Words by Matt Willis

A few weeks ago, Tim and I headed up to the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana for Extreme Speed’s FT-86 Nation event. Following the rapid growth of 86FEST II, which took place in August, hopes were high for another FRS/BRZ gathering at ACS later in 2013. Upon arriving, however, the turnout was…lacking. Due to the success of 86FEST, I think the FRS community is geared towards that event being their “mecca” (much like Honda owners to the Eibach meet, or Subarus to Subiefest, the list goes on…), so this was more of a collector for the rest of the crowd. In all honesty, I think we saw a total of maybe a hundred people there at one time, if even that. There were some decent builds, though. And because the final round of Redline Time Attack was going on at the speedway, it was still a good event to get out and shoot.

The LT Motorwekrs BRZ that we saw a few weeks prior at the SEMA Show made it out…

Still love the lines on the RB V2 kit and the attention to detail overall on this build…

FAST Autoworks FR-S with Hyper Blue TE37s…

OEM Audio Plus FR-S with unique CF trim, BBS wheels, and a Stoptech brake kit…

The StayCrushing FR-S that was also featured at SEMA…

I liked this build from FT-86 Speed Factory. Very simple balance for a weekender-style road/track car…

Although a bit strange, I’ve always loved the design of the current generation Lamborghini taillights. To see it in the FR-S housings is neat…

More of a VIP-style build at the Buddy Club booth.

After shooting FT-86 Nation, we decided to head over and check out the action on the track. The Redline Time Attack finals were going on, as well as an Extreme Speed track day, so there was plenty of activity.

Loved this E92 M3…

This beauty of a 240SX had an issue with the carbon hood during one of it’s runs. Seems to had just buckled, could have been a lot worse…

Amir Bentatou’s E46…

Nice pair…

Counterspace Garage BRZ cooling off in the ACS garage…

This crazy RX-7 was just about as fully built as it gets. However, they were having some issues with it that kept bringing it off the track. It was super loud though, especially in the garages…haha…

Mark Jager’s WRX STI. Love seeing this car. Congrats to his AWD Street Class victory as well…

Stunning S2000….

Crawford BRZ…

Brightly colored Maserati Gran Turismo and BMW M3 E92…

NA2 NSX…my personal favorite…

Evo Wagon, which you don’t see around too often.

Awesome modified S10 from Black Widow exhaust. First time I’ve seen a truck run here at ACS, other than the NASCAR series…haha…

Nissan GTR in the paddock as the day came to a close.

As the track began to wind down, we grabbed some food and headed back early. In conclusion, FT-86 Nation has some potential, but with 86Fest III ahead of the community, they may have to diversify it, expand the market, or move the venue — something to make it truly unique next year. We’ll see what happens…

Thanks for reading…