Castrol Syntec Top Car Challenge - Four One One

To all our faithful readers who voted for our monster SR20DET (Jan '09 issue of 2NR) to win Castrol Syntec's Top Shop Challenge, and are feeling a little let down by our measly 867-hp Second Place finish... screw you. Just kidding! We're actually so glad to have had your support through it all, that we're doing it all again... only now on a larger scale, by joining our six other (weaker) sister publications, in Castrol Syntec's newly announced Top Car Challenge. Think "engine building contest", except replace the word "engine" with "whole car" and you get the point. Each mag will find a platform and a tuner capable of building the ultimate car, to be judged on lap and quarter mile times, horsepower, power-to-weight ratio, emissions, braking, endurance, fuel mileage, and cost. And since the 2NR staff would, uh... rather not embarrass anyone by fielding our personal cars [editor's note: none of which run], we're searching our readership for possible candidates.

If you've got a Japanese import that you're building to be an all-around badass destroyer of high-dollar performance cars, log onto www.SyntecTopCarChallenge.com to view the complete rules and enter. And your car doesn't even have to be complete--we'll do some of the hard work for you. Just mind the competition: eurotuner magazines (high-dollar exotics and German sports cars), Lowrider and 5.0 Mustangs mags, (big-power domestic muscle), Modified and Honda Tuning (the former won the last competition; the latter features cars that basically own import drag racing) and Super Street (uh... we've got nothing good to say here). The competition will be fierce (for the most part... sorry Super Street), but the rewards will be worth it. If your car's chosen, you can look forward to the best support and products the aftermarket industry has to offer, and--once we win--will drive away with a First Place finish, tons of free schwag, your now-fully built car, prize money, and all the girlies the other mags could never get you! Even if you don't want to enter your car into the contest, Castrol will be giving away $10,000 to one lucky registered reader who votes for their favorite magazine to win (Import Tuner). Visit www.SyntecTopCarChallenge.com for details and updates.

Event Calendar:
03.14 - Hot Import Nights, Los Angeles, CA
www.hotimportnights.com
03.14 - Hot Import Nights, San Jose, CA
03.27-29 - Formula 1, AUS Grand Prix, Melbourne,
AUS www.f1.com
04.11 - Hot Import Nights, Austin, TX
04.11 -Formula D, Long Beach, CA.
www.formulad.com

Sema Report
Import Tuner #1
In browsing the Specialty Equipment Marketing Association (SEMA) newsletter, as we often do when experiencing writer's block, we stumbled across a SEMA survey of 250 automotive enthusiasts who have attended a pro or amateur drifting event, stating that Import Tuner ranked as their magazine of choice, with more of them subscribing to 2NR than any other magazine in print. Thanks guys. Your reward: the tentative 2009 Formula D and D1GP pro schedules. Make sure to visit the official sites below for date changes and venues. www.sema.org