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Long and low, 'Rising Sun' wins the Modified Harley Class of the Long Beach IMS

For the second year in a row, K&N is sponsoring three classes of the J&P show which is a centerpiece of the Progressive International Motorcycle Show (IMS). The Long Beach, California, staging of the IMS featured some of the most innovative customs we’ve seen.

Rising Star earned Doug Ide a check and a K&N product prize

Let’s start with the Road King’s most noticeable element, all of that Candy Apple Red paint is marbleized into a deep, and truly awe-inspiring coating. That paint flows from the custom headlight nacelle that is reminiscent of an aircraft engine nose, all the way through the sweeping, stylized hard bags shaped like a sheet blowing off a concealed treasure. Those saddlebags feature very cool sliding lids.

The lids on those stylized bags slide open

The big V-twin breathes through a K&N filter. Interestingly, rather than a highly-chromed exhaust, spent gasses exit through a subtle, industrial-themed header which continues the aircraft motif from the headlight.

K&N is proud to sponsor J&P Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show classes that shine the spotlight on fantastic builds like Ide Innovations’ Rising Sun. Doug Ide walked away from the show with a $750 check and $500 in K&N product credit for future builds.

Check back often as we bring you the big winners of the J&P Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show at each stop of the Progressive International Motorcycle Show.

The meticulous work on the grille and the headlamp bezels was achieved through new and old tech

Bryan enrolled in one of the top tech schools in the country. While he’d helped his dad restore a 1964 Mustang, and built his own 327-powered Model A, he wanted to become proficient on all the tools of his new trade.

He moved to Southern California and continued his education at the So-Cal Speed Shop and with Chip Foose. During that time his name became known to enthusiasts through his appearances on “Overhaulin” and “Rides”.

In 2005, Bryan decided he was ready to open his own shop and moved to Atlanta. Building both award-winning bikes and cars, Fuller’s presence became even more wide-spread, including appearances on shows like “Two Guys Garage”, “Naked Speed”, and his current TV gig hosting “Caffeine and Octane” on NBC Sports.

The exhaust exits through the panel below the bed on the side of the truck

Take his latest creation, a 1940 Ford truck barn find that’s been completely rebuilt in Fuller Moto style. The “Georgia Gold” pickup debuted to widespread acclaim at the 2017 SEMA Show where it was on display at the WyoTech booth, his alma mater.

After the truck was hauled into the shop, the body was removed from the chassis. Not only is a 77-year-old frame not up to the rigors of normal driving, Bryan had plans to increase both power and grip. So a custom-made Art Morrison chassis with tubular independent front suspension became the starting point.

Around back, an Art Morrison four-bar kit makes certain the solid rear axle with Tiger magnesium quick-change travels up and down as it’s supposed to. The quick-change rearend is light and allows easy changing of the final drive ratio.

At the top of the Ford Windsor 302 V8 proudly sits a 14-inch round K&N air filter

The wheels are mounted on lightweight aluminum Sprint Car Wide-5 hubs, a fitting choice as after WW11 the 1937-1940 Ford was a popular choice among circle track racers right into the 1960s. The period correct looking bias-ply tires are actually modern Coker Firestone radials.

While some might have been tempted to install a Ford Flathead, truth be told they’re not the most efficient engines and take a great deal of work to produce reasonable power. Instead, Bryan went for an engine design that’s just 20 years older than the truck itself – a Ford Windsor. He selected one of the highest-performance versions of the Windsor, the 302, which itself debuted nearly 50 years ago.

The 302 Ford V8 is fitted with a K&N air filter feeding a Holley 650 CFM carb atop an Edelbrock manifold along with Edelbrock finned aluminum valve covers. Orange-colored headers catch the eye when the hood’s first opened.

The seats, door panels, and shift boot are all covered in a rich, distressed saddle leather

As for design details, you could spend an hour or two combing over the truck and still not find all of them. For example, Bryan decided to honor the 67-year-old patina of the exterior even with new panels he created. Then he added a subtle gold pinstripe that looks like it's been clinging to the paint for decades. Another detail easily missed is the aircraft-type magnesium fuel filler on the left rear fender. Again surrounded by a riveted bezel, it looks as though it was fitted to the truck decades ago.

The front of the truck is the area that most people first notice. The grille and headlight bezels are both cut by waterjet, tig-welded, and aged like the fuel filler bezel and then mounted in place by more than 100 rivets.

A little reminder on the gold leaf covered dash that you're riding in a very special pickup

This truck took our breath away at the 2017 SEMA show and we heard lots of positive reactions while standing around gawking at all its beauty. K&N is honored to be a part of this and the other builds that Bryan Fuller and Fuller Moto has included us on.

The turbo Honda powered Bugeye Sprite gets a final polish for the LA Auto Show opens to the public

We’d be surprised if you’ve heard of Gary Castillo of Designcraft Fabrication before as much of his best work is displayed under someone else’s name. What happens is that a marketing firm will approach an automaker about building an attention-getting show car for SEMA or other auto show. Once the marketing company gets the approval and the money, they turn to Gary to convert their sketches into actual working show vehicles.

In Minh, Gary found an excellent partner. His only condition was that the Sprite be converted to AWD. As Gary pondered his options, he recognized it was going to be a tight fit on a car with only an 80-inch wheelbase. His solution was to take a FWD engine and transmission and mount it longitudinally. This way the six-speed transmission’s diff operated as the center diff, with front and rear differentials at each end from a Nissan GT-R and with that arrangement met Minh’s requirement.

The massive K&N Filter can feed more than enough air than the turbo KA20 needs

The engine is a Honda K20A, well-known for its capability of producing prodigious power while retaining reliability. The only internal engine mods made were JE pistons and K1 connecting rods. Outside the engine, a Garrett GT3076 turbo has been fitted with Turbosmart 33 mm wastegate and blowoff valve. The ECU is from Hondata with a RYWIRE harness. The intake, fitted with a sizeable K&N filter, the exhaust system, and the dump tubes were all fabricated by Designcraft. Fuel is fed from an ATL fuel cell in the trunk through AEM 440 LPH pumps.

“We tried to keep as much of the original frame as possible,” Gary explained. A tough task when you’ve at least tripled the horsepower that the car was designed for. A subframe was created that further stiffened the stock structure and is visible in a few places: the double-hoop roll bar and the replacement of the transmission tunnel by four steel tubes, for example. The shift linkage was designed and fabricated in-house and the shift knob features a Bluetooth control of the Rockford Fosgate system that includes three 10-inch subs.

The single center-mounted iPad serves as the complete instrument panel for the Bugeye

Creating a modern suspension inside the confines of such a small car was another major hurdle. At the front, a pushrod system was fabricated at Designcraft, right down to the control arms, steering knuckles, and cantilever shock arrangement. At the rear is another custom set-up, with the shocks mounted between cockpit and truck and operated via long pushrods. Because of space limitation, and the lightness of the car, Gary was able to use Suzuki RM125 coilovers all the way around. Braking is via four-piston Wilwood calipers at the front and two piston calipers at the rear.

Walk around the exterior and among the first things you’ll notice are what appears to be enormous wheels and tires stuffed under the Sports Car Motion overfenders. But it’s an optical illusion, as the Sprite is so small. At the front 205/40R16 Falken tires wrap 16X9.5-inch custom HRE wheels, while at the rear slightly larger 225/45R16 tires from the Japanese manufacturer are mounted to 225/45R16 HREs. Because the open diff in the Honda transaxle now serves as the transfer case, the Bugeye can accommodate different diameter tires without tearing the drivetrain apart.

Custom narrow Sparco vintage style seats were installed in the snug confines of the Bugeye's cockpit

In its first day on the show floor, Gary reported the Bugeye attracted a lot of attention from a variety of different audiences when the doors opened to the public at the 2017 LA Auto Show. Admirers ranged from older fans of classic sports car fans to younger street tuners and drift fanatics. “Everybody is really digging the car,” as Gary so succinctly put it.

Gary wanted to make sure he thanked the Designcraft crew who worked so hard over the long 18 months this project required: Tony Ruiz, Sean Adriano, David Lim, Steve Chan, Kenny Chieu, Eric Song, Alan Viado, Salvador Reyes, and the man so awesome he needs no last name, Caesar.

Minh and Designcraft may well be bringing the Sprite to the K&N World Headquarters where we’ll have a chance to get more detailed photographs, perhaps roll it up on our dyno, and maybe even take a turn behind the wheel and report the experience back to you. Stay tuned!

Based on the 2018 Vantage, the new Vantage GTE racer will benefit from a more modern chassis

In fact, unlike some of its competitors, the 2005-2017 Vantage was never intended to be raced at an international level, so it’s a testament to the dedication and efforts of the engineers, drivers, and technicians at Aston Martin Racing (AMR) that the Vantage GTE was competitive as it was, winning the GTE AM championship in its final year of competition. K&N is proud to be a technical partner, supplier, and sponsor of the Aston Martin Racing team.

An All-New Vantage Chassis For 2018

Now imagine the same team with a 2018 Vantage, designed with both road use and motorsports in mind and consider what the team could be capable of in 2018.

Constructed in compliance with the strict GTE class regulations, the new Vantage GTE is an extensive optimization of the powertrain, chassis, and aerodynamics of the 2018 Vantage road car. Designed and engineered in-house at Aston Martin Racing, the project is led by Technical Director Dan Sayers, who also led the design and development of the prior V8 Vantage GTE - the car credited with 36 of AMR’s 50 international race victories, including two Le Mans 24 Hour class wins.

Stunning without all its decals, Aston Martin's styling department helped with the race car design

Though the new Vantage road car has just been launched, development of the new Vantage GTE race car began while the road car was still under development, with more than 8,000 miles of testing completed, with all current AMR drivers participating. The car has also been through a rigorous durability program at the notoriously rough Sebring circuit, in central Florida.

AMG-Mercedes Provides 4.0L Turbo V8 Under Technical Partnership

AMR reports that reliability has been exceptional right out of the box, while the drivers have reported the car is easier to control at the limit than its predecessor. Together with Aston Martin Racing’s engineers, the factory drivers have worked hard to optimize the drivability and performance of the base Mercedes-AMG 4.0L turbocharged V8 engine, which has been developed for use in the Vantage GTE application by Aston Martin Racing. Daimler AG (Mercedes parent company) is a minority owner and technical partner of Aston Martin.

Aston Martin Racing is working with new technical partners for 2018: Alcon for the braking system, Öhlins for the suspension, and Michelin with a dedicated program to maximize the performance of the Vantage GTE. K&N Filters returns as a valued technical partner and product supplier.

With this new car to develop, Aston Martin Racing has retained its highly-experienced and successful driver line-up. This year’s Le Mans 24 Hours GTE Pro class winners Darren Turner and Jonny Adam have been retained, as have the Danish duo and 2016 FIA WEC GTE Pro world champions, Nicki Thiim and Marco Sørensen. In addition, AMR has recruited ex-GP2 race winner and now Formula E racer Alex Lynn. In addition, a few more professional road racers will be added to the program, which would perhaps indicate a large presence by AMR at the 2018 Le Mans 24 Hours.

Plenty for the driver to monitor and control over a 24 hour race. Air filters are never a worry

Coupled with a Million Mile Warranty, the vehicle owner will never again have to purchase another filter for their car, truck, or SUV, at about the cost of only two inferior, easily clogged paper replacement filters. That’s why K&N remains the number one choice for racers and consumers alike for high performance intake air filtration.

The massive combined experience of the Vildosola / Stronghold drivers pays off in a Baja 1000 win

The K&N-sponsored Vildosola Racing/Stronghold Motorsports team featuring racers Gustavo Vildosola, Rodrigo Ampudia, Mike Coleman, and Scott Bailey made the most of the new Baja class by piloting their trophy truck past the checkered flag and securing the inaugural Legends Class victory.

Veteran K&N-sponsored racer Gustavo Vildosola started the race in the 20th position. However, he used his 300-mile section to make a clean and fast run and advance several positions.

The calm before the storm at the Baja 1000 staging area

At mile 540, Mike Coleman, the team’s third driver took over the wheel. Coleman battled through a thick fog from San Juanico to Loreto and again the team maintained race position.

The fourth and final driver, Scott Bailey, took over at mile 835 and continued a fast pace all the way to the checkered flag in La Paz. Bailey's strong final leg secured the win for the team.

K&N filters are made to withstand brutal environments like the Baja 1000

“It’s awesome man!" Bailey exclaimed. “It’s really exciting to have two Mexican Nationals and two Gringos down here teamed up, and for us to be able to do it like we did is pretty incredible and we are excited.”

K&N is proud to have been an integral part of the Vildosola Racing/Stronghold Motorsports victory in the legendary Baja 1000. K&N Engineering is the industry leader in performance filtration especially in brutal environments like those found on the Baja Peninsula.

The Baja 1000 celebrated 50 years of racing excitement in 2017

Gustavo Vildosola - Winner 2010 Baja 1000

Rodrigo Ampudia - Founder Papas & Beer Racing

Mike Coleman - Veteran Desert Racer

Scott Bailey - Stronghold Motorsports Team Owner