SixthSpeed Issue 17

17

TRINBAGO’s PREMIER UNDERGROUND

MOTION.LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE

Mar/Apr 2014 + May/June 2014

The prices are RECOMMENDED & do not reflect or include Shipping or Sales tax or Additional Charges: USD $3.50 | EC$10:00 | TT$20.00 | BDS $10.00. It’s only a rough guide people.

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Inside Kids: CyberEvo3 Ian’s Gold ZX14 Marlon’s EK Civic Hatch A Generational 120Y Marsden S15

NEWS

2013 Drag Wrap Up | Local FIA Award Winners | Top Gear heads to Barbados | 2013 Kia Forte Koup | D&D Records Best Time | Carrington get aggresive | New Type R gets Boost | Mas in Oropouche | Boodoosingh makes it twice

DRIVER SERIES MORE BETTER GRAMMAR

The Sixth Bella Donna: Janelle You can WIN LARGE in The Castrol Magnatec & Sixth Speed Hamper Giveaway.

Be the first to facebook or text “Get the Edge” to the Sixth

THE INFAMOS SKF LANCER

If you have never heard of this car, is either you now fall out Gasparee caves, an obeah man just brought you back from the dead OR your piss now have enough pressure to buss calabash bush.

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A BETTER UNDERSTANDING of

TIRES & TRACTION Join Sixth Speed on the Facebook.

Look for SIXTH SPEED MAGAZINE. 3/21/2014 11:11:14 AM

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3/21/2014 11:11:17 AM

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NUMBERS by the SIXTH

40,000,000 - amount of money extorted by the government in 2013 through traffic tickets.

6,000,000 – the cost if you want a Lamborghini Aventador. That’s equal to 30,000 hours (3.5 years) of high grade Espanola in the VC.

T H E

S U M P

P A N

“A great revolution in just one single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a society and, further, will enable a change in the destiny of humankind.” - Daisaku Ikeda Yes we late again. Alright WE VERY - VERY late but as I have said many times before whilst we regret; to some degree, the trauma caused by SixthSpeed withdrawal symptoms; understand that we don’t half step when it comes to this magazine. Not wanting to get all emo but due to routine we kinda lost the voice for a bit. That isn’t fun so to bring it back WE HAD to take that time to figure out direction and shine light back on what is OUR PURPOSE. No doubt to order to get back on track it usually takes a huge shock to the system and man was there a shock to put us in perspective.

Speaking of perspective, it’s kinda disgusting the recent impromptu cancellation of so many motorsport events in the last few weeks. But what makes the disgust more brutal is the SILENCE. Where are those who are supposed to be standing up and leading the charge to take motorsport forward, where Anil; but more specifically, where is TTASA i.e the National Governing Body for Motorsport. Anytime you don’t understand, accept and respect purpose as well as responsibility, you get the morass of a With that said, this is ISSUE 17 and it’s a big, bad stink one on the road. The bitter baddis you have known is back on a different level and this issue show the new old direction we are taking. As always we will stay true to the community from which this magazine came forth as well as be RESPONSIBLY RELEVANT. So; what more can I say other than thanks for the patience and henging with the GREATEST MAGAZINE you’ve never heard of. SixthSpeed has represented an idea and the foundation of that is to challenge the norm and while there are gonna be times we may NEVER be on schedule; bear in mind that the Sixth is ALWAYS be on time.

Linzi.

SIXTHSPEED PRIME PARTNERS

25,000 – the preferred average mileage of most “new” foreign used vehicle sold in T&T. 2000 – the average engine displacement found in 80% of the cars saying ting.

17 - the number of Sixth Speed Issues that have blessed the twin islands so far.

0 – the amount of men actually running 17’s up at drags. Only time a car see that is if the timing lights off or the car NOT wukking.

PURE FAILMENTS AN EX MAYOR of SAN DO He may not be in office anymore but we owe him a shining long time. Navi Muradali (Ex-San Fernando Mayor) – having crossed into the a double asterisk realm, this is the man that had the brilliant public idea to ban car shows in Skinner’s park in order to reduce road “accidents”. Proud to be part of the shelling out tickets like peas exercise, the goodly doctor was also involved in a recycling/ safety scheme of using unanchored tires that collected water for mosquito, painted in the most DISGUSTING colors as crash buffers around the city. WTH!

THE LOCAL STATION TV6

We got sponsors kids. Yay! Gotta love these folks who contribute so as to keep us blowing up the spot.

(Kevin De Leon) De Leon Construction Co Ltd.

# 121 Southern Main Rd, Curepe, Trinidad | (868) 662-4622 | deleonconstruct@gmail.com

Bin Stuntin Promotions & GTees (Apparel)

GTees - Branded Apparel/ T-Shirts/ Trincity Mall & Mobile Unit (POS) | (868) 724-6696

Innovative Security.

#126 Cipero Road, Victoria Village, San Fernando, Trinidad. | (868) 657-5826 www.innovativesecuritytech.com

Lo-Cost Supermarket

Southern Main Road, Cunupia, Trinidad | (868) 665-3469

SML Shafeeq Mohomed Ltd. (Electrical & Civil Contractors) #89 Southern Main Road, La Romain, Trinidad | 1.868.652-1744 shafeeqmohomedltd@yahoo.com

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Smart people do not take the mass media seriously especially when it comes to automotive stuff; case in point, TV6’s incorrect and outright hilarious caption for Rally Trinidad that reads, “Dragsters Gear Up for Rally Trinidad”. Drag racers don’t rally and this is what happens when you have people talking out of their passa about things that they don’t know about. Also it just goes to show that the AVERAGE person is unaware of the various disciplines that fall under the motorsport. Watching a drag car do a R5/CR L3 n.c. 100 R1 tidy into L2 300 will be PAINFUL assuming that they make it through the stage in one piece.

S I X T H

S P E E D

G R E A S E

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I N D E X

P A R T N E R S

the people mad enough to sell the magazine

UP in the NORTH

Garvin’s Performance (POS) Miniciti (Valpark) Auto Image (Valpark) Quickbits (Curepe)

1.868.628-1278 1.868.678-7430 1.868.662-1201 1.868.645-7297

DOWN in SOUTH

Sheriff’s Auto Supplies (San/Do) Specialist Muffler (Ste Madeline) Mileage Mack Ltd. (San/Do) QWKWHP Co. Ltd. (Debe) Princestown Auto Supplies RONS Marketing (San/Do) Torry Hosein (Gulf City Mall) Parts Solution (Princestown) Pink Noise Audio (Gasparillo) Maztune (Cocoyea) Ryan Performance (La Romain) Marty’s Barbershop (Mon Repos) SJR Imports (Debe) Antix Car Care (La Brea) Deserica Driving School (P/ Fortin)

ACROSS in the EAST Street Customz (Arima) Kingston12 Garage (Pasea)

ACROSS in ‘BAGO

1.868.698-0009 1.868.657-1704 1.868.647-6878 1.868.655-7633 1.868.653-0778 1.868.771-1478 1.868.655-6922 1.868.688-8679 1.868.783-5064 1.868.724-6493 1.868.762-6775 1.868.327-8996

1.868.683-6065 1.868.784-6710

RIGHT there in CENTRAL Tuner Imports (Charlieville) XR Performance (Cunupia) Custom Imports (Cunupia) Tip Top Marketing (McBean) Turbo Klub (Couva) Chris Performance (Munroe Rd.)

1.868.657-1687

1.868.665-6803 1.868.735-1086 1.868.788-2898 1.868.679-8533 1.868.636-5589 1.868.620-6306

JJ (Jelani Williams)

1.868.772-4361

A D VE R T I S E R S

I N D E X

Blue Coral Racing (Performance Shop) 555 Subaru Parts & Service (Subaru Parts King) Car Lover’s Pitstop (Auto Garage & Car Detailing) Cariszone (Like a Trinbago Amazon) Castrol (Automotive Lubricants) Cleantec (Foreign Used Vehicles) Custom Sounds & Security (Automotive Security) D&D Tyres & Auto Parts Ltd. Imraj Brothers Muffler (Muffler Works) Maztune (Mazda Performance Parts & Service) Motor City Limited (Tinting, Signs & Supplies) Outlaw Engineering (Mechanic Garage) Quickbits (Bike Performance Shop) QWKWHIP Co.Ltd. (Parts & Accessories Wholesale) Royal Purple (Automotive Lubricants) Sheriff Auto Supplies (Performance Shop) Specialist Muffler 2001 (Muffler Works) Speedy G Auto Garage (Mechanic Garage) Street Concepts (Performance Shop) Trump Auto Garage (Rotary Garage) Tuner Imports (Performance Shop) Tune Tech Performance (Bike Shop + Garage) Turbo Klub Performance (Performance Shop) Wheel Wizard (Rims, Tires & Accessories) WCIS Limited (Industrial Supplies) Valvoline (Automotive Lubricants) Xpert Tinting & Alarms (Tint + Alarms) XR Performance (Performance Shop)

T H E

F O R M A L I T I E S

#9 Ramnarine Ave., St. Margaret’s Vge. C/Bay, Trinbago W.I

Feel Free to Call, Text or Email the Sixth

476-3220

sixthspeedtuner@hotmail.com The Team: Marissa Wong Soo | Editorial Assist: Alex Ramirez, Brent Alleyne, Dwight Titus, C.T Bear, Kerwyn Johnson | Writers: Linzi Jeremiah, Jevon Emmanuel, 5FWD | Underground Radar: Nigel | Design & Layout: Sev7nth Interactive |the Accounting: Monique Jones The Editorials: We endorse individual expression and free speech but we can’t publish everything; so we reserve the right to use submitted material and editorials as we see fit. All credit will be given where applicable. Also the views expressed are those of the writers and NOT the magazine so don’t shoot the messenger.

The Disclaimer: At Sixth Speed we try our best to gurantee that the information in these pages are correct but we will not be held responsible if you decide to try anything and ish goes wrong.

Any damages to persons and property is not our fault; that burden of responsibility rests upon your shoulders pappy.

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SHORT

SHIFT

Sheldon ‘Crom’ Mohomed Car: 1995 Mitsubishi Evo 3 Build Time: 5 years Engine: 4G63T 580hp + 480lb*tq @ 32psi (C16) 420hp + 340lb*tq @ 20psi (Pump) Engine Build & Gearbox install – ASN Tuning Manifold modification/ intercooler - Blue Coral Racing Bushings - Jacob’s engineering – 222-8537 Tuning – Sean Ready Special thanks to: Brian & Joel Mohomed

As

a Honda man enjoying boosted days, Sheldon Mohomed is the youngest of 3 brothers who all lived life on the dark side of the tach. The only difference is that instead of Honda his other two brothers’; Brian and Joel, rocked the 3 diamonds. When you live, lime and lah-hay with sharks, eventually you become one yourself and despite fronting the resistance it was just a matter of time before Crom Stepped over to the 4G side.

Back in 2008 Sheldon bought his Evolution 3 pretty much stock with just a pair of cams and for close to a year drove it as is until swapped the stock turbo for a 16G FP which was soon changed to a Precision. Delivering more pace, meant the stock engine was under more pressure than before and with the age of the internals a ring gland broke causing Sheldon to chase way mosquito like a Hibiscus leaf lizard on a concrete wall. Going down like this meant rebuild, so the old engine was scrapped by Navin (ASN Tuning) and in went forged pistons and rods on the block side and Kelford 264/271 cams. ARP head studs pull things together with a Cometic head gasket playing cheese in between the bread and outside of the

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JM Fabrications intake manifold everything else was left as is. To bring a level of tuning to the mix fueled by an Aeromotive 255 and optimize the overall changes made to the car, Shello installed an ECM Link management, but with nobody around to really tune it, he just left it as is and ran the car for about 2 years until he decided to do s’more. Enter a Garrett GT35R, an OBX ram horn exhaust manifold and Spearco 24x10x3 intercooler; all mounted to suit by Bert of Blue Coral Racing. In addition to the GT35 that exhaled down a 3in downpipe and exhaust, Sheldon also parlayed a Turbosmart 45mm wastegate, single core half sized aluminum radiator, GReddy Type blow off valve that was later changed to a TIAL as it began to leak and HKS engine oil cooler.

At the time, no trackside racing was happening so Sheldon wasn’t inspired and work pace on the Evo slowed for another 2 years. During that time coilovers with height & dampening adjustments went in along with; polyurethane cradle and Teflon diff. bushings installed by Jacob’s engineering. But when racing came in at Camden, Sheldon got back serious – this time putting in water/meth; a Bosch

044 pump, -8 fuel lines, a 5 gallon fuel cell, RC 1100CC injectors and a Haltech Platinum Sport that was tuned by Ready Racing. With a stock ignition and drivetrain it’s hard to comprehend how good this car is bedroom wok; especially when it comes to spreading the butter evenly across to the 24.5 x 15 M/T Drag slicks through the now Shepherd Racing 4 speed gearbox fractioned nice with a Competition Clutch setup that was bought from Peak Performance. Prior to the Shepherd, the Evo had the stocker under HKS twin disc, which held out until the synchros were damaged.

Now, if you were expecting the world of parts, go look somewhere else because for what it has and the times it lays down this car is nothing short of a juicy contradiction. With leggo beast driving by Sheldon; the fastest time in the ¼ to date is 10.3 and there’s STILL room for improvement. What’s even scarier besides the simplicity of the put together and the insane Gees ready to tun up a boy mask is the fact that the car drives to the strip with full interior (minus the passenger seat), AC and power steering intact. Now daiz a street build.

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THE CAR SHAFT

Stiffer e and exh adaptiv shocks, the rea amongs ments h of badd to take on the long. Ki the Euro sappy l tanned

THE CAR-SHAFT IS SPONSORED in part BY:

Living the car life is one thing but talking about the car life is what the Sixth Speed Werld is mostly about.

CARNAL.LUST 1992 Toyota Celica GT-Four RC ST185

ONLY

5000 With more JDM sex appeal than a Woodbrook red light special; the GT Four is potency on a next gen level. Rally bred red on dirt and homologated hasty for the street, Toyota only made about 5000 in the WERLD with ONLY 1800 staying in the land of the rising sun. Factor in 10+ years and you will get that getting your hands on this car is more difficult than a CXC exam you studied for using the wrong past papers. Smitten with the venomous 2000CC 3SGTE, the RC model had more of the goodness, starting with the 232HP by 225lb*tq developed from a CT26 turbo, 8.8:1 compression, remapped ECU and aggressive timing. For the period, this power was nothing short of epic and was probably understated given the gentleman’s agreement and Toyota’s notoriety for slickness Because of the rally background the RC came with a Full-time 4WD system packed with a viscous coupling/ torsen LSD and because of the intended competition use for the GT i, the men at Toyota went with a water-to-air intercooler versus and air to air; redesigned vented bonnet used to scoot air out of the engine bay, a small inlet duct pon the side for cam-belt cooling and wider body panels featuring lighter vented bumpers in order to improve aerodynamics. Also inside there to spice things up is a short throw shifter, reinforced internals on the 5 speed, bigger brakes all round, revised steering geometry and better suspension. Kids; considering what it is; you can’t want anything more than a road rally car with bush behavior and street manners.

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TW EURO THRASH

2014 Jaguar XFR-S

We have always considered Jags a doctors or uppity business man type vehicle in the same breath we consider Volvo’s for people in their golden years who like to play life safe. Whilst it may not be popular in T&T and for good reason; we want to smoke the hills naked with the Jaguar XFR-S. 5 liter V8

overfiened by 550 hp & 502 lb*ft of torque @ 2500 RPM makes this a car that breathes power by just idling – sneeze to hard and this car will light tire like a C16 soaked deyah. Brought to the table to help ditch Jaguars white collar square image, the XFR-S although automatic, still manages to hyper spin 20in aluminium wheels wrapped in specially developed Pirelli rubber with no effort.

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a “sport with a 1 carbure plenty, trying to 3000lbs a full lo like rev downhi least th powere power

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SIXTHSPEED

SHUTTERAZZI

wards Zeus Ed rapher: Photog

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At the sixth we celebrate creativity on a different level. Since the inception of DSLR photography many have been putting eye to the viewfinder and risking life, limb and lens to take out some awesome pics. Here we showcase a few of the COOLEST shots fresh from the Trinidad & Tobago Underground that have us saying Wheyyyyyy sah!

FEEL FREE to send in your pics via emailz or via the fassbook

Photographer : Jafra D

en Thomas Photographer: Lyd

in Khan pher: Kev Photogra

Photographer : Gerrard Wilso n

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Photographer: Matthew Downes

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Because

of who we are; at the Sixth, we have been exposed to many things that will turn your stomach rightside down. From sheared compressor fins to decapitated pistons to fused solids cranks. However; out of all the sights we have seen, nothing is more heart wrenching than seeing a tire fight for its life. The futile struggle it goes through to keep structural composure in the face of rotational frictionless adversity is enough to make you weak in the knees and upset in the stomach.

They say everytime a tire departs this earth in a manner like this God sheds a tear. But it’s not of sorrow. Instead it’s joy – the kind of joy that one experiences when you see smoke thick enough to kill mosquito better than insect vector, coming from an engine building enough torque to fillet a whale and spinning rims hard enough to disproportionately distorting tires like a tabanca bruised lagahoo walking biz-wan-kay in a canefield.

Drifting is VERY stressful on not only engine parts but drivetrain as well; so before you could say boo – Marsden was breaking stuff left to right like a marching band in a corn curls factory.

Like most true tuners out there Marsden is one of those who tends to take a dip in every incarnation of speed as he mind views exciting – but all spreading of the butter stopped; kinda, when he felt drift. Biting him hard, the drift bug saw Marsden initially learning the dark arts of slide-dom a few years back in a purpose built AE86 previously owned by Kerry Phillips and never losing sight of doing a premium build of his own in the future when he eventually got properly seasoned.

Chive and bandania came quick and after selling the AE, Marsden got his hands on what has to be one of THE most coveted Nissan chassis in Trinbago – an AREX Elite 951 which was previously owned by a lawyer. Legit, unmolested and bone stock like Huggies pampers the plan for the S15 was to make it into a one of a kinder that represented what he now stood for. After taking receipt of them keys Marsden kept the car in the exact same way he bought it for the first 8 months while he stockpiled parts. Niceness started of with mostly cosmetic pieces such as Seibon DV2 bonnet, Seibon carbon fiber trunk, Seibon (1) off front bumper as well, Seibon C.F.. rear roof spoiler, Ganador motorized mirror replacements, APR GTC300 wing and Seibon C.F. front under diffuser. Then came the few go fast bits; namely the bitterly popular GT2860R i.e. the Disco Potato, APEX’i SAFC, 550cc injectors, ACT extreme, CUSCO suspension, Bosch fuel pump, Godspeed intercooler, GReddy piping kit and aZ32 airflow. All this on stock SR was enough to let it shine a decent 365hp and with the .64 backend of the turbo, spool time was vampire quick which is excellent for drifting. But everything was not a bed of roses as the car even though it had the simple parts was down more than up as a result of (2) reasons - tuning and breakage. With drifting being relatively new to the Caribbean shores most tuners didn’t understand how to tune the car to suit the sport and style of the driver – men only knew drag. One the other side; drifting is VERY stressful on not only engine parts but drivetrain as well; so before you could say boo – Marsden was breaking stuff left to right like a marching band in a corn curls factory.

Downtime for a speed man ISN’T fun and after going thru 7 engines – that’s right kids – Siete, enough was enough. Frustrated to the point of insanity, Marsden decided to go for broke and do it proper from the ground up. Not only was it time to make reel power to throw out 3rd & 4th gear smoke but most important it was time be RELIABLE. Taking into account and learning from mistakes made in the past; getting good technical advice from Nick at Tuner Imports and switching garages to Lake Side Auto in Waterloo to take charge of the build. Marsden and the

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THE SMOKEHOUSE SPECIAL

Photos: Matthew Downes

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WOMEN of the SIXTH

JANELLE ALBARADOBILLOUIN Woman; whey you feel this is, imagine it take ah old talk session with a partner and his wife in a Navarra waiting on a boat to go Grenada to hear about you; name, age, rank and serial number? Lol! I always here, it’s you all who like to stick; Janelle Albarado, no age, no serial number.

Sticking is what makes us the best unno; we like flour paste. BUT let’s NOT digress so early; what you really doing in two wheel talibanism? Well, my uncle (Malcolm Albarado) and father (Victor Albarado) used to race way back in the days at Wallerfield; of course, in every family there’s always one who plays by the rules and one who doesn’t. My uncle was by the rules and my father; well, was the opposite.

Coming up as a child, all knew was drag racing and helping pack the trailer late Saturday night so we could organize to go Wallerfield Sunday morning; putting tools on the trailer and hanging out in the garage getting my fingernails dir ty playing, fixing and tiefin’ ride on bike. From there it just elevated.

That’s pretty cool you got exposed that early into bike and getting your hands dirty; if that was us playing in grease and oil, it was guaranteed cutass.

Yup; for the average person it’s a car, for me all I knew and was bike. Even when my mom was pregnant with me, she and my dad would go riding all Maracas. Then, when I was born; with my uncle, they used to strap me in a backpack and it was to and from the nursery since they couldn’t ride and hold me at the same time.

A backpack, a baby and a bike, it would have been awesome to see the faces of people as allyuh zig by in traffic. Sounds like your dad even tote your mom to the hospital on a bike. Lol. Nah. He didn’t do that one; but I did get dropped to and picked up from primary straight to secondary school on a bike. My mornings used to be “Janelle, are you ready? Go get your helmet.”

Hair and helmet don’t wuk; how you used to maintain a neatness.

Like you had a hairdresser with a bottle of coconut oil and a big teeth comb on standby at the school gate? I wish; everytime I left

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THE CHA OTIC CH ARIOT of CALAMI TY

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AN AFFILIATION TO NATURAL ASPIRATION WE WILL

always maintain that even though we LOVE it like a reverse spread marley street madame it’s no secret that – Boost has spoiled men. Therefore it stands to reason that whenever we come across a car that only breathes bitter; it will, in our eyes stand out very tall more so when it’s built under the banner of naturally aspirated badness. Not only is it rare to see a NA project that snorts fire like a crack head on coke mountain but finding someone to build it well is even harder since in this modern day of turbocharged tenability nobody and we mean nobody builds NA anymore – want us to prove it ent; ok – name the last big NA build you ever hear about ……

Take your time no need to rush.

Exactly!

Toting a ras slicker than M/T drag radials; Marlon was never one to really follow the herd in traditional fashion and by our parameters it takes an evilous person to light the streets bright with a car that can clean burn the ears off the dead under wide open throttle with the erotically sickening notes of an exhaust that bawls, snaps, crackles and pops. In fact it is our firm opinion that they should make the sound that this thing makes into a breakfast cereal for adults – but we digress. As an 8 year project to date; Marlon bought the car; a local mind you, back in ‘05 bone stock from a chinee (a Trinbagonian or Foreigner with chinese ancestry) living in Maraval. Just so you know, the stock EXI Honda came with a sunroof, AC and a NON VTEC 1500cc engine that was automatic, meaning that the 90 hp the engine came with was probably reduced to about 50hp when it eventually reached the wheels. Sad.

In the odd moment when road space clears up, the night air is sucked in and he DOES open up them gulley beans the sight is mucking farvelous.

But this was Marlon’s first car, so power wasn’t a priority. Once the car moving reliably from A to B and looking good in the process then all is well. After purchasing the car, by the very next week SiR brakes, Coilovers and rims were slapped on silly to start the mix. And for the next 2 years the car remained pretty much that way until a series of on the block street discussions with partners living close by led him down the road of entertaining an 1800CC GSR swap for the pathetic 1500. According to Marlon it was easily available especially the modifications and waaaaaay cheaper than a Type R build.

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THE GOOSE THAT SMOKES THE GOLDEN ZX Because the bike was going to be used for Âź mile action, the majority of mods done were geared towards improving not only efficiency but harnessing what was already there and maximizing traction.

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TUNING TECHNICA 30

Understandin’ SPORT BIKE TIRES. pt 2 Everybody knows that a great rider is only as good as his skill set and his understanding of what he rides, which is why choosing the right equipment is just as important as sharpening your riding skillz. It has always been said that for such a critical bike component; tires is often the most overlook aspect.

Think about it; it’s the only part of a bike that actually touches the road – unless of course you crash. With that said; bike tires have been a compromise between mileage, wear, traction, slow speed handling and high speed handling.

And it is within those compromises where you find the changes in compounds which can positively or negatively affect tire characteristics, the performance of the bike and therein the way you actually ride.

loosing the ability to grip as fierce and conform to the road as it used to when it was fresh. The drying of the outer layers of rubber eventually causes the rubber to crack; think of it like your skin and what’s going to happen in time is dry rot. Race tires are designed for the track and are not really designed for long term use; it is a few hard runs and in the bin – literally. Also, race tires are designed to be able to carry MORE heat before the tire disintegrates, this allows the tire to handle EXTREME speeds and cornering velocities, but in as much as it can handle more heat, it also takes more time and VERY aggressive riding to get it up to that OPTIMAL OPERATING TEMPERATURE or that temperature when the tire WORKS at its bestest.

Tire Compounds.

For men on the street and we have seen it as well as heard the old talk; using race tires that you have picked up cheap from your friendly neighbourhood foreign used tire dealer makes no sense. Not only are you pelting away money but you’re increasing the risk of touching down. Even if you ride HELLA HARD on the people road, you’ll NEVER and we mean NEVER reach the limits that you can on a track. You may try hard but you will NEVER be able to bring the tire up to good operating temperature where it will grip like a baby. This means that your grip level will be substantially less in the bigger scheme of things.

Couple that with outgassing, tire age, heat cycles and you’ll begin to see how grip can take a hard hit.

Since the dawn of time; men have overly subscribed to the notion that the stickier the tire the better – it a simpleton universal belief. So, in putting that statement into context; since race tires are as gummy as they come then OBVIOUSLY they have to be the best there is - right. Because you see racers using it on the track and the man pull a bitter corner at a terrorastic speed then it HAS to be okay for the street and you can do that same thing - ent.

Well, sorry to buzz out that bubble but things doh wuk so. Tires usually fall into (3) brackets - Street, Sport and Race with each category having its own specific compound characteristics and design that makes it unique for a that particular purpose. On the extreme end; race tires have soft compounds that allow it to heat up quickly and grip harder all at the expense of tire life – it will hold like fresh Joe gum under a wood desk but it won’t last very long.

Now before we go on, the interaction of a tire with the pavement is a very complex thing as there are tonnes of variables that come into play and it would do you well to remember that. As tires get heated up, they begin to get more flexible and not only stick but also conform to the road to a point.

the interaction of a tire with the pavement is a very complex thing as there are tonnes of variables that come into play and it would do you well to remember that.

And just so you get more understanding – go get a hard piece of rubber/ plastic/ chocolate; place it on a table as is and finger push it across the surface. In the beginning it will slide rather easily – reduced kinetic friction.

Throw in some heat and you will then notice that as the “whatever” warms up it gets a bit harder to push i.e. it grips more or there is an increase in kinetic friction. Continue to heat it and it begins to leave a trail and wear down faster; heat it pass a certain point (just before it melts) and you will notice that it begins to slide like no tomorrow leaving chunks of itself behind until poof.

A soft compound tire that overheats in hot conditions or as a result of too aggressive a driving style will slide on a film of melting rubber or to put it another way it begins to slide on itself thus producing less overall grip and wearing out faster. Every tire has a range of temperatures it will work best in, if its are too low the tire will never reaches optimum operating temperature and slides around, if it gets too hot it wears very quickly and again, slides. So it begins to be about finding that balance, that middle ground that sweet spot.

With that said, as tires gradually heat up and cool down (expansion and contraction) it goes through a process called OUTGASSING. Take an ice cube, heat it up and refreeze it. Do this enough times and over a period of time the cube will get smaller – remember in primary school - solid, liquid and gas (states of matter). In the case of tires everytime a tire goes through this a bit of the oils and gasses escape. This causes the chemical makeup of the tire to change and overtime the tire begins to lose its soft/ flexible nature. Thereby

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Street tires therefore give better levels of grip on the road and more life since it was designed to withstand hundreds of heat cycles and will outgas at a much slower rate than that of a full race tire. Obviously, with the street tire territory there are various tires and compound combinations from hard to soft, but the one single factor that must be taken into account in choosing a good tire is HOW DO YOU RIDE? There IS such a thing as too much tire and the only way to make a proper decision when it come to purchasing a tire is to evaluate the TYPE and STYLE of riding you do on an average basis. If you’re mainly a cruising man - a sport tire makes no sense. If you are a bun up the road and cornering menace then using a relatively hard compound that will give you PLENTY life tire is a waste of time since grip will be traded off.

MIX n MATCH TIRES.

The only way you can get away with this is if you are in an emergency otherwise try your best. A bike is not a car and mixing tires is a recipe for mash up. Tires are sold in sets of two for a reason and no two tires are the same. Remember what we said about compound construction and tire design; well, with varying make ups come varying handling characteristics and on the street under pace, the more predictable the handling of your bike the better it is for you. And in the event that you MUST mix; note MUST; avoid putting a tire that has more grip on the front, else you find yourself in a situation where the traction of the rear out shines the grip level of the front. And your front tire is actually more critical to you NOT falling down than your rear.

WAIZ YOUR AGE, REALLY!

The fresher the better and it’s as simple as that. Tires are made up of natural rubber and anything that’s organic (natural) decomposes/ breaks down over time. After a tire is made, it sits on a shelf breezing waiting to be shipped – in some cases it may take years for it to reach to market and depending on HOW it’s stored (if in a hot place) deterioration may occur faster. Normally, the flexing motion while a tire is rotating tends to keep the oils evenly distributed throughout the rubber, so that outgassing is a minor issue. But when tires are

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