Now that the new “Eibach Meet” has an official date and a new location set (June 10th/Irwindale Speedway, respectively), I thought today would be a good time to go back in time three years and take a look at some photos from the ’09 Eibach Meet. I was going through my hard drive the other day and discovered that I still had the raw, un-edited version of the photos from that meet. It’s rare for me to hold onto the original photos but for whatever reason they were all there. Things were very different in 2009, the stance thing hadn’t engulfed the Honda community yet, two-toned engine bays were all the rage out in the west coast, and many of the cars you’ll see in these photos are no longer around anymore. The ones that are look completely different and even though it’s been only three years, you’ll see how dramatic of a shift the Honda community has made. Things are moving at an incredible pace with competition and innovation leading to builds changing inside and out in a matter of months. I also wasn’t very familiar with how to use a camera yet or how to process photos so I’m happy to have the chance to go through the photos again and make them look a little better than in 2009. The format and layout of the site was also completely different then and now we have a cleaner site that is able to host larger photos. Photos back then were sized at a mere 800 pixels and now the site photos are closer to 1000 (950pixels to be exact) and I’ve also sized the photos in such a way where you can click on a link to see them in higher resolution. If you were a fan of a couple of the cars at Eibach 2009 and was not happy with how small the photos were then, you will probably be able to save them in their larger formats today. I won’t really bother with the commentary, instead, I will just link back to the original post(s) and you can go through the comments if you please. If you’re new to the site, bear in mind that, again, these were shot back in 2009. Things are very different today and many of the cars are long gone. Eibach 2009 was one of my favorite Eibach Meets because it was probably one of the most diverse in all the years. There were a lot of different styles and themes being implemented and the event was also important to me and many of us because it was a meet dedicated to one of our friends that had passed away that year. The whole feel of the event that day was just special and it is really hard to explain in words. You would have had to have been there that day to understand. These photos are just of some of the cars but if you want to read more about it, links are provided below….
Also on the bottom of each photo, I have gone ahead and attached the larger versions for your viewing pleasure. Excuse the photos if they are somewhat lackluster. Back in ’09 I was barely figuring out how to operate one and I didn’t even have my own camera yet. The editing is a bit better too since I’ve learned a couple more tricks since then (i.e. not just adding contrast to everything, haha). Enjoy and hopefully I can dig up more photos from the past later and “remaster” them for you guys…
Links to original posts (excuse the small photos as they were done to fit the format of the site in 2009)…
Now, on with the “remastered” photos…
2009 marked the first time that I got to see Jay Thammavong aka S2kjay from PG+K’s S2000 in person… I’m happy and proud to say that this S2000 is still around in 2012, though it has gone through a drastic makeover and will once again be going through another rebuild later this year… Jay is also out here living in the west coast now. Back in 2009, he drove this thing all the way to California from Atlanta to attend the Eibach meet. Though it’s a great looking build in Laguna Seca Blue form, I still think that this is my favorite look of all time (maybe for any street S2000)…
HBK Jon’s EG…one of my followers on Instagram (@stickydiljoe) posted up a comment this morning saying that he didn’t understand why the owner spent so much money on the car and didn’t paint the engine bay. I guess he missed out on the two-tone custom painted bays trend back then… (and I say “back then” because, while still popular in other parts of the country, west coast Honda builders have moved away from that style…)…
This Civic was kind of a big deal back in ’09 but I much preferred it when it was red with a battleship grey engine bay…
BonB’s Civic is also still around but looks like this now…. In 2009, he was known for being that guy that drove his Civic across the country for the Eibach meet and blowing his motor in the process. He had it fixed the nights leading up to the event and made it there and back home in one piece…
Sheepey’s DC2 is still around as well, but is now a full-blown drag car…in 2009 it was just a ‘street car’…
Silentdancer aka TJ’s S2000 right before he sold it…I think he’s on his 45th S2000 by now…
Brian Nguyen’s DC5…parted and sold now I believe… He now has a Mugen equipped CR-Z…
I thought this was the greatest shot I had ever taken back then, haha…
Sid’s DA Integra from Phaze2…some day this car will re-emerge…
Nancee’s S2000… I heard this S2 was for sale awhile back, not sure the status on it now…
Joey Abundiz’s engine bay was a hate or love thing among the crowd that day at Eibach ’09…. I never got a chance to get a full shot of this car because there were so many people around it…
Johnny Wong from Super Street’s EF…one day this thing will re-emerge as well and from seeing the parts that he’s been collecting, it’s gonna be pretty special…
If you don’t recognize this ITR, don’t be alarmed…this was Anh from ATS Garage’s Integra back in 2009 before he joined ATS and completely re-did his entire car…
Reza’s DC2 in its prime…
HeyMikeyyyy’s Integra from Phaze2…this car is long gone now but 2009 was when it was at its peak… Though it wasn’t the cleanest around with the highest caliber of work, Mikeyyyy was never afraid to take chances with different modifications….There were always guys that tried to be different just to be “the next big thing”, Mikeyyyy built his cars differently just because he had a different mindset than most people and didn’t really care what people thought. That’s why his DC2 and Arnel’s EG will always stand-out. They weren’t always the universally-accepted builds but it mattered very little to them…
I still remember that burn mark on his front lip from when RedZone had his car for over a year. They put a work light too close to it and literally melted it… Oh and many of your homies ended up with JLine wheels on their Hondas after they saw this car with them…
Mugenboy’s old Ferio-inspired 4-door from DPK… He later sold this car to Tanner who now works at Eibach Springs and he sold it to some other guy…
Sportcar Motion’s Kraftwerks supercharged Civic and Chase’s old CR-X from Chasebays….
Before the Honda community went CCW-crazy, leading to the craptastic creation of the XXR CCW-replica aka the “Complete Copied Wheel”….
Son from Hasback’s EK… no idea where Son is these days…
If I had a nickel every time someone asked me whatever happened to the Hasback crew….
These MF10s are still around I believe, and were last seen on PlusOne Danny’s EK coupe…
del Sol on WEDSport wheels from Ferd and the ATS Garage crew…Happy to see that this car is still around these days…
Rywire CR-X back when it was K-swapped…as you all know, he is now working on one of the most epic Integra Type R builds ever…
Phaze2 Arnel’s EG… a Civic many would go on to imitate later on…At this time the bay was like, 4 different colors. The following Eibach in 2010, he brought his Civic out with a color-matched bay, ITBs, and air suspension…
Chris “CRS” Sullivan getting a couple shots of the Phaze2 Hondas on his first trip out to Cali for the Eibach meet…
That’s pretty much it… I hope you guys enjoyed the short leap back in time…thanks for looking…