There Are Three Great Things About Hawaii: The beaches, the women, and the food. Make that four things-you can't forget the cars. Often overlooked, Hawaii is responsible for some of the most impressive builds in North America. Reminisce back to the Internet's early days when enthusiasts late night browsed for Honda inspiration and stumbled upon sites like www.dohcresearch.com or www.teamrice.org. Sites like these featured some of the sickest Hondas of their day with Civics pushing incredible numbers, rockin' A'PEXi Skyline intercoolers, and monster-sized turbos-at least for back then. Hawaiian tuners have always known how to build clean rides yet they never forget to add the flare and bring the drama. The JDM-reminiscent, back-in-the-day look was the norm, and island builds almost always included the little details that made each one distinctly Hawaiian. The Web sites are gone, along with many of the cars we remember but, like anything else, a new generation of tuners has stepped up to reinforce the Hawaiian presence.
Consider Albert Callo the test subject for this new breed of what the islands have to offer. Albert and his crew Intrigue have been working hard to establish themselves as THE car club to be thought of whenever the Hawaiin Islands are mentioned. Albert's Arctic Blue Pearl RSX is just about the islands' closest equivalent to Japan's DC5 Honda Integra Type R. The entire build focuses on every JDM piece available with the exception of the steering wheel not being on the right side. The exterior features a multitude of JDM DC5 R parts like Type R headlights, side markers, door visors, and a rear spoiler, all the way down to the little details like the JDM DC5 gas tag decal, "2 Stars" decal, and SRS "Caution" tag. You figure that Albert would complete the JDM look by swapping on JDM DC5 front and rear bumpers but he decided to go a different route and one up the rest by fitting the RSX with an authentic ings+1 aero kit. The stock hood was removed in favor of a blue pearl-coated VIS carbon-fiber one and, oh yeah, all color-matching services are courtesy of Tech One Custom based out of Honolulu, Hawaii.
The all-out JDM theme is carried over into the interior of this R replica with a DC5 Type R MOMO steering wheel, instrument cluster, red stitched shift boot, and center console. Albert doesn't fail to amaze by including other JDM knickknacks like a DC5 Type R cup holder, doorsills, and even a Type R coin holder. Talk about attention to detail. Albert shifts in style and burns his right hand on hot sunny days thanks to a Spoon Sports titanium shift knob, and a set of ever-popular Takata four-point harnesses keep him firmly in his seat as he cruises the island.
Every enthusiast knows that you can't cruise if the car's stance is weak so Albert hammered his blue RSX to the floor with JIC FLT-A2 coilovers. Cusco front and rear strut and shock tower bars help to strengthen the chassis and add additional bling. Structural rigidity is improved inside with Cusco B-pillar bars and a J's Racing C-pillar bar. Conventional wisdom might say that a JDM-inspired DC5 Type R replica should run the original Type R wheels or at least something similar in dimension but Albert stepped way out of the box and bolted on some 19x8 gold Rays Engineering G-games 77W Vaio wheels. Fitting the DC5 with 19-inch rollers may be considered automotive sacrilege to some but Albert contends that he'll simply "let the haters hate," so hate on if you will. The 19s are wrapped in Falken Ziex rubber and, to make the wheels fit, Albert had to use an Ingalls rear camber kit to "allow" for them to clear. Cool. If it makes the haters feel any better, the guy does have a 17-inch Integra Type R wheel in his car, even if he does only keep it in there as a spare.