Ahem..

Now that I have your attention, I can only say that I am on the verge of passing out. Why? Well today, we had our way with the pavement and showed the track guys that the “stance kids” can hang too. So what brought on such a marvelous day? Our friends at Fluid MotorUnion hosted what they plan on being the first of many annual track days. It went off smoothly, without a hitch, and was one of the most fun days I’ve ever had.

The event was put together as a way for the extended Fluid family to get a chance to get out on the track, whether it was their first time or they’re a regular. The event was a very reasonable $150 with everyone getting at least 6 sessions. It catered to bikes and cars, welcoming everyone from all makes and models. It was literally a smorgasbord of automotive lunacy.

And if you’re not familiar with who Fluid is, well, I’m disappointed. They’re without question our favorite shop in America, catering to the automotive aftermarket while not pushing the envelope, but ignoring it entirely. They’re known for their ludicrous velocity stack setups, creating controversy, amazing sounds, and power.

Fluid brought out their slew of mind-blowing cars and had no fear of throwing them all on the track to prove there’s undoubtedly a method to their madness.

Everyone had a phenomenal time tackling the South course of the Autobahn CC in Joliet, IL. Several guys brought prepared cars to the event and some guys brought their daily drivers.

There was also a small car show, which ended with a few awards being handed out, and a raffle was held to give out tons of free goodies. Familiar faces showed up, including Kamil from the forums.

But what made the event truly special for me was that it was… wait for it, my own first track day. I showed up this morning with no intention of driving. My mission was to shoot and enjoy a day of quality motorsports… but as the day went on, I was persuaded to give it a shot with my girl, my e36.

It was at my standard height with paper-tight fitment all around, and plenty of stretch, but after debating it for a moment, I decided to give it a go anyway.

So this one is for the guys who have insisted that “stanced” cars can’t get jive. I may have rubbed off more tire than your average track car, but none the less, I was out there hammering on the car for a full day. I put our StanceWorks Zero Clearance to work and the car handled amazingly, although I’m sure there are guys who will argue my control arm angles weren’t optimal. There’s no question there’s room for improvement, but you can’t say we’re incapable.

Poked/Flush? No problemo. I pushed the car as hard as I could on the stretched tires, and much to the internet’s disappointment, they didn’t unbead or fly off. Shocking, I know. In fact, the car was remarkably quick, passing a number of cars each run. It’s certainly not a track-ready setup, but it does the job and has no problem putting a smile on faces.

So in short, today was one of the best I can remember, all thanks to an event put on by some great people. I’ve been promised that next year, Motor Union is a guarantee and you can bet I’ll be there. Although it was unbelievably hot, the fun outweighed it tenfold. I’m pumped to do another track day. The track experience has been a great one to add to the list, and I’m more than excited to put my foot in the door and show that just because we like our cars to look good doesn’t mean they can’t perform too.

So here’s to Fluid MotorUnion for putting Motor Union (yeah, that’s confusing!) together. Hopefully in years to come we can see it grow into a yearly highlight. Thank you all!

There’s no doubt that wheels always make a car. They separate those that “do” from those that “don’t.” They’re often the difference between talking the talk and walking the walk. So when you have a wheel importing and refinishing company, it only makes sense to build the most badass wheels you can conjure up and then build a car to fit, and that’s exactly what Apartment 9 and Mastermind have done.

Walking in to Apartment 9 is sort of like walking into Heaven’s storage closet. Wheels everywhere! So what does Apartment 9 do? They ship containers full of wheels from Japan to America. They’re not the first to do it, of course, but the best? That’s hard to argue. Their goal is to redefine the used-wheel market, and here’s where they’ve started.

19″ Leon Hardiritt Ordens. Yeah, I’d like some too. So what do you put some a gnarly set of wheels on? Well, the guys at Mastermind decided that the only way to do the wheels justice was to build a monstrous and sensational wide-body tire-smoking Honda, Nissan, and Chevy mashup.

It’s been dubbed the “Odyvia” and chances are you’ve seen it before. It’s hard for cars like this not to jump in to the limelight. But if you’re unfamiliar, what you see is a JDM mini-van front-ended S13 240sx. I too had oogled and oggled at photos, but there was a tidbit that I feel was never mentioned…

There’s a 505-horse LS7 Z06 crate engine under the hood. The engine only has 20 miles on it, but that didn’t stop Takashi Ohira, part of the Mastermind crew, from burning the tires for us.

The Mastermind gang gave everyone a ride in the beast, and it’s something to behold. It sounds like a stock-car, and tosses you back in to your seat and reminds you what the red, white, and blue has done right.

Takashi tells me that the car was taken all the way down to the unibody for the build, and the craftsmanship shows. Its builds like this that need to be seen. The entire interior was re-done in alcantara and as a whole, the car lost the “Nissan” vibe and just seemed like some type of prototype or concept car. It was outstanding. Do we get to thank the wheels? I think so.

So we’re back to Apartment 9- we’re excited to have them on board. Why? Because they’re pushing the concept that used wheels are good wheels, and their goal is to do it on an entirely new level. We’ve all dealt with companies that will sell us old wheels, but the company seems like it’s run from someone’s cell phone and they have poor interaction with the customer… but Apt 9 is planning on changing that and they’re here to work with you to make your “odyvia” happen. They’re a real-deal company with real car guys and wheel enthusiasts behind the desks.

So, Apt 9, let’s find some Hartge splits for papa.

Not only was Tailored our first event held in the NorthWest, but it was also our first trip to that part of the country, and we must say we thoroughly enjoyed it.

In case you missed it, we hosted an event in Seattle with big help of Mike Tolliver and Dave Meister. They helped organize and operate the show and we’re overly pleased with the turnout.

We’ve always pushed the idea that car shows are just as much about seeing old friends and making new ones as it is about the cars themselves. The turnout for the weekend was great given that this was a first for us. We definitely look forward to hosting another event in the PNW, and it couldn’t be soon enough, as we already miss our Northern family.

The quality of cars in attendance was fantastic, with makes and models covering the entire board. There was certainly something for everyone to enjoy. As always, wheel choices were great, my favorite being the BBSs above. The white tire lettering is making a comeback and I love it.

Slowly but surely more and more cars are showing up on air and the everlasting static-vs-air debate is slowly dwindling, but you can always count on guys like Elliot Olson to remind you that some guys take it one step further than the rest.

We held an air limbo which was great fun, but as always, the static Miatas won after all of the bagged cars had their chance. The winning Miatas both piled countless attendees in every bit of available space just to gain that extra 1/8th inch of drop.

Several show-goers dressed up for the event including our own Ben Terry. A tailored Hugo Boss suit, Hermes tie, and our Lowly Gentlemen Driving Gloves which will be available soon, he was dressed to impress.

My favorite car at the show the infamous Corona wagon. I had no idea it was a PNW car, so I was pleasantly shocked to see it in person. It’s got all of the great small details I was hoping for, and the 1JZ hit close to home. But it was only one of countless great cars at the show.

Thanks to everyone who came out and I hope a good time was had by all. We’ll have to come back to the NorthWest before too long.