FR Shootout - The Ultimate Street Machine Battle (Part 1)

Come June, a sense of excitement fills the air as Import Tuner held its first annual FR Shootout at Willow Springs International Raceway in Rosamond, CA.

Using the Streets of Willow (SOW) track configuration was new to this year’s event from the previ­ous Button-willow location we had become accustomed to for the past five years of competition. The 1.8-mile track consists of a smaller and tighter layout with a total of 13 turns. For those not in tunes with the last year’s event, here’s a brief recap: The AWD Shootout bore witness to 10 (special invite) vehicles at Buttonwillow Raceway’s infamous CW13 configura­tion, which included three GT-Rs, three STIs, and four Evos in a head-to-head chal­lenge to prove who is the best or at least amongst the best. ACG’s 625hp, satin gray '09 R35 GT-R pulled out the narrow victory over the Kontrabrands/Evasive Motorsports ’06 Evo IX SE due to a driver miscalculation on the number of laps, which brought him into the pits after completing only four of five. The error auto­matically turned the Evo’s potential victory into a heart-wrenching DNF. This year marks the sixth consecutive year of the competition, consisting of 15 vehicles of all makes and models either NA or forced induction that were worthy enough to compete at our FR Shootout.

R35 GT-R

The FR Shootout is not your typical weekend track event. It’s much more than just a bunch of race cars collectively blasting down the tarmac. These vehicles have more than just a passing resemblance to road vehicles, with many of them being daily drivers; our event rules mandate each car must be registered and insured for public highway use. Continental Tire once again played an integral role in sponsoring this year’s event, stepping up to the plate to provide each of the com­petitors with a set of Extreme Contact DW (340 tread-wear) tires as the official spec tire. Among the competitors was an eclectic group of cars, which ranged from an old-school 75 280Z with an LSI-powered V-8 making 420whp to an intimidating-looking/sounding RX-8 that was prepped and driven by Mazdatrix owner Dave Lemon, and yes, we even brought out a mildly modified ’13 Scion FR-S to satisfy the new-school genre. You can say we covered a vast majority of FR platforms we’ve come to appreciate over the years.

The day started at 7:30AM with a mandatory tech inspection before the cars were allowed to roll onto the track. A 30-minute practice session was immediately followed by a time-attack, with 15 cars leading the way. Drivers knew that they would need to achieve their best times within the early morning sessions; the hot summer heat would quickly kill horsepower, brakes, and tire grip as the day pro­gressed.

Scion FR-S

The Church Automotive Testing S2000 immediately made its presence known; the supercharged machine fired off a 1:25.707 lap time with former ’05 Rolex Series GT Champion Craig Stanton behind the wheel. The Skull works SR20VE hybrid-powered 240SX recorded the second fastest lap time with a 1:26.278 in the first session. Both competitors and spectators alike were at a gasp as they witnessed the Skull works machine sending thick plumes of smoke from the rear of the car with every lap. Vehicle owner Mike Yates informed us after his session that a loose oil return hose was the culprit and would be easily repaired in time for the next round. The EVS S2000 stopped the clock with a time of 1:26.918 with vehicle owner and Rob Walker pushing his NA-powered AP2 to within seconds of his forced-induction competitors. Walker was no stranger to the time-attack cir­cuit; he set numerous class records, including the FR Street Class record at Super Lap Battle. During the early morning session, the track claimed its first vehicle casualty. The Phase 2 Motor-trend 350Z of Allen Deines suf­fered catastrophic engine failure as his con-rod punched through his block, forcing the car to retire. Another Phase 2 Motor-trend car suffered electrical gremlins due to misfire problems at 4,500 rpm; the KA24 turbo 240SX was unable to make a clean run, which plagued the 380-whp machine for the rest of the day.

As the day’s event progressed with five scheduled time- attack sessions taking place, the top cars in the NA class remained with Rob Walker in the EVS S2000 sitting in first, Alex Peng in his 250-whp Momofoolio Racing/Sport car Motion S2K, and Pit Garage's 350Z driven by Sky Chan rounding out the top three.

The early favorites within the Forced Induction class included the Church Automotive Testing S2000 and Skull works 240SX witnessed a dangerous competitor within the ranks of competition. The Team FSR Supra owned and driven by Stephen Shiu, a lawyer by day and a track junky on the weekend, was well within striking distance to take the top spot. The Supra, not typically known to handle on the tight SOW course was running in the 1:26 lap time range with a best of 1:26.484, less than two tenths of a second off Yates’s 240SX. We caught up with Shiu during the afternoon lunch break to find out what modifications were made to his car: “We built a formidable track car on a budget but made sure not to skimp on upgrading the suspension and enlist­ing FSR Motorsports Creations in Montclair, CA, to provide vehicle prep work prior to the event. Compared to other courses in Southern California, it is the Supra’s least favorite track since horsepower provides little advantage with only two straightaways. Moreover, given that there are many tight transitions, weight is a major disadvantage and we all know that the Supra has a lot of cushion for the pushing."

For our seventh event, taking place in June, it’s the FR Shootout once again making an encore performance. Do you own an FR car and think you have what it takes to take home the top prize at this year’s shootout? Submit your vehicle photo along with specs to [email protected] with “Tuner FR Shootout” in the subject line, or post it on our Facebook page no later than June 1. We’ll be waiting for you!