Out with the old, in the with the crap

Posted on July 31, 2008

Today technicians came in to replace all the landline phones in the office. I have no idea why as the old ones were great, and the new NEC ones absolutely suck. The ring tone is so freaking loud everyone in the office gets startled when a phone rings, and no matter what we try, it seems to reset the volume after we’ve adjusted it. Maybe we’ll just end up secretly disconnecting them lol.

Impulse buys

Posted on July 31, 2008

Firstly, apologies for the lack of updates of late. Had another late one in the office last night (or should I say this morning, as we didn’t get out until 4:30am). The good news though was that an impulse buy I made online arrived. It’s a massive, A0 sized poster of Gilles Villeneuve, one of my favourite F1 drivers of all time. It’s off to get mounted, which should take another week, and then I’ll photograph it for the blog.

Red eyes

Posted on July 29, 2008

Working long hours is part and parcel with working a mag. For two nights straight we’ve finished in the early hours of the morning, and it certainly is depressing when you know you’ve got to be at work bright and early tomorrow to get right back into it.

Staring at a blank screen…

Posted on July 28, 2008

Journalists will all agree there’s one thing they dread the most: writer’s block. Those who are lucky enough to do other things besides write for a living, lucky you. It is, when coupled with an impending and unmovable deadline, one of the worst things to happen for a journalist. Its just like being in high school again, when you had that essay due the next day and you had no idea what to write about.

Looking back, I’ve completed 71 issues (43 as Editor) and on quite a few occasions pumped out up to 28,000 words in an issue. Actually kinds of make me wish I was back at high school, because those 1000 word assignments don’t seem so hard anymore. As a rough estimate I’ve writted over 568,000 words for ASM and claimed four keyboards along the way (the space bar on my current one is also on the fray). And so you’d assume that I have writing down pat. Not so. Here I am, staring at a blank word document, with no idea how to start off a particular article. Just like high school, looks like I’ll be doing an all-nighter…

Ferds’ S14 V2.0

Posted on July 26, 2008

Fernando Wiehrl, who is the driver of our drift car, popped by our office for a surprise visit yesterday. Although he’s recently acquired a T88-equipped R34 GT-R, Ferds came around in his S14 which he’s been working on of late. Now the last time I saw this thing it was a bit of a slapper, and so you can imagine my surprise when I saw it like this. New colour, graphics (by Papz), ‘kit, new suspension and flush TE37s. Not bad for a beater now is it?

Nothing like a pub lunch

Posted on July 26, 2008

Winter is my favourite season; the perfect weather being a chilly breeze mated to clear blue skies. And during winter it’s hard to top an informal lunch with mates at the pub, wolfing down a plateful of comfort food.

Pub-food these days has certainly changed to suit a younger, more demanding demographic. In the U.K. they’ve even coined a term for it, ‘gastropub’. Still the same fundamentals, but tweaked and more carefully presented. Here’s an example of everyone’s favourite, bangers and mash.

Iceberg lettuce doesn’t make an appearance in the good old steak sandwich these days (not that I’m complaining). Best, of course, when hand in hand with a Heini. Or two.

Can’t wait for Daft Punk

Posted on July 25, 2008

Rumours have it that the legendary Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo - who make up Daft Punk - are finally working on a new album back in France. And I truly can’t wait. I’ve been a massive fan since I was a teen, and seeing them in person at the final leg of their Alive 2007 (Never Ever Land) tour made my life complete. After super shit weather and horrific organisation on the promoter’s behalf (two and a half hour line for ticket holders to get in), I was expecting the worst, but everything about Daft Punk - from their selections to that pyramid (see image left, courtesy of Valentina Schulte) - was nothing short of spectacular. The LED suits they wore for the encore topped it off. My biggest regret is procrastinating over whether to fly to Melbourne to see them beforehand, because by the time Papz, Garth and myself agreed, it was already sold out.

On the right is a portion of my Daft Punk collection, and I had to scour Tokyo for the remaining copies. These are all limited edition versions, and my favourite is definitely the Be@rbricks. So much so that I bought all they had in the store (I even got them to sell me the stock they had in the back room lol). Next time I go I’m going to hunt down some of their Interstella 5555 gear.

In terms of their new album, I hope they don’t sway towards hip hop influences (the Janet Jackson remix they OK’d was terrible), and perhaps even return to their roots. Although I probably stand alone with this, I much prefer their old school stuff like Rollin’ & Scratchin’ and Bangalter’s solo work such as Spinal Scratch (a true classic) and Extra Dry. But even if they don’t, I still know I’m going to enjoy their offerings.

Here’s some tid-bits of trivia for Daft punk fans:
* For the car/gaming fanatics: three of Bangalter’s songs appeared in Rockstar Games’ Midnight Club 2
* Hedi Slimane (the designer who pioneered Dior Homme’s look and style) designed the leather suits that Daft Punk wear
* This year was the first time they performed live for a televised event (supporting Kanye at the 50th Grammy Awards)
* Their robot helmets were made by LED Effects in California

Nissan’s warning shot over the R35 GT-R

Posted on July 24, 2008

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that there are now a dozen or so R35 GT-Rs already in the country. Although they have yet to be officially released, many a workshop has jumped the gun and imported their own from Japan, allowing them to get a headstart on unlocking its aftermarket potential. Above are some pics of Haltech’s R35 GT-R, which Mark Pakula photographed at our Sydney event earlier in the year.

And of course, workshops aren’t the only ones interested in the R35. Grey importers are also keen on selling the R35 GT-R, as the price they can offer - even for a brand new model - should be substantially less than what the official price will be. Along with the increases in luxury car taxes, I wouldn’t be surprised if it has a driveaway price in excess of AUD$160k. That’s some big money, and if there’s the chance to save $30k, who wouldn’t buy an import? And since to have them road registered they need to be complied, it’s all perfectly legal.

Unfortunately, this seems to have thrown a cat amongst the pigeons. Nissan Australia isn’t happy at all, which is surprising because there wasn’t even a whimper when companies started bringing in ‘99 S15s before they were officially launched in 2000. This time around though, they’ve fired a not too subtle warning shot.

Recently a friend who owns a car importing business showed me a rather interesting two-page letter he had received from lawyers acting on behalf of Nissan Australia. Although he hasn’t imported a GT-R, the letter isn’t very subtle in its wording.

The letter begins by outlining the fact that Nissan Japan is the owner of the Australian trademarks for Nissan, the Nissan logo, the term ‘Nissan GT-R’, and the GT-R logo. It then goes on stating ‘we are instructed that neither Nissan Japan nor Nissan Australia presently has consented to the Trade Marks being applied to any R35 GT-R motor vehicle currently imported into Australia by parties unauthorised by Nissan Japan … The sale of such vehicles has the potential to damage the reputation and goodwill in the Trade Marks … Accordingly, any use of the Trade Marks by an unauthorised party in relation to a vehicle imported into Australia which has not been manufactured for the Australian market may amount to trade mark infringement.”

Vague would be the best way to describe this whole trade mark thing. I mean, if I bought a pair of Nikes from Japan and then sold them here because I no longer wanted them, what law have I breached? Surely you can advertise the product with its name. It’s not as if these people are selling fake GT-Rs or whacking GT-R badges on Pulsars.

After reading the letter for the first time, it’s certainly high on shock value. If I were a grey importer, I’d probably have been frightened off. I mean, who would want to go into legal proceedings with someone as big as Nissan? But after re-reading the letter a few times, there’s no actual threat, and I can’t see how grey importing one will breach any laws. If the department of transport (DOTARS) allows it to be brought in, allows it to be complied and allows it to be registered, then it can be sold. Pure and simple.

Just landed

Posted on July 23, 2008

Went down to Gibson Freight (the company we used to ship our drift car to the U.S.) today to see this particular car, which has just arrived from Indonesia. Sponsored by Kicker in Indonesia, its here to do a tour of Auto Salon events. Unfortunately due to Customs and Quarantine, the vehicle was held up for an additional week and a half, meaning it can’t be shipped to Perth in time for this weekend’s event.

Although it certainly isn’t to everyone’s tastes, you really have to see it up close to appreciate the absolute insanity of it all. Underneath all that is a Ford Ranger, and in the style that is typical of the Indonesian car scene, its been fitted with massive amounts of audio gear, hydraulic components and motorised mechanisms. Its inspiration is clearly drawn from Alpine’s famous Civic and Mini demo cars. I haven’t been able to see it operate just yet, but apparently the exo-skeleton structure in the tray is motorised and opens up, and I think the protrusion you see beneath the tailgate is a motorised rack of amps. Crazy huh?

Bape vs Fape

Posted on July 22, 2008

During the past four or five years, I’ve made sure to visit the Bape stores in Harajuku and Aoyama (as well as Shibuya this year) whenever I was in Tokyo, trashing a lot of coin going overboard with their gear. During the recent Auto Salon Sydney event, I was sitting down for a coffee with Alex, the editor of French tuner mag ADDX, who, judging by his shoes, was also a Nigo fan. What he couldn’t believe was the amount of FAPE that has infiltrated Sydney’s youth. Indeed, no matter where we looked, we spotted ape renditions everywhere.

Now this post isn’t about hating on FAPE, but rather just how lucrative a market it has become. BAPE isn’t available in Australia (the closest countries that stock it are Taiwan and Hong Kong), and so to see imitations on every second kid is certainly intriguing. What’s even more interesting is that FAPE has spawned into this self-sustaining entity completely independent of what A Bathing Ape does: their designs no longer replicate the originals (which is the true definition of an imitation), instead offering their own hoodie-based interpretations and designs. Its almost as if FAPE has become a label in itself. I wish I could take some photos to show you what I mean, but I don’t think I could bring myself to buy one…

Missing Vegas

Posted on July 21, 2008

Just a few years ago I couldn’t stand the sight of a plane. Being the Editor of a mag (especially one that runs up to 14 events a year) means flying is part and parcel with the job description. And while many view travelling as a bonus, I’m sure most people that do it week-in and week-out will say otherwise – myself included.

Being stuck in economy, the endless hours in transit, living out of a suitcase and sleeping on a foreign bed every weekend will drive anyone homesick. And so as soon as I had the chance, I started opting out of trips that weren’t entirely necessarily. This year I’ve only been on a handful of flights, and it’s certainly nice to be able to spend most weekends here in Sydney.

However, the irony is that I now want to go on more trips. In particular, I want to head back to the States. Towards the end of last year I spent two weeks in LA for the D1GP All-Star World Championship and to be quite frank, I didn’t enjoy it.

Sure it was probably due to the stress of racing at our first international event, but now I’m itching to get back there. The Australian dollar is so strong at the moment that it is almost one for one, making it an awesome destination. In particular, I want to hit Vegas again. Yes last time I dumped a whole wad on blackjack, but Vegas is one hell of an insane city. You might leave empty handed, but there’s a whole lot of fun to be had. And how I miss the Double-Double from In-N-Out!

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