Execution Is Key | Tyler Clayton’s Koruworks 1991 Nissan 240sx | Full Feature

Style and Inspiration. Two words many people hear pretty much everyday. They seem very basic to the simple eye and mind, but for many creatives, those two words are simply a way of life. By definition, as defined by Google, “style” is “a manner of doing something,” or “a distinctive appearance, typically determined by the principles according to which something is designed.” The word “inspiration”, is defined as “the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative.” As simple as these words may appear, they can envoke an sensation that many cannot describe as a creative. Whether your passions are in the arts like illustration, music, fashion and design….or just an automotive creator/builder…the words style and inspiration are the most important features to describe what you are doing. But there is an element many forget when assosciating those words together. Execution. Its an overlooked word more often than not unfortunately. But that is not the case when it comes to Tyler Clayton’s Nissan S13 240x coupe.

Lets face the facts folks, Rocket Bunny is not falling off anytime soon. For the past 5 years, Kei Miura has dominated the automotive culture with his take on classic race style aero for many beloved chassis around the world. His styling dominance has been apparent every year at automotive trade and car shows around the world, and with the recent release of his highly talked and debated Boss Bunny S14 Kit, he will continue in his success and inspire many young builders of our time. But, with success comes controversy. There are a lot of terribly built cars that have used Rocket Bunny’s products. Honestly tarnishing the excitement this kit gave many when those old renders and photos of this very kit on that white with blue livery S13 Silvia graced many picture threads on the internet. Speaking of the Internet, maybe around 2009/2010, I was fortunate enough to come accross Tyler’s S13 when it was sporting a completely look on the legendary Nissan S-Chassis and Z-Chassis forum, Zilvia.net.  The car was this funky greenish gold, but it had a nice looking Origin Stream aero kit, and gold faced Work VS-XX mesh wheels. The car looked awesome. I was a major fan of the previous look he had for the car. Then he layed eyes on the V1 Rocket Bunny kit for the S13 coupe….and he knew he had to have it. So he decided to hop on the Rocket Bunny hype train and changed things up. But most importantly, Tyler knew that he had to make his car stand apart from what everyone else was doing with their RB builds. It had to be an ode to some of his favorite builds over in Japan. So, long story short…he nailed it. (as you can see.)

Tyler is no stranger to this car building thing. He has been involved in the Japanese car culture scene for a very long time. From the year 2000 and on, Tyler and his friends have been car maniacs. Some of those friends went on start some of the southern drift scenes most legendary lifestyle blogs and crews. Those names include Driftmechaniks and Team Rowdy (do your research on those names kids, you won’t be disappointed.) Currently he runs a internet and local parts distributor named Koruworks in the Atlanta, Georgia area. He has witnessed the entire culture change and evolve from its early mainstream infancy. The biggest thing he has noticed is the shift in car quality. See back in the days, only cars built for car shows had excellent build quality. Nowadays that is a common place on the everyday streets. Tyler got his start back in those days but, literally has built and owns a little bit of everything under the sun. Past builds include a split window 65 Volkswagen Bus, A CB7 Honda Accord, and a STI RA swapped GC8 Subaru WRX with a GT3071R turbine to boot. His current stable of cars include a 4AGZE swapped AE86 Levin with RunFree Aero, a 1JZ swapped MX83 Toyota Cressida and a modded M82 BMW 1M. Talk about diversity. Thats what being a true lover of the automotive culture is all about. Options (lol). But he’s had a long and outstanding relationship with the s13 coupe. He’s owned the current shell since 2010…but has had 2 other shells prior to this one. And man is this current shell something to look at.

I can look at this car for hours. You can defintely feel the presence it has. The car just oozes style so effortlessly. This does not look like your a typical american Rocket Bunny build. You could see this thing gracing the pages of your favorite Drift Tengoku issue over in Japan. Tyler definitely did his homework on this. The thing that helps this build the most honestly is his decision to mix some other aero maker parts in the execution. This car is not all Rocket Bunny. The front fenders and rear overs are by Origin Lab. The roof spoiler is also a Origin byproduct. The B-Road hood also changes things up as well. The front bumper, skirts, rear bumper and obviously spoiler are the first version by Rocket Bunny. The exterior mismatch is obviously tied together by the awesome custom paint job (yes paint folks, its not wrap!) by BestDamnShopAround. All of Tyler’s inspirations that inspired this build are all represented by a paint job. 80s Group B rally. Japanese Bosozuku and Dekotora trucks. Kids Heart JZX builds. The list can honestly go on and on. It’s amazing what some fiberglass and paint can make a person’s soul feel. And damn does it feel so good.

No complete build can be executed right without the proper wheel and suspension combo, so to make sure it sits right and achieves a stylish look Tyler went with Stance GR+Pro coilovers and a catalog worth of PoweredByMax suspension arms and knuckles to give the car that perfect modern yet timeless execution. The wheels have to continue that look of late 70s/80s/90s styling, so what is better than a timeless BBS wheel? These custom built BBS RS wheels measure 17×9.5 in the front with 215/40 Advan Neova tires and 17×11 in the rear, combined with the 255/40 Yokohama S-Drive tires, they have no problem creating some smoke to remind of you of your favorite Japanese Boso manga. Oh you thought this was a hard parker? Think again. This car competes in plenty of pro-am drift events up and down the Eastern half of the USA. Not only that, it sees heavy street use, whether that be from some “spirited” private night sessions or beating your local boy racer at a traffic light. So what is this beauty powered by? V8? JZ? Nope, neither.

Its powered by a timeless SR20DET. Surprised? We were so happy to see this, especially in a time that so many seemed to have forgotten what this motor can do if its properly put together. On the bottom end some 86.5mm CP Pistons with Eagle Rods keep its heart pulsing. On the top side, JUN 256/264 cams, BC valve springs and retainers, Apex’i head gasket, and ARP head studs keep the valvetrain going strong. A custom KGmade top mount turbo kit with a ForcedPerformance 20G  turbo provides the hardhitting power for the motor. And of course you can’t have a cool SR20 build without a classic Greddy Intake Manifold to provide that classic SR raspy sound they are known for and a custom fabricated ASD exhaust just adds to the soundtrack. The car has the power to match its race looks, so if you come across this thing on the street, don’t say we didn’t warn you.

The cockpit of this rocket ship is of course is race ready with a mix of provide race products and custom fabrication. A Sparco EvoPlus seat holds Tyler in place while he works the Sparco steering wheel around the track. The RacePak Cluster gives all the Rally car vibes a person could want. Autometer holds down all the gauges to make sure everything is monitored well. The legendary race fabricators at ASD built an awesome Formula D spec cage for the car as well. But dont forget, this is a true definition of a street car, so of course the car has an Kenwood head unit, and Alpine speakers for Tyler enjoy some tunes while cruising the streets.

Tyler’s S13 is everything right about what Kei Miura envisioned with his Rocket Bunny brand as well as what bringing in early influences from timeless race cars can do for your build. Im not lying when I say that Tyler has one of the BEST bunny builds in the country, dare I say the world. His creativity and passion for quality, function, fun and just downright looking cool while doing it is something that so many people can learn from in this world. Not only did he build a great looking ride, but he is honestly one of the nicest people I have ever met in the car world with my involement in this scene of over 10 years. He’s someone who can honestly make your day brighter just by conversating with him about the past and the culture overall. In a culture that is clouded with so many jaded individuals, its good to see people not forgetting about the most important part of this whole culture…..FUN. What more can we say? Not much. If there is anything that we would like for the reader to take from this is to keep creating cool shit. But as with any great responsibility, do your research. Learn from the legends, but make sure you execute your build with your own twist and taste. With this feature, I just want every car enthusiast to learn one simple statement. Style and Inspiration are nothing without Execution.

Tyler Clayon’s 1991 Nissan 240sx SE

IG: @_revel_

Exterior

Silvia front conversion

TRA Kyoto V1 aero

Origin Lab V3 rear overs

Origin Lab V1 roof wing

Brantley’s Customs front and rear bash bars

B-Road hood

StatusLEDs custom tail lights

BestDamnShopAround custom paint job

Suspension/Brakes 

StanceGR+ Pros

S14 boxed LCAs

Nismo power brace

ASD hydro brake kit

ASD Wilwood 6 piston front kit

ASD Wilwood 4 piston rear kit

PBM front knuckles

PBM tie rods

PBM tension rods

PBM traction rods

PBM toe rods

PBM RUCAs

PBM RLCAs

PBM subframe risers

Progress rear sway bar

ATS Deftforce 1.5 way

Wheels/Tires

17×9.5/11 BBS RS wheels

215/45 Advan Neova (front)

255/40 Yokohama S-Drive (rear)

Engine 

SR20DET swap 

Apexi PowerFC D-Jetro

Apexi 1.1mm headgasket

BC valve springs and retainers

JUN 256/264 cams

CP 86.5mm pistons

Eagle rods

ARP head studs

Greddy intake manifold

KGmade top mount setup

ForcedPerformance 20g

Tial external wastegate

Tomei/Sard 740cc injectors

Koyo radiator

ASD custom exhaust

Interior 

Sparco EVO 2

G-Force 5point harness

RacePak UDX cluster

Autometer boost gauge

Autometer Oil pressure gauge

Autometer Oil temp gauge

ASD Formula Drift spec cage

Kenwood head unit

Alpine speakers

Special Thanks:

Driftmechaniks and TeamRowdy crew/friends/brothers and my wife for understanding the unending obsession.

We would like to thank Tyler for letting us do this feature before his long trip back home from Englishtown, New Jersey to Atlanta, Georgia. We are so happy we crossed paths at a Clubloose event to make this happen. Thank you to Clubloose and Englishtown Raceway Park staff for being rad.

Most importantly, thank you for reading.

Photographer: Ivan Joseph Villanueva

IG: @ivan.jaay 

Action Shots: Vee Ettman

IG:@veeelocity

Words: Evan Stokes 

IG: @itsmrpibb

IG: @losgoonies