From a special one-off issue that debuted in late 1998 to the magazine you hold in your hands today, 2NR has seen quite a few different things. It may only be 100 issues, but it's been more than a million memories. From the days of street racing transitioning into sanctioned drag battles, from drifting to time attacks, we've seen it all.
It's difficult to pick out the events, people and cars that best mark the biggest milestones of the past nine years, but we've done our best to bring balance to this collection. 2NR has come a long way since '98, but we haven't forgotten the trendsetters and changes that took place along the way. These are the sixteen that still rattle our brains to this day.
1. Arrival Of The JDM Manufacturers
The tuning scene has always been built on performance, and parts are the center of our industry. In the beginning, getting parts from Japanese companies was virtually unheard of, but a huge enthusiast following eventually altered minds and changed everything. From Mugen's very first steps into the market in the 1980's, to the arrival of HKS, GReddy, A'PEXi, Blitz, RS*R, JUN Auto (and departure of), Tanabe and Impul, the accessibility, customer service and tailoring of parts from JDM manufacturers to the US audience was, and still is, big news.
2. First Honda
Into The 10's
Nowadays, the formula for a street-legal, turbocharged 10-second Honda is routine. But back in 1996, it was anybody's game and nothing was figured out. On June 1, 1996 at Sacramento Raceway, David Shih and his Silver Bullet CRX ran a 10.87 at 136mph, marking a new E.T. benchmark for Honda's everywhere. Shih's was the first, but not the last, Honda to break the elusive 10-second barrier. Soon, front-wheel drives were knocking on the doors of the 9 and 8-second clubs.
3. Import Drag
Goes Serious
From engine swaps and chassis lightening to turbocharged creations, import drag racers did whatever it took to go fast in the 90's. But in 1999, the Bergenholtz brothers and their CRX combined a little bit of classic drag racing tech and brought wheelie bars into the world of FWD drag racing. It wasn't long before tube frame chassis', V8 engines, flared fiberglass bodies and corporate sponsorships transformed the world of import drag racing into the pro-level spotlight of today.
4. Battle Of The Imports
In an age when street racing was running rampant, Battle Of The Imports stepped in and provided a real drag strip coliseum for battles and records to fall within. Its popularity was instant and intense. Since the mid 1990's, Frank and Mike Choi have continued on with the BOTI format, and the venerable drag racing series continues to this day. Still catering to the street driving, weekend enthusiast, BOTI was the place to see import drag racing history take place back in the day. It's responsible for setting off the import drag phenomenon and feeding the drag racing scene of today.
5. Age Of
The Supercars
Nowadays, JDM demo cars, such as the TEIN S15 and Mine's R34 GT-R, are shipped back and forth between shores just for show or display. But it wasn't always this way. It used to be a huge event and a rare chance when JDM machinery, such as the A'PEXi drag Integra, Top Fuel 300ZX and HKS R33 GT-R, came over to the U.S. Plus, back then, whenever a car came over from Japan, it always ran in anger, whether at the drag strip, the racetrack or the Bonneville Salt Flats. The only way it should be.
6. Publishing Evolves
With the import scene changing, it was only natural that the enthusiast publishing world, the news pipeline for the industry, should evolve as well. Originally a spin-off of Turbo magazine, 2NR has had its fair share of updates and changes, growing in both content and style, from signature white background covers into the refined package you hold today. The platforms, parts, girls and types of events we cover may have changed over the years, but the love of cars will never die.