And so another twelve months have flown by, marking 2025 as the seventeenth year in a row of bringing you car culture from all corners of the world. How on earth did that happen?
Since it’s a brand new year, we wanted to check in with you guys – ours Speed chasers audience – to give you insight into what will happen in 2025, and to hear what you would like to see more (or less).
Could there be more wide body cars? Will the next generation Dodge Hellcat have a ‘Takeover’ mode? And it’s time to ban the phrase “What’s up, guys” of vlog intros on YouTube?
Everyone is well aware of that Speed chasers has had a deep love for Japan since our founding in 2008. We also know that this might be a bit much for those of you who don’t adore Japanese car culture as much as we do. But there’s a simple reason why this place has been so prominent in our content mix over the years: it’s just as incredible and inspiring as we make it out to be.
As the title suggests, we will be celebrating the entire month of January. Why? Because for starters, it’s Tokyo Auto Salon week, and no matter how often we experience it, TAS always delivers rooms full of inspiration. And let’s be honest, a few quirks thrown in for good measure.
If you’re feeling a little burnt out at the thought of three weeks dedicated to Japanese cars, don’t worry. We’ll use this time to discuss as many aspects of Japanese car culture as possible – not just domestic models and car shows. So, what can you expect for the rest of the month?
If you’ve been following Dino’s Porsche 964 build, you know he’s back after a major makeover, courtesy of Nakai-san. Before you start dishing out the memes, we’ll go a step further and say that this is one of the cleanest and newest RWB builds in a long time. Stay tuned for the next Dinos SH garage Project 964 update.
Later this week we’ll introduce you to Higuchi’s W126 Mercedes 500TE – a bespoke Benz that has been transformed from a four-door sedan into a five-door station wagon, something that was never offered by the factory. And to top it all off, it comes equipped with an SEC front end. Seriously, look how cool this thing is…
Do you need Japanese content with an Italian touch? We hit the streets in K-Engineer’s insane, street-legal Lamborghini Diablo GT2 race car. Yes, it’s a race car… for the road – not something completely unheard of in Japan, but this one is among the best.
The Exceed Japan DC2 Honda Integra Type R – the Osaka-based tuner’s OG demonstrator from 2017 – also makes an appearance, as does a very special HKS build.
The Japanese tuning giant’s new ‘The HKS’ program gives enthusiasts the opportunity to purchase complete road cars built by HKS. We’ll take a closer look at the very first customer-built build – a wide-body turbocharged GR86 – as it was driven around the Tsukuba Circuit by its New Zealand owner.
Of course, we can’t forget the mass of gatherings and gatherings around the Tokyo Auto Salon, including RWB’s annual New Year’s party and the return of the epic Underground Tokyo gathering. Additionally, we will have plenty of show reports and spotlights from the Makuhari Messe Convention Center, including a certain Liberty Walk car owned by none other than F1 superstar Lando Norris. There is a collaboration that we would not have chosen twelve months ago.
Finally, there is some news we would like to share with you this month – something you have all been asking about years. We know you’ve been waiting – and trust us, we’re just as frustrated as you are by the delay – but this month we’re finally launching the official Speed chasers merchandise!
Yes, you read that correctly. It exists! We know the timeline sounds a little vague, but we promise it will be there in the coming weeks. As soon as we have all the details, we will immediately share all the details about the first collection.
We may only be a week into January, but we think it’s going to be a great way to start the year. And don’t worry: the excitement will last all year round. So let us know what you would like to see more of in 2025 Speed chasers, and we’ll definitely take you along for the ride.
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