Formula Drift 2016

Posted on April 28, 2016 by Paul P.

The drift season got off to a start earlier this month, and what an event it was! The city of Long Beach, CA. hosts the season opener for Formula Drift, and around this time, the city prepares for the Long Beach Grand Prix and the Celebrity Grand Prix, the later of which had the final race for the series.

Weather seemed to be the only detriment to the Formula Drift season opener, and an apparent downpour was the biggest threat to what is essentially always an outdoor event. We figured the wet weather was enough to keep spectators out of the stands and staying at home instead.

But, we were proved wrong! Fortunately for us, we came prepared with our typical TEIN merchandise. However, missing for nearly two years was a full-size parasol (umbrella) from the TEIN Goods lineup. This time around, we were prepared with a new design. This bad weather proved to be one of the biggest favors we could have asked from mother nature, as we had a flock of customers NEEDING our parasol!!! We also had our smaller fold-up umbrella, which also sold well!

At any rate, the racing action also proved to be very eventful. As you can imagine, quite a few accidents occured on track, and any type of contact in drifting is usually met with cheers from the crowd.

We’re glad to see the 2016 race season off to a great start! Next weekend is Formula Drift at Road Atlanta in Braselton, GA! We look forward to being there and seeing all of you race fans!!! So stop by the TEIN booth to say hi, and check out our booth car (and FD3S owned built by Phil Sohn)!!! And yes, we’ll have parasols with us 😉 !!!

Pics from: Speedhunters (by Larry Chen), Formula Drift, Phil Sohn

Formula Drift Rd. 7 (Irwindale Speedway)

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Paul P.

We’ve been attending all the California Formula Drift events for the past few years now. This year we decided to attend all U.S. events. While quiet on our blog about this, we’ve kept followers up to date on our Facebook and Instagram feed (@teinusa). So of course we’re looking to go to the final event for the 2015 season!

An old-school picture of the Irwindale Speedway, probably in its prime and definitely well before drifting ever became a thought.

As we understand it, and as it has been a threat looming over this particular event, this may be the last Formula Drift event at Irwindale Speedway, as the current owners/investors have plans to bulldoze the facility and track and make way for a,,,,,,,,, shopping center?

Kinda BS if you ask me. Anyway, if this is true, we hope the race will truly be a memorable one. This season’s Formula Drift was full of unexpected turns (semi-pun intended??), and almost every event has had its own controversial matter. We’re almost guaranteed a big bang finale.

In terms of exposure in the drifting scene, TEIN has been relatively quiet. There are two cars out there using our suspension, but we’re not inclined to say who. Last season, we had Geoff Stoneback on board with TEIN, but for 2015, being his first year full-time in the Pro class (was Pro 2 last year), he was picked up by another sponsor. To be honest, we’re quite proud of that. It goes to show that Geoff is truly a talented driver, and now he has the backing of quite a few sponsors! We know he’ll only be doing bigger and better things for years to come! Fortunately we keep in touch with him, and he’s kind enough to pay us a visit at the TEIN booth for every event so far! Truly a great friend of ours!

Go Geoff!!!

Anyway, like always, we’ll be there and will have TEIN goods on hand. So stop by and say hi! We’ll also have our good friend Reginald Cunanan and his beautiful Mitsubishi Evo X on hand.

Rd. 7 for Formula Drift is on October 9-10, 2015! Get your tickets at the Formula Drift Webpage

Super Lap Battle by Global Time Attack Results

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Paul P.

We’re glad to see some of our friends back at it at this past Friday’s Super Lap Battle by Global Time Attack, which took place at Buttonwillow Raceway Park!

As far as TEIN-equipped cars go, we had Sportcar Motion’s Acura Integra Type R on Super Racing dampers, which ran a 1:52.886 just last year. We also had Pradana “Ping” Wilianto’s Acura CSX on our Mono Flex dampers, who had ran a 2:01.314 last year, and Bobby Lane Racing’s Honda Accord on Mono Flex dampers (1:59.158 last year).

During the off-season, if there even is one, we hadn’t received any special requests from these guys. Normally, we’ll at least get a damper refresh/rebuild request. Instead, they all focused on a few other modifications to get their car ready for this year’s event. With the exception of Sportcar Motion, who hadn’t really touched their Type R since last year except to rebuild their transmission and try a different rear diffuser. They are using a different tire for this year, however.

Anyway, it was still an event for us to attend with our in-house engineer, in hopes that we could provide some trackside support to these guys and any other teams/drivers using TEIN dampers.

Just like previous years, we ended up just looking like the Maytag repair man with nothing to do except take notes on each vehicles suspension setup.

We were absolutely impressed with each teams performance. Their results are as follows:

Sportcar Motion’s Integra Type R (Limited FF class)- 1:51.916

2nd Place Finish!

Pradana “Ping” Wilianto’s Acura CSX (Street FF class)- 1:59.639

2nd Place Finish!

Bobby Lane Racing’s Honda Accord Limited FF class)- 1:55.241

3rd Place Finish (behind Sportcar Motion’s Integra)!

Each achieved personal best times, which was great news! As you can expect from their placement in their respective class, competition was stiff. In Limited FF, Point Zero Autosound and Performance trucked their Acura RSX all the way from Ontario Canada for this event! They finished in 1st place with a 1:51.789! Just a narrow margin between first and second place!

*We must note that the Sportcar Motion looked to be on pace for an even better time. But, on the last stint out on track, a brake failure caused the Integra to spin. Fortunately, driver Tim Kuo was able to recover from the spin without any further damage to the car. However, the damage to the brakes was all that was needed to prevent another fast lap.

Pradana “Ping” Wilianto had one goal in mind- a sub 2 minute lap. Why? He’s one of the few Street FF cars that is a legitimate street car. He retains full interior and air conditioning (you gotta maintain some amenities on the track!). Last year, he was under Enthusiast FF with a 2:01. Now under the Street FF class, he clocks in a 1:59, and not much else has changed to his CSX’s setup!

Bobby Lane Racing also kept their car relatively the same. Last year, we revalved for much stiffer springs to compliment their new aero package. A 1:59 was a very respectable time last year. This year’s 1:55 is even more impressive!

Overall, we’re very happy for these guys. Of course, we’re impressed with the out-of-the-box performance our Super Racing set for Sportcar Motion’s Integra and Mono Flex set for Ping’s CSX did. But, it always comes down to overall vehicle preparation, which each of these guys did a stellar job at! We won’t be satisfied until they stand atop the highest podium. So you can bet we’ll do what we can to get them there next year!

It was also great to see some of our other friends, such as Evasive Motorsports Scion FR-S and Will Wattanawongkiri and his S13 at the event. Unfortunately for Will, mechanical issues plagued him from staying in competition.

We also fancied the Spoon Sports Civic Type R being piloted by Dai Yoshihara! Ran a super quick 1:48 in Unlimited FF!!!

And this year’s overall winner- GST Motorsports’ GC8 piloted by Jeff Westphal! 1:38!!!!! Whoa

Super Lap Battle/Global Time Attack 2013

Posted on November 21, 2013 by Paul P.

Another year has passed, and we were waiting in anticipation to see what every competitor for this year’s Super Lap Battle at Buttonwillow Raceway Park will bring.

Just like last year, TEIN staff attended to be able to assist any of the teams and drivers on TEIN suspension in any way possible. For us, it is great to get their feedback on our suspension and how it is performing for them. It also gives us plenty of insight on what vehicle modifications are being made and how we can help adapt their suspensions to their specific setups.

In total, there were seven vehicles using TEIN suspension. In no specific order,

Limited AWD Class- Evasive Motorsports’ Mitsubishi Evo VIII (Super Racing coilovers)

Limited FWD Class- Sportcar Motion’s Acura Integra Type R (Super Racing coilovers)

Limited FWD Class- Bobby Lane Racing’s Honda Accord (CL7 Mono Flex coilovers)

Street RWD Class- Will Wattanawongkiri’s Nissan 240SX (Flex coilovers)

Enthusiast FWD Class- Pradana Wilianto’s Acura CSX (FA5 Mono Flex coilovers)

Street FWD Class- Ken Suen’s FB6 Honda Civic Si (Mono Flex coilovers)

Street RWD Class- Ryan Houck’s Honda S2000 (Super Racing coilovers)

Fortunately, once again, each team and driver had their cars setup very well, with only little input from us. A majority of time was spent with Evasive on their Evo to see if we can get the most out of a minimally tested new setup they’re running (upgrades to power; different tire). So, there was a bit of a learning curve with this car.

The best part of the event was that many of these guys logged their fastest times in early sessions.

Sportcar Motion’s Integra, with driver Tim Kuo returning again for this event, was able to shatter their old record of 1:54.xx with a 1:52.886, and that time held throughout the day giving them the win in the respective class! Mechanical issues prevented any further sessions for them, but the damage was already done. A new benchmark for Limited FWD has been set!

Evasive’s Evo, plagued with some turbocharger issues (failure) and transmission problems, still locked in a respectable 1:49.102, taking the Limited AWD class win and getting very close to taking the overall win. Hopefully, with more testing and developing in 2014, this car will take top honors. It must be noted that this car skipped over a full year of development, as they focused on their Scion FR-S and Honda S2000 for last year’s event. So, with that said, this year’s finish is an impressive result. We were glad to speak with driver, and Evasive Motorsports co-owner, Mike Chang, to get his feedback. We’ll be working with them more on this car, as well as a few other project cars in their stable, for 2014!

Will Wattanawongkiri’s S13 240SX was able to clinch top time in the Street RWD class with a 1:54.969. He’s been able to dial in his out-of-the-box Flex coilovers to work well with his vehicle, enough so that he could take the championships in various other Time Attack series’ this year.

Bobby Lane Racing’s Honda Accord sported updated aero (larger front splitter and wide fender to fit wider tires; side skirts; rear diffuser). They also had revalved their CL7 Mono Flex dampers for much stiffer springs. Prior to this event, then were hoping to get some testing done with this new setup, but a catastrophic wheel failure prevented them from making final adjustments leading to Super Lap Battle. Didn’t seem to matter as they logged a 1:59.158 time, approximately 3 seconds better than 2012. Although unusual to see an Accord at a Time Attack event, Bobby Lane Racing showed that it can still be plenty fast for track duties.

Pradana “Ping” Wilianto’s Acura CSX dipped into a 2:01.314 ET. That’s about two seconds faster than his time last year. He also got the win in his class!

Ken Suen brought out his new FB6 Honda Civic Si. Still a street car with full interior, modifications were minimal. In fact, he used the Mono Flex from his infamous “Big Red” FA5 Civic Si on this new car (had some modifications done to make it work. Other than that, front aero, larger wheel and tires, and brake upgrades were all that this car had. Not looking to break a new record, he still recorded a 2:06.271 lap time!

Ryan Houck’s S2000, which was backed by our friends at Counterspace Garage, sported custom valved Super Racing dampers, along with some simple aero upgrades. His times during the first few sessions were looking very favorable for the Street RWD class. However, a major driver’s side front brake rotor failure prevented any further outings. Quite unfortunate. Without a doubt, he’s on pace to reset the current record. We’ll see him next year!

So, that makes it 4 class wins on TEIN (Limited AWD, Limited FWD, Street RWD, and Enthusiast FWD)!

That’s really good news for us. Once again, we went back to the office happy with the results for these drivers and teams. A huge congratulations to each and every one of these people, especially for their continued support for TEIN! In turn, we will be there to assist them as best we can, in the same way we strive to assist all of our customers, including YOU!

Until next year!

Oh, and apologies to our engineer, Shuichiro…

As you can see, we prevented him from watching any racing. Instead, we put him to work! SOWWY!!!

Fontana Nissan 5th Annual Meet

Posted on August 29, 2013 by Omar A.

What’s up guys?!! Next month will be attending Fontana Nissan’s annual meet on Sunday, September 8th, at Auto Club Speedway. This will be their 5th year hosting this NISMO meet. Of course, TEIN will be attending this event. I myself drive an Altima Coupe (dropped on TEIN Basic coilovers), so I’m excited to see what people have done to their coupes. I also look forward to seeing Infiniti’s and other Nissans present. I’m sure there will be slammed 350z, 370z, g35, g37, 240sx, 200sx, 300zx, GT-R, etc. The list can go on.

Make sure to stop by our booth and pick up some shirts and TEIN goods that we’ll have for sale. Also, feel free to ask any technical questions or product inquiries you may have. On display, we will have our EDFC Active control units for customers to play with and see how it works.

Make sure to check back with us next month to get an update on this event. Please visit the links provided below to get more information on this event.

https://www.facebook.com/FontanaNissan

http://www.nissanraceshop.com/page/69-69/meet-info

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Hub Swappin Brackets

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Sergio M.

Hey everyone. Ever purchase a set of TEIN full length adjustable coilovers that can be swapped onto other applications but when installing them you find that the lower bracket mount differs from that of the kit? Well, I’m here to put your mind at ease.

With the release of the Specialized Damper Program allowing the consumer create their own custom coilover kit to their specifications, the option of having just a custom lower bracket manufactured is also be available.

We always get consumers and shops inquiring about lower brackets for a hub conversion on any application ranging from the Subaru STI (from 5×100 pcd to 5×114.3 pcd knuckle) conversion to Nissan 240SX/ 300ZX rear end conversion.

Although we can have the lower bracket manufactured to your specifications, keep in mind that it would be done at the consumers own discretion, as the coilover was not originally designed for the modifications. Changes to the original design can create different stresses on the damper body or components causing the damper to fail. Be sure to exercise caution.

With that said, the costs for a set of brackets can range anywhere from $100 and up each from current manufactured kits to custom brackets with desired features. For inquiries, please feel free to contact us for a quote. (562)-861-9161/ tus_sales@tein.com

One Roaring S13

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Omar A.

Well hello there world. This month I want the spotlight to focus on Rob Symonds’ S13.

Rob contacted us around mid May for an overhaul + revalving for his TEIN HE dampers. We got the job done and satisfied our customers expectation. After everything was said and done he shoots us an email that makes me fall out of my seat! Yeah I’ve seen s13’s driving around and in car shows but this one I must say is at the top of my list.

His request sounded easy enough. But Rob was also pretty specific with what he wanted. This didn’t turn out to be a standard damper rebuild for us. Then again, Rob isn’t your regular ‘ol car guy. He knows exactly what he wants. To get the most out of a damper revalve, we ask a gamut of questions about the car, the setup, the types of road courses it races on, etc. Sometimes we get more information than we need, but Rob didn’t talk up a storm about his engine modifications- in fact, his motor is a stock, naturally aspirated KA24. It was previously a turbocharged motor, detuned for simplicity and reliability’s sake (did we mention that Rob is an engineer at Garrett? He definitely knows his way around a motor!), Roll cage, or vented fiber glass hood. Not once did he mentioned his 17 inch Enkei RPF1 wheels, Hoosier A6 slick tires, or HAWK DTC-60 brake pads. He also did not tell us about his long list of sponsors or 5 minutes of fame on this years January edition of Modified Magazine. Then again, some details are better left unsaid. Maybe not! We wanted to hear more!

Rob is simply a race enthusiast. He spends time building his car to get the setup right, just like many of you out there, all in a quest for the quickest time around the track! We appreciate guys just like Rob!

Check out the images and video below to get the corner panels point of view of this 240 on the track.

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Formula D Rd. 7 at House of Drift

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Paul P.

This past weekend turned out to be one of the biggest and best turnouts for the Formula D series for 2011. As with past Formula D events, the Irwindale, CA event is a special one- It’s the last event for the year! So most spectators expect teams and drivers to go all out, because they know that for the driver, going home with the win is a big deal.

This year’s finale for Formula D was a sold out event. Again, there are normally some high expectations for this round. And, anyone who was following the series points knows how tight a race for season championship it really was. Drivers such as Justin “JTP” Pawlak, Daijiro Yoshihara, Chris Forsberg, and Darren “D-Mac” McNamara looked to be all in contention for the championship. Talk about keeping competition tight!

But this year, the event win goes to Tyler McQuarrie in the Falken 350z. A big congratulations to him, as well as to the crew at Autosport Dynamics (ASD) who prep and maintain his car. These guys are truly a hardworking team!

Photo courtesy of Formula D

Also, another big congratulations goes out to Daijiro Yoshihara for his season championship! Everyone who’s followed Formula D since its infancy knows that “Dai” has been there from the beginning. After putting in over 8 years into this, I’m sure the title of “champion” makes it all worthwhile. Our hats off to him and the Falken/Discount Tire S13 team!

Photo courtesy of Formula D

Let’s all look forward to an even better season for 2012!

Tie Rod/Tie Rod Ends & Pillowball Tension Rods

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Sergio M.

Okay so you are in 240sx at a stop light about to make a left then suddenly realize you need to make a U turn, but your not sure if you have enough space. Well if you had TEIN Tie Rods and Ends you wouldn’t be doubting yourself.

The Tie Rods and Tie Rod Ends (combined) increase your steering angle, improve turning radius and are a huge improvement from your OE parts. These Tie rods and Tie rod ends are 10%-55% stronger than your OE parts (numbers vary depending on vehicle) due to the higher quality material and larger diameter of the components.

The kit comes with hardware for either an OE set up or anyone who wants a more aggressive steering angle or just beefier components.

Tie Rod kits start at $88.00

Tie Rod Ends start at $88.00

Click here to see the line up and MSRP.

(Kits are also available for G35 and 350Z)

As for caster adjustment for your 240sx you can upgrade to TEIN’s Pillowball Tension Rods. The Pillowball type rods improves your acceleration and deceleration. Reason behind this is it controls the movement of the of the lower arms better than the OE bushings. Your steering response will improve, body roll will decrease and wheel alignment will stay more accurate. The OE rods have huge rubber bushings which deteriorate badly causing unwanted movement and slop.

The tension rod (which are made of carbon steel, S45C) includes an adjustable turnbuckle with rubber encapsulated NMB pillowball bearing, which allows you to adjust the angle of the caster for a more precise alignment and increased strength.

Starting MSRP $290.oo

Click here for the full line up available.

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