Before we really kick things off here today, I just want to say “Merry Christmas” to all, or if you want to be PC, “Happy Holidays”. It’s been a great year and I hope all of you out there are surrounded by loved ones. Some of us have big families, some don’t have many at all, but it is important to be around people you enjoy spending your time with. I myself am in San Diego, California tonight, hanging out with my parents and waiting for my dad to put together a delicious dinner. Cooking is his thing and my mom tells me that he’s planned to make a variety of dishes so I figured now would be a good time to give you guys some car stuff to look at. It’ll probably be a nice break from entertaining cousins that you don’t want to talk to or in-laws you’d rather steer clear of. Family time is important though, don’t get me wrong, but it can be a little overwhelming. I’ve been there, trust me. You’re not alone—even though you might want to be after five hours of family time. The key thing I said earlier was the importance of being around people YOU enjoy spending your time with. If you’re fortunate enough to get along with all your family members, that’s amazing. But, if you find yourself sitting in the corner of the living room, looking for something to entertain yourself with, don’t worry, I got you…

I didn’t want to title this piece “VTEC Club USA Finals Coverage” because it isn’t coverage if you consider depth. They are merely photos I captured that day while simply hanging out with some friends. “Coverage” would mean that I actually walked around with the intent to shoot a series of photos dedicated to showing you everything that was happening at the VTEC Club Finals. While we were driving to Buttonwillow that morning, I actually got a text from a colleague asking me if I’d be willing to cover the event for an online media site. He was usually the guy who was responsible for shooting all the VTEC Club events but he had actually booked another gig that day and wasn’t able to make it to Buttonwillow. I thought about it but I honestly didn’t plan to cover the event so I told him if I ended-up shooting a lot, I’d be more than willing to offer what I had for content as a “job”. But…it was unlikely. My plan was to go to VTEC Club just to support my friends. I don’t think I had been to one this whole year because I myself have always had other gigs around the same time as their scheduled events but December was open for me…

The great thing about being a freelance journalist is you have options. When I was younger I’d be a fool to turn down a gig but nowadays I’m doing a little better financially and I can choose between making a few bucks or spending quality time with friends…

So…this is not coverage of the VTEC Club Finals. They are just photos…

One of the more interesting features of the final VTEC Club event of the year was Narita Dogfight’s involvement with their “NDF Attack Challenge”. It is essentially a race within a race with competitors being able to compete under a different set of rules based around more traditional Japanese time attack. You wouldn’t be able to see the differences in these photos or a visual definition of that because, well—this isn’t coverage, lol. But trust me, it happened. They had a separate set of awards and everything. It was cool. You just had to be there to see for yourself…

It’s very cool to see how much the VTEC Club series has grown in the last few years. I don’t know how many people actually know this but I was the one that created the original “VTEC Club” logo. It just wasn’t very good, lol. So they replaced it with the logo they’re using now. This series continues to grow and its thriving. They’re selling out events and everybody participating looks to be having a pretty amazing time. There was a car that completely rolled-over on the track and the driver looked like he was having a blast. I mean, not while he was crawling out of the car but afterwards he was just laughing with friends about it. That’s pretty great. And he’s safe of course and wasn’t injured, which is vitally important…

I also didn’t take any photos of that. Because this isn’t coverage…

…and it’s kinda fucked to show that merely for page views or engagement. But I digress….

Dinner is almost ready so let me get to the photos. As always, there are captions whenever possible. Enjoy…

The last time we saw the RS Future K20 turbocharged NSX was just a few weeks ago when Amir was blowing-up multiple transmissions at Buttonwillow. He wanted to get his car back together for the final VTEC Club event of 2019 to get some more seat-time so he installed another transmission—and also blew that one up by the late afternoon. He has a new Samsonas dog box coming in soon though so hopefully that will help alleviate that pesky issue in 2020…

I used to see Justin Yoo’s S2000 back at the NORUSH shop back when we used to be neighbors but I don’t think I’ve seen it since he completely redid the car. He took some time off for school and life in general but is finally getting back to doing track events on weekends…

Duane Bada was hoping to have some fun at Buttonwillow while also running the VTEC Club event but he ran into some suspension issues so his Civic was sitting for most of the day…

Alex Liao’s S2000 which was just recently redone a few months back with J’s Racing (style?) front fenders with some additional venting up top and new side diffusers…

Amir had his hood propped-up while he was trying to get an air bubble out of his cooling system. The thing with having a K-series engine in an NSX is figuring out how to cool the car properly with the engine in the rear. He’s got a lot of help from Koyorad and he’s also running two electric water pumps, one in the rear and one under the hood…

Kristian and Amir trying to work-out some TPS issues that Muoi Tran was having with her Civic…

Justin’s S2000 looking pretty solid these days with this Voltex-look and colormatched mirrors/rear wing…

The RS Future NSX getting set to go out for its next session…

December is a pretty nice time to go out to Buttonwillow. It’s a little chilly but you get some nice cloud cover…

Blowing-up transmissions never looked this good…

Duane was only out for one session but managed to mangle his First Molding front lip…

I can’t confirm this but from the looks of it, this looks like Ryan Hoegner’s old Integra Type R, now owned by Kevin Meacham. It looks a little different now with the bronze TEs and the carbon doors but I’m glad to see it in capable hands…

Good ride height on this E46 M3 coupe on Enkei NT03…

Speaking of previously great builds now in the hands of new owners, this black DC2 Type R is Gil Salazar’s old ITR that you’ll probably recognize as the old Circuit Hero car. It’s still looking good these days and driven hard…

Another shot of Duane’s Civic even though I see it every day…

The Super Street magazine FF Battle 2019 winner…

Kristian taking Muoi’s Civic for a test drive to make sure the TPS is working…

Jonathan Ramos’ H2B-powered Civic with the new Tracklife Composites front lip…

The final round of VTEC Club welcome cars of all makes and models to compete so it wasn’t uncommon to see cars like this BMW E92 M3 on TEs…

Justin and his dog Chloe having a conversation…

Some VTEC Club competitors were even out at Buttonwillow having a BBQ…

Manny from After Hours Garage brought his Civic out to check-out the action at Buttonwillow. It’s been a while since I’ve seen his Civic out and about but it’s looking pretty good with the BYS front and Volk TEs. Manny is actually the one responsible for most of the work on the red Slaughter Boys Civic hatchback that you’ve seen plenty of this year…

Muoi’s Civic is also looking good these days with her Arios front finally installed along with the J’s Racing fenders and C-West sideskirts…

The boys from Koyorad doing cooling system things…

The K20Z inside Amir’s NSX…

Loi Hua from Loi-Spec Garage’s Integra Type R on 17×9 Mugen MF10 on 255/40-17 tires…

Justin waiting to go out for his next session in search of a new personal best lap time…

The RS Future NSX in action…

Scott Dukeshire’s Porsche 996 GT3 on the track testing out Nankang AR1 rubber on his Forgeline wheels…

Justin Yoo’s S2000 in action…

Justin uses a magnetic sheet on his VTEC Club number tags so they can come off after every track event…

Phil hitched a ride with me up to Buttonwillow so I convinced him to take my Pilot during lunch time to Popeyes to get some Chicken Sandwiches…

Yokohama Advan A052 filling the wheel wells nicely on Muoi’s Civic…

Matt Rojana taking a break from ruining a new A90 Supra’s steering rack…

John Cruz just finished installing his transmission a few hours before the VTEC Club event but ran into axle issues which prevented him from getting any seat time in Goldie…

Here you can really see the color shift in the Midnight Purple paint job on Amir’s NSX…

That day, I learned that a 996 GT3 and Forgeline wheels make a good combo…

Kristian thoroughly reading the warning page before clicking “Enter” on the Bangbros page…

Phil and Der closing out 2019 with some Popeyes Chicken Sandwiches…

Der showing the boys how he enjoys his sandwiches…

Duane’s dirty ass TEs…

Muoi bought every Throttle Position Sensor in the surrounding areas and decided to break them all…

Jose showing everyone why he calls himself “Type_R_Jose” as he pilots Kevin’s Type R, testing out the new coilovers from S3 Suspension…

Muoi ended the afternoon with a 2:00.2 lap time, just narrowly missing her goal of hitting a sub 2…

Lewis Liang’s Integra Type R with a JDM DC2 face and INGS+1 front…

John’s Civic back on the trailer…

Rich Phothivongsay’s K20/K24-powered Integra GSR with a Exceed x Mode Parfume front lip and Volk CEs. From what I read the motor was pretty fucked after this event and he’s looking for a new set-up in 2020…

Der enjoying the thrills of film photography with his new Leica…

Just a beautiful winter afternoon in sunny California…

And that’s a wrap on this one. I’m glad I made the time to go to a VTEC Club event this year. If you guys are looking to track your Hondas or just wanna enjoy some time attack, you should definitely give VTEC Club a go. It’s worth it, you’ll meet great people and more importantly, have a hell of a time. Thanks for looking and happy holidays!!…