I’ve known Nick for a few years now and one thing I realized about him early on is that he is a perfectionist who sets the bar for himself incredibly high.
When he rode it wasn’t uncommon to see him do a trick over and over until he deemed it was perfect, even though the rest of us thought it was perfect sixteen tries previous.
These days he has focused his passion towards photography and has approached it with the same mindset.
If I were to ask Nick which of his photos were his favorite chances are he would only answer me after explaining how each of them could be better if he were to shoot them all again.
But that’s just Nick, he is not the type to ever stop trying to improve or settle for ‘pretty good’ and this is the reason why I believe that the sky is truly the limit when it comes to how far automotive photography is going to take him in the future.
In the year or so that he has truly dedicated himself to capturing motorsport Nick has been fortunate enough to travel to several events in the United States at famed venues such as Watkins Glen, and Lime Rock.
A little closer to home he has also covered three different top tier events here at Mosport Raceway in Bomanville Ontario.
With this caliber of coverage under his belt in his first year don’t be surprised if you start to see Nick’s name and watermark attached to some of your favorite racing photos in years to come.
It is really awesome to be able to showcase some of Nick’s work here on Stance Is Everything and I couldn’t think of a better photographer to close out features for the year.
Turns out I need to dust off my Bimmer Forums account because apparently sleeping on that forum has resulted in my missing cars like this unreal Laguna Seca Blue 2002.
Good thing Jay at Stance Factory has got my back and forwards along the good great stuff.
This 2002 is incredible and perhaps the best use of LSB ever?
From what I understand the poster and his father restore/mod 2002s for a living and sold this one to move on to the next…damn.
Just to further blow your mind reportedly this is the car before rebuild, humble beginnings indeed.
Last week in jest I made the following comment when posting that clean Fiesta:
“when was the last time you saw a car with hydraulic suspension that didn’t have wires?”
After reading that a few people on the fan page urged me to look a little harder into the land of hydraulic (or Hydropneumatic) suspension to broaden my horizons. So I did.
While I had guessed a few people outside of the traditional lowrider community were dabbling in the land of juice I was surprised to see how widespread the use of hydraulics is over a variety of platforms.
I honestly had no idea that in some causes hydraulics are simply the best alternative for people looking to go low when they have a platform that is not so mainstream.
Cars
No Impalas, Caddys, or Lincolns here just cars you might not expect to be juiced…
Neither coils or bags got Adams Saturn this lowSo he threw this in the trunk (old pic and the car is currently undergoing a makeover)One of the craziest things about hydraulics is the obscene amount of lift...Juiced Punto... very EuroHydro setup in the spare tire wellLook another FiestaLift again...Hydroholics CLVery intricate hardline setupGS made to tuck tons of wheelTubs.Where there is a will there is a wayThis ZX apparently on hydraulics...Couldn't find any pictures of the setup though...Showed this to guest blogger Josh and I think he cried a bitPerhaps I should have showed him this one firstOne of several MB's I found juiced on VIP Style CarsAs low as you want itbut if you want to slap 24s on it for a rap video shoot you have the abilityWish I was able to find better pics of this oneA vet amongst the VIP communityThis car has LEDS in the wheel wells... neat effect, works well in this shotSame car at ride heightThis Wald kitted Benz (and its owner) were in literally every thread I checked on the subjectI think he has ties with Hydroholics one of the people really turning the game on its head
Trucks
There are lots of trucks on ‘dros but I decided to limit myself to these two unique applications
Mitsubishi Might Max... another Hydroholics rideSuper clean bed setupThis Armada (again Hydroholics) looked mighty familiarThen I remembered I had seen it at SEMAThe suspension makes a hair more sense now
It turns out that a properly built hydraulic setup can ride just as good as an air ride setup thanks to accumulators which allow the ride quality to be adjusted an infinite amount of ways.
Two weeks ago sifting through what seemed like endless amounts of Hot Import Nights coverage I stumbled across a photo in my reader posted by eyegasmic cars that caught my eye.
Intrigued I set out to find the original photo and more on the car.
After tracking down photographer Scott Kroeker I was able to not only get permission to re-post the photos but also obtained the contact information of the builder Brent.
The Chevy before Brent tore into it
Both Brent and Scott were on board with running the photo set here but things got really interesting when I asked Brent if he had a build thread for this bad ass Chevy.
One page into the build thread I was absolutely blown away by how much work had gone into this car.
The build is just as interesting as the final product.
Cut up......and put back together
On the first page of the build Brent made made chopping and sectioning the car look like child’s play.
Further along his creativity and perfectionism emerged when he worked and then re worked the rear window of the car until it flowed perfectly. When he was finished with the rear window for the second time he turned to the front of the car where he extended the headlight buckets so that he could use Olds headlight rings.
A this time he also fabricated front and rear bumpers from a combination of Oldsmobile and Chevy bumper and grill pieces.
At this point many 'professional' body shops would throw in the towelYa... it snows a bit in Manitoba
One of the more interesting small details to this build sits in the grill. Holding the two signal lights is a polished aluminum baseball bat that has been cut in half, not sure where Brent got that idea but it is pretty unique.
In the midst of doing all of this fab work Brent also figured this platform would be the perfect candidate for his first air ride install, so he did that as well.
The bags were a great choice because it’s new slammed height has a lot to do with why it ended up here.
Polish underway... I love the fact he ended up keeping it bare.
After the body was polished and the car was running Brent had his friend Ian Kroeker come down and do all of the pin striping on the car including simulated rivets.
The final product shot by Scott Kroeker is below:
No paint - still shinin'Everything about this shot just seems rightDesktop, poster, postcard, worthyChristine?Perfect.
Brent took a car that the earth was trying to claim back and turned in into an award winning masterpiece using his own two hands and the respect I have for people like Brent is immeasurable.
I can only hope that when the time is right for me to really build (not assemble) a car I will be able to do so with even half as much skill.
There is a build thread I am reading on Stance|Works (one of the better threads of late) that talks about unorthodox tanks for air ride setups.
The original posters plan was to run a multiple piece rectangular tank stack and there has been a lot of helpful (key word) discussion about how he should go about doing so safely.
Many mentioning the importance of pressure testing the tanks to avoid blow outs like this.
The following is a set of chrome tanks that blew up after a week or so of 200psi.
The ends of the tank literally popped offA few people mentioned how odd it was the plastic fittings had no issuesProbably sounded like a bomb...If it did that to a Caddy trunk...
I found these photos over on layitlow.com where there has been quite a bit of discussion regarding chrome tanks.
Imagine this happened while the guy was driving or working on the car? Air ride is serious business.
This is the tank setup the original posted settled on after testing the setup which he says won’t see over 150psi.
The original posters final setup pressure tested up to 190psi and 155 PSI for 24hrs
And this just might be one of the best looking tank setups I have ever seen.
Would hate to see something like this rad explode
Site Updates
From now until I run out every order will ship with a lanyard courtesy of Nextmod.
Additionally from now until the end of January every other order will receive something from ‘the box’.
The box contains posters, stickers, dvds, and calendars.
Flashback Friday
Next ride Subaru (GRB STI is what I want) or A3 (2.0t)? I can’t call it.
Still love this.
Shot by: flickr.com/photos/theredbeard/
Less than a week before Christmas… doubtful an A3 will show up under the tree.
There has been a steady increase in the amount of previous, under construction, and current readers rides that have arrived via email over the past six months.
As most of the past readers rides posts have focused on cars from the fan page I decided to dedicate this one strictly to cars that have shown up in the [email protected] inbox.
This is by no means all of them, and I plan to do a few more of these before the winter is over.
Brian’s Eclipse Spyder GT
Before Brian sent in his Eclipse Spyder I can’t recall coming across too many others online.
This generation just didn’t seem to take off like the one before it but Brian saw the potential and has dropped his car on Megan coils, installed Eibach camber bolts, and slapped on a set of 17×10 XXR 527s with 215/40 tires.
This XXR wheel has been very popular in 2011Streeeeetch
Lee’s F150
Lee sent in another platform I don’t see much of, a 1995 F150. He has already dropped he truck 5 inches (they come pretty high) and says that next season when he gets new wheels he plans to go lower.
Lee hails from a small Iowa farming town so I am pretty sure his truck raises a few eyebrows.
He says most of the other vehicles in his town are all lifted 4x4s…
Stock heightDropped 5 inches
Jeremy’s X-Runner
Keeping the outside of the box platform going a little bit more here is Jeremy’s Tacoma X Runner that he picked up after moving on from his b16 swapped CRX.
It sits on 20s has been dropped 4″ in the front and 3″ in the rear. He has also installed a short shifter, CAI, and extensive stereo.
He sent the email awhile back but he did also mention a few future plans….
I think this would look pretty bad ass on the floor
Colin’s s2000
Colin has been reading for awhile now and actually a friend of John (with the wide body Mazda 3). A few months ago he sent in some photos of his s2000 and the CF front end and bolt on rear flares instantly grabbed my attention.
The photos below are from his most recent shoot with a local photographer before the thermometer went south.
Feels like autumn only lasted a couple days...Is Livin' The Low Life still on?I am sure this car is tucked away now
Zend’s 2001 BMW 540i
Zend was actually one of the first people to send in his car via email and is a fellow maxbimmer member.
Before he moves on from this car (which also happens to be his first) to his dream car (a 2003 M5) Zend plans to squeeze as much fun out of his 540i as possible.
A couple of bolt-on under the hood along with HR coils and 19×8.5 19×10 Linea Corse LeMans wheels make up the current list of modifications, though he is hoping to add a supercharger before things are all said and done.
Zend's 5 lookin' very cleanHope you were not at the theater to watch the Smurfs Zend!
Sean’s Lancer GTS
Sean lives about 45 minutes from me but I think he could cover the distance much faster than I could because a) my car is wood and b) he has done quite a few performance modifications to his GTS.
The most significant under hood addition would have to be the snail amd Sean informs me that it is first (and only) N/A to turbo converted Lancer GTS in Canada.
The mods list on this car is quite extensive so if you are interested in reading everything that has been done check out his build thread.
Sean's goal was a tasteful, functional, clean car, and it looks like mission accomplishedTein coils bring this car down from factory heightA peak under the hood of this N/A to F.I. car
Max’s Subaru
Max from Mojomotors was quick to express his love for the blog (thanks) and send a photo if his 2002 WRX.
He only sent one though so maybe I can grab a few more for the second round.
Bugeye love
Spence’s e46 Touring
Spence sent his OEM+ styled touring with a little bit of bad news. After dropping it on KW’s, and adding m6 replica wheels the car was involved in some sort of fiasco involving two teenagers and a deer.
The car didn’t survive, bummer.
Sad to say this car is no longer with us
Ben’s Fleet
Going to end this off with a few photos from Ben out in Florida. He sent over some pictures of his previous and current rides all of which have been dropped somewhere from low to slammed.
Personally I am a big fan of the trucks (big surprise right?).
Normally when you see a Civic near a cruiser it is bad newsBen's e46Ben's bagged American truckAnd Ben's bagged import truck
This Mk5 Fiesta is one of is one of the more unique builds I have come across this month and part of this is because we don’t get this flavor of Fiesta in North America.
However, the rest of the reasons I like this car have nothing to do with this cars availability to me and everything to do with the owners choice in modifications.
For example when was the last time you saw a car with hydraulic suspension that didn’t have wires?
In addition to the suspension choice the wheels on this Ford also stand out, at first glance they may seem a little small but take a look at the fitment in the rear three quarter shot when the car is laid out, on point.
At the end of the day this car is just clean from bumper to bumper and that is what sets it off and I honestly can’t say I would want to see a single thing about this car changed, ever.
I’ve been posting the odd classic truck (50s to early/mid 80s) both here and on the fan page for the past few months but for whatever reason I have never really posted them in mass.
Today is the the day I change that.
Quite a few of these trucks are fat fender Chevys or squared up C-10s but don’t take that as a sign of me being a Chevy over Ford guy.
I just happened to be searching for a particular Chevy when I came across most of these pics.
Yep, that is how I am starting this one.Looks like that bumper takes care of any debris that might be in the waySuper smooth 55Similar vintage of truck not quite as shaved or paintedPerfect what I assume to be static drop52 Chev in original patinaI picked up a LOT of c-10sI think seeing this truck laid out on an even surface would do it even further justiceThis looks pretty rad... but please do not do it to a late model carLook at the size of those tubs... ride low park lower!You just know the owner of this truck gets asked if he would sell on a weekly if not daily basisFound on road...slammed?Step side > Fleet side with most 50s/60s trucksExtended cab short bed?Does this remind anyone else of the cab from Who Shot Roger Rabbit? Still sick thoughSnub nose fans this is for youFor those who say lowered trucks lose all their practicality...It is an absolute must that I attend a Good Guys EventSo the picture I was looking for is this truck hitting a pylon driven by a guy with a big beard, can someone find it?Local Taylor'd customs killin' it
I might do vintage (pre 50s) trucks in the near future, along with a follow up to this theme.
Provided the fine folks at Google have their act together ‘Håll Classy’ means stay classy in Swedish and Alexander Lindquist (of Sweden) has done a excellent job of staying classy with his W124 200E Mercedes Benz.
Once he took care of the generous factory wheel gap Alex mounted a set of pristine looking 17×8 RH zw1 wheels that are a great match to this cars factory two tone paint.
In addition to a few subtle exterior modifications Alex put some bang in the doors and trunk with components from DLS and JVC.
Alex put this Benz on the floorI have always loved the prominent grill on older MercsThe face color of the RH wheels match the two tone nearly perfectCloser look at the wheels and the fitmentExceptionally well played Alex
Alex and his friend Martin are also quite the photographers (they each took some of these photos) so be sure to check out each of their flickr accounts for more of the Swedish scene.
Surprisingly this is the second crazy Isetta to get WTF Friday honors here on Stance Is Everything, the first was a crazy mash of worlds Isetta 500 that had a P51 Mustang (airplane) motor driving the wheels.
Today’s is slightly tamer borrowing its power plant from an 87 Mazda RX-7.
Another important difference between the two builds lies in the budget. One is unknown and the other was limited to 2010 dollars as that was one of the requirements of the Grass Roots Motorsport Challenge that it was was built for.
Besides a few photos and a short video I can’t really seem to find too much more on this creation, which is a bummer.
So they extended the wheel base a bit...I would love to find a build thread on this too see how much Isetta is leftThe graphics are all originalBut I wonder what else is original -- suspension, frame, wheels, drive train obviously not.. original steering wheel maybe?
Gets a little lose around 32 seconds in:
Bonus: It would appear more people have done odd things with Isettas as is evident by these other photos I found looking for more info:
Drag Isetta with what looks to be VW air cooled running gearHotwheels What A Drag Isetta
Perhaps a WTF Friday on each of these is in order? Or (this might make my life difficult) an Isetta Theme Tuesday?
Props to Ollie for giving me the heads up on this one.
Site Updates
Stopped by Nextmod last night and along with grabbing a few things for my car (and garage) I also picked up some swag to give away through December and January.
Look out for a post explaining that next week.
Flashback Friday
A 300 popped up for sale on my timeline this morning which reminded me I posted a couple clean ones a long while back.
Down to see more of these done well without lambo doors and such
There are a couple local ones I should catch up with again too…
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Rob Dyson, One Happy Team Owner
Prost Puts the Rebellion To Work
