CS Marche has been a regular at many of Japan’s circuit events the last few years. Their white GDB was seen competing at last month’s Tsukuba Super Battle.

Photo courtesy of Car Station Marche.

This video is beautifully composed, shot and edited. Luke Huxham has some serious skills behind the camera, because if you’ve ever shot on a DSLR, then you know how difficult it can be. Sure, it’s easy to set the camera on a tripod and hit the record button. But try moving through hundreds of people, while keeping the shot in focus. At 24 fps, DSLR’s can become notoriously shaky.

Rather then focusing solely on the cars, the video takes in the unique atmosphere of Tokyo Auto Salon. It does a wonderful job of highlighting why this show is unlike any other.  It’s a technical achievement as well, giving us a glimpse of just how far video production has come.

Video courtesy of eGarage & Maiham Media.

From front to back: JUN GRB STi, C-SER GRB STi, Bozz Speed Evo IX, Original Runduce Evo X, Original Runduce GRB STi, Car Station Marche GRB STi, Prova GRB STi, Zero/Sports CZS Type-Z Impreza, Sunline Racing Evo X.

I had a hard time figuring out that last car. I had seen the front bumper a few times, but couldn’t remember who made it. After some searching this morning, I discovered it’s the Syms GRB STi. Still though, 9 out of 10 ain’t bad!

Cyber GT-R’s driver Tarzan Yamada, was on hand to briefly explain the project and introduce some of it’s sponsors.

No your eyes aren’t fooling you, that is indeed JDM Insider’s Toshi Hayama. You may also recognize C-West’s President, Omoto-san from JDM Insider, Volume 1.

The car is a long way off from competition, but it seems to be in good hands. Hopefully Voltex will get involved at some stage down the road.

Video courtesy of inline4Movie.

Kimi sported a new helmet design for the upcoming 2012 season.

He may not look it, but Kimi’s over the moon about his Formula 1 return.

Lotus debuts their 2012 car on Feburary 5. Most of the teams will be doing the same within the next few weeks, starting with Caterham this Thursday.

It’s still early, but I’m already feeling that excitement for the return of Formula 1. The season begins with the Australian Grand Prix on March 18!

Photos courtesy of Lotus F1 Team.

Okachan gained an interest in Subarus after purchasing a GRB STi as his daily driver. Taking advantage of his experience with Yashio Factory, the STi eventually became a testbed for new parts, including suspension and exhaust components. From there C-SER evolved into it’s own unique brand, specializing in the Impreza GRB and GVB models.

Only Okachan would be able to pull off a lime green STi.

This car has seen many different looks over the last few years. It was originally black on black, with Advan RG-D wheels. Currently it’s taken on more of a demo car look, appearing in both Option and Hot Version DVD’s. The car’s most recent outing was at Tsukuba Super Battle, where it recorded a lap time of 1’01″925.

The C-SER Impreza is currently fitted with the sporty Advan TC-III, wrapped in Neova AD08 rubber. To the left is a glimpse of the company’s newest piece, the Urban Titan Muffler, a quad-tip titanium exhaust weighing around 15 lbs.

Enjoying the circuit life is the tuning philosophy behind this car. Okachan’s goal was to create the ultimate street car; one that could run a blistering lap around the track, without sacrificing comfort and quietness. Although, something tells me that new titanium exhaust is pretty loud.

The C-SER Impreza is equipped with a host of HKS products including their front mount intercooler and a GT2835 turbine. The carbon turbo inlet hose is an original C-SER piece. The whole thing was tuned by Okachan on C-SER’s EcuTek.

If I’m honest, the appearance of this car is pretty ghastly. That lime green paint is for the birds. I’d almost prefer to see it in Yashio Factory pink. At least that color would be relevant to STi.

With that said, it’s very exciting to see another player in the Subaru market and even better that it’s someone like Mr. Okamura. He’s personality and flashiness is what the scene needs right now. I hope that C-SER continues to produce new parts for the Impreza. Maybe if we’re lucky they’ll even start making stuff for the GDB! The quality seems pretty good, although I’ve never seen the parts on any car but Okachan’s.

Photos courtesy of C-SER & Yokohama.

That is about as good as it gets.

A lot of people don’t know this, but I detail cars. 360 Detail is a little side project my good friend Nat and I started a couple years ago. Nat is really the pro, I just run the Porter Cable.

This past weekend Jay hit us up to come out and do his Evo IX. I’ve been talking to Jay online for a few years and meeting him for the first time in person, was like seeing an old friend. For having been in a shop the last year, I was really impressed with the condition of the Evo. The paint was immaculate, as was the rest of the car.

This was the only decent photo I took of the car and it wasn’t even finished being cleaned. By the time we were finished, it was dark out. However, Jay posted some great shots of the car on JDMEGO yesterday. Be sure to head over there and take a look at the final product, as well as his new Voltex wing!

The Evo came out great, but that was just a bonus to the awesome day we had, talking cars and hanging out with Jay and Karen. Car people really are the best kinds of people. That’s been proven to me time and time again, with all the great friends I’ve made over the years!

While Nat and I try to get a more official e-mail address for 360 Detail going, hit me up at aclassinfo@gmail.com, if you live in SoCal and are interested in getting a quote!

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) are up for vote by the Senate, starting on January 24. If either of these pass, it could mean a massive shift in the way we communicate and share information. These bills allow for government censorship and would require US Internet service providers to monitor everything their users upload, download and share. This could severely affect all of the automotive, design, fashion and lifestyle blogs, you and I enjoy visiting on a daily basis.

Watch the video to learn more.

If you’re a reader of A Class, or any other blogs and websites that repost or borrow content, then please take a minute to sign the petition against SOPA and PIPA.

Subaru’s absence from the WRC has certainly had an impact on the Impreza’s popularity. As for the BRZ, it’s a cool car and if Subaru knows what’s good for them, they’ll bite the bullet and put that STi Concept into mass production. The drifters have already taken the Toyota 86 in with open arms. Subaru needs to differentiate themselves to grab some of that market.

Prova has had a long history of tuning Imprezas and they’ve decided to have a crack at the BRZ with their Black Edition.

The color combination is for lack of a better term, overdone. But the rest of the car is an intriguing concept.

The Enkei RSM9 suits the car rather well.

The Black Edition isn’t really my style, but at least Prova are trying to do something different. This is a case of beggars can’t be choosers.

I’m already going to say that next year’s Tokyo Auto Salon will be lean on Subarus. The company is moving in a different direction and trying to shake off that image of a cult, rally car manufacturer. The BRZ has a lot of potential and hopefully more shops will get on board, in the next 12 months. In the meantime, there’s the Prova Black Edition.

Photo credits to Rob Shaw, who has some fantastic coverage from Tokyo Auto Salon. Be sure to check out his Flickr.