. domestic market followers. First, they come to the U.S. and buy up all the vintage Michael Jordan shoes, and now they're taking the cars, too? On second thought, they can take all those nasty V-8s and V-6s; we just want more never-before-seen Japanese cars to finally come to America. Happy Sumo, here we come!
Castrol Helps Build Your EngineCastrol, in its "Build Your Dream Engine" contest ending September 30, will give two grand-prize winners $5,000 for a chance to create their own dream engines. Contestants must complete the entry form at http://dreamengine.castrolusa.com and briefly describe how they will use the $5,000 to build their dream engine, by accurately answering five questions that test their knowledge about domestic or import engines. The entries will be judged by NHRA racing professionals Tony Pedregon and Jojo Callos and selected members of the automotive media. According to Jojo, "Whether it's in the pits at a race or in the garage at home, we're always adding, adjusting and tinkering to make our vehicles perform better. The Build Your Dream Engine contest rewards drivers who are dedicated to constantly improving the way their vehicles run."
The Golden YearsTaking a look back at was happening in the month of July:July 1997Adam Saruwatari's '93 Mazda RX-7 had 10-second timeslips and produced 550 hp at 7,300 rpm. The Hyundai Tiburon just busted out of the scene. Super Street's cover car was Ryan Parma's '91 Integra LS.
July 1998This white Acura Integra, owned by Sam Song, had the most coveted wheels in '98-the Racing Hart Type Cs. Our cover car was HKS' 250hp 240SX. Battle of the Imports was the hottest drag racing circuit in the nation.
July 1999Nathan Lee's '95 Integra hit the scene in what was then a hot commodity-a JDM Type R front end. The Ford Focus was kicking ass in rallies across Europe, even though it wasn't sold on American shores yet. And Jonathan Wong was the lowest man on the editorial totem pole. (Was? I'm still the lowest.-JW)
Weight PenaltyApparently, John had a little too much Thai iced tea when he went to Thailand for Mitsubishi's launch of its '03 Lancer Evolution, because he not only brought back fishy-smelling ping-pong balls, but he also misinformed all the readers by saying that the Evo weighed in at a whopping 4,222 pounds (New Car Joy Ride: "2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution," April 2003) when it is actually 3,263 pounds (3,298 pounds with the sunroof). As punishment, John was given 22 bamboo-cane spanks on each manboob and was forced to write "I will not marry anymore Thai lady-boys while I'm in Asia" 1,000 times.
Cruel Prank Wins WheelsOut of all the submissions for the "Free Wheels From Velox" contest, Michael Siciliano's story about forcing someone into utter insanity was good enough to finish first, winning the brand-new Velox (www.veloxperformance.com) VX-Scythes. The Long Island, New York, native's tale beat out the rest simply because it was original, funny, and believable. Congratulations, Michael! Hopefully our good friend Karma will meet you someday.