Do these meets still need an intro? After becoming a hit last season, Chris Cavalieri decided to keep the same layout for this year and let me tell you; none of us are complaining. I mean, who doesn't like a calm Sunday cruise to grab a coffee? As long as we are welcomed by InHouse Coffee, it's looking like a format that's going to stay.
One guy who certainly doesn't mind is Mike. After having the S2000 off the road for about 4 months, he was super eager to take it out of hibernation and get a feel for the revamped AP1.
The entire suspension assembly was pulled and refreshed with new components from state of the art custom valved Fortune Auto 510 series coilovers, to restored control arms fitted with ES bushings and spherical compliance bushings; the right mix for a streetable race car. Many more mods were done during winter like the addition of a carbon fiber hardtop and full race interior consisting of FIA certified bucket seats and a custom fabbed SHG roll bar.
You know SHG doesn't skimp on the wheel department either! Debuting in fashion with 17x9 +40 Team Dynamics Pro Race 1.2 wheels wrapped in beefy 255/40/17 Nitto NT05 meats.
Surprisingly with all the nice weather we've been having, it turned out to be a mildly cool day with temps hovering around the 45-60ยบ range. In hindsight, hot coffee would of been a better choice than iced. New Englander problems *sigh*...
Not exactly considered cold weather for us but nothing a hoodie or a coat couldn't remedy one way or the other.
The date was also perfect as the final touches like bleeding brakes and alignment were done just the night prior. After all the hard work and planning, Mike was pleased to see the S2000 be finished in time and being well received by everyone. The grin on his face says it all...
His wasn't the only specimen there however, in fact there was a nice brigade of AP1s and AP2s present. A refreshing sight to see after not having attended a meet in well over 6 months.
This particular S2K really caught my eye with Spoon CR93 wheels on Direzza ZII rubber. Too often I see all season tires on upscale rollers and so to see the complete package paired with an AP1 in tip-top shape was just icing on the cake.
This 91 Jetta might have seen better days but as a daily driver it keeps extra dollars in pocket and the nicer ride sheltered from the harsh winter conditions. From upfront it's actually not too bad and reminds us of Evan's old daily driver back in the early days of SHG...
Elyson's EP also went through some changes as it now sits on Evan's old suspension; freshly revalved Feel's coilovers made by Aragosta with custom rated Eibach springs. This setup worked very well on his Civic and Elyson will definitely benefit from the development he put in to fine tune the handling of the EP3 chassis.
His cousin is also an HFP edition owner which he's had for a while but only now got around to getting in on the road. Let's see what he can come up with as time goes by...
To complete the EP3 trio since Evan couldn't be in attendance, Andre's EP3 is also on new rollers to go with the new Euro spec front end. The WedsSport TC-005 are a nice touch for now while his motor build inches forward closer to assembly. Eventually they'll be getting refinished and the car resprayed as well, likely next year.
For a cool day the heat was surely turned up, this S2000 sported a J's racing front bumper and the new Gramlights 57xtreme wheels.
The tire size is the same as Mike's 255/40 but with a "stock" alignment. A track oriented alignment would compliment the aggressive front end perfectly but nonetheless, a clean ride for sure.
I hate to see you go but I love to watch you leave...
We are Honda guys at heart but regardless of make, a clean/simple car is hard to be overlooked. This R32 had a certain subtlety to it that caught my eyes as it was leaving.
Out of nowhere the sky cleared up and warmed things up immediately so I took advantage of the lighting to capture a profile shot... Those APM Racing J hook brakes though, hrmm!
The Gears replica front lip flows quite well with the CF top but it also has perfect fitment which is always a plus.
As I had a few words with Dan, he mentioned that he'd love to have a hardtop but prefers keeping the soft top for using it as a convertible on nice days. Top down can be a bit loud but man does it feels good having the fresh wind, I can't blame him!
Bee's AP2 hasn't changed any but it remains just as pristine as we know it.
Generally, I try to cover most cars present but it was only the season opener and having not seen the crew in a while, I wanted to hang out instead of being away through all of it. There will be plenty of opportunities for future snaps.
I'm eager to see what Dre's EP3 has in store for this year. Homie's been putting in work and once the new motor gets swapped in, he can focus on other areas of the car like getting the rest of the Euro body bits (e.g skirts, rear bumper, etc).
Tony has gone for a new look this year and traded his wheels for a set of CCWs whose model name I am unfamiliar with.
Two 8ths and a 9th on their way out as it was already around noon...
Again, a quick 9-12 meet to hang out, grab breakfast and catch up with everyone. Afterwards we had a quick mini shoot before heading out and a more in-depth one back at the homie's place. Check back for those soon! See everyone at the next C&C on May 18th!
Thanks for reading!
- Claudio
