Welcome back to our ongoing coverage of USDM Jam 9.0. I’m happy that the previous post has generated so much interest because I was one of those guys, like many of you, that was waiting around the days after the event took place waiting for photos to pop up on the web. Now I get to present them to you and try my best to tell you all about them. Many of these cars are new to me, some are familiar, and some I’ve even taken the time to do some research on in an attempt to give you the correct information regarding their builds. Today we will see a bulk of the car coverage itself unlike yesterday where I used a majority of the post to introduce (or re-introduce) you all to the USDM culture in Japan…

Before I begin, I’d like to take some time to discuss comments and criticisms that I have seen on various social media outlets in regards to the growing USDM-style community in Japan. While many of you find it to be totally cool to see, there are a lot of people within our community that are making statements out of misinformation or just plain ignorance. I see people talking about how they think that it is “stupid” to see what they are doing, taking their original Japanese parts and replacing them with U.S. domestic market products. Some also say that it is pointless to do this to a car just because YOU have taken time to source out these “baller” Japanese parts. For those who are naive or critical of this style, you have to think about how they interpret your style or your way of building cars. For them, it may seem “stupid” that you are taking USDM parts off of your car to replicate OEM Japanese vehicles. You have to imagine that you are taking parts off of your car that are unique to your country of origin to make your car look like someone else’s. You do that to achieve a specific look for your car and they are doing the same thing. Just because “JDM” parts aren’t sought after over there like they are here, it doesn’t make what they do over there “stupid” by any means. You have to try to walk a mile in their shoes to have a good understanding of what they are about. I think we can all be more appreciative of what we are doing as an automotive community worldwide. Back when this car culture was in its infancy, we all looked to Japan for inspiration. For decades, Japanese car culture has served as a model for what we want and today, the American car scene has grown and become better because of that. Now, there are people looking to you for inspiration for their cars, all over the world. You should be proud of that and proud that there are enthusiasts worldwide who are motivated by the builds they see here in America. Instead of shunning the idea and laughing it off, learn to understand cultural differences…

I’ll be honest, when I first discovered this USDM car culture in Japan, I too was a bit surprised by it. What could we have that they would want? But then I thought about how the Japanese probably used to ask themselves the same thing when they started seeing the whole “JDM movement” here in the states, and it made sense. After meeting Takeshi Kobayashi and discussing with him in length about the USDM craze that has hit their country, I have a great appreciation for what they do. Japanese domestic market parts are fairly easy to come by these days, thanks to the internet and open communication between businesses in both countries but American products in Japan are a little harder to come by. There are a very few select group of people that bring our stuff into their country and the prices are at a premium to acquire them. Takeshi, owner of Type_K Autosource, is one of those guys that has made a business of strictly bringing in American domestic products and automobiles into Japan. When he is here, I see the amount of work it takes to get what his customers are looking for. You wouldn’t even believe some of the stuff he brings back over there. He’s told us many stories about what guys are doing to their cars to achieve the U.S. look and the amount of labor they put into simply making their cars look “USDM” and it’s crazy. Some guys bring in anything from a roof skin with a sunroof just because their cars didn’t come with one and some enthusiasts go as far as bringing an entire vehicle over there just to chop it up and piece it back onto their Japanese chassis. You’ll see a Corolla later in the coverage where someone did just that. Masaru Tanaka imported an American market Corolla parts car back to Japan and literally pieced it back together onto his Japanese Corolla GT. The roof, quarter panel, front end, and basically everything you could think of is from an American Corolla and the only original portions of his car that are originally “JDM” is the front A-pillar and bulk head. It’s just nuts. Way over the top? Definitely…but you have to appreciate the man for putting in that kind of work just to say that he was able to do it. At the end of the day, we are all just modifying cars and trying to make them unique so they stand out from the rest of the crowd. JDM, USDM, it doesn’t matter. Hard work and ingenuity should never be discounted and unappreciated….

With that out of the way, let’s get on with the coverage. Today, a bulk of the photos will come from Koji “KaRy” Karimata…he was able to capture a large portion of the cars that I wanted to see and I’m happy to display them here on The Chronicles….

Enjoy… I’ve also attached links to larger versions of certain cars that were at the event. Click on the links below to see them…Don’t just click on the photo either, because that will just take you to a photo of the same size. The links BELOW each photo take you to the higher resolution versions…

USDM Jam 9.0 was the largest event for Tetsuya yet, I read somewhere that they had somewhere around 780 vehicles there. The tenth anniversary USDM Jam show will probably be even larger than that and they stated that they needed a larger venue next year. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to go out there and check it out in person…

This Ferio is a car that I see often whenever I see photos of Tetsuya’s Integra. They are usually parked next to each other and I’ve also posted photos of it on this site before at a different event. I was trying to find the owner on Facebook but I don’t believe he has one. It’s just a really clean sedan with a BYS front bumper and refinished BBS wheels. I think Tetsuya was the one that did the majority of the work on this car… Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

A shot that Shimomukai from Tactical Art got of the engine bay…Clean tuck job by Tetsuya with a lot of American aftermarket parts like an AEM cold-airintake, Mishimoto cooling hoses, and Benen heat shield….Also has spike hardware from Downstar Inc… Nice engine bay that still retains air conditioning…

Yuya Yamashita’s EK9 CTR on gunmetal-faced Work Meister S1 2-piece wheels… Also repping The Chronicles and NWP4Life.com…Like the repainted Midori EK9, this is yet another example of a Japanese enthusiast turning his EK9 into a more US-style DX build… I think he has the USDM-style stolen Honda emblem as well haha… Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

The VW and Euro scene was very well represented at USDM Jam 9.0…this is just one of many great examples of good VW builds in attendance… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Legit U.S. FG2 Civic Si coupe on Volk Racing TE37s….

White Integra Type R with a random purple front lip and BBS RS wheels…

Check out the Glendale plate frame and LA Dodgers banner on this EG…

Nissan Skyline 350GT coupe with Recaro seats and white Work Emotion XD9…

One trend that I am not proud to see in Japan are the growing use of XXR wheels but I thought I’d toss this in the coverage since we hardly ever see Honda Orthia wagons…

Integra with 97-01 U.S. front end and Work Equip 01 wheels…

Absolutely love this GTI on SSR mesh wheels….Note the Sparco seats and full cage inside as well as the vented hood… A little curious as to why the owner has hood pins on the front bumper though…maybe the front bumper is removed often and the pins make it easier to take on and off… This might be one of my favorites from USDM Jam 9.0.  I like it so much that you can Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

Nothing at all USDM about this classic Toyota Carina coupe… Just pure Toyota nostalgia…Got the shades on the dash too so you know the owner dips this thing in style… Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

Blacked-out R35 GTR… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Another favorite of mine from this show was this Civic wagon from Akebono… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

I posted up a couple photos of this S2000 during the roll-in portion of the coverage yesterday… Takeshi from Type_K liked it so much that he ended up giving this S2000 the “Type_K Award” at the show… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Speaking of Takeshi, the Tactical Art guys stopped by his booth and snapped this photo of him setting up shop… How perfect is it that he’s paired his collection of Chronicles decals with a giant Pedobear sticker, haha…. Always good to see my buddy Takeshi doing work!…

Another “fitted” Integra Type R from “Staddict.C.C.” Clever name I might add… “Static” + “Addict” equals “Staddict”…C.C. should be pretty obvious for “Car Club”….well played…I just spent more time deciphering the name then looking at the car…

Clean 4-door on some Volk TE37Vs… I’m pretty sure someone is already telling themselves: “needs mirrors”….in any case, Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

Here is a much better shot of the Honda Saber/Inspire to U.S. Acura TL conversion on HREs… I love how this thing sits and how the wheels aren’t over-the-top and bulging out past the wheel wells…very clean TL conversion…. Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

VIP-themed KA9 Honda Legend to Acura RL conversion on Lorinser wheels. Not 100% sure what kit it is, looks like it might be an Aimgain kit…. Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Norifumi Kobayashi’s Honda Accord Tourer to U.S. TSX wagon conversion… Takeshi mentioned that Norifumi used to be a euro car enthusiast but has recently gotten into the USDM style. That probably explains his use of the Porsche wheels… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Wish I had a better angle of this EK4 SiR from Connection…

Honda Integra SiR-G on BBS RS wheels, also from Connection car club… Almost rare to see a true bug-eye front end over there these days that hasn’t been converted to the U.S. 97-01 front…  Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Mugen Pro.2 aero on this CR-X…Mugen everything practically, even on the mesh grille… Click here for a larger version (1400×933)

Honda Accord Euro-R with a U.S. Acura TSX front grille and BBS LMs…

Ferio with Work Equip 01 and some old school U.S. GTO headlight covers…

I have a soft spot for CB Accords, being the previous owner of one, so I’m always looking for photos of them at events. This one would have been sick if the fenders weren’t all jacked-up from the tire and Volk TE37V combo… The guy in the background with the Wekfest t-shirt on is staring at the other side of the Accord because the fender on that side is completely rusted out… The Circuit Hero banner might also be a self-made version too, haha… man, so much potential in this thing….

Shota Mori’s CA Accord sedan on SSR MKII from Akebono…. Probably the most recognized CA Accord in the world… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

EJ Civic coupe on BBS wheels…I like the color but the camber is a little much for me. Wish I had a better look at the engine bay too because it looks like it has a pretty clean tuck… Note the Guam front plate…

Nice attempt at a U.S. EM1 Civic Si coupe conversion on Regamaster wheels…It is about as close as it’s gonna get. Not everyone is down to change out the roof skin to have a sunroof…

Looks like the color might be Sepang Bronze on this VIP-inspired Civic…

Really liked the contrast of the brown tone and the blue Work Meister S1… Great looking coupe with a EK9 CTR front end… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

U.S. Acura TSX conversion and Work Emotion XD9 wheels…

EF hatchback from Osaka JDM that was recently on the cover of Super Street magazine’s Japan Issue…  Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Takanori Nagai’s Mugen EK4 SiR from L2P car club aka Lowered 2 Perfection….Love the complete Mugen theme front to back…. Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Fukuda’s EG Civic, also from L2P On DAMD Lover Soul wheels… if you are reading this Fukuda-san, thank you for having a Chronicles sticker on your ride!.. Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Civic wagons are very well represented at USDM Jam events… this silver Shuttle with an EF9 SiR front end is another great example…

Here’s something you don’t see everyday, no matter what the country of origin; a KA7 Honda Legend on Regamaster EVOs… pretty interesting look but I am happier to see that this Legend is in mint condition… This might also be the only Legend in existence that isn’t owned by a Vietnamese person, haha…

The artwork on the hood made for an interesting look for this EG Civic. 15-inch SSR mesh wheels and gutted/caged interior as well.  Click here for larger version (1400×933)

A better look at the EK hatchback from Osaka JDM/Car Craft Boon…. Someone is bound to ask again but the wheels are from a company known as Barramundi Designs…They are like the “CCW” of Japan… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

No crazy tuck here, just a turbo kit, some custom oil plumbing, and Carbing bar along with a engine torque damper… Osaka JDM is into U.S. style as well, that’s why you see stuff like the Password: JDM radiator cooling panel….

A look inside so you guys can see the cage…

Battery kill switch in the center console and a peek of the relocated battery behind the dash…

I just had to post a shot of this big body Benz on BBS wheels…haha, fucking sick!…Check out the white interior too… Also rocking old school blue Cali plates!… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Rare to see this things modded in any country but I thought this Toyota Corolla II, aka 5th gen. U.S. Toyota Tercel, looked good on the Work Meister CR-01 wheels with the bronze lip…

This Cressida on Rotiform wheels was pretty sick… It ended up taking home an award at the USDM Jam event as well but I am not sure what category it won in…

First generation JDM Honda Odyssey to U.S. Isuzu Oasis conversion….

Clean black EG on BBR Comps with a Spoon front lip owned by Daisuke Ishiyama…. Click here for larger version (1400×933)

BMW 3-series coupe slammed on some Volk Racing CE28s…

Akifumi Ikeda’s SiR-G Integra on bronze Volk SE37K… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Takashi Noga’s VIP-themed Toyota bB…

You should all be very familiar with Kazu Imai’s Integra Type R by now… You will also be seeing it very soon in an upcoming issue of Super Street magazine… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Kei Takafuji’s EG Civic hatchback on very aggressive Work Meister S1… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

Takafuji’s shaved and tucked engine bay. One of the rear Hondas at the USDM Jam show with a brake booster delete and custom brake lines… Overall a really clean bay…Nicely done utilizing products from USDM companies such as Benen Industries, AEM, Skunk2, and Wilwood… Kei has USDM-look down…

The graphic on the rear quarter is a little random but it works on this white ITR… Nothing too over the top on this build, just some gunmetal Volk TE37Vs, Spoon brakes, and non-ITR Recaro seats… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

The Work Meister S1Rs look huge on this EP3 Civic Type R… They have to be 19s or something because most 17-inch wheels still tend to look pretty small on the EP3 chassis… Good looking build though, also from “EKC Arrows” like the ITR above… Click here for larger version (1400×933)

That’s a wrap for today. I hope all of you are enjoying the coverage so far…there is still a lot more to come so stay tuned!…