Julian's Honda Beat @ Obsessive Security

This weekend has been full of ups and good weather - I like this. Even though it is indeed starting to feel a bit more nippy, the crisp air still lifts the mood as it buckets down in sunshine. The following car is owned by a Wellington based vehicle alarm specialist - Julian Dunster. Someone who truly is passionate about people's cars safety and doesn't spin bullshit on the alarms he sells and installs (very well I must add!). Check him out here.

I had the pleasure of shooting a unique and full of character car - a Honda Beat. Don't let the body deceive you into thinking this is some post-2000 brain explosion that many car companies were having, but a very early 1990s car. The car was originally yellow, then resprayed a BMW yellow (before Julian) to what it is now, a custom silver with a hint of pearl. The paint refreshes the whole car and really makes you forget a car like this is 20 years old! The very first thing that strikes you about this car is how little it is. It's really hard to get a sense of how small this is without other cars around but take my word for it, it is not a big car. However, this car doesn't need to be big to do what it does - with a 660cc mid-mounted engine going to the rear wheels, lots of fun can be had without the need of power. It's light, nimble and will definitely put a smile on your face even as a passenger.





The interior has seen a refresh - retrimmed seats (again, very understated and looks very factory) in leather, suede door and dash retrim, marine Fusion headunit, Momo steering wheel and of course, a cupholder (the most important part of them all). The only remnant of the yellow is under the bonnet.




The exterior, at a glance, retains the OEM look. If you look closer, it's the subtle things that strike you - the front lip, the aftermarket side skirts and the body colour mudflaps enveloping the twin exhaust tips. Although it is no stance monster or a ground hugging machine, the little car holds its own and oozes character.

This is a car I would happily own. Cheap to run, lots of fun, RWD and best of all - it's unique. You're not going to find another one like this around, even if you tried. It's very subtly styled and it is a rolling advertisement for Julian. Boy, the alarm is LOUD. I could feel my ears oscillating as he set the alarm off. It was a shame that the 'smoke bomb' he had setup needed a refill for the smoke canister, because I was looking forward that! If you ever need any alarm work done, fixing or installing, go see Julian. Truly values car security for the people not the money.



Yemo

Tokyo Motor Show 2011

I woke up yesterday to a very strange phone call; I was asked if I wanted to attend the Tokyo Motor Show. To think that I would get an opportunity to go was simply out of this world! Hastily grabbing my camera bag and making sure I've got everything, I scurried down to the site.

Long story short - I was gobsmacked. The sheer size of the place was huge; 2 wings (East and West), 6 halls each wing each almost the size of a football field I reckon. Anyway, it's getting late here and I'm off to China in the morning so I better get rolling with the photos. Before I continue - the usual announcement needs to be made - photos can be found at flickr or by simply clicking on any image and it will take you there.

The theme of this year is "mobility can change the world". In particular, I noticed emphasis upon moving people with disabilities - many of the special visitors of the day were in wheelchairs, so I was very impressed by the focus from all the companies for such. Also, emphasis was put on eco-friendliness; virtually all exhibitors had "green" cars which were on display either as pre-production or prototypes. Part of Toyota's display The new Prius. I believe coming into it's 3rd revision (generation) now - correct me if I'm wrong, though. It does look the part as well as be environmentally friendly. Toyota GR-MN - could we see a revival of the MR2? The coveted 86 - I was very impressed with the overall package of the car and it will definitely be popular. I am hoping this is the start of a new era of FR cars sparking competition between the Japanese manufacturers - new Silvia anyone? Lexus decided to show us the LFA Nurburgring edition. Beautiful. Tucked away in the corner of the display was a dissected LFA. Towards the back left, you can see the minature recreation of the process in which they make the car. I may post some of those photos later. Lexus also rolled out their new range of hybrid vehicles - I was very surprised by the amount of hybrid luxuries which were on the streets of Japan. Not quite what I was expecting when it came to hybrids. This is Lexus' new development called LDH - Lexus Dynamic Handling. It's to assist their cars in turning tightly at low speeds; after watching the demonstration video, I was impressed at the line it could take. The Lexus hybrid engine The European car makers were definitely out in force also; I'm sensing a revive in Jaguar vehicles as they are definitely pushing their cars at the younger market. My dad is quite the traditional old guy, who loves Jags, but he said this was too modern. I guess Jaguar is moving beyond that market now. Sorry dad. This doesn't really give you an idea of how massive this car is. The X6 M-sport edition makes the X5 look tiny. Orange seems to be the cool colour these days. Options, options, options. This sort of display was very prevalent especially in the European manufacturers. The new M3 Frozen Silver special edition. It seems like glossy paint is on it's way out! It carries it's share of carbon like all M3/M5s. The M5 - look at the brakes! I got to have a good look at this car. Quite different from all the other rally cars out there! Mini debuted it's Mini Cooper Coupe, as well as showing off some future prototypes upon the Mini. I honestly didn't expect this one coming. Does this need any introductions? R8 GT 2012 = win. As said above, flat paint definitely seems in right now. The A1 Samurai Blue debut. This was a very cool VW concept car - definite throwback to the Kombi days. Lotus only had a very small presence but brought 3 top notch cars Zero emission car that looks this good? Sign me up! Raybrig HSV-010 - to see this car up close was quite the privilege. Interesting exhaust! Ray's were onsite; unfortunately they weren't displaying much. I deduced from the very broken conversation I had with them, they are intending on making their presence felt at the Tokyo Auto Salon 2012 in the new year. I'm going to jump the gun here and skip to the BRZ race car. God damn. What do you reckon? In WR Mica Blue? Or in this white? The S206 was there - I got to sit and feel this beautiful machine. I liked the STI wing in the sedan, I reckon they should have carried it over to the S206. Can you believe this is a Subaru? That front end. SLS convertible - losing it's gull wings. Opinions? I'd still prefer this over a zero emission car, any day. I guess I'm part of that "in-between" generation where the rise of the hybrid and the demise of petrol for the masses occurs. Future of our racecars? Silent but deadly? Nismo released some interesting cars like this Juke Nismo edition. It goes to show that Nismo is not just for the thoroughbreds like the GT-R or the Silvia. You don't have to look far to see Nismo's intentions of widening to include more mainsream cars. Like Mugen has done for Honda over the last two decades.
The very last RX-8, the Spirit R edition.

This version marks the official end to the production of rotary engines. It's quite sad really considering how versatile the engines are in the racing world, and even for street tuning. Is this the direction of cars we are going to see in the next 10 years? As well as cars, there were many side attractions like GT5 Spec 2.0 preview. My brother got a late pass into the show (to my amazement too!) which he was very, very pleased about. That's putting it lightly.

I have to admit, the future of motoring is exciting. I don't think manufacturers any time soon will be leaping off the petroleum in hopes of securing the global market. The smell of petrol is irreplaceable especially when it comes to racing. I have to say what a privilege it was to have early access to the Tokyo Motor Show. It is an experience that I shall not be forgetting any time soon.

Yemo