The season heats up, and Import Tuner releases its July 2009 issue to quench your thirsts with what everyone is calling "The Performance Issue":
FWD Grip Monster:
Feel's FD2 Civic Type R cover car -- Straight from Japan so no more need to discuss! But if you want details, how about its TODA-built 2.4L ITB'd K20, naturally aspirated 300whp, titanium and carbon fiber everything, wide fenders, 18x9.5-inch AMEs, and multiple time-attack FF-class First Place finishes?
RWD Drift Machine:
Toshiki Yoshioka's much-anticipated Lexus SC430 D1GP drift machine. This thing caught our eye at Tokyo Auto Salon, and won our hearts with its 600hp, inline-four 3S-GT swap, stripped-down and gutted race-prepped interior, and ridiculous JDM-styled red/vinyl exterior styling -- pretty much the exact opposite of what Lexus engineers dreamed the luxurious SC to be . . . and the exact reason we love it!
AWD Jack-of-all-Trades:
Atlanta, GA's Top Speed finally breaks ink with their 10.4-second quarter-mile blasting, track record setting, time-attack winning GC8 Impreza . . . street car?! Find out why the streets were the ONLY thing the Top Speed crew originally intended this thing to race, learn which track records and time-attacks it's currently pwning, and read the full details of what it took to get it there. JDM style, big-budget performance, yet built by a few average Joes in the dirty South.
Mitsubishi and Import Tuner hand-pick Mitsubishi Lancer EVOs from SEMA and put them to the ultimate test, driving hundreds of miles to and from Buttonwillow Raceway, and fighting each other on track for the title as "Baddest EVO". Find out who won, witness the carnage of who didn't, and read about what Formula D drifters Stephan Verdier and Tyler McQuarrie had to say about each car that entered. EVO owners -- this is invaluable information on the best ways to build your cars.
Imports invade the University of California at Irvine, and 2NR's photographer-at-large Jerry Truong makes his print debut with the coverage. Three-rotor FCs, gold-plated DC2s, a few Skylines and more await you in print.
Mazdaspeed announces new prize money for grassroots racers, teaches us how to build three-rotor engines in 20 minutes, and feeds us In-N-Out. Learn all the OTHER reasons we love them!
Tunerwars in Harrisburg, PA dropped some of the cleanest East Coast rides we've seen to date . . . with some cheesy, riced-out crap on the side. See who made the cut!
Rob Dyrdek's got a new MTV show. We give you the latest, along with shots of him crashing (?) Ken Block's rally car.
Castrol Syntec wants to give you $10K for doing next to nothing. Find out how to get it.
XS Engineering co-founder, tuner, and Cosworth front-man Eric Hsu tells a 14-year-old the right way to build a Civic, a Nissan Altima owner the easiest one-stop shop for making his ride faster, and one WRX owner why it's not wise to assume his car will churn out 600 whp in stock form. Oh, and gives advice on V-6 Camry swaps . . . we can hear him still laughing about that one.
Cover Model Christina Ashleigh on: looking for someone to be her "first" (!), what you have to do to get $10K from her, buttery land snails, how she would totally get it on with Uma Thurman, and the true meaning behind the phrase "whale penis". That, and a whole lot of smokin’ hot photos of her!
Subaru's '08 WRX STI makes Power Pages this month, and we make 59 whp and 86 lb-ft of torque in three easy steps! Find out how to make power with this monster, WITHOUT blowing up its engine.
Former Turbo and Hi-Tech Performance magazine editor Scott Tsuneishi and Co. built a 750hp KA24DE while no one was looking. We fill you in on how they did it, and what it takes to build an SR killer of your own!
Fact or Fiction: Lowering tire pressure at the track will give your car better traction . . . but will it actually make it slower in the long run? We've reached a verdict.