Monthly Archives: August 2011

The Car That Does It All

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Recently the Sparco Rally xD finished the New England Forest Rally (2nd in the 2wd class, and 10th place overall) also bringing this season of Rally America to an end.

This car has been covered many times on our blog, but each coverage brings with it different situations the car and crew has gone through, and one amazing constant.
That constant being how well this little car performs day in and day out.

(Watch the video and be amazed)

To be honest, when I first heard that an xD had been chosen as a rally car and that we would be making Specialized Dampers for the vehicle, I laughed inside (and a little bit outloud) all the while thinking that they must be dreaming.

Considering all the high end, rally bred cars there were in the market, “why go with an xD? Tein already has a plethora of offroad geared products for those other cars.” were my thoughts.

But seeing the “dream” car, with the help of the amazing team behind it, perform time and time again, against all odds, was truly a sight to see.

After every race the dampers would be taken off of the vehicle and brought in for inspection.

Seeing the video will show you how much of a beating the car takes (cracked downpipes, bent skidplate, oil leaks), here is a glimpse of the carnage the dampers go through as well.
(The powdercoating on the dampers has been sandblasted off to the bare metal and this is spite of the shields placed on the rear H-beam of the car.)

Look forward to another seasons of rallying next year.

A Look Back at the TEIN S15

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Recently saw on facebook that Import Tuner magazine is running a contest to see what the next cover car should be. One of the front runners is a white S15. It reminded me of when the TEIN S15 was on the cover of Import Tuner.

March 2006 issue. Click HERE to read the article.

Back in 2005 when drifting and time attack were blossoming in the US, TEIN decided to build a monstrous demo car. The purpose was to build a single car that could compete in select drift and time attack events. Prior to this decision we were sponsoring or borrowing cars to compete under the TEIN name.

One of our engineers who had some fabrication and rally racing experience was put in charge of the project. I obtained parts and helped with final assembly when I was not working on our 2006 Civic Si Coupe (also debuted at the 2005 SEMA show). I do not think our bay door closed for an entire month. Some of us worked, ate and even slept at the office to get the two cars finished.

This picture was probably taken at 2 or 3am a few nights before the cars had to leave for Vegas.

In the end the S15 was completed just in time to display at SEMA.

Under the hood sat at RD28DETT which was pushed back over 10″ to improve weight distribution. The motor was fully built from top to bottom with HKS parts and produced an easy 600HP and 550ft-lbs of torque.

There were tons of custom parts including Ikeya Formula arms to widen the track, tubed front and rear fender wells, v-mount rad/ intercooler, crazy jungle-gym like cage, gussets everywhere, this car could have probably launched off a cliff and nothing would happen.

Ikeya custom arms, custom composite driveshaft, ARC transmission and Diff coolers, Fujitsubo custom flat side exit exhaust.

Custom fuel surge tank, dual Bosch fuel pumps, ARC pumps for the trans. and diff., halon nozzle, plus last minute fabricated aluminum wing supports.

DEFI Super Sports Cluster, dual EDFC, floor mounted pedal assembly. Not much room since the trans. tunnel was remade to fit the OS Giken 6-speed sequential and because the engine was so far back.

Over the next couple of years the car shipped back and forth from Japan. While in Japan it displayed at Tokyo Auto Salon, and had work done by MCR.

A quiet day at Streets of Willow for the car’s first shakedown. It was pretty awesome to see the car run for the first time. 

In the end we ran the car twice at Super Lap Battle but the results were nothing special. Not enough testing and tuning to really get it properly dialed-in. Our engineers re-focused on product development instead of trying to be a race team, which we are not.

This car always reminds me building cars is about the right combination of parts and proper testing/ tuning. The TEIN S15 was constructed with a plan, had high-end quality parts and tons of fabrication but in the end maybe the combination just wasn’t right. Hopefully we will see the car re-emerge one day.

 

 

To Match or Not to Match

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Hey everyone its been a while but I’m back.  This post is gonna be about the different part numbers found on the lowering springs or dampers themselves.

Many folks call in wondering why the part numbers are different, which lowering  spring or damper is front or rear. Well here’s some info to help out all of those folks that are not so mechanically inclined.

              Each lowering spring and damper kit has an individual alphanumeric part number which is part of the manufacturing process and to also help determine whether the part is a front, rear , left or right as shown in the photos above.  The lowering spring shown have an even part number (partially matching the kit number SKS84-AUB00) which would indicate that the spring belongs in the front, and odd number would belong in the rear. The springs would also have an F (Front) or R (Rear) in the beginning of the part number designated its location. The last digits are the springs lot number. Note: the springs should always be installed so the printed part number is right side up.

Though the springs have an individual part numbers they cannot be purchased individually like dampers can. However the part numbers can help you determine where the spring belongs and what vehicle they belong on or are compatible with.

        The dampers have the same type of alphanumeric part number as the springs but have additional information as to its location, damper type and what application the damper is for. Older dampers ( exa. HR or NR dampers) would have the part number engraved into the lower section of the shock body.

I hope this helps clarify some part number you may encounter on either TEIN lowering springs or dampers. Next time I will go deeper into the part numbers of both the lowering springs and damper kits. Also a special thanks to our TEIN male model Jonathan Lee (the guy in the snazzy overalls NOT the one in the blue bikini) for his professional modeling. Keep it up and you might be on the TEIN Calander or even a TEIN Poster. LOL J/K . Thanks for the help Dude.

China Touring Car Championship

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While watching Speed TV one day, I caught a glimpse of their segment from Mobil 1 The Grid and they featured the China Touring Car Championship (CTCC).

As a kid, I remember watching the short-lived North American Touring Car Championship on ESPN, with racers such as Randy Pobst and Peter Cunningham as contenders. The high strung 4 cylinder engines, super low ride heights, 19″ wheels, and subtle but quite functional body kits looked and sounded awesome.

There were also the cars of the Japanese Touring Car Championships! They looked even better!

Honda AccordWRXPrimeraOpel Vectra

Needless to say, the CTCC quickly drew my interests. And I know that TEIN supports a few vehicles in both of their categories (1600cc and 2000cc).

Check out this link from www.grid1.tv

As for cars we sponsor, the Ford Focus looks to be one of the most competitive platforms. But we also sponsor a Honda Accord and Hyundai i30 and KIA Forte.

 

Overall, this looks to be a very exciting series of motorsports. I’m actually a fan of Touring Cars as they best represent production vehicles available to the public. Some of these setups are quite unique. But again, since they bare a strong resemblance to what we drive, it’s much more interesting to me. Not that I don’t appreciate open wheel race cars and such. It’s just that the Touring Car series has a different appeal.

It may not have the following like Formula 1, WRC (also production car based, but with a super high budget), or even Nascar, but it sure has a special place for people like some of us who appreciate seeing production vehicles on the racetrack. Fortunately in North America, we still get to watch Touring Cars. Speed TV shows the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, and there’s still a U.S. Touring Car series.

Now, if only they can bring back Touring Estate race cars…

DAMPATTY Doll

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Many of you might have seen Dampachi’s girlfriend before, Dampatty.

And if you have a Dampachi Doll you might want to get a matching Dampatty Doll for your Girlfriend, daughter, sister, loved one, everyone and anyone.

NEW DAMPATTY DOLL. Yes, you read this correct. TEIN  released the NEW Dampatty Doll and she will arrive in the States late this September.

If you already have the Dampachi Doll now is the time to reunite him with his girlfriend.

You will see more of this happy couple in the next coming months.

Dampatty in Australia with, Tarzan Yamada, driver of the Cyber Evo and 2011 WTAC Champion. Maybe the new doll brought him luck as Tarzan faced stiff competition for Sierra Sierra and Revolution.

Cyber EVO-LUTION

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World Time Attack is on my mind. Excited to see if the Cyber Evo can retain the title of fastest time attack car in the world. Other blogs and online news sources have been posting images and information on some of the contenders and I have been reading it all. It looks like the competition will be fierce this year.

Personally I have to cheer for the Cyber EVO. Besides the fact that it runs TEIN coilovers it has so much history. I can remember watching Option video of Nomuken visiting Dr. Takizawa’s office to check out the car. At the time and still now, I think it is awesome that a privateer can compete against manufacturers, well-known tuners and race teams.

Here are some pics I found of the car over the years. You can see the EVOLUTION of the car especially in the aero department.

A visit to the dentist’s office.

 

2008 – From the C-West aero to full Voltex

2009 – More development

2010 – At WTAC

2011 – Testing at Fuji in preparation for WATC 2011.

In my book the Cyber EVO is still the best looking Time Attack EVO of all time.

However the technical advancements in the competitors is amazing. Sierra Sierra has made improvements throughout the car which Eric Hsu explains on MotoIQ. There are new cars from Australia with some CRAZY aero mods as well.

I look forward to seeing all the event coverage.

GO CYBER EVO !!!!!!!

Photos taken from various websites including: speedhunters, tomei’s blog, Super Street magazine, Voltex, Dino Carbonare,

Tein Overalls

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Just recently, over here in Southern California, the summer has begun showing it’s true face.

It may not be as hot as other summers have been in recent years *Knock on wood*.

However, it’s still hot enough to break a sweat doing the simplest of motions while working on cars.

Normally we here in the R&D and Warehouse section are wearing coveralls, but as you can imagine from the name coverALL it gets really hot wearing those.

 

That’s where the Tein Overalls come in.

On a warm summer day the Tein Overalls have a cool refreshing feel to them, much like a convertible.

But the usefulness of the overalls doesn’t stop at just keeping you cool and your clothes clean while working.

Another feature is the big pocket up in the front.

It can be loaded with small tools such as pens and rulers for easy access while working on cars.

Also, the knees have a padding sewn into the fabric that helps a lot when kneeling to work on your car’s suspension.

So if the heat is getting to you while working on your car, your friend’s car, or anyone else’s car at that, and you don’t want to get your clothes dirty, give us a call and inquire about the Tein Overalls.