Takumi Igei, a youngster who had never heard of a pop-up car meet but was inspired to build anything by it, started his first project with this broad and strong Mazda RX-7. This and his enthusiasm for the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC) changed how his RX-7 Type RS looked and ran. Takumi first became interested in cars when she went to Super Street’s Fresh Tokyo Vehicle Meet, open to car fans of all makes and types. People and significant buildings quickly filled the Deck Tokyo Beach parking garage and its streets. Takumi, a teenager then, had no idea what was happening. Everything changed when his father, having dinner at Decks, called him and told him to come to see the long line of cars surrounding the building. Takumi got to the event and was amazed by the number of custom vehicles there. How he felt about it stuck with him, so he made his car. That’s how this scary yellow Mazda came to be. Jofel Tolosa, who helped plan the event in 2017 and decided to take a picture of the car in the same parking lot, did this to close the circle. He was most interested in the third model, RX-7, out of all the cars on display at the show. Takumi says, “Ever since I was a child, I’ve been in love with the RX-7.” “I worked many part-time jobs in high school and bought it when I turned 18 and got my driver’s licence.” He took things into his own hands and worked hard to get his dream car, so it was clear that he would do a lot to make it his own, including some cool do-it-yourself projects. Takumi’s love of JGTC cars brought him to the “2015 NEW” widebody makeover at Panspeed. The eight-piece change includes new front and back fenders with 18×10.5 BBS RI-A and Dunlop Direzza tires and an extra 50 mm clearance. Pan-speed suspension with 18K front and rear springs was used to get that perfect ride height. Pillow ball mounts and polyurethane bushings were added to the car to make it handle and move better. A Scoot hood with vents was added for a more aggressive look, and RE Amemiya headlights were put on, but only after Takumi gave the lights his special touch. He also made strange canards of carbon fiber connected to the front bumper. At the back, there is a RE carbon fibre tail light finisher and an M&M Honda FD2 rear fog lamp right below the vented rear fender of the brand. On each side of the RX-7, some parts were made by Honda, such as the custom-mounted JGTC NSX GT mirrors. The vast JGTC Supra GT wing that hangs above hides the rear-end changes. “When I found out that a friend of mine owned the JGTC wing, I told him how excited I was and begged him to sell it,” says Takumi. Lucky for him, his friend was ready to give up the legendary item that would have been perfect for this build. Takumi’s RX-7 is the car he drives every day, but with just a few minor engine changes, it is ready for a track day. If this project had been done in the United States, you would expect to see a significant single turbo conversion, an engine swap, or a mix of the two to make a lot of power. Currently, the only things that add power are an exhaust and an intake. An A’PEXi Power FC is used to fine-tune the rotary engine. To give the car a JGTC feel while driving, a Bride Xero RS seat with a Sparco harness, an OMP flat-bottom steering wheel, and a row of Defi gauges along the top of the dash are added. The passenger seat also has a multi-point belt, and a Panspeed roll cage keeps everyone inside safe. Takumi’s father was enjoying lunch when a pop-up meeting happened before him. This caused him to tell his son and, in turn, inspired a small child to one day build his car. We need to find out how likely it is. No matter what happened, we’re glad Takumi came to the meeting and that we were able to give him a chance to tell his story.
