D Car — November 2003
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About this issue
250 available scans from D Car — November 2003, in right-to-left reading order. Japanese OCR and English translation drafts are available throughout. Drafts have not received exhaustive image proofreading; unreadable source remains recorded in the archival data.
Page 65 — English draft translation
...are doing essentially the same thing. Some enthusiasts fit items that make you wonder whether they are really cool—US-style plates, inspection stickers, learner decals, dealer stickers, and so on. In that sense, Japanese fans aiming for North American spec are much like them. The difference is that Japanese-spec parts cover both custom items and functional upgrades. In fact, there are fewer US-made performance parts. Let's look at examples of current JDM-style builds, starting with the NSX.
The Impreza, with its distinctive boxer engine, is rapidly gaining ground. It offers a lot of potential for the price. Sedans are more popular than wagons. In Japan it may carry a muddy rally-car image, but California Imprezas have none of that; they keep things cool and clean. Most parts are Japanese-made, so the style is naturally JDM. Extensive carbon-fiber parts help leave the dirt-rally image behind.
Captions and page details
Japanese enthusiasts aiming for USDM
Carbon parts are a basic ingredient; carbon wings and mirrors are especially popular.
★ American JDM trend styles 2003–2004 ★
High installation rate
Base car
With drifting's popularity, is rapidly gaining popularity!
For Japanese-made performance parts, HKS and other established brands are standard choices.
Wheels and suspension: coilovers such as Tein are standard equipment.
The field is surprisingly international. Popular Japanese brands include Bomex and VeilSide.
Build up a Spartan base car with Japanese parts! American JDM is the original and authentic form of the sport compact.
Japanese high-performance parts = Japanese-spec parts
Aero Carbon remains popular, especially APR parts. For JDM builds, VeilSide, West, and Bomex are among the choices.
Base cars
Honda's popularity has cooled. Toyota models such as the Celica and MR-S are gaining ground, along with the Subaru Impreza and Nissan 350Z.
Drifting Drifting has exploded in popularity this year. For rear-wheel drive, especially with a turbo, Nissan cars are the obvious choice: Silvia and 180SX models, often with used SR swaps, are ready to drift.
Even newer models like the 350Z quickly get aero parts!
Silvia and 180SX models are becoming popular, replacing the Honda as the go-to cars.
Americans love turbo drift cars, too! Is the real boom finally here?
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