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Dan at MAX USA

Tue Sep 06 2011, 06:28am

Registered Member #2

Joined: Sun Jan 21 2007, 08:28pm

Posts: 2866

WE DON'T NEED TO BE REMINDED HOW BAD THE economy is; political ads and CNN have been reminding us on an hourly basis for the past three years. The latest and most surprising victim of this grand depression is HKS USA. For those who may not be familiar with the import-car scene, HKS USA is the import aftermarket equivalent of Google or Apple. It was the first and largest Japanese tuning firm in the U.S., having opened its doors here in 1982. HKS USA immediately gained street cred among Japan-car enthusiasts, prompting other import tuning firms to follow, including Spoon, Apex and GReddy, among others.

While the "import tuning" renaissance has long since peaked, no one imagined HKS would leave the playing field. When I heard the news, my first reaction was: "Say it ain't so."

According to former HKS USA chairman, Jun Toyoda, it wasn't just the struggling economy that was to blame.

"There were a number of factors that led to this decision. While the U.S. economy was indeed the main reason for the company's struggles, the exchange rate of the Japanese yen and U.S. dollar, the shrinking demand for high-performance products and the recent disaster in Japan created a perfect storm that made long-term survival very difficult. So the powers that be decided to close up shop here, and service U.S. customers in the future through HKS Co. Ltd., the parent company in Japan," he said.

But who knows how long HKS Co. Ltd. will remain in the game. With the lack of automotive enthusiasm in its home market, sales of high-performance automotive products are at an all-time low. Just in the past two years, more than 80 percent of the tuning companies in Japan have either been wiped out or reduced to weekend repair shops. One company that's still holding on in both Japan and the U.S. is GReddy Performance Products Inc., whose parent company Trust Co. Ltd. declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008. The president of GReddy USA, Kenji Sumino, says his company is surviving (while operating under Chapter 11) because Trust and GReddy are privately owned, which means they're not at the mercy of shareholder decisions like HKS Co. Ltd.

"It's a sad day when a company as big as HKS closes its doors in the U.S. I feel that there's still a bright future in the import aftermarket world, but we need to evolve in order to survive. We need to begin manufacturing our products outside of Japan to keep them affordable. We also need to be able to shift our business quickly to whatever the public and the economic environment demands," Sumino said.

Toyoda feels that there won't be new Japanese tuning companies in the near future, unless they look to emerging markets like India or China.

"The U.S. will be okay, I think, because it's a car-centered culture. Japan, on the other hand, is another story. Public transportation is incredibly efficient so no one really needs a car. You're further discouraged to buy a car because gasoline is expensive, the roads are narrow and congested, and tolls are pricey. And with older people outnumbering youngsters in Japan, automakers are catering to mature drivers who tend to regard their automobiles as appliances," Toyoda explains. "With the market flooded with small vans and kei cars -- vehicles that don't necessarily welcome turbo kits or high-flow exhaust systems -- tuning has become obsolete."

It's a dark forecast for a country that popularized front-wheel-drive drag racing and created competition drifting. And unless the Japanese public develops a mentality of turbocharging their washing machines and refrigerators, the days of 700-bhp Nissan Skyline GT-Rs and Time Attack Mitsubishi Evos may be gone forever.

As for Parts Shop MAX, we have avoided all of these pitfalls, thankfully, but it's still sad news!

Hollywood

Wed Sep 07 2011, 08:33pm

Registered Member #708

Joined: Sun Feb 28 2010, 07:22pm

Posts: 653

moto iq released an article to this as well and they also stated they have anew us master distribuition company. dont recal the name of the dist. company but im sure you can find the article on moto iq. im sure you guys will have no problem in this economy cuz well we dont care were going to spend our money on our cars regardless of how broke we are. play comes first for most (even though it shouldnt)

o.g.darkdrifter

Wed Sep 07 2011, 09:30pm

Registered Member #580

Joined: Mon Jul 13 2009, 06:02pm

Posts: 155

I have no financial responsibilities other than my rent, phone, and car. As long as I make money I'll be spending it on being able to have fun driving my car (aka drifting). As long as someone is making parts that allows me to continue to have fun drifting, I'll be giving them my business.

Dan at MAX USA

Fri Sep 09 2011, 10:52pm

Registered Member #2

Joined: Sun Jan 21 2007, 08:28pm

Posts: 2866

Its the youthful nature of this sport and our customers is what will keep the country alive. The heartbeat of america has nothing to do with what happens on CNN.

[ Edited Fri Sep 09 2011, 11:16pm ]

Hollywood

Fri Sep 09 2011, 11:21pm

Registered Member #708

Joined: Sun Feb 28 2010, 07:22pm

Posts: 653

Dan at MAX USA wrote ...

Its the youthful nature of this sport and our customers is what will keep the country alive. The heartbeat of america has nothing to do with what happens on CNN.

cant agree more Dan. america has been and will always be car crazy! even up here in the pole i find my self making more rock crawler parts for dudes up here than even any real pipeline work. lol.. cars are what most of us live for..

rafas13

Sat Sep 10 2011, 12:22am

Registered Member #717

Joined: Fri Mar 12 2010, 11:12pm

Posts: 86

yeah im going to sell my soul for the new super angle kit and lower control arms

........... yeah but that sucks about those companies but then again its good at the same time for companies like PBM. A lot of the products from old companies like HKS were really expensive and had not been updated for years.


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