Special Coverage: JIC USA

May 13, 2011

Night-Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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JIC Japan, or also known as JIC Magic, started their launch of aftermarket products since 1988 and has been dominating almost every field of automotive sport, from Drifting to Time Attack. To expand and promote their name out to the world, JIC decided to branch their division to North America with the name JIC USA. In a matter of time, the division was established and throughout the years, JIC USA participated in various automotive sports and events, categorizing the company as one of the must reputable aftermarket companies in the automotive industry. However, last year, a shocking news was announced  stating JIC Magic filing bankruptcy.

I was fortunate to meet Jon during this past month to clarify what was really going on with the company and to also introduce you guys to JIC's future products.



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It’s been over a year now since the opening of JIC USA and Jon has managed to keep the business alive. There were, of course, ups and downs throughout the years with product management and keeping the relationship stable with JIC Magic (Japan) in the past, but as of today, JIC USA is in its own.
The automotive community feared they would no longer see JIC products, but in reality, products were still being sold in Japan and exported to the US for sales.
While in the rumors of disappearance, Jon K, the head of JIC USA, was developing his own line of products with a complete new design. The company, once known to manufacture various parts for cars, from wheels to even exhausts, is now solely based on suspension parts, especially coilovers. Because of confidentiality reasons, a photo of the coilover was not taken.

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Jon being in the business for more than 25 years, building engines and working on competition cars in Japan, identifying how a coilover is made is simple math. His up-to-date detailed diagrams and layout of coilovers for was absolutely stunning.
One product that I can announce to the public is the upcoming JIC 4-way adjustable coilover. These top-of-the-line coilover for any brand today has a price range of about $10,000~$15,000, having the ability to adjust low and high speed bump/rebound separately, adjustable canister pressure, and much more. Here's an updated price quote list sent by JIC USA a few days ago. (All coilovers are 'Made in USA').
ZMS S ingle adjustable monotube $1200~$1800
ZMS RS 2way adjustable mono tube $ 2200~3000
ZMS RS3 3way adjustable with external reservoir tank mono tube $4000~5000
ZMS RS4 4way adjustable with external reservoir tank mono tube $5000~6000

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After our conversation, which I will share more at the bottom, Jon guided me to the warehouse where all the project cars were being worked on and stored. There are a few cars that will be showed to the public very soon.

The cars that were covered are mostly Porsche’s. Matter of fact,  JIC is selling their famous Porsche 993 RS3.8L Twin Turbo race and drift car. If you’ve been a fan of Drifting and Time Attack, you should know this car has barely been on the track, but has records that are worthy to be on the history of automotive sports.

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I was very surprised with the overall size of the body shop behind the office. A few rare classics and imports were covered such as the R32 Skyline, Evo 10, and a 220 SE Mercedes Benz.

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Tons of project cars and most of them being prepped for shows and competition.

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Near the corner was a separate room where Jon enjoyed his hobby; building engines. This old classic motor was fully built by Jon and almost completed.

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This S14 will be one of JIC USA's track car very soon. The motor is still being worked on, but will be completed in a few weeks.

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At the far corner of the bodyshop was another JIC project car, Mazda RX-8. This beast is on a 13B single turbo engine, fully prepped to dominate its category in Time Attack or Drifting. The car is completed and will be at shows in a few months.

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The official announcement of this car competing or showing will be updated on JIC's website and Facebook page.

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After the tour, I spotted Jon's 700HP+ GT-R. There are a few photos going around the net, so make sure to check it out.

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Lastly, a VIP Q, owned by the worker of JIC.

Before I end this coverage, I want to share a small part of the conversation I had with Jon that wasn't mentioned at the beginning.
Jon's opinion and thoughts were very strong toward his company JIC USA and JIC Japan. One of the reasons why he personally thought JIC Japan filed bankruptcy, or maybe a fact, was because of JIC Japan's focus on only cars in Japan and not focusing on US based car models even when it branched out. That is one of the reasons why Jon is taking this opportunity to start new in the US aftermarket industry by providing the highest quality coilovers to tuners. More detailed topics and thoughts will be shared in our 'Questionnaire‏' coverage later on.

I want to thank Jon K again for his time. Make sure to visit JIC USA and JIC Facebook.

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