April 17: Girl racer Lisa Kubo shatters the 7-second FWD barrier with a 7.963 second pass at Moroso Motorsports Park in FL.
April 24: The first ever Formula D event took place at Road Atlanta, where Samuel Hubinette took the win, forever cementing the fact that he will be drifting dudes later.
June
June: Scion adds the tC to their lineup and goes nationwide.
June 18: JDM Hondas have a non-digital forum to hang out at, courtesy of Eibach's first meet.
August
August 9: The first Formula D championship goes to Samuel Hubinette.
August 31: The video game Street Racing Syndicate launches with all your favorite import models.
Sept
September 11: HIN Tour goes international with it's first show in the U.K.
Oct
October 6: Full-Race offers the first robotically TIG welded turbo manifolds for the B-Series engine.
October 24: NHRA season champs are Matt Scranton (Pro RWD), Nelson Hoyos (Pro FWD), Paul Efantis (Modified), Marty Ladwig (Hot Rod), and Jesus Padilla (All Motor).
Nov
November 9: Tarzan, in the Sun Cyber EVO, sets a 1:48.9 record pass at Buttonwillow that holds until November 2007.
Dec
December 18: GT Live brings Japan's JGTC race cars and drivers to U.S. soil for the first, and to date, only time.
Ursula Mayes
Issue: November 2005
Height: 5'7"
Measurements: 34C - 24 - 34
Sign: Leo! Grrr....
Birthday: August 9th
Hometown: Born in Seoul, Korea; raised in Washington DC
Website: www.ursulamayes.com
What have you been up to since 2NR:I'm currently filming season 4 of Deal or No Deal and pursuing my acting career here in LA. I'm also traveling in the US and internationally for the LUX 5 show, visit www.lux5events.com for more info. I'm also developing my own fashion line. Hint: B.E. Original
Do you remember when you first saw your issue?:I couldn't believe how amazing the photos turned out. Actually, the very first time I saw the issue was at Super Autobacs, believe it or not!! I was walking in and a guy stopped me and said "excuse me, are you the girl on the cover of this month's Import Tuner?" I was stunned because I hadn't seen the photos yet. Then he went to his car and grabbed it and asked me to sign it. I kept staring it and thought how cool for me to see it for the first time...at Autobacs...with a 2NR fan! Sweeeeet!
How has 2NR impacted your life?:Well, besides me being a reader for life... it helped others out there in the tuner world get to know Ursula Mayes, especially since the year it came out I was also Miss Hot Import Nights. Thanks for always 'tuning' my world inside out!
Thank you list:God and the 3 F's: family, friends and fans; and of course to Carter and everyone at the Import Tuner family.
2005
May
May 15: Marty Ladwig and his Chevy Cobalt are the first FWD to break the 200 mph barrier in the quarter mile with an 8.069 second @ 202.02 mph pass at an NHRA event at Atco Raceway, NJ.
July
July 9: After being shut out by domestics in a Japanese-born sport (think Dream Team, pre-2008 Olympics) Calvin Wan takes the first-ever Formula D win in an import, with the Falken G35 at Infineon Raceway.
Aug
August 27: Rhys Millen takes the 2005 Formula D championship.
Sept
September 27: The improved EVO 9 is available from Mitsubishi.
Oct
The IS250 from Lexus goes on sale.
October 15: HIN introduces its outdoor show concept with the first NightShift event in Phoenix, AZ.
October 24: NHRA Wallys for the season are awarded to Brad Personett (Pro RWD), Ed Bergenholtz (Pro FWD), Justin Humphreys (Modified), Ron Lummus (Hot Rod), and Jesus Padilla (All Motor).
Nov
November 8: GM Performance's '06 Chevy Cobalt SS ran the fastest time, a 1:51.318, at the Time Attack Finals with John Heinricy behind the wheel.
Dec
December 1: The Si grows an extra two doors with the 8th-gen Civic Si.
December 17: D1GP USA vs Japan All Stars. Vaughn Gittin Jr. in the Falken Tire Mustang becomes the first American driver to win a D1GP event.