I’ve never been a big fan of modified 180SXs, but I think there’s a simple explanation for that: I just haven’t seen enough decent examples.

When I was wandering around StanceNation NorCal a couple weeks back, there was one S13 in particular that I kept returning to. It was a car Sara noticed as well, and I was intrigued by the Nissan’s unique look. The harder I tried, the less I understood what I was seeing, but it was just so cool. I left the show without a complete answer, finding myself staring at the photos of this 180SX over the following days.

Luckily, all it took was a few DMs and I found myself chatting with the owner a couple days back about what exactly is going on with his car.

After Jimmy Nguyen explained the bodywork he’s running on the car, I felt less bad that I couldn’t quite figure it out. The front is clearly Spirit Rei Miyabi, and he says the Spirit Rei kit was used in its entirety around the rest of the car as well.

But the front fenders and rear overfenders are part of a full Car Modify Wonder kit, which was shipped to him from a workshop missing some parts. Actually, he only received the overfenders initially.

At the same time, Jimmy found out that a full Spirit Rei kit was available from Superwow Factory, so he went ahead and pulled the trigger.

Over the next year Jimmy sourced the front fenders, spoiler, canards, and front diffuser from the Car Modify Wonder kit to add to his existing rear overfenders, and ultimately mashed it all up with the Spirit Rei bodywork.

Jimmy said he’s been a huge fan of Spirit Rei, and that Motohiro Taniguchi’s 180SX was a real inspiration for many years. While this car is a good bit busier than the Miyabi kit on its own, the end result sprayed in Lexus Eminent White Pearl comes together fantastically well.

Jimmy achieved the ultra-low stance the car has thanks to TruHart air struts managed by an Air Lift Performance 3P setup.

Tucked into the widened bodywork, you’ll find SSR GTX01 wheels in an 18×10.5-inch -15 fitment at all four corners.

Something tells me Jimmy’s S13 hides a few more tricks up its sleeve, especially as I wasn’t able to get a look under the hood. But this saves room for a full feature in the future.

For now, I’m just glad to see a 180SX that I really enjoyed; a car that completely caught me off guard.

Jimmy says his goal with the Nissan was to build a fun street car with an emphasis on Japanese styling to stay true to the roots of chassis. With enough hard work sourcing parts and putting it all together in his garage, he’s done exactly that.

Trevor Yale Ryan
trevor@speedhunters.com
Instagram: tyrphoto
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