Welcome back all, this weekend we’re diving right back into the Sunday School ’22 coverage with the second of what will ultimately be a three-part series; as I was working through the photos it became clear fairly quickly that I’d have a few more than anticipated! I’ve had some free time lately to work ahead through the editing so Part 3 will hopefully be not too far off, but in the meantime I hope you enjoy this next installment, beginning with the neighbour to Jackie’s NSX which closed out Part 1.
We pick up today with Adrian’s Civic coupe – one of our prior Top 5 Builds winners (#4 in 2018) – sporting a Tactical Art front lip and Volk CEs. A very well built, and fairly timeless, example of an EJ1.
Along with Jackie’s NSX, one of the big debuts of the show was Punit’s freshly-redone Integra. At a glance it would have looked largely similar to how it sat prior, but Punit actually tore it down to a shell and effectively restored it to its modified state with new paint, glass, mouldings, a rebuilt K24, and so forth. Quite often the term “restoration” is used to describe a car returned to factory-built specification but it doesn’t have to be limited to that. This car was restored in every sense of the word but not to its day-one configuration, rather to another point in time.
There were admittedly a few changes made along the way so it’s not exactly as it was prior to the restoration (so to split hairs it’s not a “perfect” restoration in that sense), with the most obvious being the switch to a new set of Mugen M7s.
Providing some contrast to Punit’s Integra, next to it sat Nick’s new build. 4 door vs 2, JDM front vs USDM, turbo B vs N/A K…the list goes on. This is a build I definitely want to learn more about but Sunday School ’22 was the first (and still only) time I’ve had the chance to view it in person.
And for the Integra fans that preferred things a bit more OEM, there was also a beautiful pair of ITRs on display – the yellow example being Alex M’s fully-restored, numbers-matching car that has been seen on the site plenty before.
Across the aisle sat Errol’s new GR86, doing its best to trigger Jason. The back-and-forth trolling and teasing on Instagram is always entertaining to watch as Jason hunts for the smallest spec of brake dust in barrels and Errol purposely goes and drops dirty wheels on the ground instead and then gets called out for it. Jason roasts him more than Jon does me, for having a primered Grand Am.
Back to the Honda row (well, one of them) with another pair of Type Rs, this time FK8s. The yellow LE is Alex M’s as well, the same one that was seen alongside his ITR in the mini shoot published on the site last October.
This CTR (Stewie’s) and that seen in the last photo (Alfred’s) both wore the Spoon front bumper but took two approaches to the painting of it, which really changed the look from one car to the next. It looks right at home on the chassis regardless, but the retention of the badges on Stewie’s really helped sell the bumper as an OEM piece in my opinion.
Surprise surprise, we never followed a perfectly linear path through the event. Have we ever? Next up is a quick jog over to Thirty Three Ten, and Frank’s LS RB FD (what other pairs of letters can you add to that, Frank?) which had seen the return of its livery following Sorority Row where it was still bare. I actually don’t know what else could be added to the car at this point; he has really put in the work to address all areas of it and there can’t be anything left untouched now.
Nearby was Trisa’s S15 Spec S (winner of Best JDM at Sorority Row), sporting the tried-and-true Integra front lip paired with some OEM Aero pieces, as it has been seen before. The 78Works lighting sets it apart though, and I believe it’s set to see some more changes soon? As much as I adore the factory Aero wing (as seen on mine) these cars do look rather good with a more discreet alternative like hers, and I imagine she can actually see stuff out of her back window. You wouldn’t believe how much of your view that Aero wing takes up…
Near the impressive Honda group already covered sat the BMWs-Owned-By-Honda-Guys group with Josh’s new E90 up first. After his brief stint with the GT4 this summer he jumped back into the four door/eight cylinder platform and made quick progress with some Mag Blue CEs, GTS lip, and more.
Next up was Alex M – again – with his E92 M3 sporting a Vorsteiner front bumper and BBS E88s.
The M5 I unfortunately didn’t get a clear photo of but I have two of the E46 to make up for it? As noted in Part 1 this (as well as the M5) was also Alex M’s, but his newest project specifically. He picked this up a little while ago and immediately set about refreshing and updating a lot of it, including fitting a Cinnamon interior, ZE40s, new arms and bushings, and some CSL inspiration for good measure. The logistics alone of managing so many in-depth builds must be brain-melting but he pulls it off and turns out great car after great car.
Stock body Varis EVO X meets widebody Varis EVO X – and the bumper/skirt package looks just as good with or without the supporting flares and fenders.
I’ve only had the opportunity to see Rhys’ E92 M3 track toy in person twice now but at least managed to get a few photos each time. The accents on the mirror caps and endplates really pop and break up the otherwise white/black colour scheme quite nicely. This thing must be a riot on track, with that screaming V8 up front.
Mike’s FD won the award for “Worst Spot For Photos”; I also had to crop this one super tight due to all that was happening around it. It was still receiving a lot of attention though, as it should. It remains as one of the most thorough and detailed builds around with light-weighting being carried out in places you’d never expect, on top of all of the quality parts and custom fab to make it perform.
The Seeker CSX that stole my attention (and took one of the awards) at Tuner Spirit this year was out at iMSS, looking amazing under the natural lighting.
Ryan’s F355 was turning heads as always, either for being an impressive build or for being upsetting to “purists”. Something about seeing a gated manual inside will always make a car infinitely cooler too.
I remember I had an engine bay photo of this EVO from Driven (at that time I was unable to get a full exterior shot) because of the incredible amount of titanium under the hood – and the iconic ARC induction box that I’ll always be a fan of. The bay setup is so unexpected given the exterior of the car and how the thing is used as well, but it’s always in top form for shows.
To focus on random automotive details for a moment, Mk8 GTIs have perhaps the coolest factory fog lights of any car I’ve ever seen. This example was quite tastefully modified with some Maxton aero and well-fitted BBSs.
As their values continue to reach new heights it’s quite understandable that a lot of R34 GT-Rs follow a very OEM+ approach these days, at least in regards to styling and interiors. Owners are still quite happy to push limits with engine builds and chassis refreshes, but I don’t expect to see many new builds getting cut for widebodies or colour changed even. Honestly though, nearly a quarter century on (good god) the factory styling still looks outstanding and if you can find a Midnight Purple car for example, you really can’t beat the original hue.
While their relatives – non GT-R coupes and the four door versions – are often a different story, perhaps ironically this example doesn’t scream at you for being extensively reworked even though it is. Tommy’s, which has been seen before, is effectively a GT-R sedan at this point with over 600whp from an RB30. For obvious reasons, it’s a build I very much appreciate.
At this point we were making our way over to another section of the show but I had to stop by the tent to see the trophies that had been made up for this year. Each time the trophies have been amazing, don’t get me wrong (I even sponsored them for a few years), but for iMSS X they went with a very head-turning change in direction, moving to some custom pieces from Blackbox. The Street Fighter branding inspiration continued, with the information being marked on the X-shaped base. Truly impressive pieces!
If you went to iMSS for Hondas specifically, and somehow those already seen in the coverage weren’t enough, you were in luck as there were many more still to be seen. Terry’s ITR was starting off this row, wearing a healthy selection of Mugen parts as per usual. The hood is a notable absentee but those things are worth as much as a small town now anyway.
Woooster’s K-swapped EG – which is currently up for grabs as I understand – was showing off some recently-fitted silver TEs in a much more aggressive sizing than the prior white set.
To be honest, part of me misses the days of headlight and taillight conversions being common on builds – the younger crowd is missing out! While many were just plain strange, some did actually work quite well (S15 headlights on Eclipses, or on a certain green/gold Cavalier…). DC2 lights on an EG Civic is one swap I saw a couple of times – admittedly on fairly lairy show cars with lots of other custom body work – but on an otherwise tame exterior it still works pretty well. If anything the lights are a touch too square for the round EG body but this was done very well and the cars were from nearly the same years anyway. With restorations now being mainstream in our generation and period-correct builds coming into their own, I wonder if we’ll start to see more new builds with some crazy light swaps?
I have more of the white Hondas to come in Part 3, so don’t worry if you saw yours and I seemed to skip it! Anyway, next up is Barb’s AP1, wearing a J’s front lip and sitting on SSR Type-Cs. The cage finished the look off perfectly.
As with Levi’s example, Clayton’s is also a guide on “How to R32 GT-R”, just in a different style. The Veilside aero and abundance of auxiliary gauges inside are just too good, as is the functional (and not hellaflush) fitment.
Across from our group at the show this year sat this FR-S, sitting nicely on TC-4s and wearing what I think is still one of the best bumpers for this platform, Varis’. Even without the widebody it flows nicely, and adds just enough aggression to the coupe. I don’t know if anything much had been done underhood but the large Brembos could be a hint.
Shawn’s bagged WRX was showing off a new set of wheels, some fully polished three-piece Meisters. While white had perhaps been a natural choice for the last wheels – given the other white accents on the car – there was no denying that going to fully polished really stepped the build up. The gold hardware and decals stood out just enough as well.
Formerely littlebluecivic, littlespooncivic was turning heads with the new wrap. The clear tails being paired with the classic colours made for a unique twist.
And last but not least for today, Taylor’s absolutely nasty-sounding G8 which I always appreciate seeing out at events. Pontiacs will forever hold a special place in my heart with the G8s and GTOs specifically being my favourites from the brand’s final years. One day…
With that, I’m off to continue editing and writing for Part 3 and hope to have that ready for you all before long! I’ve been receiving no shortage of messages and awesome feedback regarding the photos so far this year, and I hope you all enjoy today’s set as you did Part 1. The tail end of summer 2022 was a busy one to say the least so there’s no shortage of things to share as we work through the off season. Stay tuned!
-Bill