OK, the Toyota MR-S is admittedly, a girl's car. There, I said it--now millions of adoring MR-S owners will write in and tell me how completely and utterly stupid I am and thousands of girl-power activists are going to tell me I need to be castrated. But if you really think about it, most compact convertibles really do seem more in line for the fairer sex. Take for example, the VW Cabriolet, the convertible Beetle or the ubiquitous Mazda Miata. Didn't anyone watch Go or Corky Romano? So what's a red-meat eating, football-playing, girlfriend-having manly man to do if he finds himself holding the keys to an MR-S? If that man is Melvin Medina of San Diego, Calif., he starts injecting it with automotive testosterone until it swells into the wildebeest that you see before you.
Melvin first got the car as a high school graduation present. He put it through the requisite upgraded-wheel-and-tire treatment and played with a few bits and pieces of aerodynamic enhancement, but nothing else major was done to the car. Then, suddenly and inexplicably, the Toyota's 1ZZFE called it quits. Game over. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. A trip to the dealer rectified the problem but soon after, the new replacement motor called it quits too. This happened a total of four times before Melvin decided, "Hey, if it's under factory warranty, I might as well start tinkering with a few things here and there..."
The first major overhaul was the suspension. A set of Koni adjustable shocks was bolted to the four corners to further enhance the roadster's handling capability. The next step was somewhat surprising--at least to me it was--considering Melvin didn't want to do too much to the car to begin with. The replacement wheels for the MR-S' 15 in and 16 in stock wheels were, for Melvin, a set of custom-made HRE 449 Series wheels in 19 in x 8.5 in and 19 in x 10.0 in configuration. They were wrapped like overstuffed pigs in Falkens GR-B FK-451 blankets (245/35-19 and 285/35-19, if you can read the print on the sidewall.). The boys at Discount Tires in San Diego fielded hernias to mount and balance these gargantuan rims.
At that point, Melvin's little-ass car had some big-ass wheels, and there was only one way to rectify that problem: turn the MR-S into a big-ass car. At least a wide-ass one. Having been fully bitten by the import-performance bug, Melvin turned his car over to Sinful Enhancements in Lemon Grove, Calif., for the real-deal Holyfield VeilSide Fortune 01 widebody package that you see here. The S.E. crew also installed the VeilSide hood and side mirrors, along with the Toyota of Japan accessory hard-top. With the widened fender wells in place, the HRE wheels now had a plenty of room to stretch out their legs. Once the kit and all the external pieces were installed, the folks at Sinful Enhancements sprayed the entire car in Ferrari Red with a White pearlescent add-on coat. Melvin added a K-Speed/McCulloh HID headlight conversion, then turned the car over to EDJ Designs for the complete corporate signage treatment.
Performance goodies are limited to an Injen Intake, Ignition Solutions ignition system, VeilSide exhaust and A'PEXi Super AFC Digital for fine tuning. Future plans include a turbo kit from an as-of-yet undetermined manufacturer. In the meantime, Melvin crashes through the gears with his B&M short shifter, making the "whoosh" blow-off sound with his mouth. If that doesn't impress the ladies, there's always "Club Funky Cold Medina," Melvin's rolling nightclub contained entirely within the MR-S.
When you open the door to the club, the first thing you might notice is the real red-tint carbon fiber accents placed in various strategic locations. From there, choose a booth or one of the two Momo RS seats to make yourself comfortable. The entertainment complex is controlled by a Kenwood Excelon VZ907 touch-screen LCD TV. If you want to be surrounded by screens everywhere you look, never fear. There are a total of four screens controlled by the head unit: the in-dash head unit itself, one in the glove box for your passenger, one on top of the dash for pedestrians walking by, and one stealthily integrated into the rear-view mirror for those pesky tailgaters on the freeway. In the front compartment area, Street Noyze of San Diego, Calif., the people responsible for the entire in-car entertainment system, installed a custom amp rack housing two Visonik V2000T amplifiers, a few mirrored surfaces and a whole lotta neon backlighting. Tucked behind the front seat is the Sony PS2 combination game system/DVD player. Still further back is another custom enclosure containing twin Visonik 12-in subs, also flanked by red-tint carbon fiber, mirrors, and more neon. If that's not enough entertainment packed into this topless roller-skate to make you throw your hands in the air and say, "party over here," I don't know what is.
After four blown motors and a bit of a gender-inferiority complex, Melvin's MR-S is still not complete. As was mentioned before, he plans to boost the motor to give it more zing and he talked of a complete exterior makeover hen I last spoke to him. In the meantime, Melvin would like to thank all the people involved in the ever-changing metamorphosis of his car: Team Xplicit in San Diego "to the fullest," Nick and everyone at Falken Tires, Ryan at Injen, Kevin at MA Audio, Enrico at Modern Image S.D., Tim at Intrax, Noel at Ignition Solutions and all the widebody wizards at Sinful Enhancements. To those people, Melvin tips his glass of Red Bull and vodka and says, "Cheers."