The Irish Motor Festival
The Irish motor festival was the brainchild of the guys at Drift games, they managed to secure Punchestown as a Drift venue once again and use of the massive exhibition hall which is right next to the drift track. It’s great to have another show on the calendar each year and we’ve always loved Punchestown.
The cars were selected so it brought out a pretty serious line-up. This Mugen faced DC5 was 10/10
An old favourite, a car we featured not too long ago was Paddy’s RYO AE86.
Love the desaturated look this GTR has, rocking some fresh looking SSR SP1’s.
It’s always a treat to see a Chuki 180sx that somehow still has its original metalwork.
How about an F20 Turbo FD3S on SSR TF1’s? Try saying that three times.
Another favourite is this 32 GTS-T, cool to see the GTS bumper and a GTR hood, it’s a great combo.
Nismo LMGT4’s on an FD? Yep, this works.
OEM Paradise, this 70 series supra looks like something out of a museum.
Right next to it was this 60 series Celica/Supra rocking a super cool two-tone paint job.
Peak Evo! A Makinen with a Malbro livery, this is perfection.
A car you rarely see these days, the N14 Pulsar, this one was just how I remember these as a kid, with a mega front mount.
Robbie is doing great things with his Verossa, these photos are a year old and this thing has changed quite a bit since then.
Hard to beat a clean EG6.
Evan had just finished refurbishing his Advan A3A’s in yellow and switched from the Longchamps, his car was also the Juicebox shop for the event. Check that high-quality sign on the windscreen.
Kevin preserving a bit of Japanese drift history, I miss having this next to the 86 build in the shed, it might have a part to play in the build of the March.
This was the Green turned Blue nugget first car event. A lot of people didn’t really know how to feel about this car. I think it made people feel uncomfortable about liking a March/Micra!
Stagea’s are one of the coolest modern Japanese wagons.
Chris’s Cefiro, at the time of shooting these it was the last road-going one in Ireland. These came to the Emerald Isle in very small numbers, theres mayne eight that we know of over here. I’ve always had a soft spot for these cars.
Paddy was holding it down with pretty much 80% of the cars indoors. He had gathered some of the countries finest for the Speedhunters stand.
How about a K20 Supercharged DC2 with an OEM exterior, it doesn’t take much for these cars to look good.
Dave from Drift games owns this beast of a drift car, one of the Gitten RTR Formula D machines.
Ireland’s coolest VIP machine, can’t get enough of this thing.
This Levin is great, A nice blend of parts, UK sidelights, OEM front bumper, aftermarket side skirts, Mega meisters and a nice colour combination to suit.
I always encounter this little EP70 at events, it’s constantly changing. From what I can gather, it started its life as an Irish starlet and was treated to a collection of EP71 JDM turbo parts.
Speaking of the EP chassis, Sean brought out his GT Advance, one of the coolest examples this country has ever seen.
Another cool Chuki 180sx. Long live the small wheels.
The S15 has aged quite well, they still look modern for a car that came out in 1999.
I love everything about this Mini from the guys at Minifix Garage.
Suffocated by Japanese metal, this GTI was an unexpected treat.
Can’t get enough of these big two-tone Brick shapes Crowns. Japan nailed it with these cars.
Head back a few generations to the Golden Era, and the guys from Retro Autos brought their s50 Crown and a GX71 Cressida.
I thought this Uras Four-door demo car was long gone but Ireland has a way for surprising its car enthusiasts.
Great to see it still alive, and in one piece. Such a cool looking machine.
Dave brought his 33 GTR, this combo will never get old.
A rare occasion where Eamon brings this thing outside of Waterford, I think the same can be said for all of us. We get cabin fever leaving Waterford or even the shed for that matter.
I’m pretty sure this is a Thailand imported KE70, we are taking them from wherever we can these days. The Love is strong for these cars here, shame most of our examples were sent to the crusher many moons ago.
I’ve got a serious man-crush on this car. That hood gets me every time.
Another car that absolutely nailed it is this Pignose 180sx. I don’t even know where to start, the two-tone, the pig nose bumper, the Black spoked SP1’s, or hos about the black roof and mirrors. This thing is arguably one of the coolest examples I have ever seen. Hats off to the owner for managing to create something so unique with a car that done to death.
Another machine we enjoy seeing is this Rocket Bunny kitted E46.
MS1’s look at home under this FD3S, you can just about make out an RB25 lump in the engine bay.
This super clean Zenki was sitting pretty on a set of SSR SP1’s in full chrome. I really like the black mounting brackets on the mirrors.
A well-used 180sx on Bronze TE37’s, what’s not to like?
Another rare machine here in Ireland, the JZX81, it was a real treat to see this one at the event.
Parked next to it was a super clean facelift EK civic.
An AE111 sporting a Bomex face.
The EM1 was pretty cool, sporting some SA90s and a first molding lip. Awesome combination.
You rarely see a strawberry face conversion anymore, this is a super cool 180 with a nod back to the early millenium style.
Podge’s FC is arguably the angriest example still left with a Rotary in Ireland. Many people just ditch the rotary and go for every other well-known option. Podge is like Irish Rotary ambassador, showing that big power figures and reliability are possible from what is considered a relatively scary engine. Shadow rotary are slowly changing peoples opinion over here but for as long as we can remember, Ireland has been afraid of that Dorito trapped inside a triangle.
Speaking of rotary power, I should have snapped a photo of this engine bay, this thing is powered by a 13B from an FC.
This little NA Roadster/MX5 was hitting the spot. Rocking some rare aggressive 4×100 SSR SP1’s. Those little wing mirrors, the black and white paint and the clear indicators work well together. Fair play.
Regamasters on an S2K, yes please!
Jason Mac and John Gammels old Trueno, this car was at the first-ever Juicebox BBQ, I’ve loved this car for many years and its great to still see it around.
Gus’s 2 door Trueno is superb, the colour combination mixed with OEM styling hits the spot. You cant go wrong with an OEM front lip and Runfree side skirts.
The full Retro Auto fleet was out in display.
Those guys have a serious selection of Box-shaped Toyotas.
Talk about VIP, it’s hard to get any more Bippu than this Blacked out Merc, Japanese flavour on a German machine. This show has a very nice mix of machinery from all over the world, something you don’t see too often here as Ireland is very biased towards Japanese tin, which is completely understandable considering how much of it is here.
Anway’s hope you enjoyed these snaps, lots more features coming up over the coming weeks.