{"id":604,"date":"2025-04-11T15:02:07","date_gmt":"2025-04-11T15:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/?p=604"},"modified":"2025-05-30T14:57:18","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T14:57:18","slug":"top-5-wildcards-at-japfest-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/11\/top-5-wildcards-at-japfest-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 5 Wildcards at Japfest 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

Unconventional, breaking the mould or simply wanting to annoy the purists, that pretty much sums up our top 5 wildcards at Japfest<\/a> 2025.<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re sat there wondering what on Earth a wildcard is then you\u2019re in for a treat. Back in the days when we published a monthly print magazine we\u2019d often include a wildcard feature, this was something that you wouldn\u2019t typically see. It could be a ridiculous engine swap, it could be a very unlikely base car (like a Lada for example) or it could even be a combination of both from a country you\u2019d never expect. So we thought, why not bring some of that magic back for Japfest? Which is exactly what we\u2019ve done as part of our Fast Car Culture Collection stand<\/a>. So let\u2019s take a look at the top 5 wildcards at Japfest this April 13th<\/sup>. <\/p>\n

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\"2JZ<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

2JZ-Engined Ford Granada<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I wasn\u2019t joking when I said unlikely base cars and ridiculous engine swaps\u2026 And I know what you\u2019re going to say, it\u2019s not Japanese! You\u2019re correct, a Ford Granada is not Japanese, in any way, shape or form. But, what\u2019s cooler than taking a boring saloon car from the 80s and shoving arguably the greatest, most tuneable engine to ever come out of Japan, the 2JZ, under the bonnet and then proceeding to turn the wick up? The owner says it best: \u201cLife\u2019s too short to drive boring cars\u201d, boy oh boy is he right. Meticulously restored, this 2JZ Granada may well be a Ford, but we hope you can agree that it\u2019s worthy of its place on our Fast Car Culture Collection as a result of its engine swap.<\/p>\n

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\"LS<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

LS-Powered Nissan S15<\/h2>\n

From a Japanese-powered American car to an American-powered Japanese car, we told you we like things different. And this is also the part where I mentioned \u201csimply wanting to annoy the purists\u201d comes in, because sticking an LS motor under the bonnet of an S15 could indeed be considered treason. But bear with us here, Martin, the owner, simply doesn\u2019t care. He set out with the intention of LS swapping something, and while an S15 wasn\u2019t the first car that sprang to mind, it did become the ultimate fusion of all out muscle and delicate handling. Now just imagine if the current US establishment could play along nicely with its foreign counterparts\u2026 I digress.<\/p>\n

Back to this marvel, if you want to read more about it, check out the full S15 feature here<\/a>. Under the bonnet is a supercharged LS2, pushing power up to 600bhp. It\u2019s got all the right parts from all the right brands to help keep all that power in check, including a Nismo 1.5 LSD. \u00a0Head over to the Fast Car stand at Japfest if you want to see it in person and ask Martin about how the idea came to him over a pub session\u2026 Now that\u2019s how the best stories start.<\/p>\n

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\"Civic<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Honda Civic EF Lowrider<\/h2>\n

Apparently there\u2019s some sort of American theme going on here\u2026 So we\u2019ve had Japanese-powered American cars, American-powered Japanese cars, so how about a Japanese car fully embracing America\u2019s West Coast modifying culture? Say hello to Sol\u2019s Civic EF Lowrider<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Lowriders \u2013 they\u2019re all Impalas and Coupe De Villes, aren\u2019t they? No, far from it\u2026 let Pete Blackhurst clear it up for you: \u201cIn lowriding, the margins between cool and bad taste are carefully managed by individuality and creativity,\u201d he says, \u201cso in effect it doesn\u2019t really matter what people think, there\u2019s no real prerequisites, your ride is an expression of you.\u201d So is it cool to run a 1980s Honda Civic in the lowrider scene? Hell yeah, it is. Get ready to witness what is\u00a0quite possibly the world\u2019s coolest EF Civic hopping its way around \u00a0Silverstone this April 13th.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"GSXR-powered<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

GSX-R-powered VW Golf Mk1 Berg Cup<\/h2>\n

That was a mouthful. But don\u2019t scoff your nose up just yet, while it is a VW, the magic of the build is under the bonnet. Just let me reel off a few specs before you start judging. Under the bonnet is a 1000cc Suzuki GSX-R superbike engine, which has then been turbocharged and mated to a sequential gearbox and sends the all the power to the rear wheels\u2026 It\u2019s about as barmy as a Golf gets, and given its Berg Cup bodykit (if you don\u2019t know, get to know, quick!), it well and truly puts the wild in wildcards. Now who else wants a small RWD hatchback with a silly amount of power?<\/p>\n

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\"Toyota<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Widebody Toyota Mk X<\/h2>\n

\u201cYou said you weren\u2019t going to give us any more non-Japanese cars and now you\u2019re showing us a Merc?\u201d This one got us too, don\u2019t worry. Believe it or not, it\u2019s not a Mercedes. It\u2019s actually a Toyota Mk X, and is also the only widebody MK X in the UK. Sold exclusively in Japan, it serves as a moderately hot saloon car, boasting a 2.5-litre NA V6 up front. What it doesn\u2019t come with from factory is that wild widebody kit. It serves presence by the bucket load and we\u2019re sure you can appreciate the individuality when it comes to this build.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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What\u2019s On At Japfest<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Japfest Public Tickets<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Japfest Club Tickets<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The post Top 5 Wildcards at Japfest 2025<\/a> appeared first on Fast Car<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Unconventional, breaking the mould or simply wanting to annoy the purists, that pretty much sums up our top 5 wildcards at Japfest 2025. If you\u2019re sat there wondering what on Earth a wildcard is then you\u2019re in for a treat. Back in the days when we published a monthly print magazine we\u2019d often include a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":607,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-event-coverage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=604"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":620,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604\/revisions\/620"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/607"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chasethefootprint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}