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Late final yr, 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 buddies and acquaintances – nearly 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 out there 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 form.
Kaz started tuning Evos within the late 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 right this 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.
For those who chat with Kaz for greater than 54.642 seconds (that’s the Cyber Evo’s quickest Tsukuba lap time), there’s one phrase which can pop up greater than as soon as: Ardour.
Whereas tuning Evos to set blisteringly-fast lap instances is a positive solution to turn out to be well-known, the issues that preserve you in favour with the plenty are drivebility and reliability. The Limitless Works workforce satisfaction themselves on constructing quick street automobiles which preserve a sure diploma of civility. Meaning 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 facility creature comforts.
These automobiles are constructed for efficiency although, and as you’d anticipate, some neat aftermarket components are made in home. Limitless Works’ stainless cat-back exhaust techniques are fairly in style, and can be found in two specs: preserve it civilised or wake the useless.
Speaking with Kaz about his store and the aftermarket business normally revealed two factors of concern for the veteran tuner. Firstly, he sees a much bigger divide than there’s ever been between the variety of outlets who carry many years of experience to their prospects 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 shoppers alike – components, or lack thereof. I’m positive lots 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 components are nonetheless out there. However usually components like trim, bumpers and different physique panels aren’t. The one possibility is to refurbish, recycle, or in some circumstances, recreate them your self.
The recommendation from Limitless Works? Take care of your experience and take preventative measure in opposition to in poor health destiny. Carry on high of upkeep, drive sensibly – inside motive – and take a look at to not hit something alongside the best way. For those who take care of your stuff correctly, then it should 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 might be a 23-year-old automobile this yr, and I’m positive it will 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 nearly as fast because the Cyber Evo did, in for a routine check-up. I made positive to test it out, so keep tuned for that characteristic very quickly.
Toby Thyer
Instagram _tobinsta_
tobythyer.co.uk
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