Anyone who spends a good chunk of his life in Detroit is bound to be relying on automotive culture. There’s valid reason that it’s nicknamed the Motor City. Originally from Seoul, South Korea, Chris Lee relocated to Michigan when he was 15. Having always enjoyed cars, it was natural for him to pursue a career within the automotive industry. Deciding to utilize his natural artistic talent, he applied at the College for Creative Studies and devoted another four years to perfecting his skills in automotive design. The majority of car enthusiasts who live within driving distance of the city thatChevy and Ford, and Dodge call home would be inclined to adhere to the crowd and have themselves a huge-displacement muscle car. We are sure that you have worked out by now that Chris did the exact opposite. He chose the Mazda Miata-a compact, imported car that may be commonly mocked for its popularity among woman, powered by an engine that has less than 2. liters of displacement and a meager four cylinders! Chris knew, however, that what the roadster lacked in brute force, it a lot more than made up for inresponse and agility, along with its “genetic disposition” to unexpectedly induce smiles. Sadly, the smile-inducing properties only apply to those who are driving the car. In stock form the outside of the Miata may be best described as unexciting and mild. This became clear to Chris when he joined in with other car enthusiasts to be part of the famed Woodward Dream Cruise. He was bombarded with insults and jokes at his beloved Miata’s expense. Also having an aesthetic demeanor that screams business, while it was then that he vowed to build the auto into a force to be reckoned with in the performance department, of course.set out to give the outside an extensive makeover. Makeover might be a bit of an understatement in cases like this. Chris dove head first into what would be the most distinctive section of the car. He enlisted the assistance of his friend, Hideki Takamiya to help him source a collection of Mazdaspeed N2 flares-a very ambitious endeavor since they have been discontinued for years. Chris and Hideki managed to source a set, one of the last two sets that Mazdaspeed had in the storage warehouse! The flares were immediately sent onto the United States. Chris took an angle grinder to his immaculate ’95 R package Miata to cut the quarter-panels and fenders, as soon as they arrived. His friends were quick to point out that this kind of irreversible modification was devastating to the car’s resale value and that he was ill advised by doing this. “Who cares? ” Chris replied. “It’s my car, and I want it to look the way that I want.” With his flares successfully mounted to the car, the next thing was to source a set of wheels that could fill out such large wheelwells in a 4×100-bolt pattern, a mission in itself. After considering many manufacturers and doing extensive research, he decided on Panasport wheels. He found a little shop by his home that was a dealer for Panasport and placed an order for the massive gunmetal and polished rollers to be manufactured in the size which he specified.
Decade ago, Miatas were less popular as they are now. Sourcing parts consisted mainly of experiencing parts sent in from Japan or making them yourself. Chris acknowledged this fact, embraced it, and built one of the most potent Miatas of all time. Long before you might simply open a browser, type in some keywords in the search engines, and choose a pair of coilovers for your personal car, Chris had put together a set of adjustable dampers and springs. For his dampers, he chose to go with Afco, a brand that may be rarely spoken of from your average enthusiast. Afco was chosen with regard to their durability and actual damping adjustment (no, their adjustment knob doesn’t click 32 times) in addition to their use in real race cars. Along with Afco’s extended top hats and Tein springs, they completely revamped the Miata’s already competent cornering abilities. To aid combat any remaining body roll, Flyin’ Miata sway bars were installed. An Auto Power rollcage keeps occupants safe in the matter of an accident in the track as well as adding some rigidity on theis practically impossible to inform now, this car was rear-ended in 2007. The accident damaged all four wheels, and several body panels. Around the same time, Chris was fired from his job. It may have been easier to simply cut his losses and spend his insurance check on an ordinary car that will surely require much less maintenance and get a lot better gas mileage. Chris decided to rebuild his beloved Miata-wider, lower and better than ever before, as you’ve guessed. New wider Panasport wheels were ordered, the flares were repaired and reproduced, along with the damage through the accident was repaired and repainted. The front bumper is a custom piece that Chris created, using the original as a base. Mounted underneath and looking as menacingly as all hell is a Garage Vary front lip spoiler. You may notice the Project-G side skirts mounted on the rocker panels, a subtle addition that adds to the overall look of the car, as your eyes make their way rearward. Soon after, Chris was working for Saleen designing and driving their prototype cars for roughly a year, work that he says was just as fun mainly because it sounds. This brings us to one of the most interesting exterior pieces of this car, the back diffuser. Mounted to the frame and sitting within a cut factory bumper is the beautiful piece of dry carbon “borrowed” from a Saleen S7. It’s not every day you see a Japanese sports compact car built using parts made forIf you are fortunate to ever catch this car with its hood open, one of the primary things that is immediately noticeable is that this car is without a doubt no longer naturally aspirated, The custom turbo setup utilizing a Garret GT23R mounted on a Flyin’ Miata manifold brings output to 230 hp. Chris was wanting to tell us about his custom V-mount intercooler setup, that was made using ADFX parts, quickly pointing out an accurate temperature gauge is definitely an absolute necessity when developing such a contraption. On the fuel side from the equation, a quick Forward dual feed fuel rail feeds RC 550cc injectors, making sure the engine doesn’t lean out. Following combustion, the exhaust gases take a short trip using a custom 3-inch straight pipe before becoming a permanent addition to Los Angeles’s famous smog collection. Although virtually impossible to tell without actually driving the car, the rotational force generated with the engine is transmitted by way of a six-speed gearbox, originally from a much younger ’03 Miata.
Chris, who literally devoted his life’s work to making cars beautiful, now works well with Five Axis design studio. His daily grind contains bringing and designing to life concept cars mainly for Toyota/Lexus/Scion. Currently, he is working on Five Axis’ handle a particular rear-wheel-drive Scion that has been long awaited by automotive enthusiasts around the globe. His design background is plain to discover as soon as you lay your eyes on his personal creation, an incredibly select few individuals in this world could have built such an amazing car. Knowing that somebody like Chris has a hand in designing cars makes new introductions much more exciting as they are unveiled. Oh, as well as the Woodward Dream Cruise, Chris took his Miata in the cruise yet again before moving to California. Although nearly all others getting involved in the cruise who saw his Miata couldn’t tell what they were looking at, he got only thumbs pointed up and well-deserved nods of appreciation