OC Auto Show (2023) - Part I

Night Import: Photography by William Lee | Words by William Lee

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I'm finally back with an actual car show coverage! There are two car shows that I know of that cater to upcoming/future cars and current/new cars from many car companies that happen in SoCal and it's OC Auto Show and LA Auto Show. I had the opportunity to attend OC Auto Show with my friends this year and let's just say it was a breath of fresh air to see a bunch of cars in one place. They had areas to test-ride certain cars and many small events were held inside the convention center. You can tell this year's event was mostly focused on EV cars, because you know... EVs are the shiet! Jokes aside though, people are choosing EV cars due to environmental issues, but mostly because of rising gas prices and I'm with them on that one. I'm going to separate the coverage into two parts because of the amount of photos I took, so let's get on with part 1. Also, please note that I had a difficult time taking a car photo in whole because of people being around a car almost every second, so please understand.

Event Coverage | SEMA 2014

Night Import: Photography by Seijin Dootson | Words by William Lee

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How long has it been since I actually logged in and updated my blog? .... I have no idea .... I am truly sorry for all my NI fans. It's not the lack of interest in the car scene guys. I've been hearing from all my friends about the car scene and I always try to keep myself updated by checking out other car blogs. If I have to make another excuse like every blog post I write, I don't shoot anymore and pretty dam busy with my job. O well... but HEY! I'm back again! Let's jump right into what I have to show you guys today.

If you are a fan of my blog, you know that every year, I post up a coverage on SEMA. It's either me going there and covering it alone or sending my guys. Unfortunately for this year, my guys and I couldn't make it :/ So I had to look through my facebook friends/groups/etc. to see who would contribute their work for my blog. Luckily, I came across UCI's facebook group and saw a photo posted by Seijin Dootson. He gladly accepted my request and sent a few photos yesterday for my blog to share with you guys.

The first car you see up there is one of my favorite cars, the Mazda RX-7 FD. It kinda sucks to know that the FD doesn't get much recognition like the old days, but I still love it and will be one of my favorites until I die. What you see is a bit different from other modified FDs you've seen at car shows/events. The widebody is the popular Rocket Bunny kit with a wheel I have never seen by Enkei, the Enkei92. The color combo is a love at first sight kind of feeling.

Event Coverage | Tokyo Auto Salon 2014 (Pt. I - Theme White)

Night Import: Photography by All That Low (Charles Zee Zayas) | Words by William Lee

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Hello everyone! Ok..I don't want to act like this is my first blog post.. WSUP GUYS!!!! Long time no see. I actually forgot to add coverage on an event in Japan that happened few months ago, so I'll postpone that one and start with a fresh one, actually, a first blog post for the year of 2014. I'm pretty sure many of you guys were looking forward to see NI's coverage on Tokyo Auto Salon, because we had a good amount of comments and feedback for our 2012 Tokyo Auto Salon coverage.

Like usual, our boy Charles in Japan participated at this year's TAS and he had a lot to say about it. According to Charles, the cars were phenomenal and the people were really awesome, other than what he had to say about the waiting in line haha. You guys will see what he had to say about the event in a bit, but before that, I want to share my thoughts about this year's TAS, even though I did not have the time to attend.

I've been keeping myself updated with almost every event that happens around the world. I can't say which event was the best because every event had its own taste of cars. Today's post is about TAS, so let's talk about that. Here in the States, the FRS and BRZ were the cars that got the most attention. It was the same in Japan, but a lot more kits and other parts were introduced for the Toyota 86 as well as for other make/models. If you guys know of SEMA, you can think of TAS being the Japan version of SEMA. It's all about modified cars and newly introduced car parts, such as wheels, coilovers, body kits, etc. being displayed for those who attend the event. I'm not only talking about FRSs and BRZs, but other JDM cars and even European cars that are also introduced/showcased with new parts. In a company's perspectives, they attend TAS to stock up JDM parts or make contracts with widely known companies such as Top Secret, Varis, Amuse, etc., but for bloggers like us, we capture the details of almost every modified cars that is in attendance. Here is what Charles had to say about the event. After you guys read it, we will start with the coverage.

By the way, we are going to do something different compared to all the other blogs that did a coverage on TAS 2014. Today, we will show you guys most of the spotted White cars by Charles.

2014 is here and I want to thank Night Import for one, bringing me up in this game, and two, for allowing me the opportunity to show my content here. Friday morning, I woke up at 6am to catch a bus from Yokohama Station to head to TAS Press DAY. Upon arrival, I was highly disappointed as it seemed they let every nut in the place who said they were "PRESS". I'm not special or anything but trying to provide you guys through Night Import is special enough for me. But the old weirdo's with video cameras and huge DSLR's pointed directly into the model faces and trying to get up-skirt photos is just not what press day is for me. But I hear there is a market to push photos like that. I myself don’t have the time and patience to sit there and battle for lead position to take a photo of a chick I don’t even know. Haha. However, the event itself was actually not bad. This year, I had a plan set out in the AM, but with the amount of people allowed in before the Public opening at 1pm I was limited to what I can shoot. I know I spread the word of Night Import and my own blog Allthatlow so I hope to do some shop visits and more event coverage. I appreciate everyone's support with both of our blogs. Please follow us for more content from across that big ocean. Japan. I'm out -Zee-

Event Coverage | Sessions Platinum VIP (Pt. I)

Night Import: Photography by All That Low (Charles Zayas) | Words by William Lee

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Being in the scene for more than 2 years now, I have encountered numerous "types" of cars; from track to fitted, almost everything in the scene today. Of course I appreciate every type ...except ones that have fake intercoolers and fake blow-off valves that make your car look like piece of shit :) One style I really loved from the beginning was VIP style cars. Many might think VIP cars are all about slamming them to the ground with extreme fitment, but let me tell you, there is much more to it.

The debate about VIP style has been going on forever. Personally, I don't think there is an exact definition of VIP style. If there was a standard for what a VIP style car should be, then I'm pretty dam sure almost every car out there that fixes up their car in a VIP style way would be all the same. I personally think the "details" make up a VIP style car.

Well today, this coverage post is not to discuss about what is VIP style or not, but to show you guys how strong the VIP community is in Japan by posting up a coverage of one of the biggest VIP car shows called Sessions Platinum VIP, a show that is hosted by a VIP shop called Sessions. Like always, the show was held at Fuji Speedway. You will encounter numerous cars here and will realize the people in this show have a passion for VIP style cars. I have looked through the pictures Charles sent me last week and was shocked to see some of these cars going over the limit of fitment and the details that were put into it.

Random NightLife: Tour on Job Design

Night Import: Photo by Brian Kato | Words by William Lee

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Welcome back! I'm finally bringing you guys some content to enjoy. It took me awhile to get these photos edited, submitted by my good friend Brian Kato, who recently went to Japan and visited a few companies and events. He actually shared his photos with us on D1GP, so if you missed his coverage, click here to check it out.
Today, I'll be taking you guys on a tour to the famous VIP company in Japan called Job Design. Brian Kato himself drives a VIP Fuga here in the states and is a big fan of Job Design, so it was one of his listed plans to visit the company when he went to Japan. I personally love this company as well because of the luxurious and exotic style the kits hold and goes so well with a few chassis, especially Lexus. It's not so common to see a Job Design Lexus GS or LS here in the states, but if you get to see one in person, you literally stand at one spot, staring at the car for a few minutes. After seeing so many VIP rides last year, I'm planning to move to a VIP chassis instead of the Rx-7 FD I planned on getting. I mean...I just got a better position in work and have to meet a few lawyers here and there, so why not drive a boss'd out car in koreatown, right? :D Let's check out the coverage by Brian.

NightLife | 2012 LTBMW Meet & Greet

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Good morning everyone! I think that applies to those who live in the US right now, but wherever you are, welcome back to Night Import (^-^)v It's been a busy week like usual with car shows and meets. You know how it goes down in California, especially after winter, so expect a lot more coverages this year. I really wanted to focus more on features, but the time to actually go out during the weekdays and do photoshoots is not working out, so my apologies to all the car owners I promised to shoot their rides. It will happen soon, so give me a bit more time! But in the positive side for all you Night Import fans, a coverage should be good enough during your break time or if you don't have anything to do.
Last week, there were 2 places I needed to stop by to do coverage; LTBMW's Greet & Meet and Hot Import Nights. I was unsure if I had time to stop by LTBMW's meet because I got a sudden call on Friday asking to work on Saturday, so my time schedule got pretty fuked up. Luckily, I ended early and had time to grab something to eat and head down to LTBMW's meet. Yeap~ I promised myself not to attend 2 car meets/shows this year, but it's not working out because I fuking love cars. :D
Let's get on with the coverage.

NightLife | Another visit to BP VIP's meet

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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So I'm back again with some coverage to share with you guys today. I know the blog has been quiet these days, but that's because I've been studying almost every single day and was not active during this past 1~2 months. Last week was also Wekfest in San Francisco, the biggest car show in California, and everyone that I know of was preparing for the show, so SoCal was pretty dam quiet. All I saw on Facebook were updates regarding Wekfest and it was killing me because I couldn't attend it! There were some priorities I needed to take care of, so sorry guys for not being able to cover Wekfest :/ I'll keep you guys updated on facebook with all the coverages on the event once I take a look at them, but so far, I haven't seen any other than MotorMavens.
While not trying to think about Wekfest SF and seeing if any other event or meet was happening in SoCal, I realized BP VIP was having another meet at the place where they had it last time. It was definitely one of those meets I didn't expect a big turnout because of Wekfest, but I wanted to meet up with my friends and check out some rides.

Event Coverage | Import Showcase by Import Fashion

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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I felt as if I haven't gone to a car show for years! Actually..it's been only 2 months after attending AutoCon last year, but for some reason, that 2 months was a wait. I did go to car meets and stuff, but the atmosphere of a car show was something I truly missed. Luckily, my boy Alvin, owner of Import Fashion, worked his ass off to lock down a venue and create his own show for the enthusiasts. There were some complications last year when he tried to have his 1 yr. anniversary meet, but gladly things worked out well this year and the planned meet turned into an event.
Alvin is a close friend of mine in and outside of the car scene and our friendship started even before my blog was created. We actually launched our sites around the same time period, which is why I've been going to car shows and meets with him pretty often in the past. When I heard he was finally having his own show, I couldn't be any happier. His work throughout the months was appreciated by many because of covering both models and cars. I would say his blog's content was more toward models. According to Alvin, he will be featuring more cars this year, so stay tuned! I could go on and on about how awesome Alvin is, but instead of writing down my thoughts like I always do with coverages, I'll jump into the coverage on Import Showcase by Import Fashion.

Random Nightlight | Reintroduction: Carl's IS from BP VIP

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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I've been waking up with migraines almost every day because of work and studying. Consuming more than 3 cups of coffee at Starbucks and Korean Cafes is probably the reason why I've been so stressed and really irritated with small things happening around me. But I think it's been getting better after having a girlfriend and thinking positively, so that's an update with my life. For those who know my car, it's been the same since last year and will be going through a makeover hopefully by next month, but that's just a speculation.
Anyways, yesterday was the birthday of a good friend of mine, Carl Zamuco, owner of the IS from BP VIP I featured back in Feb. 7, 2011. After visiting his facebook profile page to write down Happy Birthday, I looked through my Flickr account to see the photos that were posted on his feature. Realizing how much of a noob I was back then with post-processing, I decided to re-edit a few photos I personally liked. All the full-res photos are gone because of my hard drive crashing, so I had to work with what I had... (ㅜㅜ) I'm still in the process of learning PP skills from various photographers, so don't expect some crazy edits (^_^) Thanks to my boy John Zhang aka 1013mm for helping me out!
This is not a feature, but to re-introduce Carl's IS with better PP'd photos. Enjoy!

Nightlight | SoCal's Finest Rides #1

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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It's about time to share with you guys my favorite rides from Southern California. There were a few qualifications that needed to be met before I decided which cars deserved some recognition or already did, but worth another one. I can think of a few right now that are ridiculously gorgeous, but to me, it wasn't about what kind of parts a car had or which team it represented. My choices were based off on activeness, quality of the car, and attitude of the car owner. It might seem as if I'm going a bit overboard here, but I personally think that's what makes a car known and recognized by many enthusiasts. I'm not saying fully built show cars aren't worth a feature on Night Import or any blog/site. Of course those cars will be featured and get recognized, but the props really goes to the ones that actually bring out their show built cars to meets/shows to represent their team or just themselves. Please don't take this to heart to all of ya'll who own spectacular cars. I love em! which is why I'm going to write another article with cars I think are just way over the top!
Some of these rides you are about to see were seen numerous times on my blog, but if this is your first time visiting this page or haven't been updated with my articles and features, it will be worth your time and give you somewhat of an idea of what kind of cars I truly like. So, which cars did I choose? Let's get on to it. If you didn't click on the link provided on the fanpage, you'll have to click "Read More" at the lower right bottom to see the whole feature. I usually post a car photo as a cover, but because this post is somewhat special to me, I tried to keep that suspense and mystery for those who visit my site daily.

Special Coverage | 2013 Scion FR-S

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Through many websites and blogs, we've already seen the revealing of  Toyota 86 at Gazoo Racing Motorsports Festival 2011 and Subaru BRZ at Tokyo Motor Show. Anticipation for the arrival of the Scion version was at its peak and finally, last night was the day many were waiting for; debut of the Scion FR-S. I actually had no clue about this invite-only event until a good friend of mine in the Scion scene, Kirby, wrote a comment on one of my posts through Facebook. After noticing this at the last moment, I instantly RSVP'd online and got an e-mail from Scion corp. saying that I was approved to join. What many of you guys don't know is that Scion corp. really takes care of their customers. When I mean by customers, I'm talking about those who own a Scion. The brand has several events throughout the year and how Scion corp. organizes and manages those events are unbelievably grand in scale. For example, Scion borrows the whole Knotts Berry Farm during Halloween week and opens the amusement park to only Scion owners. Almost every Scion owner in California goes to that event, so you can imagine how crazy it gets with the amount of Scions and Scion owners + guests.
The debut of Scion FR-S was somewhat similar. Everyone who was registered through the biggest Scion forum, ScionLife, had an opportunity to attend this special event along with well-known bloggers, writers, representatives, and photographers from all around the world. You've probably seen the photos already through facebook or blogs, but it's time to share my own and write some accurate information released by Scion.

Random Nightlight | Kyoei-USA LS400

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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By now, I'm pretty sure most of you guys saw all the cars that were at SEMA last week through my coverage, but there are still some that I just need to feature. Rewinding the time period when I was present at SEMA, I remember walking around the outdoor area and bumping into my friend from M2-Motoring. We were talking for a bit when I later realized a LS400 on Weds Mavericks lowered with Air Runner, sitting right in front of me. I've seen a lot of VIP cars here in CA, but this one was unique and had an extra touch to it to give it its own VIP flavor. Today, it's this LS400 that deserves a small exposure, built by a well-known VIP shop from AZ called Kyoei-USA.

Event Coverage | The Pursuit III by Longo Lexus

Night-Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Last Sunday was pretty hectic. I had to jump by a few places back and forth, do some quick errands, and then finally had some time to cover events. There were two major ones happening on the same day and time, but like always, I managed to take care of both v(^-^)v.
Most of the major ones that go on annually are definitely a must-to-attend and listed on my smartphone because no one has a clue on what cars will show up. This is true because when I attended Bulletproof's 11th Anniversary meet, I found out the Carbon Fiber NSX made its first appearance to the public. To some of you guys, it might not mean anything, but to a blogger who goes to events and meets almost every week and see the same cars more than twice, it's a pretty big deal and a moment not to forget. The Pursuit was one of those events I didn’t want to miss because of having an awesome time last year, but not having enough time to thoroughly look at the cars. This event is the largest Lexus based event here in SoCal, opening the drag strip for competition along with a car show, both held at Irwindale Speedway, CA, so missing such an event is a no no! The Pursuit III was somewhat the same as The Pursuit II, so I arrived at around 12pm, covered the event for about a good 3 hours, and headed toward Race Day Car Show in Burbank. That coverage will be up hopefully by tomorrow, but today, enjoy the beautiful Lexus and other make/models.

Special Coverage | Lexus of Westminister Meet

Night-Import: Photography by Nick Schultz | Words by William Lee

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While I was busy at Sideway Sundays, our photographer Nick made it out to an annual Lexus meet at a Lexus dealership located in Westminister, CA. I've actually came across this event post on the Lexus forums and was planned to attend, but because I had to support an event our site was a part of, I missed out! Looking through the photo coverage, seems like this meet was off the hook.

Event Coverage | Toyotafest (TORC) 2011

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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I can't believe a year passed already since my attendance to TORC 2010. Back then, I had no clue about cars and just enjoyed taking photos, but this year was different. Throughout that 1 year period, my passion and love for cars grew tremendously. Of course there were mistakes here and there, but as of now, I do know more than I did and attending this year's Toyotafest made much more sense.
If you've never been to or heard of TORC (Toyota Owner's and Restorer's Club), aka Toyotafest, it's basically an organization specific for Toyota enthusiasts, also including Scion and Lexus. From classics to exotics, this event is the major Toyota event of the year, which means cars that you don't usually see at meets or small events appear at Toyotafest. You'll be amazed with the amount and type of cars very soon, so try not to click the X button on your window. Trust me; your time will be worth it. I usually post a 'crowd' photo as a cover of an event coverage, but for this one, I decided to share my favorite car at the event. It will have its own Random Spotlight feature so stay tuned.

Event Coverage: Lexus LFA Track Day

Night-Import: Photography and Words by Nick Schultz

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Exclusive, Luxurious, yet Exotic and Nimble, The Lexus LFA

This actually happened over 2 months ago. But I finally had some time to write up about it. I recieved a rare opportunity to shoot two LFA’s. One of the Corporate Lexus guys in the advanced business department saw one of my shots of a lexus sponsored car at an event. He liked it so he invited me to come shoot the LFA as customers who already bought the LFA (and ones interested) test drove the car where they could really let it loose, Fontana Auto Club Speedway.
It started around 8 in the morning, with customers coming for their appointments to drive the LFA. Customers waited in a garage at the track that was setup to be a lounge. It had some Five Axis/F-Sport modified Lexus Cars(GS, IS), as well as the new CT200H on display. It had several tables with complimentary refreshments and food snacks, fruit, cookies, drinks, coffee and later for lunch we had lasagna. Also there where 2 IS-F driving simulators specifically made for Lexus. Customers could have some fun while they waited for their turn to do the real thing on the track. I didn’t get a photo of this area because I was to excited and focused on taking pictures of the car lol! my mistake…
After grabbing some coffe I walked out to the track to 2 beautiful LFA’s waiting to be driven, several IS-F’s, Several Lexus drivers and Scott Pruett. Scott Pruett is known as one of the best American road racers. More recently, He achieved 1st place of the 24 Hours of Daytona race 2011.
Have you seen a Lexus LFA commercial on TV where they break the glass with the shear sound of the exhaust note?
How about the one where they dangle several lexus vehicles over an LFA?
If you have, then you have seen Scott, the driver behind the wheel. He was there to show people a great time, in both by driving the LFA and in IS-F’s and just by his presence.
So here we are at the break of dawn with all these incredible machines, well over one million USD worth of vehicles.

Special Coverage: South Orange County Meet @ The District

Night-Import: Photography by Nick Schultz

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Nick Schultz is one of our photographers in California being very active at events and doing exclusive features, which will be coming to our site very soon. Being known for his spectacular photography and having a positive reputation in the automotive community, Nick created a Lexus OC meet last year and having a success with the turnout, continued the meet for 2011 and as expected, tons of rides, from street to VIP, showed up to have fun and to taste the greatest boba ever made at the famous Tastea.

Event Coverage: ZOMGBBQ: at Sonic Motor

Love when BBQ events go, but sucks when you don't have time to even eat BBQ because of three events happening on the same day. The meet started at 10:30am and I was wrong to show up at around 11:30am because not enough cars showed up. Lesson I learned? Never show up too early when there's a BBQ meet. I think only some guys came early to pick up some highly discounted priced items, such as XXR wheels and Racing Bucket Seats.

Event Coverage: Formula D/Fatlace 1of1: Title Fight (Part 2)

Not too many words can describe how intense the final round of Formula D went. It was the most spectacular drifting event ever, making the event title 'Title Fight' sound perfect!
If you haven't kept up by watching it live on the net or were not there in person, Tanner Foust won the overall title of FD and Vaughn Gittin Jr. won the 2010 FD championship. The last rounds between these two amazing drifters were intense! The judging came down to 'one more time' after Round 7, but the ultimate Tanner Foust was just too hard to beat. As much as spectators enjoyed the battles amongst the drifters, they had some great time checking out the vendors and entertainment booths.

That's what Formula D is all about. Watch, relax, and to have fun.

Event Coverage: Formula D/Fatlace 1of1: Title Fight (Part 1)

Probably the most intense and over-crowded event in California, Irwindale Speedway held the final round of Formula D with the top drifters all around the world. But before I get into depth about the drifting event, I want to share some amazing hellaflush/stance rides in California. For every Formula D, we can't forget about the collaborating crew, Fatlace.
The top cars are chosen to show their rides like every other FD event, but yesterday was more meaningful for all the participants because of the massive amount of spectators, well-known media blog photographers, and obviously, watching the final round of Formula D.