ASM x GT WORKS D1 Project

ASM Yokohama is well known among Japanese car fans for its work with the S2000 and their extreme time attack S2000 in particular. The ASM crew is famous for doing whatever it takes to gain those extra fractions of a second around the track and investing countless hours into tweaking their race set ups for maximum performance.

A little less well known is ASM's venture into drifting as part of a collaboration with Kyushu-based tuning shop GT WORKS . Actually, the relationship between ASM and GT WORKS dates back to when ASM was strictly known as the second-hand parts division of Autobacs. The man behind GT WORKS is veteran D1 driver and old school AE86 maniac Gen Terasaki. He is one of Japan's most well known AE86 tuners and his cars are salivated over by hardcore 86'ers around the world. Established in 1996, GT WORKS continues to offer both original products and full tuning service for a variety of models though Terasaki-san will always be known for his pioneering work on the AE86 as well as his driving talent.

Cars like this black Trueno powered by a high compression 16 valve 4AGE with Weber carbs represent the pinnacle of classic Japanese AE86 street tuning. Terasaki demonstrated his driving his skill with numerous wins in Japan's early organized drift competitions.

As drifting continued to grow both in Japan and abroad, the next step for GT WORKS was to enter the D1GP with this Autobacs Secondhand supported AE86 Levin.

Gen competed for a few years with this Levin and although he never had the recognition of fan-favorites like Nomuken, he always drove hard and came home with solid results. He and his Levin even made some trips overseas for some of D1's early events at Irwindale.

For the 2005 season the ASM team took a bold step as they introduced their new D1 machine.

As ASM Yokohama began to become known for their S2000 work, the team switched from the familiar 86 to Honda's FR machine. They became one of the first teams worldwide to outfit an S2000 for drift use. The interesting about this car was the engine set-up. The car used a mildly built F20C outfitted with an American-made Comptech Supercharger kit. ASM provided the exhaust manifold  while an original GT WORKS throttle body, exhaust, and ECU were also used.

The suspension included both ASM components and custom coilovers built to GT WORKS spec by Racing Gear. Outside, the car ran ASM IS Design full aero, wide fenders, carbon hood, trunk and doors. A URAS GT wing and Mugen Hardtop were also thrown into the mix for added aerodynamics and for looks. The wheels used were five-spoke Prodrive GC-05's in 17x8.5J all around.

Although the team never achieved great success with the first S2000 it still brought some interesting variety to D1, particularly in Japan where there are only a few main cars that are used in competition.

For '07 the team debuted a new machine with a totally new engine set up. Gone is the mild supercharged engine from the old car, and in its place is a fully-built turbo engine. To accommodate the Trust TD06-25G turbine, the compression ratio was lowered to 8.8:1 and a GT WORKS built cylinder head was added. Other GT WORKS parts on the engine include the throttle body, exhaust manifold, turbo piping, exhaust system and fuel pump.

Underneath, the suspension has been redone with ASM SRE dampers using 12.5kg front and 10.7kg rear HYPERCOF springs. A GT WORKS 4.1 final gear set can be found in the rear diff. The interior includes a Cusco roll bar as well as ASM Limited Recaro buckets. Of course the ASM aero parts remain. The new wheels are Prodrive GC-010G 17x9J all around.

The new car was still being dialed in last year and the team will be back again for the '08 D1 season. Good luck to Terasaki-san and the ASM/GT WORKS Team in '08 as they try to make way in the competitive Japanese D1 series.

Check out the GT WORKS site for more.

Comments

[discoquinn]

Being a huge ae86 fan myself (Owned 4 of them now), I'm still sad to see Terasaki in something other than an AE86.

I remember and old Option clip from Bihoku Higland track, with Ueo in a white Sift Trueno (before all the J-blood sponsorship) and Terasaki in a black Levin Hatch, duking it out in good Versus Evil.

[air yeezy]

People also tend to mix truth and error to teach people, and insist it is wrong.

[air ride kits]

Talk about drifting madness. These cars will soon be legends of drifting.

[Drop Suspension]

Above everything else you spoke about above, I only came across a Trueno. This just means my experience needs more honing.