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.

Event Coverage | SpoCom 2012 (Part 2)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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This week has been pretty hectic and I barely had time to compile rest of the coverage for all you guys who were looking forward to part 2. There are still a lot of cars that weren't in part 1 that will be in today's coverage, so don't click on the X button at the top right of your window.

So to add some of my thoughts in part 2, I think SpoCom had a lot more spectators compared to last years event. Tons of people were walking in and out and when I had to wait for more than 40 minutes to just park, I instantly realized SpoCom was going to be off the hook. Car wise, I would say it was similar or less. There were a line of cars that I haven't seen last year, as well as not seeing cars that participated last year. Either way, the show was great and I had a great time.

Event Coverage | Hot Import Nights 2012

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Ah yes! It felt great going to a car show again after 2 months of being MIA. Well, actually, I've been going through blogs, sites, etc. to keep myself updated with what was going around in the car scene today. I really didn't notice a new 'trend' thing, so it seemed like nothing has changed that much for this year. One thing for sure though, were new rides popping up here and there and of course, aftermarket companies and just car enthusiasts buying the all new Subaru BRZ or/and Scion FR-S. I was looking forward to see some modded BRZs and FR-Ss at the next car show I planned on attending, which was Hot Import Nights that happened last Saturday.

I'm sure many of you guys know about HIN (Hot Import Nights). As I've mentioned in my previous coverages on HIN, HIN was the first show I've ever attended and this was back in middle school. My friend's sister was actually modeling so a few friends and I got in for free. I think during this time period was when Tila Tequila was trying to be an import model or something. All I remember, were shit load of lights from every angle, bunch of cars with lambo doors, and neon lights and other things in and out of cars. I mean...I thought those things were cool back then because seeing any car that was other than its stock form was awesome to those who just got into the car scene. Anyways, things have changed tremendously throughout the years and as of today, comparing the attended show cars for this year to back then in middle school, it's absolutely shocking.

Event Coverage | Motion Auto Show 2012 (Pt. III)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Why does it feel like the week is going faster than usual? I remember writing up part 1 on Monday, but it's already Thursday and I'm writing the final part of my Motion Auto Show coverage. O well~ It might be good for some of you guys who felt as if these past few days were slow as hell.
Today's coverage will cover the other parts of the showcase area and I'll be talking about some random things that I observed throughout the show. I actually stayed until 6pm chilling with my boys at Import Fashion's booth, but didn't get a chance to hear the awards being announced. I have no idea why I missed the last part...because....I can't remember what the hell I was doing. Those dam gummy bears...Ged..you know exactly what I'm talking about. Anyways, in the words of comedian David So, "LGI son! Let's get it! Let's go!"

Event Coverage | Motion Auto Show 2012 (Pt. II)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Harro~! Welcome back NI fans. I really appreciate many of you guys leaving comments and liking my part 1 coverage of MAS 2012. It means a lot when a compliment is made on whatever I do that's involved with cars. I'm just a blogger and NI is a personal blog, so whenever I do get a positive feedback, that means I'm doing something right and you guys are enjoying my coverages and features. Right?

While in the topic of feedbacks and compliments, something pretty awesome happened last week at a bar/lounge I go to in koreatown called Gaam. If you love food and drinking, then you should know about this place because it is THE spot in ktown to chill with your homies. On Saturday, I met up with Steve and Luke, who are very well known photographers, to have some 'fun' (you can define that word in any way) until the place closed, which was around 2am. Afterwards, a guy named Jin came up to me, asking if I was the owner of Night Import. The conversation continued on and I found out he was a huge fan of my blog. He even knew all the recent posts I made on this site you guys are in right now. I really appreciate all of ya'll who take a look at the photos and words I post up on the fanpage, but I appreciate those who check my official blog even more. I'm just mentioning this small story because I want to say thanks to Jin for coming up to me and complimenting about my site. *thumbs up* Also, shout out to my new friends Steve and Luke who really made my day on Saturday. It was CHILL!

I gotta get back to my MAS coverage instead of talking about some random events that aren't related, so fast forwarding to Sunday, there were a lot of things I saw and heard other than cars in general. Some are confidential because I don't want to create some drama, but there will be some short stories/opinions/thoughts I want to mention for certain photos I'll be posting up today or maybe in my part 3 coverage.
I remember last year's MAS was really packed. When I mean by packed, I'm talking about cars parked close together and few aisles overcrowded with spectators. But for some reason, I felt as if the crowd was lacking and not a lot of teams/crews participated. It sort of brought back the memories of last year's event schedule when Nisei, MAS, SpoCom, and Wekfest were all happening within 2 months or so. Anyways, I decided to start off with one of my favorite cars at MAS, which was this WALD Black Bison LS600h built by VIP Auto Salon. I actually saw this car in ktown while watching the Lakers play and it was rolling into a lot filled with people waiting in line to eat at a restaurant. I don't know about you guys, but if I was one of those hungry people in line, I would've been a bit full checking out this car. Stunning!

Event Coverage | Motion Auto Show 2012 (Pt. I)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Wow. It felt amazing last week to FINALLY attend a major car show here in SoCal. The last show I went to was the one in Puente Hills hosted by Prestige Marketing and that was like..2~3 months ago. If you are active in the car scene as a blogger, then you know exactly how it feels to rest for that long. Because of time conflicts and being so tired during my resting period, the only way to be updated with cars was to check out blogs and sites that update very frequently, such as Speedhunters, MotorMavens, StanceWorks, etc. I was particularly interested in SoCal car news because I live in SoCal and want to be updated with cars that have never came out or the ones I've seen before but with new setups for this year. Knowing how seeing cars in person and online have a difference and the fact that MAS was on a Sunday when I didn't work, I was really excited. Wait, let me exaggerate a bit more... I was extremely fu*king excited!

On Saturday when I usually stay up all night chilling with my homies, I actually came home early (around 3am...*cough*) to rest up, woke up at around 8am, got ready, and right when I was about to leave, I felt as if I needed to check my tires, so I started from the back checking the treads. Rears were fine considering it's on -8 camber and I was rolling on them for 7 months now, but the front passenger side tire was almost gone! I was like.. fu*k it..and just drove the tC slowly to Long Beach Convention Center. I arrived at around 11am, got my Media pass, and the coverage started from then on. I was debating on which photo to start with, and decided to give Michael Mao's NSX the spotlight. I'll get back to his car later on throughout the coverage. You guys ready? Because I am! LEGO!!!!

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 | Royal Flush meet @ Ray Ray Restaurant

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Enjoying the beautiful weather in California, but grinding my teeth because of ridiculous gas prices, the best way to deal with my ups and downs was to attend a car meet! You know there will be at least one meet during the weekends, so I always tend to plan ahead by calling my friends to come out to a certain meet or go alone to see what's up. Last Sunday, I stepped out of my house to buy a toner for my old ass printer, but after finding out Office Depot didn't have any for my printer model, I was just sitting in my car, thinking of what to do. If I wanted to be a studious person, I would've gone to a local cafe to study, but because it was a weekend and I wanted to do something else than shove my face in medical books, I hit up my good friend Lauren who works at Mida Sushi to bother her. She reminded me about a meet I attended last month hosted by Royal Flush at Ray-Ray Restaurant located in El Monte and told me RF was doing it again. I think it's becoming a monthly meet now because the turnout is pretty dam good. Other than the cars though, I like the drinks at Ray Ray's, so that's another reason why I wanted to go :)
Enjoy the short video 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.

NightLife | BP VIP meet

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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One crew I got really close with during this past few months is BP VIP. I've known these guys for quite a long time now, but never had a chance to actually chill with them because of being busy going to multiple events on the same day or just keeping myself occupied with automotive related stuff. For those who have been following my blog since day 1, I'm sure you saw a feature on an IS from this crew, titled Stylish IS. It was the only feature I shared on a Korean blog and got massive hits. If you did see it, then you know this crew is all about VIP rides, hence the name BP VIP; BP "Bippu Pride" VIP (good times + good people + sweet VIP rides). Along with Import Fashion, this past few months with this crew was a blast! I don't want to get into details, but let's just say every time I chill with these guys, I end up going home at 4~5am with a filled stomach and sometimes drunk :D
Last week during It's JDM yO!'s event, I ended up leaving early with our photographer Nick Schultz to attend BP VIP's meet at Buena Park. Luckily, the location wasn't too far from It's JDM yO!'s event so I decided to drop by. They've been having this meet for a few months now and Nick did cover it once for my blog (Click), but because I did have my camera, I did a quick coverage for you guys to check out the newly updated rides from this crew.

Nightlight | Memorable Rides of 2011 (Part 2)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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"What the...I thought he was done with the Memorable Rides article.." Yeap! I was~ but sitting down at Starbucks yesterday and thinking about my blog like always, there were a few more rides I just had to give some spotlight because of its well-built figure and uniqueness other than the 10 cars I introduced to you guys in my Memorable Rides of 2011 post. This is why living in California as an automotive enthusiast is like a blessing. Well-rounded quality cars will mostly be in California and those rides are good enough to stun the world. On top of that, there will always be a car show or meet within every single week. What more can you ask when everything you want as an enthusiast happens in CA? It reminds me of my automotive childhood (only a year ago because I didn't know jack shiet about cars back then) when I went to my first event, then to the second on the following week, and then next week, next week...next week...you know how it goes. I obviously can't remember every single ride in the scene throughout my active years, but the ones I do remember means that those cars had a strong impression. For all you girls, it's the feeling of going inside Louis Vuitton, seeing a newly released bag, going home and thinking about it 24/7. Without further ado, I would like to continue with my choice of memorable rides from 2011.

Random Nightlight | Change

Night Import: Photography by me and other sites | Words by William Lee

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After realizing it's been little over a year now since joining the 'scene', I took some time to look at my past, seeing what I've done so far and the changes that occurred around me since the beginning till now. This random thought and idea came up after talking with one of my inspirations, Ben Schaffer from Bulletproof Automotive. We were talking about various things related to the automotive community and one topic we discussed about was how I became involved with you guys. For those who don't know me too well or about this blog, I didn't start off by knowing car owners or even companies. Matter of fact, I didn't know anyone except a few people on forums. It was a network friendship/relationship and like many of us, it's not easy to approach those who we talk with online when it comes to an in-person situation, so most of my time going to meets or events was just... me and my camera! I had no intentions in the beginning to promote who I was or what I did because the reason why I started was nothing more than the passion and love I had toward cars. But constantly going out to meets or events was sort of a way to approach people. If I didn't know who they were, they knew me because of seeing me at least once a week. It's now to the point where people say "why isn't William covering this event," or "where the hell is he?" I'm not trying to put myself in the spotlight, but that's really what I've been noticing. I personally and honestly think I'm not a major part of this community nor created a positive image to Medias and Bloggers, but a natural behavior became a habit, and that's what brought me and my blog to where it is today.

I get plenty of questions from many of my friends and fans, and one question I come across pretty often is their curiosity on how I managed to go to events and meets constantly while not getting tired of it. I think this is what makes people who start blogs decide to quit within a few months because of repetition. You go out there and see the same cars, same people, same vendors, etc. But really, isn't that the enjoyment? This is why I decided to write this post, to show you guys some cars I've seen when I first started and how much it progressed throughout the year.




I still remember as if it was yesterday when I first saw Minh Nguyen's IS. I'm pretty sure almost everyone in this community knows Minh's ride because of its outstanding fitment on Enkei RPF1s powdercoated by Simple Wheel Werks. Wherever this car went, it was breaking necks 24/7. Not too long ago, he decided to get another IS and do something different. As you can see in the second photo, Minh decided to go VIP style and although I didn't get to look at his car in depth, I can already tell he did an outstanding job.

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.

Random Nightlight | Oni-Camber now in California

Night Import: Video by 7tune and Kevin Falk

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There are some ridiculously cambered cars here in California. Trust me, when I mean by ridiculous, I mean RIDICULOUS! But today, I just saw a video of my friend's car that literally beat all the ones I've seen so far in person. This might be in the level of the infamous VIP car in Japan! Call it Oni-Camber, Demon Camber, Oni, Super Camber...fuk....I don't care..this is just INSANE!!!

P.S. Before you guys start hating on the car, please do know this is a "style" or for most of us that respect it, a "lifestyle". People who modify their cars with insane camber already know about thread life, losing function, etc. As much as this part of the flush scene respects those who focus on function, please try to understand this style rather than focusing on only one part of the tuning world. Thanks!


Christopher Cuban GS Daniel's Aristo in California, Video by Kevin Falk


Video of the "Crazy Insane VIP car in Japan" by 7tune

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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 | Eagle Rock Plaza 2nd Car Meet

Night-Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

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Yesterday night will be one of those memorable moments of my time being in the automotive scene exploring car meets because of going through 6+ bumps in Eagle Rock plaza that literally ripped off my front lip because of being too low and having to come out of my car every time I went over one because my bumper fell off, but also because I attended a car meet held at a permitted lot!
This was my first time attending this meet after hearing others the 1st one was epic, so I didn't know what to expect. O yea, just a heads up, from now on my coverage on events or meets will have a title on the cover photo. I usually just post a photo that goes along with the whole event/meet, but seems like some of you guys liked/wanted a title on it, so look forward to seeing poor title fonts (^_^)v.

Special Coverage | Cars & Coffee by BP VIP

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

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If you live in Southern California, crew BP VIP should sound familiar. I've known these guys for quite a long time now and featured two of their members ride previously; Norman's Previa and Carl's Lexus IS.
What is this crew all about? Its team name pretty much says it all.

BP VIP = BP "Bippu Pride" VIP (good times + good people + sweet rides).

Last week, BP VIP hosted their own Cars & Coffee at Buena Park and our photographer Nick Schultz was able to attend the meet for a coverage.

Random Spotlight: AutoFashion's Elgrand

Night-Import: Photography by William Lee

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It's definitely not available in the States and can only be seen in Japan. This Nissan Elgrand was one of those cars at Extreme Autofest/Remix Edition car show last Saturday that caught the attention of many automotive enthusiasts. We might think of the Elgrand as a normal family vehicle, but it's actually considered as a 'luxury' MPV, which is why many of the Elgrands in Japan are modified to be VIP.
I do not know the background story of how this car was made, but I do know it was AutoFashion's project car and they brought it out for the show.

Random Spotlight: VIP'd Equus

As we all know, Japan is the hometown of VIP cars and has been inspiring many luxurious car owners and automotive enthusiasts in general. We've seen VIP rides from many different countries, but not too much from Japan's closest country, South Korea.
I've been doing some thorough research during this past month and came across some beautiful rides in S. Korea, one of them being featured today on our site.