Yuichi Seki and his 180SX have been together for 23 years, and both have matured gracefully.
Seki-san has gone from a wild boy of drift, to a responsible family man who does gardening on the weekends and serves mint-infused tonic water to his house guests. His Nissan RPS13 has grown up too, leaving behind its dirty drift days in favour of a more sophisticated life as a time attack weapon.
I couldn’t decide which was cooler – the 180SX or Seki-san’s workplace, which is full of memorabilia, trophies and of course spare parts for his car. Because of family commitments, Seki-san doesn’t get out to the circuits much these days, but he’s content to potter around his workshop refining his ride just the way he likes it.
Seki-san bought the car in 1998 when he was 20. Drifting was rapidly gaining popularity in Japan at this time, and Seki-san’s interest was instantly piqued. He had no idea how to drift, and without the internet the only way to learn was to hit the track and practice. As he improved the 180SX was improved too.
After 15 years of track abuse the car eventually gave up, so Seki-san pulled it apart and the rebuild commenced.
During this time, engine capacity was increased from 2.0L to 2.2L using a Tomei kit, and more power came by the way of a Trust TD06-25G sitting on a Garage Mak TD exhaust manifold.
Today, tuned through the venerable A’PEXi Power FC, there’s 593PS on offer. That power gets to the wheels via an HKS 6-speed transmission and Tomei LSD.
During the refresh, the exterior was fitted with a Garage Mak wide-body kit and Ki Motorsports side skirts. Then it was resprayed from factory white to the Toyota Super Red V colour you see today.
Keeping the 180SX glued to the road are Toyo Proxes R1Rs in 235/40R17 and 255/35R18 wrapped around Work Meister S1Rs, 17×9.5-inch -0 and 18×10.5-inch -5 respectively. Seki-san is using HKS Hipermax D’ NOB Spec coilovers up front and an Ikeya Formula setup in the rear.
The interior is right out of the JDM drift playbook with a 7-point Cusco roll cage, Bride seats and a full suite of gauges and electronic devices, including the FC Commander for the A’PEXi ECU.
Luckily for us, Seki-san is heading to a circuit in Chiba at the end of the month, so I’ve arranged to meet him there for a proper feature. For now, I really just wanted to introduce this awesome 180SX and take a peek inside Seki-san’s cosy home garage.
Toby Thyer
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