Takahiro Ueno Says Goodbye Vertex D1 Soarer hello BMW 335i

REDEFINING ELEGANCE: SAYING GOODBYE TO AN ICON

The end of an era for a legendary drift machine?

SAN DIEGO, CA. For over a decade, drifting fans worldwide have awed and groveled over a particular Drift Machine on the D1 circuit. The machine with red paint and gold wheels that graced racetracks all over the world will soon retire from the sport of drifting. Takahiro Ueno’s Vertex Soarer, will burn its last set of tires following the final round of the D1GP Japan October 2008. According to Pete Ulatan (Marketing Executive, Vertex USA), “It’s with great sadness to see an invaluable icon in the sport of drifting say goodbye. It will be indeed the end of an era and a beginning of a new one.”

Vertex USA (www.vertex-usa.com) is proud to announce with the exit of the Vertex Soarer, Takahiro Ueno will continue drifting in a new platform set to turn the drifting world on its head. Dat Nguyen (Vertex USA President) states, “Takahiro will return to the circuit with a platform you will least expect. It will be a BMW 335i Coupe with a Toyota 2JZ-GTE Implant” Currently, Suivax/T&E Japan is diligently preparing Mr. Ueno’s new 335i for the 2009 season.

“We can’t wait for the debut. It will expose T&E and the Vertex brand to a whole new demographic and bring freshness to the sport of drifting”, stated Ulatan.

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Vertex USA was founded in 2000 as the exclusive North American distributor of Car Make T&E (Japan) products. All of our kits are hand made to order and built for style, strength and fitment. All Vertex pieces are marked with serial numbers for authenticity. Never substitute quality, always support authentic products!

[Source: Vertex-USA]

EOS 7 - End of Summer Meet

EOS (End of Summer) meet is on it's 7th Year! Each year gathering more and more spectators and attendee's than the previous. The event this year will be held at Lexus of Stevens Creek in San Jose, CA on September 21st from 10am to 3pm.

The event is open to all Lexus owners & enthusiasts who own stock to wild Lexus automobiles! The current sign up list is over 175 cars strong! For those who live in Socal, don't be suprised to see a gang load of fine Lexus rides in their convoy up north for this event on Friday.

We'll upload our coverage of past years events to our Flickr in the following few days.

Trust (GReddy) Declares Bankruptcy

Japan’s largest credit research company Teikoku Databank announced that automotive parts manufacturer Trust (known in the states as GReddy) filed for bankruptcy on September 10th, 2008. Trust is reported to be approximately US$60M in debt.

In February 2008, Trust reported declined annual sales of US$53M. Loan payments totallying US$43M became a burden and was forced to file bankruptcy to the Tokyo District Court.

Trust was founded in 1977 and specialized in Exhaust Systems, Turbo Kits, Cooling systems, Electronics and Accessory lines. GREX, the division that makes both engine hard parts and footwear (suspension brakes etc.). GRacer, the division that produces aerodynamic components the Trust Company offers one of the widest varieties of performance automotive components in the world.

Now with one of the largest parts manufacture down, it won't be suprising to see other companies struggling as well with the declining economy. Let's hope other big names step in and pick up some of the slack.

[Sources: GTChannel, JDMInsider, GReddy]

Toyota Japan: Lexus IS250/350/IS-F Window Visors Available!

These quality window visors are a factory Lexus optional item only available in Japan. It is designed to fit Lexus 2006+ IS250,IS350, and IS-F models. It is made of reinforced acrylic in dark smoke gray color. These window visors have many uses aside from the sleek looks. Crack your windows on a rainy day to let fresh air into your ride without getting wet!

These are IN STOCK and ready to be shipped!

ORDER NOW

JIC-Magic Suspension Sale!

JIC introduces our new FLT-TAR VIP coilover suspension system. The FLT-TAR VIP has all the same features as the FLT-TAR but made for luxury vehicles. The FLT-TAR VIP is designed for a comfortable ride while still retaining the same handling performance and quality found in the FLT-TAR. It also allows the vehicle to have a very low drop along with larger diameter wheels without affecting the compression and rebound travel of the dampers. Rigorous testing of the dampers insures that comfort and handling qualities are met while giving the driver that very important VIP stance, improve handling, and gain that agressive look.

These are now in stock for GS and LS models! Please email us with any questions.

We also have a few Hard Tie Rods available for the JZZ30/Jzz80. Designed to withstand the rigors of race use, the JIC Hard Tie Rods allow for tighter steering radius, greater oversteer, and improved steering angle. Excellent for drift setups!

Huge End of Summer Sparco Sale

Our vendors have a huge overstock of Sparco inventory. That means tremendous savings for you. We are offering a deep discount on Sparco this month. The discount is so deep we cannot publish the details. Please email us with what you are interested in and we'll get you pricing!