When Hironao Yokomaku began working at a French restaurant aged 16, little did he understand how much he’d influence Japan’s automobile culture within the many years that followed.
Now aged 63, the Tsukuba-based tuner shows no signs of slowing down having just unveiled a brand new project alongside Fast & Furious actor Sung Kang unveiled at this yr’s Tokyo Auto Salon. Because for nearly 4 many years, Yokomaku-san has led the long-lasting Japanese tuning brand VeilSide.
Many younger readers might be conversant in VeilSide’s work in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. Almost 20 years on, Han’s orange and black Mazda RX-7 stays a poster automobile for your entire film franchise. But long before Hollywood thrust VeilSide into the highlight, it had established itself as considered one of Japan’s most advanced tuners, constructing the country’s fastest cars with exteriors almost as loud as their exhausts. Something Speedhunters has covered up to now here.
VeilSide’s distinctive look was originally inspired by the George Barris-designed Nineteen Sixties Batmobile of all things – a automobile Yokomaku-san first set eyes on while visiting an amusement in Los Angeles. Now it’s synonymous with Nineties and ’00s Japanese automobile culture – think huge, sculpted rear wings and curved, ankle-breaking splitters.
During this time, Yokomaku-san desired to create cars that he felt were ‘complete’ packages, versus specializing in a single element, as most Japanese tuners on the time were doing. But a VeilSide automobile needed blistering performance, sharpened handling, and bespoke aero before it could ever wear the hallowed ‘Fortune’ or ‘Combat’ name, depending on the extent of labor involved.
The look didn’t just encourage other Japanese tuners; it even crossed continents, with VeilSide-style body kits being adapted on European cars through the Max Power era especially within the early 2000s. Everyone wanted a bit of the VeilSide pie. And while the great times felt like a perpetual party, the difficult times that followed brought the corporate to the brink of collapse.
Now, with VeilSide having fun with a resurgence in 2025, Yokomaku-san is keen to remind the world of VeilSide’s 35-year-long history.
“At first, I began riding around on customised motorbikes, and naturally, I believed mine was the fastest,” Yokomaku-san explains. ” But sooner or later I raced against a machine with a completely tuned engine in a Nissan Bluebird and lost easily. That’s once I knew my tuning life had began. Once I began driving at 18, I immediately got a job at a automobile shop to feed my obsession with speed.”
Automotive tuning within the Eighties wasn’t precisely the behemoth it’s today. Because the owner of an S30 Nissan Fairlady Z arrange for drag racing, Yokomaku-san tuned its engine by trial and error, resulting in many rebuilds. By the age of twenty-two, he’d honed his craft enough to ascertain his own business – Yokomaku Racing Service – working tirelessly to construct the fastest S30 in Japan. His pièce de resistance was to turbocharge Nissan’s L-series engine, which immediately led to more victories while competing in zeroyon (0-400m) competitions. Then, a yr later, he turned his attention towards the brand new Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R.
On the age of 28, Yokomaku-san was beating established tuners in nearly every discipline. Keen to showcase his skills beyond simply going fast, Yokomaku Racing Service became VeilSide – a reputation based on an English translation of his family name – ‘Yoko’ meaning side and ‘maku’ meaning veil.
“Between 1990 and 1990, I set many Japanese records including top speed, drag racing and the fastest 0-300km/h time of 13.72 seconds in our R-1 Street Drag R32 Skyline GT-R,” Yokomaku-san adds. “Our cars were very distinctive, but additionally the fastest, so many requests for engine tuning got here from owners across Japan. But before long, I used to be reminded of the hazards of tuning after frequent accidents in tuned cars occurred across Japan. I didn’t want this to occur, so I made a decision to create a automobile that would attract people’s attention without running at crazy speeds. After winning awards at Tokyo Auto Salon for a few years, the VeilSide cars and look became very fashionable.”
While the Tokyo Drift RX-7 could be VeilSide’s most recognised Fast & Furious automobile, the corporate’s aero kits have been present in every considered one of the franchise’s movies since day one. Remember Dominic Toretto’s red Mazda RX-7 in the unique movie? That’s Veilside. Oh, and Suki’s pink Honda S2000 from 2 Fast 2 Furious? Yes, that’s one too.
Unfortunately for Yokomaku-san, this popularity led to an awesome demand, which left VeilSide unable to keep up supply. Before long, low-cost replica kits flooded the international market, and because the tuning industry slumped within the mid-2000s, VeilSide found itself in a nasty financial way.
“I desired to create a automobile that would attract attention even while not running, which is where the thought for the Combat Supra got here from” he explains. “I used to be honored to win the Complete Automotive Grand Prix on the 1993 Tokyo Auto Salon in addition to the Dress-up Automotive Grand Prix and the Best Tuner Grand Prix. VeilSide‘s 3D-modelled aero parts became popular throughout Japan. Consequently of all of this, the availability couldn’t sustain with the overwhelming demand. It was very difficult to extend the variety of molds and staff to provide aero parts and increase supply to fulfill demand. We had also increased the variety of product items equivalent to aluminum wheels, mufflers, engine parts, and suspension too.”
“During this time, VeilSide moved away from the highlight with a deal with survival,” Yokomaku-san adds. “Many manufacturers went bankrupt and the custom industry was in a slump. VeilSide was also affected by the collapse of this bubble, as subcontractors went bankrupt one after one other. It wasn’t until Tokyo Drift made a big effect all around the world that folks began to recollect VeilSide and expose a brand new generation to our designs. I first learned in regards to the Nissan L-type engine at Yokomaku Racing Service, after which tuned GT-Rs and Supras with VeilSide before moving into the aero parts and appearing in movies. To remind a brand new generation of automobile fans about VeilSide’s history was a very good feeling.”
With a final installment of the Fast and Furious franchise set to reach in 2026, Yokomaku-san hopes his legacy will proceed to encourage future generations after him.
“People ask me why i began VeilSide, and I believe it was the numerous bitter experiences i faced as an enthusiast and tuner that led to the establishment of the brand. I had a vision that others didn’t offer, and it has been a privilege to make these dreams a reality through VeilSide. The long run of custom automobile culture is at all times uncertain. But what I do know now at 63-years-old is that VeilSide makes cars for enthusiasts – whether that’s a number of or lots. For this yr’s Auto Salon, I created VeilSide78 based on the S30, which united my thoughts with Sung Kang. It was a really moving automobile stuffed with love that can remain a part of VeilSide’s legacy. I would really like to point out the long run of automobile making, where cars made with high-level technology, beautiful design, and a love for cars shared with customers will remain of their hearts eternally as precious treasures. Because i’m not getting any younger, but for the long run, all I hope is VeilSide can proceed to encourage the following generation of tuning fans, similar to myself all those many years ago.”
Mark Riccioni
Instagram: mark_scenemedia
Twitter: markriccioni
mark@speedhunters.com
This Article First Appeared At www.speedhunters.com
