The Nissan Skyline GT-R is a legend and a dream all rolled into one. Due in part to its absence from U.S. shores as much as its performance capability, the GT-R and its fabled history only further drives its popularity. We've made due with its closest cousin, the Nissan 240SX, tinkering with upgrades on every subsequent generation. But with the 240SX saddled with the less than inspiring KA24DE engine, many 240SX owners have found one of their first major modifications to be an engine swap. The Silvia-inspired SR20DET swap is still incredibly popular, and a few intrepid souls even attempt to stuff the GT-R's 2.6L inline-six RB26DETT twin-turbo engine under the hood of a 240SX. But very few have ever attempted to meld the GT-R's entire soul to the 240SX, creating an all-wheel-drive, twin-turbo monster in the process.

One of the all-time great spoof comedies, the classic, "Young Frankenstein" (... that's Frankensteen), shows what can be done when "used" parts are mixed with creative thinking, three million gigavolts of electricity and a dash of cayenne pepper. We can see the same creative juices flowing at Premiere Autotechniks of Prembroke Pines, Florida. We're not saying the shop has an auto-opening skylight, retractable lightning rods and one of those cool machines with the towering electrodes. What we are saying is the crew has created a monster.inline_mediumwraptextright27648412/features/turp_0603_1996_nissan_240_sx_skyline_engineturp_0603_01_o+1996_nissan_240_sx_skyline_engine+front_rolling.jpgTrue

For all of our loyal followers, high-powered Supras are something familiar and lauded. If you track the Supra scene you will have undoubtedly come across the work of Dana Westover, owner of Virtual Works Racing in Las Vegas, Nevada. His personal Supra is back with a new look and a new dyno run of 1,308 whp.inline_mediumwraptextright31841391/features/turp_0603_virtual_works_racing_toyota_supraturp_0603_01_o+virtual_works_racing_toyota_supra+driver_side_front.jpgTrue

The 2005 D1 Grand Prix season got into swing February 27 at Irwindale Speedway. For the first time ever, an event contested in America would count for points toward the D1 championship. Other big news saw Manabu Orido step away from the judge's table and into the RS*R Supra. Orido had a close encounter with a K-rail and failed to make the field of 30 and advance into the elimination rounds.

The Masterminds Behind AMS Performance
From humble beginnings sharing a 3,000-foot shop with a power washing company and using a tarp to separate the two companies, Martin Musial and his best friend since grade school, Arne Toman, pursued a dream that one day two kids from the northwest suburbs of Chicago could build a company that possessed the same passion and enthusiasm they had for cars and transform it into an authoritative leader in automotive performance known today as AMS Performance.inline_mediumwraptextright25730957/features/turp_0811_mitsubishi_lancer_evo_ams_performanceturp_0811_02_o+mitsubishi_lancer_evo_ams_performance+owners.jpgTrue

Acura Integra

900 WHP
600 LB-FT Of Torque
It's no secret that competition fuels the autosport hobby. In a world where tens of thousands of guys with busted knuckles and dirt under their fingernails spend every waking moment in pursuit of being faster than they were yesterday-working sh*t jobs to pay off turbos and suspensions, waking up in the middle of the night with the solution to a cooling problem, and evolving their rides into examples of mechanical domination with every breath-there's always someone faster. Unless you're Norris Prayoonto.inline_mediumwraptextright26871814/features/turp_0812_2000_acura_integraturp_0812_01_o+2000_acura_integra+front_view.jpgTrue

Mitsubishi Evo VIII MR

424 HP
398 LB-FT Of Torque
When it comes to explosive performance out of the box, the Lancer Evolution has always been right up there with he Skyline GT-R and Toyota Supra. But like all cars of this nature, it's the limitless tuning potential that has made them so popular. Just take a look at what the likes that the Cyber Evo has managed to extract from the 4G63, and even now that the Evolution X has arrived, real diehard Evo fans wouldn't trade up to save their lives. The owner of the Evo VIII MR you see here is exactly this sort of person, appreciating what Mitsubishi has done with the X but preferring to stick to previous-generation models. He has gone all out and literally created a street-going Cyber Evo replica with the help of the folks at Unlimited Works and Voltex. The result is one of the most intimidating cars we have come across lately. It's a car that means business even while sitting quietly on the show stand at the '08 Tokyo Auto Salon, where we first laid our eyes on it.inline_mediumwraptextright31084893/features/turp_0812_mitsubishi_evo_8_mrturp_0812_01_o+mitsubishi_evo_8_mr+front_view.jpgTrue

Nissan Skyline GT-R
613 WHP
452 LB-FT OF Torque
Dream cars, we all have them lingering in the back of our minds in hopes of it one day becoming a reality. Hitting the lottery, a big inheritance from an unknown, long-lost uncle; the scenarios are endless. The bottom line is, somehow the dream comes true. The Skyline GT-R is perched atop the list of many light-headed dreamers. But what flavor: R32, R33, R34, or the new R35? If you're going to dream, dream big. Why not all of them? Alex Shen, the owner of SP Engineering in the City of Industry, Calif., has a knack for dreaming big, and, more importantly, driving those dreams. Starting from his home garage, Shen has evolved his passion for performance into big business. As his shop has prospered he has collected Skylines. He currently owns a 957whp R33, the Athletic Silver '99 R34 that graces these pages, and has two R35s on the way for product R&D. One will be all BPU, the other will be balls to the walls. What about an R32? Shen's mission continues.inline_mediumwraptextright25734632/features/turp_0812_nissan_skyline_r34_gtrturp_0812_01_o+nissan_skyline_r34_gtr+front_view.jpgTrue

Cypress, CA, April 7, 2009 - Nitto Tire and Team Achilles Motorsports recently competed in the world's longest endurance race: the 25 Hours of Thunderhill. The race requires teams to drive throughout the night for 25 hours straight. At the end of 25 hours the team with the most laps is declared the winner. The team campaigned a BMW M3 in the second fastest class overall and the fastest class requiring D.O.T.-compliant tires. The team ran on Nitto's NT01 road race tires. Nitto created a new website that documents the race as it unfolded.

The good people at Goodyear Tires, no pun intended, invited Turbo magazine to Akron, Ohio, to take a VIP tour through the Good-year Tires technical center. This technical center, completed in 1983, is one of the two primary tire technical centers from which the company operates for the United States and Europe. The Akron technical center is spread over an area of 700,000 square feet of floor space and facilitates over 1,200 engineers, scientists, technicians, and other specialists to create new tire concepts for a wide variety of vehicles on six continents. Prototype (experimental) tires and Goodyear race tires are manufactured on the first three floors, and floors four and five are occupied by tire R&D engineers, scientists, and technical specialists. Many might assume that Goodyear makes tires for automobiles only but the truth is they also cater to industrial, construction, agricultural, and earthmover vehicles, aircrafts, and racing vehicles.

The Battle of the Imports road show came through Woodburn, Oreg., Sept. 27-28. People from all over the Northeast came out to strut their stuff.The best in import drag racing came to claimtheir share of the valuable BOTI championshippoints. Being that the '08 season is coming to a close, the BOTI championship races are tightening up and racers from all over are positioning themselves in their respective pro classes.

After an exciting season, the Super Lap Battle is now rapidly approaching. Those who were lucky enough to qualify will duke it out for the top spot on Nov. 12 at Buttonwillow Raceway. The invite-only event will feature the fastest vehicles from the four qualifying races held throughout this year. The final will give each team one last chance to prove themselves, and to earn the much deserved, year-end bragging rights. As a preview to the event, we are showcasing a few of the competing vehicles and are taking you into the garage of each shop as they make their final preparations. Here we give you a closer look into the build process of each vehicle to show you the amount of work that goes into each project. The countless hours of wrench time and the thousands of dollars spent on parts, research, and design are worth it when you're standing on the podium in triumph, but only one car in each class will reap the rewards and earn the title of Super Lap King. Who will it be? Check next month's issue for a full recap of the event.

At the Detroit Auto Show in 2001, Nissan unveiled the long-awaited Z-car replacement: Concept Z. The stunning coupe was a show favorite, blend- ing modern styling with the iconic nameplate.More importantly, Nissan's CEO, Carlos Ghosn, announced that the car had been green lighted for production. In 2002, after a six-year hiatus from the U.S. market, the fifth-generation Z-car debuted wearing the 350Z badge.

We know what you're thinking and no we're not talking about a VIP pass at a hot club. We're talking about processes that can help you make power, make stuff last longer, improve reliability, and reduce or eliminate parts breakage. We're talking about stuff like Isotropic polishing, shot peening, Cryogenic treatment, and WPC. What the hell is this stuff? Are these medical tricks to help you live longer? No, they won't make you live one bit longer. Will these treatments give you gobs of power? Well not usually but they can help you make power and give you a lot more consistently high power over the life of an engine. Are these treatments expensive? Usually not, plus they provide quite a bit of good for very little cost.

It's amazing how much can be accomplished when it doesn't matter who gets the credit. In this second segment of Tarzan Yamada's dream team collaboration, the project is finally shaping into a tangible reality. Team Tarzan's quest to tear a new one for the American time attack scene is expected to put pressure on the rest of the contenders and current record holders. When the most famous time attack and drifting personality assembles an all-star team of the biggest and baddest engine, chassis, and aero maker from Japan, the result is nothing less than stupendous.

Spal Usa
Fan Controller
SPAL PWM is a programmable controller that varies cooling fan speed based on engine temperature. It's been enhanced with several new features that extend fan life, provide better performance, and offer more convenience. The FAN-PWM-V3 now incorporates "over current" protection, "smart soft start" (reduced inrush while still protecting from stalled/stuck fans), onboard diagnostics with error code reporting, a "status OK" light (easier to identify wiring issues that confirm that the unit is operating), a 16-bit microcontroller (increased accuracy and functionality), and three selectable default settings (SPAL USA FAN-PWM-TS sensor required). The controller is compatible with both 12- and 24-volt systems with corresponding 12- or 24-volt fans (only 12-volt was previously available). It also accommodates a larger fan speed range (lower "low" speed) and allows for smoother transitions to higher speeds (fan ramps up/down without turning on/off). Additionally, it comes with a premium-grade harness (GXL wire and full automotive OEM spec wiring).
SPAL USA / www.spalusa.com

Lately, all the news that we've been hearing hasn't been good. Yesterday, the Mike Retirement Fund took quite a beating on Wall Street while our governmental "leaders" did the seagull routine (flap around while making a lot of squawking noises and then sh*t all over the place). It looks like Mike will have to work for quite a while now and project GT-R will have to wait ... a long time.

I was 10 years old and at an impressionable time in my life when my father decided to take me to my first Long Beach Grand Prix back in 1984. At the time I had no idea what an Indy car was and had never been exposed to the sounds and smells of race cars. The fastest car I'd ever seen was on my Saturday morning cartoons of Fred Flintstone peddling the Flintstone mobile. You can imagine the shock I experienced that day as race cars flew by in a blur exiting Turn 5. My preconceptions of the Flintstone mobile being the fastest car I'd ever seen was quickly put to rest that morning as I sat in the grandstands with mouth agape, clutching my dads hand as he sat there kicking back a few cold ones with his buddies.

Nobody takes on a project car with the intention of coming in last. Wanting to win and having what it takes to beat the kings of the aftermarket industry are two different things. What does it mean to be able to modify a car that hasn't even hit showroom floors yet?

Grab Your Stick: Acura Tl Gets Manual Transmission
OK, so you're probably wondering what Acura's grandpa-spec TL is doing on the hallowed pages of Turbo. Well, in addition to a raft of changes made for the '09 model year, Acura has decided to bless the SH-AWD-equipped TL with a manual transmission for 2010, finally giving the midsized sedan a proper chance at endearing itself to performance enthusiasts.

The first word that comes to mind when you think about Puerto Rico is definitely not large. This fact comes encrypted into our genes as Puerto Ricans-this, coupled with our hot-blooded nature, creates a huge Napoleonic complex that reflects into everything we do.

Many advertised products fill the pages of this magazine. Many of them work well,but some of them do not.

In 1982, HKS Japan released a small, rather unusual- looking box, referred to as a turbo timer to the consumer market. The HKS turbo timer was the first commercialized timer specifically designed for auto- mobiles and sold to the general public in Japan. This simple yet effective electronic gizmo, which consisted of a gray box with four push buttons, was designed to keep the car at idle for a pre-specified period. With a simple push of the button and a shutoff of the ignition, the timer would begin a time-sequenced countdown before finally shutting the engine off as a means to initiate engine cooldown and keep fresh oil streaming through the turbo's center-bearing cartridge to prevent premature wear or damage. As technological advancements in the automotive industry have grown over the years, the HKS turbo timer has also evolved. HKS released a ninth generation turbo timer design, offering a sleeker, more-advanced product that promises to set a new standard in high-performance electronics.

At first glance, the Aeromotive Fuel Pump Speed Controller (FPSC) looks like a simple black box filled with LEDs, screws, and resistors, but you'll be surprised to know that it's so much more. This state-of-the-art electric fuel pump control module was recently released by Aeromotive as the second-generation controller, replacing the previous model that serviced the race community for a stellar eight years. The new FPSC was designed to provide the end user with ease of programming, plus its use of pulse modulation reduces pump speed without harming the motor and ultimately its function in order to allow large, high-flow fuel pumps to be street driven by minimizing fuel heating that can rob a vehicle of horsepower and performance. "The motivation for the FPSC redesign was primarily to enhance operation and the user interface, while reducing size and weight," Brett Clow says, Aeromotive engineer. "Additional desired benefits included reduced build time and costs, along with enhanced serviceability."

Progression is the key element behind most successful undertakings. We’ve all heard the story before. It starts with “From humble beginnings” and chronicles the trials and tribulations that lead to a crowning achievement.inline_mediumwraptextright25390256/features/turp_0902_tempest_racing_acura_integra_drag_carturp_0902_01_z+tempest_racing_acura_integra_drag_car+front_right.jpeg.jpgTrue