new?

[One Ton VIP]

is it requisite thing for everyone who's joining this board now to always say something to the effect of "i've been into vip for years" when they have nothing to show for it? sort of reminds me when people joined 240 and corolla mssg boards over the last 2 years saying they've "been into drifting for years"... when they were either still driving their civics, or just sold it 2 months prior.
god help us all

[RobSoVip]

;D ;D ;D

ohh dear- please dont let our style go the way of the 240SX and the AE86- its not a trend! (i hope) ;D

[Dominik]

Well, not everyone who is into VIP can afford to own a VIP car for starters. I first saw VIP cars years ago, and from the very start i thought they were the coolest thing since sliced bread. Yet here i am 5-6yrs later starting on my first VIP car...

Why? Money, more importantly lack thereof. And lack of knowlege; I had only seen one or 2 pictures of crazy VIP cars, and it was hard to find more info. I'm sure if I had the money, i would have put more effort into it, but i didnt and so i was content with looking at the random pics.

[FalkDesigns]

But it is a trend, and every single VIP brand manufacturer entering the US market is hoping it will catch like a So Cal wild-fire in August.* Without trends, there's no point to companys making the products.* No market = no product.* Just try to find anything aftermarket for the Y33 Q45's, there's nothing but OEM available in the USA (besides the very rare exception of Stillen selling JIC c/o's and a front lip - not even sure they still offer them, and now J.P.).* *In the end, companys do things for one reason, they may love whatever it may be, but they do it for the $$$.

That said, when I got my Q I had no idea what VIP was, I wanted a big, V8, rwd sedan and to make it sort of M5-ish. I just saw ton's of potential in a basically under-appreciated car. Then I discovered VIP and fell in love, that's a little over 1 year ago for me, not years. I have no problem admitting it's not something I've been "in to" since 1995.* ;D

[Pagong]

Im going to put this up on top again, as I am seeing alot of these lately.

Quote One Ton
is it requisite thing for everyone who's joining this board now to always say something to the effect of "i've been into vip for years" when they have nothing to show for it? sort of reminds me when people joined 240 and corolla mssg boards over the last 2 years saying they've "been into drifting for years"... when they were either still driving their civics, or just sold it 2 months prior.
god help us all

[dvp]

I agree, just show up and enjoy the style and people who like it, learn somthing and chill out. If you come in saying the generic ive been into it for years, I always assume that you just picked up on the style, or why would you need to even make that qualifying statement. Thats not true for everyone who makes that statement but people can tell if you know what VIP is about without you telling us how many years you knew about the style ;D

but it is telling that some of the people that have been into vip for years seem to ask the most newb questions

D.

[Caoboy]

Also, does anyone else see who welcomes all the newbs?

[Pagong]

I for one dont mind welcoming some of the newcomers, but when they have to say "ive been into VIP for years",but nothing to show for it, like one ton said then I just let them pass by.

[SlideRiceFC]

I'm sure people say that because they feel it adds a sort of instant credibility for them being here and part of this community. I'm not sure I'd completely discount the validity of some peoples' experience just because they don't have one of the nicer cars on here. I drive an 88 Mazda RX-7. I've never owned a VIP or VIP styled car unless you count a raggedy ES250 I owned a couple years back which as a front wheel drive dressed up camry I'd hardly consider it so. But the fact is I have a stack of magazines like Celsior and VIPcar that is far from a recent addition to the clutter in my room and I lurk here daily. I have wasted countless hours planning buildups of Y32 and Y33 Q45s that'll probably never take place. I understand what you guys are saying...I have owned about a dozen RX-7s. My room is cluttered with RX-7 toys. My living room is littered with parts either from or destined to go on my RX-7. It is safe to say I'm "into" RX-7s much more so than my long time spectating of the VIP scene. There is a difference between having your hands in it and having a magazine in your hands so maybe it's a little blow to your ego when some internet VIP comes along and claims to be into VIP for years when you've been struggling to find or custom fab parts for your cars for years and they've been struggling to find out where Kinokuniya Bookstore is. But go easy on them. They might not know much right now but when you're trying to eke out a group buy for some new kits or something some of those guys could be the ones that help make you reach your numbers. In a community this small I for one would be happy to see more people participating even if they feel they have to fudge their OG status a bit just to gain acceptance.

[137]

I have wasted countless hours planning buildups of Y32 and Y33 Q45s that'll probably never take place.


what is this y32 q45 you speak of? :police:

[SlideRiceFC]

Alright, geez....my bad. I know you're poking good fun but I guess I should clarify that I meant G50 Q45.

[dvp]

its cool, we all really have much love for everyone. And you make some valid points. Dont take it badly we just dont like posers :police:. But we do want more people to understand what VIP is all about, but when they come in acting like they know everything other people who are also newbies listen to some of their wrong ideas about VIP and it dilutes the meaning of VIP tuning.

D.

[firelizard]

I came here because I loved the look of Vip Cars and I knew you guys were knowledgeable. I only "got into" it last year but I had a hard time finding out about it until I found this site.

[SlideRiceFC]

I understand. I wasn't referring to anything that had been said in particular to me since I don't believe I ever even posted an intro when I joined (I know, terrible board etiquette on my part) nor have I made claims of being into VIP for years. I was just speaking generally. I guess what I fear is what I encountered being in the drift and RX-7 scene for almost ten years now. I remember when everything was small and tight-knit and then the JDM fad came up and drifting got cool. Then suddenly drift forums where everywhere when originally there may have been two. Believe me, I got agitated too. There were some legitimate arguments because drifting is a street lifestyle and suddenly drift spots were being invaded by newbies which made things less safe, less friendly, and police were getting involved. To me that's a legitimate beef. And then there was stuff like Initial D. I'm not ashamed to say I love Initial D. I purchased Act 1 from somebody in Singapore before it was subtitled and available anywhere. Then suddenly 3 years later it was huge and and if I would mention Initial D it was like you were begging to get flamed because only newbies watched it. I remember getting flamed on a Mazda forum for putting a Turbo II hood on a NA car because it was rice. Yeah, it really twisted my ass hairs to have some kids probably 16 years old calling me rice. The way I saw it, the hood was a stock part not some cheap aftermarket mod. It was aluminum versus the steel NA hood that was on there. It looked better and it cooled my engine bay better. In what way is that rice? Things were just ridiculous for a while on forums that were once geared towards tech info and now were just grounds for pissing matches.

So I guess alll of that rambling is to say this, I expect more from the VIP scene. Most of the younger crowd can't afford the cars or parts so I expect a slightly older, more mature, and definitely more refined crowd. I expect to see a much more varied age group. With VIP I think there's more participation after age 30 whereas in other car genres I think interest slows with age. And I don't expect an adult to verbally assault a younger member because they are obviously a noob. I don't think it's wrong to raise the BS flag as long as it's done so tactfully.

Anyway, I want to say that I'm glad this forum is around and there are definitely some knowledgeable tech oriented people here as well as people directly involved in the industry. A couple years ago the most you could hope for is browsing Japanese sites or finding English sites for VIP car owners but they weren't US based. So this is cool. But I think it's obvious that sooner or later the VIP scene will explode and be exploited like everything else. So I just pray cool heads will prevail and some good board moderaters will be on hand to keep posting relevant and sociable.

Nice meeting everyone and I'm looking forward to participating more. I'm in the process of readying my RX-7 collection for sale to help fund the purchase of a Q45. I've been putting it off forever. I even went so far as to put rear seats in my FC so I could pick the kids up from school and not have to get rid of it for a family car. But now it's getting crazy hot here and I have to face the awful truth that maybe it's time to grow up and get rid of my no A/C no frills drift car and get something more functional for where I'm at in life. :)

[shoez]

i find it strange at how quickly i got hooked on the whole VIP scene. I remember that i was at SEMA last may, i had stopped through all of the booths and my dad said, "why havent you gone into this one?" pointing at theAME Wheels Booth! I replied, "No im not a fan of those DUBSTYLE cars."* :-[ I remember it was sometime in September when I saw a picture of the JP Lexus LS400 and just fell in love with it. I havent "been into the scene for years" or "plan on starting my own VIP project" but without this forum and all of the members who have helped me out (Mdenoga, 137, PagongLS, OnTop, Yak, Dominik, V-8, etc.) I would have never learned about the beauty of Mode Parfume Cimas, Insurance Group Y33's, DUCE Celsiors,* Luxest Estimas, camber, tire streching and proper fitment.
And i thank all of you for that. :)

EDIT: Spelling

[SlideRiceFC]

Haha. Yes, tire stretching and fitment. Remember folks, every time you obliterate a newcomer you run the risk of sending an uneducated person out there into the world that may incorrectly dress up their car. How many nice cars have you seen out there with weak wheel fitments? You might not like the wananbes but please...do it for the cars! Save a car. Educate a newbie today! :P

[shawnthemonster]

thats our aim...