TUNERS – IT’S A RAUH WORLD: PART 2

In the last post we were looking at Nakai sans rare E60 daily. I’m sure his kids LOVE getting taken to school in RWB monsters but wives aren’t usually so accommodating so a compromise was obviously needed! For Part 2, we’re going to have another look around the outside of the workshop simply because it was bursting at the seams with Porsche goodness and then we’ll venture inside the Man Cave, have a good look around and take a long look at a few RWB creations that are either ready to go or on their way…

**Remember to click for hi resolution shots!**

Right next to the “Wingless” 964 that I showed you in part 1, was something so cool, it was all iced over around the custom wheel arches. This 911 Cabriolet in black sporting chrome rimmed Work Meister S1′s had me wishing I’d brought a spare pair of pants.

Drop the top on this thing and watch as the cool factor hits sub-zero temperatures. This is the type of car anyone would be hard pressed to ignore. Porsche make memorable cars and the 911 is among the very elite of timeless shapes.

The best thing about the bodies that Nakai san builds is that they retain a factory like look to them despite being wider than a dump truck and lower than whale poop.

Going back around to the front of the workshop, I couldn’t help but notice the 993 sitting to the left of Tom’s ( Toshi san ) car with its peculiar matte brown paint and red highlights. I also needed to try and get different angles to it, so I was climbing all over the truck you see to get the shots necessary for a good post.

It turns out this was one of the endurance cars set up for the Idlers Games 12 hour endurance race which I will be attending this Sunday.

…and if you look closely, you can see that the wing has been contained within the factory mounting points instead of spilling over the sides and into a “banana bender”. ( …this is what we call people from Queensland in Australia by the way because there is an absolute abundance of bananas. )

I asked Toshi about the unique design and it turns out this is styled to look like a Russian Tank of all things! As an artist then, it’s obvious Nakai san’s creative ability extends into areas many of us simply cannot fathom and it’s this creative streak that makes his work so memorable.

The star in the bumper and the paint especially gave away the theme which is unique to say the least.

Next door to the Russian was the freshly built Rough Rhythm – Toshi making the trip North this time and a lot closer to home than when I visited him over a month ago in Kobe. “Real” photographers ( and for that matter, “Real” drivers ) know how and when to travel, it seems.

On the other side of RR though there was the peculiar sight of this velvet blue duck tailed 964…

…sitting hard as nails on some of Nakai san’s favorite 5 spoke rims, Professor SSR SP1′s.

Up to this point, I’d spent the best part of an hour or two going around the outside of the workshop because there was just so much to see! No doubt all of you have seen the taillights of the 996 here and wondered what was going on…

Well, how about we venture inside and have a look around at what is going on behind the “Iron Curtain“?

This Porsche was not created by RWB and contrary to what others have said about this car, the truth of the matter is, Nakai san had it brought in for him to use the shape as a source of inspiration for his upcoming body-kits for the 996 Porsches.

I quite liked the “bulbousness” of this particular kit but it lacked the distinct edge that an RWB kit has when fitted…

Take these images as only a teaser because the final product is going to be very different, albeit, just as wild and untamed. You can guarantee we will be there as the developments take place and keep you guys up to date.

Toshi was on a tight schedule actually as he had to fly out to London on unrelated business early the next week and I’ve since heard from a particular company in the UK that we have been talking to recently about something very interesting. I can let you in on a little secret… these guys are looking to bring RWB to the UK and Australia…

It was at this point that I was introduced to Nojima san, who handles a lot of the body work preparation and spray work for all RWB cars. We sat around inside the man cave for a while and just talked about.. you know… car stuff…in Japanese.

Truth be told, I’ve never taken any lessons in Japan but I’ve always listened to what people have to say and because of that, I’ve really noticed a huge improvement in my all round ability. I don’t even need a translator most of the time now which gives me a lot more freedom when visiting workshops which in turn, is a good thing for you guys! By and large I have been greeted warmly by virtually all the Japanese I have encountered despite not knowing the intricacies of the language.

This understanding has helped me immensely, I can assure you, especially when the conversation revolves around how fast you can go through a radar on the highways before setting it off! I can tell you now it is well above the speed limit in place…

Nojima san is a quietly spoken but approachable man and he certainly loves his work, hard as the schedule might be from time to time…

…and his dedication and attention to detail is very easy to appreciate. Here you can see him working on the hood of a very special car I will be showing you in further detail below…

Toshi then came over holding some sort of package. “This is yours, isn’t it?!” he said as he tossed me a yellow envelope. I knew instantly what was inside the package and ripped the thing open like I was an 8 year old tearing into Christmas presents! Finally… I had an RWB shirt of my own!

I stuffed my Polo in the Audi and put that shirt on faster than you can say R-W-B; the Large fit perfect for my size too. With the appropriate change of clothes then, it was back inside to have a closer look at a special 993 that was being prepped for a client down south.

I fell in love with the color instantly. It was a raw, mechanized gunmetal bronze/grey that perfectly suited the outrageous bodywork fitted to the Porsche.

I simply couldn’t get away from this thing – It arrested my senses completely. There aren’t many cars that can do that to me, let alone half finished ones but upon closer inspection, there were subtle differences in the design that will in the end, help it to remain unique among the other 100+ RWB’s that Nakai san has crafted.

Just pause for a bit and take a close look at how detailed the body work really is before it all gets assembled, ready for delivery…

It’s just great to see cars in this state just before they disappear off to their new owners…

No sooner had I finished shooting the Gunmetal 993, that Nakai san returned to the workshop along with a couple of people that looked very familiar to me…

So… what do you say? You guys ready for Part 3 yet…?

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7TUNE – The Ultimate JDM Experience Since 2005

Words and Photos – Adam J.P Zillin