Signal Auto & Tra Kyoto - Juiceboxforyou

We decided to chance Signal Auto. Signal was one of our favourite shops growing up, and after finding in disbelief that their original store is still open and operational, we added it to the list.

Many of you will remember the famous pearlescent Skylines, which dominated the early millennium magazines accompanied by videos of “Drifter X” in the orange splash graphic 180sx. That 180sx eventually got an s15 front end. It came to the UK and Ireland and finally landed in the US to compete in D1.

Many of you will remember this car. This was the stair set leading to the owner’s personal office.

Signal were huge in the early millennium, arguably one of the biggest names in Japan. I thought they had gone out of business a long time ago as nothing pops up from the company anymore. It looks like they have scaled-down. They are now a minor operation with no real demo cars or performance stuff in the magazines, but they still exist.

What an experience upstairs, it was a fascinating room filled with pretty much everything Signal has achieved over the years.

When we came through the doors, we were baffled. They were so excited to see us, which we weren’t expecting from such a big name, and the manager gave us a tour of the owner’s personal memorabilia collection upstairs. It was a special moment.

Downstairs was a collection of idyllic JDM machines.

One of the most established well-known shops, still holding on with a spray booth and work area downstairs, it’s a shame they had to let the signal 34 go, but it appears to be in good hands in the USA.

It looks like a traditional sight one would expect to see in a Japanese tuning shop.

Long gone are the days of pearlescent skyline and orange s13’s bit we were delighted to see the shop is still in action.

This 86 was pretty interesting.

A cool Evo on RE30’s tucked into the corner.

They have another brand called “Show Up”, which used to do all their paintwork, and now it seems Signal focuses solely on the paint and sales of custom colours. A must-visit location for any old school head if you are in Osaka!

Check out that Kei Truck.

We pushed on, feeling lucky after our lovely encounter at Signal Auto. We decided to chance Tra Kyoto, who many of you will know as Rocket bunny.

We spotted this collection down a back alley.

On the trip, we were always on the hunt for cars that catch the eye. This stopped us dead in our tracks not too far from Tra Kyoto.

The traffic was just as amusing.

A sporty looking Fun Cargo.

Tra Kyoto is arguably the most influential shop of the last decade, spawning endless wide body cars and kits. Miura San injected a new take on a lot of older chassis during the previous ten years. I’ve been drooling over the original Rocket Bunny S13 for a long time; I’m pretty sure it was my desktop wallpaper for years as a teenager.

Once again, luck was on our side. One of the biggest names in the car world, Miura San invited us in like we were friends; they opened all the doors to their garage like we were part of the family. Mind you; this was just after his EG6 Civic had been stolen a couple of nights previous. Luckily Miura had recovered it and seemed to be in a great mood.

We sat down, started chatting, and he showed us where he designs all the 3d models of various chassis that he posts online. He gave us a sneak peek of the Sema designs for the AE86 and S13 before anyone else. We chatted about different cars and colours for well over an hour. It felt like a dream.

 

What a legend!

The famous machine…

He was just cutting out end plates for a new spoiler prototype.

Mr fucking Rocket Bunny, Mr Pandem, Tra Kyoto, a guy who didn’t need to be this humble with us, was casually hanging chilling with us for the evening. What a legend.

I almost felt awkward filming the situation as it was so casual. Sometimes it’s almost better to put the camera down, which we did for a lot of it, not to ruin a genuinely lovely experience.

Legend! I love this photo.

Then he took us around the back to show us the workshop and the machine that has made him a very famous man. He can quickly create prototypes here and moulds for various kits and make some of the kits for many larger companies, ill let you fill in the blanks as to who we are these companies are.

The Civic was back safe and sound.

I love the fact he still has the 13, sitting outside the shop.

I couldn’t believe we were in this building, with the man himself, chatting to him about his machine and workshop, one of the most humble individuals I’ve ever met. It’s great to see the fame and fortune hasn’t rocked his humble nature.

How cool is their E30?

This was the warehouse where stuff is boxed and sent out to the customer.

Miura and the staff were more than friendly with us. It was a fantastic experience.

A cool Dekotora truck parked outside, I wonder if this is Miuras personal truck.

Woody hanging on for dear life.

I’ve wanted to take this photo for many years. It was nice to finally tick this place off of the list.

And see this thing in real life.

 

The garage had these two beauties also, this place was oozing with character.

It was hard to believe that such a company with a significant presence had such a small operation, only four guys work there, and it’s all made under the one roof on the end of a street, all designed moulded and shipped out from the same place. It gave me a new appreciation for the company.

They even had the a90 kit made and were just about to ship it out for all the new FD A90 supra builds, which weren’t even complete when we shot this.

We left Tra Kyoto wiped in disbelief. I had that s13 as my desktop wallpaper in school, and for much of my late teens, it was a teenage dream car that has arguably been one of the most influential Silvias ever. Great to see he still has it. The kit and style have been copied into oblivion.

I love most of the newer stuff Miura has designed, and I had a whole new appreciation for his humble premises and warm welcome. Tra Kyoto felt like a small homegrown setup. Miura has one of the most incredible shops ever, and it was such a great end to an epic day of shop hunting. This was why we came to Japan to experience this stuff!

The poor Hiace!

We decided to grab a place to stay for the night in Kyoto and headed into the city centre to find some cool places for a beer. What a day!

Kyoto has some fantastic sights.

Getting drunk in an old back alley Japanese pub. Good times.

What a day! Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed this accompanying photo series. Loads more to come.