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Late final 12 months, I paid an extended overdue go to to Limitless Works in Yokohama.
I had truly contacted the store’s proprietor Kazuhiro Sato – Kaz to his pals and acquaintances – virtually two years prior, within the hope that he might do some work on my Impreza. However alas, the calendar was absolutely booked with buyer automobiles – largely Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions – with the following accessible opening a number of months forward. So, sadly, I needed to look elsewhere.
Limitless Works is a Japanese tuning store in very excessive demand, and maybe one of many final of its variety.
Kaz started tuning Evos within the late Nineteen Nineties. He arrange Limitless Works by himself 17 years in the past, hiring a tight-knit crew of mechanics who’re nonetheless working with him at the moment. Speak about job satisfaction.
It’s no shock actually, as there’s all the time one thing thrilling to work on. Most notably, Limitless Works helped develop one of many world’s most iconic and influential Lancer Evolutions – the two-time World Time Assault Problem-winning and Tsukuba legend, Cyber Evo.
In case you chat with Kaz for greater than 54.642 seconds (that’s the Cyber Evo’s quickest Tsukuba lap time), there’s one phrase which is able to pop up greater than as soon as: Ardour.
Whereas tuning Evos to set blisteringly-fast lap instances is a certain strategy to turn into well-known, the issues that preserve you in favour with the lots are drivebility and reliability. The Limitless Works workforce satisfaction themselves on constructing quick highway automobiles which keep a sure diploma of civility. Which means air-conditioning and electrical home windows can all be present in Kaz’s buyer builds. Even among the sub-60 second Tsukuba automobiles that Limitless Works have constructed nonetheless retain their manufacturing unit creature comforts.
These automobiles are constructed for efficiency although, and as you’d count on, some neat aftermarket elements are made in home. Limitless Works’ stainless cat-back exhaust methods are fairly widespread, and can be found in two specs: preserve it civilised or wake the lifeless.
Speaking with Kaz about his store and the aftermarket business typically revealed two factors of concern for the veteran tuner. Firstly, he sees an even bigger divide than there’s ever been between the variety of outlets who deliver a long time of experience to their clients and produce work which displays this, and fly-by-night outlets producing sub-par work. His different concern is a common fear for tuning outlets and customers alike – elements, or lack thereof. I’m certain a lot of you too have been hit with the dreaded ‘this half has been discontinued’ error on the checkout. So how is the business surviving? Nicely, fortunately many elements are nonetheless accessible. However typically elements like trim, bumpers and different physique panels aren’t. The one choice is to refurbish, recycle, or in some instances, recreate them your self.
The recommendation from Limitless Works? Take care of your journey and take preventative measure in opposition to ailing destiny. Carry on prime of upkeep, drive sensibly – inside motive – and take a look at to not hit something alongside the best way. In case you take care of your stuff correctly, then it would final a number of automobile lifetimes.
When the Cyber Evo ran its WTAC victory lap in 2011 it was a 10-year-old automobile. It will be a 23-year-old automobile this 12 months, and I’m certain it might nonetheless run rings round a inventory 991 Porsche 911 GT3. Kaz doesn’t know the place the long-lasting Evo is now, however on the day I visited Limitless Works, there was a buyer Lancer that laps Tsukuba virtually as fast because the Cyber Evo did, in for a routine check-up. I made certain to test it out, so keep tuned for that characteristic very quickly.
Toby Thyer
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tobythyer.co.uk
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