Category Archives: Featured

TEIN USA Delivers to West Coast Customs

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It’s not often that you get to see TEIN on the tv screen unless it’s regarding Rally America, Formula Drift, FIA European Rally Championship, or something else along those lines. Even then, we tend to keep to ourselves tucked away in our own little pocket. Instead, we focus on manufacturing the products that continue to make the motorsports world go round.

But, every now and then we’ll be invited to participate on some television programs. Previously, we took part in the televised series Fine Tuned. This was a very similar approach to the show Overhaulin’, but aimed around the “tuner car” demographic. That was actually kinda fun!

Our most recent television appearance was with the West Coast Custom crew, taking part on a Scion FR-S build for Ryan Friedlinghaus Jr..

Since we already had product available for the FR-S, and since it’s a vehicle that continues to do very well for us, it was kind of a no-brainer to participate on this project. We had just launched the newer Street Flex coilovers and we also had EDFC Active. This was a great opportunity to get this new product out to West Coast Customs.

When we were contacted by Scott at West Coast Customs, we quickly got the parts ready and dropped it off to them. It’s funny- the whole process of taking the product to them and explaining what we brought them was just as shown on tv. I guess it is truly a reality! Haha!

wcc frs 2 (Custom)

Special Delivery!

wcc frs 3 (Custom)

A quick rundown of our Street Flex coilovers and EDFC Active.

Anyway, after a quick rundown of what we were providing them, we let them get at it by themselves. The project car was only beginning and they had a lot of areas to knock out before tackling the suspension.

wcc frs 1 (Custom)

Crunch time to get the car built before going to paint. Our friend Troy from Five Axis here helping them get the Five:AD body kit installed.

Fortunately, as many of you customer’s know, our products are a relatively straightforward endeavor right out of the box. The Street Flex is a complete swap of the factory dampers, also including their own upper mounts. It simply requires unbolting the stock stuff and bolting up our coilovers, then tightening everything to the correct torque specs (and final alignment to be done afterwards). Looks like the WCC guys didn’t have any issues getting that done!

West Coast Customs posted up photos of the car on their Facebook, following the airing of the episode on this build and the SEMA Show launch.

wcc frs 4 (Custom)

Ryan Jr.’s FR-S being unveiled at SEMA 2013.

Glad to be a part of this build and on the “big screen”! Hahaha!

wcc frs 7 (Custom)

wcc frs 6 (Custom)

wcc frs 5 (Custom)

 

Thank you, Heeltoe Automotive!!!

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We would like to thank Heeltoe Automotive for their Blog Post on our TEIN Street  Basis and Street Advance.

streetbasis_001

I had a bit of free time at home and was looking over a few of our dealers websites and see what new and interesting things they have or have to say. I saw this blog post on TEIN product and gave me an idea on about a blog post lol.

If you ever wanted to see in other peoples words about the difference in the TEIN Basic(discontinued) and the new Street Basis and as well as Super Street (discontinued) and Street Advance then I would highly recommend this post. It also show a great deal of the knowledge that Heeltoe Automotive with our product. Thank you, Marcus and David for assisting your customers with the best knowledge possible about our product and service.

Purchasing products through our TEIN Authorized Dealers not only guarantees that you are purchasing authentic TEIN product but you also will have a guarantee that you will have a very knowledgeable  person to assist you with any questions you may have.

streetbasis_004

J T Motoring’s FR-S Build

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One of our good friends, Brian Hung from J T Motoring out in Massachusetts, has made a name for himself bringing JDM tuning to New England. His latest build for 2013 is this beautifully crafted Scion FR-S.

IMG_3349 (Custom)

When Brian, contacted us, you can already guess that he needed a suspension solution. We were fortunate enough to be one of the first coilover manufacturer’s to have something readily available for the new FR-S, and for Brian, it was a no-brainer to step up into the Type Flex coilovers since this build was more than show. He had performance in mind for this project.  Matched to our coilover package is another new offering- EDFC Active. This was, in fact, one of the first cars in New England to sport this setup. But, this car is full of plenty “firsts” for its region.

By the looks of it, you can see that no expenses were spared. No corners cut. Brian wanted to push the emphasis on JDM and he chose the highest quality for parts that he could find, which happen to be the very same brands he sells at J T Motoring.

The spec sheet has more listed than all the ingredients needed for a Thanksgiving dinner. And looks to be more delicious, too.

 

Exterior:
APR Carbon Fiber Fender Insert
APR Carbon Fiber Brake Inlet Ducts
APR Carbon Fiber Trunk Garnish
Rocket Bunny Version 1 Kit
Buddy Club LED Tail Lights
JT Motoring Custom Retrofit Black Housing Head Lights
Nokya Yellow Turn Signal Front Bulbs.
Footwork/Brakes:
TEIN Flex (JDM Version)
TEIN EDFC Active with GPS
Tanabe Front and Rear Tower Bars
Buddy Club 4 piston/ 330mm rotors Front Brake Kit
Buddy Club 2 piston/ 330mm rotor Rear Brake Kit
 
Engine:
HKS Supercharger
ARC Oil Catch Can
Buddy Club Racing Spec Condenser Grouding Kit
MXP Front Pipe
MXP Cat-back with adjustable exhaust tip
HKS Oil Cap
Interior:
Bride Euro 2 seats in red buck skin
Bride Type VZ brackets
ATC Carbon/Suede Steering Wheel
MXP Titanium Shift Knob
STRI Club Sport Boost Gauge
STRI Vent Pod Gauge Holder
Kenwood dnn0990hd Double DIN Navi/DVD Receiver
Takata Drift 2 4pt Harnesses
Wheels/Tires:
Volk Racing TE37RT
18×9.5 +23 front
18×11 +17 rear
Wheelmate 5×100 to 5×114.3 conversion front 25mm
Wheelmate 5×100 to 5×114.3 conversion rear 30mm
Project Kics leggdura racing lugs
And they’re not done yet. More parts are being added to this project! We’ll try to get updates on this build!
For those of you out there in New England, give our friend Brian at J T Motoring a call. He can help you get your build to where you want it to be!J T Motoring
1183 Hyde Park Ave.
Boston, MA 02136
Tel: 617-364-6888
Web: www.jtmotoring.com
Also, please be sure to follow them on their Facebook page!

Overhaul Season

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What’s up, all?!! Just a friendly reminder that the winter season is the ideal season to submit your dampers to us for an overhaul.  To those who don’t know what an overhaul means, basically we freshen up the dampers to a like new condition.

The standard turnaround time is between three to five weeks. The repair time frame depends on the condition of the dampers.  Dampers with less damage are typically overhauled under two weeks. However,  repairs to severely damaged dampers can be prolonged up to five weeks.  Unfortunately, we cannot confirm a repair time frame, nor exact overhaul total until the dampers are inspected.

OH

Before you submit your dampers to us, make sure fill out our overhaul agreement form. Please visit the link provided below to obtain this form.

OVERHAUL PAGE

Feel free to contact us should you have any other questions.

RallySport Direct’s Review of TEIN Street Flex Dampers!

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RallySport Direct is no newcomer to the aftermarket parts game. In fact, we’ve showcased them on our blog before. Since then, they’ve continued to expand and have cemented themselves as a top player in the Midwest. They’ve been great supporters for the TEIN brand for many years now! We’re glad to see that they’ve stuck around and made a great name for themselves.

Like many of our authorized TEIN dealers, RallySport Direct likes to race what they sell. The staff at RallySport are quite active at local track days at Miller Motorsports Park, so they may sure every part they sell results in noticeable gains in performance. This gives them the edge in being able to listen to their customers and get them exactly what they need. That kind of service is a bit rare these days. It’s great to see that they pride themselves in their work.

Take a look at their website www.rallysportdirect.com, and you will find a plethora of parts by category and brand. Being that they like to race what they sell, they’re also quite fond of making their own videos for all these products. Their What’s In The Box videos are great for customers trying to get a better look at items they may be interested in getting, but don’t know what to expect. Sometimes, videos are just easier to understand!

RallySport Direct took our latest offering for 2013, the Street Flex dampers, and decided to install a set for their very own project Subaru BRZ. The “Albino Rhino”, as it has been dubbed, has made quick use of RallySport’s inventory, and the staff have been documenting this vehicle’s build progress.

You can find their writeup on the new Street Flex dampers here TEIN Street Flex Coilover Review

Along with their writeup, they’ve done a What’s In The Box video for the same coilovers

Here’s a short clip of the suspension in action

We’re glad that they like these new coilovers. They also plan on doing an EDFC Active install and review. So stay tuned for that!
If you’re interested in a set of TEIN suspension for your car, feel free to give the team at RallySport Direct a call at 1-888-45-RALLY (72559) and any of their sales staff will guide you in the right direction!

 

Ain’t Nothin’ Gonna Break Their Stride

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Serious question- When will Evasive Motorsports take a break from building fast cars?

Actually, I’m hoping they never stop. But really, they seem to just crank them out each year.

For some of you devout Evasive Motorsports fans, you already know they’re making room at their shop by selling their record-shattering AP2 Honda S2000 (1:53.99 around Buttonwillow CW13 under the Street RWD class). Yes, sad news for them, but great news for anyone looking for a well-built roadster!

In its place a new Subaru BRZ.

Yeah, we know. We’ve been posting a lot about the FR-S and BRZ. With good intention! Not only has it generated so much buzz as the “It” car for 2013, but they’ve shown to be quite capable around the track with minimal modifications. Just over a week ago, we posted about CounterSpace Garage’s review on our Super Racing dampers for the same vehicle. The praise we’ve received for our coilovers has been great! But really, we’re just glad to see that people have accepted this new vehicle platform and have already done some great things with it. So, like it or not, we’re going to keep posting about this fine platform!

Anyway, Evasive got right to work on this car. Not long after picking up the car from the dealership lot (I mean literally within the same hour) we received a call from Mike Chang. He was looking for suspension. As luck would have it, we had another set of Super Racing dampers for them to use (the first set with CounterSpace Garage). So from dealership, to TEIN USA, and right to Evasive’s stomping grounds to get this new project underway.

Along with our Super Racing coilovers, this BRZ sports Rays 57Xtreme 18×9.5 all around fitted with Advan AD08’s, Project Mu Club Racer pads, EVS Tuning 70mm front pipe and single exit exhaust, Cusco Adjustable Rear Lower Control Arm, and a Voltex Type 1S rear wing.

Quite a simple setup. I may be missing some other small details. But the largest detail- veteran Time Attack driver Robert (a.k.a. MaxRev) Walker will be hotshoeing this ride around the track.

During a test session on Feb 16th, Rob put down an initial lap time of 2:01 around Buttonwillow’s CW13 layout. The very same layout that has been used during Redline Time Attack, Super Lap Battle, and Global Time Attack’s events.

Mighty fast for such minimal modifications!

With this initial time, I’m sure the crew at Evasive will be able to whittle that down well into the sub 2 minute figures. We’ll be working closely with them as they get this new project dialed in!EVS BRZ (Custom)

Rally xD Makes an Appearance on Car and Driver!

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Yes, yes. Another post about one of the best built FWD race cars. NO, AGAIN, THAT IS NOT AN OXYMORON. FWD race cars can be pretty damn fast.

You gotta hand it to these guys- this year’s Rally America competition Scion xD is quite amazing. As I stated in my previous post, it may look very similar to the previous cars, aesthetically speaking. But, when you get to the finer details of this car, that is when MINDS GET BLOWN.

By the time you’ve read this, the Rally xD will have already completed its maiden voyage at Sno*Drift in Michigan and 100AW in Missouri. Results which you can find on

http://www.rally-america.com/

Again, aesthetically, it isn’t a far cry from how it’s looked in previous seasons. Love the new Baja Designs lights fitted into the bumper!

I’m not sure if Andrew Comrie-Picard’s legs got longer over the off-season, but that seat is pushed back pretty far… You can see where the B-Pillar is  in reference to the seat, just at the bottom right of the pic.

Looks like driver and co-driver have extra security sitting right inside of the B-Pillar section. That, in conjunction with the fabricated safety cage makes for an extra safe section of the car to be seated in.

Catalytic converter mounted as far rearward as allowed.

How blinding?!

Check out Car and Driver’s article on the Rally xD online

http://blog.caranddriver.com/scion-shows-off-latest-xd-rally-car-for-rally-america/

For starters, they continue to use quality products from quality aftermarket manufacturers. We’re quite flattered to be considered one of those manufacturers!

Sponsors this year are (in no specific order)

Sparco

TEIN

RAYS Wheels

GReddy

Motul

Brembo

Baja Designs

TRD

Exedy

KAAZ

RÄZO

and of course Scion Racing!

I’m sure I missed a few key sponsors, unintentionally. Please forgive me. I’m just really glad that TEIN can be a part of a great team. We feel they’ve helped to represent us very well!

Anyway, keep track of these guys on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (@RallyxD).

You can also track their progress during this year’s Rally America series at the following link

http://www.rally-america.com/

TEIN TECH CALL ON CANIBEAT

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Hey everyone. This had actually slipped by me a few months back, so I wanted to highlight it. The owner, Cass Farrell, had actually contacted us regarding his coilover kit on his 2010 Acura TL looking for a way to drop the vehicle just a bit more. With that being said and I being a slam head I helped him locate some replacement front springs which may work for him. He called once more asking for me, thanking me for the advise and that the spring worked out awesomely on his car and was now looking to get the rears in a shorter length for more adjustment. Once again, I looked into it for him locating a spring part number he could use, and he thanked me for the helpful assistance.

2010-Acura-TL_Sedan-Image-02-1024 (Small)

A few weeks had gone by when he call up asking for me. He wanted to thank me for the suggestions I had given him for both the front and rear spring changes. His car now sits with just a bit lower of a stance and looks amazing. Even before I could ask for photos he forwarded me over a link to Canibeat with photos of his car. I went ahead and checked the link out and was surprised. The only reason I say surprised is that this particular TL was not exactly the best looking Acura had released (this was also mentioned in the feature), but this one changed my mind. Of course only if modded.

tl-1 (Small)

IMG_0179-Edit (Small)

I tip my hat to Cass Farrell for definitely changing up this TL, bringing together the a bit of boring luxury with the insane aggressive street stance to make a work of art.

For details of Cass’s TL and for more photos check out http://www.canibeat.com/2012/10/deal-with-it-cass-farrells-2010-acura-tl-advance/ .

A Hit or Miss Situation

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During December 2012 we received a call from Bruce. He is the owner of  DeDona Tint & Sound, Inc. in Greensboro, NC. He had spoken to us during SEMA week and was interested in purchasing our Street Advance coilover kit. Now, the kit he was interested in is manufactured for the 2006-2012 Lexus Gs430. However, he wanted the kit for his 2008 GS460. We told him it may not fit, as there could be discrepancies in the vehicle weight , mounting points, etc. Plus, we have not tested that particular model.  Basically, it would be a hit or miss at his own discretion.  Nevertheless, he was determined and confident the kit would fit.

Flash forward to a month from December and Bruce calls confirming fitment. Now from our standpoint, we still can’t guarantee the fitment to consumers. Again, because our R&D team has not physically done the testing. He detailed to me that minor modifications had been done, and that the mounting points were identical to those of  the GS430.  He loves the drop, and ride quality all around. I was impressed and glad to hear that he was satisfied with our product as a TEIN customer and automotive enthusiast.

If you’re considering a aftermarket suspension for your GS460, I would recommend you give them a call to touch base on what exactly was done to make the kit work. Below is an image of this simple yet stunning 2008 Lexus GS 460.

http://dedona.com/

A First Prize Inquiry

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Hi everyone, back again with something a little different. Just wanted to highlight a consumer’s car for this month’s blog post.

Fred Hamilton had originally contacted TEIN with a tech inquiry regarding a set of TEIN Flex coilovers he had purchased. He made the requested changes along with any other suggested adjustments to his system. He then called back thanking us for the assistance. I went ahead and asked for some photos of his vehicle which he had detailed at that time that the vehicle would be both a daily driver and show car. He gladly sent over some photos of the vehicle and let me know that he was going to attend an event that following month and that he would send me photos of the event.

Later that month as mentioned he contacted me informing me that he would be sending over photos of the event and that he had won 1st place for Best Display at the Import Face-Off in Baytown Texas.

 

 I congratulated him on his victory and told him to send me over the complete list of modifications done to the car as I would gladly post a blog entry for his vehicle for being a great guy all around and being a committed and supportive TEIN fan.

Below are some photos and a modification list of his car.

Performance:

Auto to Manual Swap

H23 Vtec Engine Swap w/LSD Transmission

Chipped P28 ECU

Stage 2 Competition Clutch w/Lightweight Flywheel

Skunk2 Pro Series Intake Manifold w/Hondata Intake Manifold Gasket

Megan Racing 4-2-1 Header

JDM Camshaft Seal (Blue)

NGK Spark Plug Wires

Denso Iridium IK20 Spark Plugs

NRG Upper Strut Bar Modified

NRG Radiator Cap

OBX Blue Silicone Radiator Hoses

SRS Turbo Racing Exhaust System

Innovative Motor Mount Kit

 

Suspension and Wheels:

TEIN Flex Coilovers for Japanese Euro R

Megan Front and Rear Camber Kits

17×7.5 Gunmetal w/polished lip Nex-o Wheels

205/45R17 Dunlop Dirrezzas

Black Rays Engineering Lug nuts

 

Cosmetics:

Extreme Dimensions Duraflex Fiberglass Front Bumper, Side skirts, and Rear Lip Kit

Custom GM Graphics Green Metallic Paint

Custom CG Headlights

5300K McCulloch HID Kit

Password JDM Valve Cover Washers

NRG Fender Washers

Interior:

Acura Weighted Shift Knob

LED Gauge and Dash Lights

Alpine CDE-123 Head unit w/ Pioneer Coaxial Speakers

Momo Steering Wheel with NRG Quick Release Hub Kit

 Once again thank you Fred for your continued support and best of luck to you in the 2013 show/event year.