The 2009 Tokyo Auto Salon kicked off last January 9 at the Makuhari Messe. Being the biggest custom car show in Japan, it attracted more than 600 car displays and dozens of exhibitors showcasing the latest in tuning and modifications.

Arguably the two hottest machines in the show were the world beating R35 Nissan GTR as well as the newly announced Nissan 370Z (Z34). Despite being barely two months old, several tuners were already on hand to display modifications done to the latest iteration of Nissan’s Z Car. Companies such as Fujitsubo, Sunline Racing, Impul, Cockpit, etc. all had their modified Z’s on display. Zele International had a pair of matching orange R35 GTR and Z34. The two cars were being sold by Zele in limited numbers as completely built, pre-tuned machines.

Also incredibly popular were Mitsubishi’s new Evolution X and Subaru’s STI. Several companies were on hand displaying modifications available for the two rally-bred machines. One of the more interesting Evos was the HKS CZ200S Evo X. It actually wasn’t part of the Auto Salon itself but was displayed outside rather inconspicuously. The white Evo barely had any graphics on it but a closer look revealed just how much HKS has been able to squeeze out of the current Evo. Just a week before the Auto Salon, HKS took the Evo to Tsukuba and with Super GT driver Nobuteru Taniguchi behind the wheel, the car was able to hit the 59+ second barrier, making it the fastest Evo X in Tsukuba.

The Hondas also made a large showing in TAS 2009. Honda Motors Corp. brought out its Fit and S2000 Modulo concept as well a FD Civic Type R Super Taikyu race car. Renowned Honda tuner J’s Racing brought out their Fit (Jazz) and a nice widebody AP1 S2000 designed to commemorate the model’s 10th anniversary. It’s hard to believe that the S2000 is already 10 years old, with countless companies still churning out parts and modifications for it. Arguably the most impressive Honda at this year’s event was the Mugen NSX RR Concept. Outfitted with a full Super GT style widebody kit, Mugen pulled out all the stops, even replacing the standard 3.2 liter NA engine with a 2.4 liter supercharged one.

This year’s Tokyo Auto Salon also featured an “Import Auto Salon”, a separate event catering to mostly non-Japanese vehicles. Popular European cars such as the BMW E92 M3, Porsche 911 series, as well as supercars from Mercedes and Audi were all on display. Some of the more outstanding cars included the ASI equipped widebody Bentley Continental GT, the Rauh-Welt flat black Porsche 930, and two diamond-encrusted Mercedes Benz SL series convertibles.

The Tokyo Auto Salon has traditionally been the place where new cars from the most talented and popular drifters were unveiled. This year was no different as two of the most anticipated new machines were unveiled for the first time. Nobushige Kumakubo of Team Orange showed off his RWD Evolution X for the first time. The car was able to give a few demonstration runs outside to the delight of the crowd. Takahiro Ueno of T&E unveiled his BMW E92 M3, complete with a full widebody kit from T&E’s Vertice Design series. The car was a distinct departure from Ueno’s usual bright red Toyota Soarer drift car. However it wasn’t entirely different as the BMW has had its original 4.0 V8 engine replaced with a 3.1L 2JZGTE engine, similar to the engine used in his previous Soarer.

With all the news about the global economy and the losses incurred by most major auto manufacturers, the 2009 edition of the Tokyo Auto Salon seemed to bring some sort of good news. As the automotive tuning and modification industry proved to be alive and well.

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The year was 1999, with the introduction of the all new R34 Nissan Skyline GTR road car, Nissan’s motorsports division Nismo, decides to use the all new chassis in the most popular and competitive racing series in Japan, the JGTC (Japanese Grand Touring Car Championship). With its potent twin turbo RB26DETT engine producing 500hp, the car clinches the championship in its maiden year. The next two years however would prove to be a dry spell for the GTR.

In 2003, Nismo decided to change the engine from the RB26DETT to a twin turbo 3.0 liter VQ30DETT unit. The change would prove to be for the better as the Xanavi Nismo team got back the championship. Nismo would be switching to the 350Z chassis in 2004 so the 2003 championship marked a grand going away party for the GTR.

2003 also marked the year that Motul, an international lubricants company, decided to sponsor the JGTC. Running the No. 22 Motul Pitwork GTR, the team would win the 2nd race of the season (Fuji-500) and get 4th overall in the championship standings with Masami Kageyama and Richard Lyons behind the wheel.

In March of 2007, four years after the GTR retired from the JGTC, Autoplus Sportzentrium, the Philippine distributor of Motul automotive lubricants, brought the No. 22 car for local fans to view and behold. Although this car shares the same name as the road going car, that’s about the only similarity they have. This is a pure race car with no expense spared in the pursuit of absolute performance.

The body is purely carbon fiber, with a steel roof to aid in chassis rigidity. The underside is also carbon fiber and completely flat to ensure that air travels at a fast velocity, creating low pressure and sucking the car down. Diffusers at the front and rear, aerodynamically tuned bumpers, and a massive rear wing all contribute to huge amounts of downforce. The suspension consists of horizontally mounted springs and shock absorbers with remote reservoirs. The engine is a 3.0 liter twin turbo unit, producing a restricted 500hp. Power is transferred to the ground via a quad plate carbon clutch, through the XTrac six speed sequential manual transmission, and finally down to the massive 13-inch wide rear wheels and Bridgestone Potenza slick tires (this race car is RWD unlike the AWD road going GTR). The inside is purely business with a carbon fiber dashboard, quick-detachable steering wheel with LCD monitor, as well as a multitude of switches to control brake bias (front-rear, left-right), engine mapping, and other vital parameters. A single racing seat holds the driver tight (an additional racing seat is installed at the passenger area for demo runs).

A curb weight of around 1000kg or approximately 600kg lighter than the road going GTR ensures a 0-100kph time of around 2.9secs. What about the results of the suspension and downforce modifications? Think 2.1Gs of cornering force (F1 cars manage 4-5Gs while road cars usually manage less than 1G) and being able to take a 90-degree corner at more than 100kph. The massive AP Racing brakes stop the car from 260-100kph within 100meters.

With the amount of R&D that has gone into the JGTC Skyline GTR, and the cost of the engines, parts, and other components, the cost for this vehicle adds up to around $1 million. Not that you could buy it though as Nissan reserved these units for demonstrations and shows all over the world.