wekfest san jose - 2025

This coverage came out a little later than I had planned, but I made myself a promise: before the new school year kicks off (25-26), I would get this posted. We’re already two weeks into the school year and this just barely posted. LOL!

Honestly, I can't believe how fast summer flew by. Then again, I spent most of it elbows-deep in the garage, wrenching on the S2000 in preparation for Wekfest. There was even a time when I have to climb on top of the bay and Asian squat on top of my engine bay cross beam to hook up some hoses. LOL! Let’s just say my optimistic side got the best of me. I told Aimee I’d have the car done in a week. Well, one week turned into two, then before I knew it, three. I was tightening the last bolts around 4 a.m. on the morning of Wekfest roll-in.

I managed a quick four hour nap before heading to Home Depot for some final hardware to finalize the build, grabbed breakfast for my wife and daughter, and jumped right back into the garage. If you’re wondering how it all came down to the wire, here’s the short version:

So, I started collecting parts for this build last November. One of the main highlights you’ll see later is the new Project Mu big brake kit, which I special ordered from a distributor in Japan to save time. That snowballed into more and more purchases, all the way up to the week of the show. Parts were literally showing up at my doorstep while I was already in San Jose for Wekfest. Some didn’t even make it onto the car.

And then came the biggest hiccup! It wasn’t so fun anymore; as a matter of fact, stressful.

While installing the new PracWorks intake manifold (you’ll see that in the photos too), I accidentally connected the thermostat hose to the wrong manifold port. The car started up perfectly! Well, for about 10 seconds before it choked and shut off. I walked to the front of the car and saw coolant pouring out of the throttle body like a waterfall. It was already 3 a.m and only a few days shy from Wekfest. I unhappily opened the throttle body plate and found a puddle of coolant inside the manifold. At that point, I was exhausted, frustrated, and just done for the night. I shut down the garage, took a shower, and went to bed.

The next morning, I woke up with the dreadful thought: Did I hydro lock my motor!? I stuffed paper towels into the manifold, blew compressed air through it, and rechecked every hose and port. I tried starting the car again, nothing. I pulled the spark plugs and found out cylinders 2 and 3 had a milky mixture of oil and coolant. It was confirmed. I was convinced the motor was done for. My only solution at this point was to do a head gasket change.

I messaged the NnovatioN crew: “I’m out. Car’s done. Wekfest isn’t happening.”

But then I called Jackson. He told me, “Try one more thing. Pull the fuel pump fuse, remove the spark plugs, and crank the motor a few seconds. If there’s still fluid in the cylinders, it’ll shoot out.” That was was final move. I followed his advice and reassembled everything. Turned the key and the motor fired up! F##K YES!!!

I bled the cooling system and thought we were good, until I realized the car was still overheating. F**K! It was just one thing after another. Immediately, I reserved a U-Haul trailer just incase if I couldn’t figure out the overheating issue on time. This was exactly two days before Saturday roll in. I realized my dual slim fans weren’t turning on; the radiator fan, to be exact. Kong jumped in to help diagnose the issue. The OEM wiring harness just wasn’t cutting it and was the cause of the issue. My solution? A toggle switch wired directly to the radiator fan. It was simple, a bit messy, yet efficient, and it worked! Although I refer it to my “ejecto seat” button since I routed it right next to my center console for ease of usage just like how Roman Peirce in the 2 Fast 2 Furious had it. I canceled my U-Haul reservation and jumped right into the next project.

With the overheating problem solved, the final touch was building the front splitter. Aimee, my wife stayed up late with me drawing out lines, trimming, gluing, brainstorming ideas, and helping get it done literally around 4 a.m.; same day before the roll-in.

What I’m most proud of was just being able to have friends and family nearby to lend a helping hand. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have finish the S2000 in time for Wekfest. With that has been stated, here is a fair warning that this year’s show, there were SO many spectators! So much that I couldn’t get some good photos on some builds without anyone on the photo. To add, this year, there were SO many Honda builds! Literally, I felt like at least a little over half of the registered vehicles at this year’s show were Honda’s and Acura’s! It was crazy! Seeing many of the well known crew (DSR, ATS Garage, Members Only, NnovatioN, Garage Life, the list could go on) under one building. With that, I tried my best to capture as much as I could, however, I realize that most of my pictures were solely glued to just the Honda’s and Acura’s in the building. Hence the title: “The Hondas of the show.”

Now, let’s get the show on the road!

I guess I’ll start here! A new addition to team NnovatioN. Kong’s second build: a Grand Prix White EK! You could easily see the tasteful mods that found it’s way onto the car! Read all about it in the “A Civic Reimagined” blog! Kong had his little brother tow the hatch to San Jose. The Civic looked amazing at this angle.

Leading NnovatioN to the entrance of the convention center was Kong’s NSX! Perched in the back was the TaiTec spoiler.

Right behind Kong’s white Ek was my S2000. She made it just fine to the show. The bumper and splitter took a few beatings on the way to San Jose, but either than that, all was well!

Jackson’s AWD Sonic Grey EK! I’m glad the J’s Racing GT wing found it’s way back to the hatch. I believe at one show before Wekfest, Jackson have secretly swapped out the spoiler to a Mode Parfume. I didn’t recognize the alteration on it until Jackson have revealed it.

Mee drove his hatch hoodless from the Airbnb to the convention center. He likes to live his life on the fast lane and his usual motto: “F**K around and find out.” We will touch base more on Mee’s car later.

Xue’s PY ITR followed behind Mee’s hatch. The ITR was so clean! An OEM plus build on the legendary chassis with some tasteful OG JDM wheels! Best formula of a ITR in my book!

This was Tilong’s first time attending Wekfest with the EG. You could easily see the Mode Parfume parts around the Civic. Did I forget to mention that it’s also an AWD Civic as well? Look at those meaty RT660’s up front.

Sua’s Integra looking mighty clean. Now on some Nardo Grey Te37’s with the OG white/blue decals.

Simon’s EM1 continues to stay clean. Now running on some Magnesium Blue Te37’s with OG decals.

Brian’s hatch was trailered into the convention center this year. Long story short, the Civic decided to take a dip the the day before the show. I guess my hiccup domino effect to Fresno and killed off Brian’s car. Apparently, the fuse box went bad and Brian couldn’t even get the car to start. Thankfully, with some NnovatioN persuasion, Brian decided to borrow Tou’s trailer and tow the car to Wekfest.

At the end of the NnovatioN line up was Tou’s newest car! His NSX he’s been secretly building in the background. It’s so crazy how far he have already come with the NSX for the short amount of time of just owning it. I’m sure he has spent easily $30-$40 thousand dollars on parts alone already on the NSX. I will let the picture do the talking.

Kao tagged along with us this year to Wekfest. This is his Mugen catalog build on a white EK! From the front of the car to the back, it’s covered with Mugen parts! And yes! He owns that crazy expensive Mugen valve cover as well, which I’ll show in a bit.

The NnovatioN car club lined up and about ready to enter the convention center. It’s crazy how far we have come. It started with only three cars and now were a good dozen cars deep to form an awesome line up. “Never Cease in Elevation, it’s a Timeless Pursuit!”

I’ll go ahead and begin my coverage inside the convention center with Brett’s NSX in a Takata livery. I love the lighting of the San Jose convention center, however, I felt like the colors on the NSX popped out so much better under the natural light. I remembered pulling into the parking lot right across the convention center and Brett’s car was one of the first vehicle that came into view. I didn’t realize it was his car or him driving. I think Brett told me his son drove the NSX to the show?

Anyway, after further studying of the car, I realized I have a 1:64 model of this exact livery on an NSX as well.

A DA from the Member’s Only crew in the Nor Cal area. I love the early 2000’s part choice on the car. The Wilwood front calipers, a polished manifold and intake arm with a dual cam Vtec motor.

Hanzel’s Mugen themed NSX. A Mugen front spoiler a set of Mugen M7’s to carry out the Mugen fashion. A pair of Spoon Sport side mirrors and I think the wing in the back was also a Mugen spoiler as well?

A silver Integra sticking true to the USDM front end. The Integra relied on OEM body lines and slightly added tasteful mods throughout the build. The car also belonged to another Member’s Only crew member.

Another Integra in the building. One of my few favorites, actually. From Members Only, The Integra have been revamped with a new engine set up. Now rocking ITBS, the Mugen MF10’s have been switched over to a set of Ce28s (in a gloss black?) semi-covering up the AP Racing caliper kit up front.

Members Only’s Civic sedan in a mugen theme fashion. K powered and also running ITBS. The Civic also made an appearance to Weenie Fest earlier this year and was also placed in it’s category as well. Running on some OG Ce28ns and an AP Racing caliper kit up front. Similar to the taste of the Integra right beside it.

I believe this EG Civic was assembled together just weeks before the show. The crew posted up updates of them coming together to work on the car weeks before the show. Quite an amazing feat to accomplish and see it come together. The power plant was a K motor with a PracWorks carbon fiber manifold.

I remember seeing this PY EK9 as I drove pass it the opposite direction when lining up for the roll in. I gave the owner a thumbs up because of how immaculate the Civic was! It has one of my personal and favorite execution formula: Sprint Hart CP-R’s and an Exceed V1 front spoiler can do wonders to a Civic, such as this.

Jame’s White S2000 was up front and center facing the main Wekfest booth. There were so many spectators in this area that I literally had to work my way around them in trying to capture a good angle of the S2000. Apparently, this was the best one I was able to capture, and even got my daughter’s leg into the photo. Lol, sorry James! Drive the S2000 to Spocom in the next couple of weekends and get a do-over.

The S2000 is still fashioned with a Voltex front bumper and on white Regamasters. AND still running a HKS supercharger with burnt titanium pipes.

I believe this was Alex’s car? Him and his fellow crew members towed their vehicles from Socal to the bay area. This car has a lot of good history with the parts that on it. It has been featured numerous times from other platforms. This is my second time seeing the Integra. I believe the first time was a few years ago when there was a Top 100 USDM Super Meet at the Socal convention center.

Mugen fashioned and a pair of carbon fiber Spoon mirrors sets up the look with an untucked bay and built motor by JUN Auto Mechanic from Japan.

Apparently, this was the best picture I was able to capture. The long line of people next to the Integra was the line to the Wekfest Merch booth.

It was so neat to see one of my favorite RSX build in person. Coming from the pacific north west is this well-known RSX. Fashioned with some OG CE28n’s in bronze, a front Mugen bumper with a custom widened chassis body, I think. Taking a few minutes to study the car a bit during the show, I could see why it wanted to make it’s way down to California to compete with us. You have to see this car in person to really understand why it has won multiple Wekfest awards.

When I first saw on Instagram that Rywire was bringing out this EK, I knew it was going to place in some kind category. I thought it would have placed for “Best of Show” or “Judge’s Choice.” It didn’t, but placed for “Best Engineered.” Just take a look at the motor for example. A 99-00 Civic body powered by an all electric motor! That is just mind blowing!

As I was trying to get a few more photos, I overheard two spectators dissing the EK because of the motor set up. Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion so I careless about what they would think and say, but something in this feat, on a most liked Civic chassis, and it being 100% operable was just INSANE!!! I could not imagine the about the time to put it together.

I alone worked on my intake manifold set up prior to Wekfest and I was nearly giving up. LOL! Just thinking about how much time Rywire put into building the motor was beyond what I could ever do to my old personal build.

The best moment with the car was actually seeing it being driven with ease inside the convention center when I was helping Brian load up Smurf. The center was almost empty and the Civic was going to park somewhere away from the wall to get photos. It was crazy to see the Civic moving, and not hear any sound coming out from the Civic. I guess I fell in love with it without even realizing that I had. I would love to drive it, if I ever get the chance. Just too amazing, in my book!

(Random Hmong dudes with NnovatioN shirts asking me for a photo.)

(My little family! Gwyn pulling on Aimee’s hair to express how happy she was to be here at the show with us. LOL! In case if you didn’t know, Aimee and I are expecting again. Now, you know.)

(Another one with Aimee in front of the S2000 adoring the S2000 as much as I do…I think. Or at least I believe she does.)

(Please excuse my facial expression on this one, but it’s all about Gywn. She was truly a trooper at the show. She didn’t fuss…so much, was able to get a minor nap in with all the noise around her, and then get a good night’s rest later in the evening for the drive home the following morning.)

(The NnovatioN boys grabbing something to eat and drink. At one point, a few of them were going to head back to the Airbnb, but then realized the show was almost over, so in the end, they stayed.)

(Jackson couldn’t figure out what to drink, and his hands were full. I told him to stop and smile for the camera with his best pose. Apparently, this is what he came up with. My guess was he was trying to go for a candid look. It worked…kinda.)

(Seemed like Xue didn’t realize that half of his face was covered by Kong’s head and cap at this moment. This was the best photo of me from the few that was captured by my camera. Of course, there were better ones, but my smile was all that mattered. Sorry, not sorry Xue. Next time, please wear some shoes with higher soles or learn how to tip toe. LOL!

Jokes aside, I wanted to talk a little bit about this photo because the individual with the strapped bag was one of the two Japanese enthusiasts who I believed came with Yasu (EXCEED). Chan-Oka (@aozkanajdm) who being the one in the picture alongside X-Point Import Co., Ltd. (@xpoint_import_japan). They both came and gave the NnovatioN line up a lot of love. He communicated with us in Japanese using the universal language translator on his phone and we did the same. It was crazy to see much admiration from a fellow Japanese enthusiasts coming to speak with us with no English language about what he liked about our cars. He was truly brave. If anything, the west coast treated them well. I believe just a few days after Wekfest SJ, as they were about to fly back to Japan, SoCal threw a car meet specifically just for them before the night of heir departure. Glad Chan-Oka and X-point made it back safely to their mother country. Hoping to cross paths with these fellows again in the future. Good vibes and what the car community is all about! Ok! onto my car coverage!)

I’m not a huge fan of stance builds, but I captured this car because it’s obvious that I’m quite biased with any S2000 I see at a show. Although, that is somewhat true, what stood out to me on this vehicle besides the clean engine bay set up was the anniversary front bumper. I’ve seen a few S2000’s on Instagram with it, but I have never seen one in person. This being my first, I just had to capture the moment.

Another S2000 in the building with a Spoon front end as well. This one in particular, is running some J’s Racing cut out fenders, J’s Racing side skirts, and a swan neck GT wing wrapped in the same color as the chassis. Some Diamond Gunmetal Black Te37 SAGA was the go-to wheel and trusting in an AP Racing caliper kit for its track necessities.

Here is another S2000 with a ASM I.S. front bumper. Pair with J’s Racing fenders and Voltex rear flares. The car is covered with a different shade of silver that is not a Silverstone or Serbing Silver. The Ce28n’s also fashioned an identical color to the S2000.

This S2000 came from Socal to compete with the S2000’s here in the bay. It won the “S2000 of the Fest” award. The S2000 was sitting on some Ze40’s and behind the wheels were a full nickel plated ENDLESS caliper kit for the front and the rear. OR was it a Brembo or an AP Racing? I can’t quite recall.

Kao’s EK with a full Mugen theme catalog build now showed with a propped hood inside the convention center. Look closely, how many Mugen parts can you spy from this angle and picture?

This Integra was all the way toward the back walls. It was sporting an EXCEED V1 front spoiler, Formula Silver Te37s, Mode Parfume side mirrors, and some Type R side skirts along with a Type R spoiler in the rear. Clean and simple execution works just as good.

This Integra seemed to be sporting an identical color to the Porsche beside it. Relying on some Spoon goodies like the front spoiler, the wheels, lug nuts, and calipers to the side mirrors were some of the most known parts for a Honda or Acura in this age. I thought the color was like Brian’s EG, but I think this shade is a little darker.

This Integra participated in the Weenie Fest show in Dinuba with us earlier this year. The last time I’ve seen at Weenie Fest, it had on some Te37’s. Now, on one of my favorite wheels of all time in these Honda and Acura chassis’: Sprint Hart CP-R’s. Unlike the white set we saw earlier on the PY EK9, this set is in a silver with blue decals. It flows well with the color of the car. Instead of running it low like earlier owners would ride it, this Integra and the PY EK9 from earlier ran it with a meatier tire set up.

If I ever owned a set and finish my coupe, I would slam the $h!t out of it. Well, I take that back. I’ll give it a nice tuck, but I’ll imagine it still being pretty low.

I’m not a big fan of the Mugen M7’s. Never liked them as much as the MF8’s or MF10’s. However, on this EK, it just somehow worked. Relying on an EXCEED V2 lip to carry out a heavier and more aggressive front end, the Civic owner understood the definition of that west coast execution and “flow.”

Chris from Darkside Racing’s EG Civic. I believe the last time I saw the Civic was also at Weenie Fest earlier this year. I could have swore it had a supercharged during the time. The tint from the headlights seemed to have been removed, and now instead of a supercharger, the Civic’s motor was now accompanied by a turbo charger. Later, Chris’ EG Civic won the “Chronicles” award.

I see this hatch every year I attend Wekfest SJ with my S2000. From those time I have seen it and compared to how many times I’ve added and subtracted parts off from my S2000, this Civic stayed true to its origins. On the side note, I think this Civic was an award Wekfest winner way before I started attending.

I wanted to come back sometime later during the show to come study this Integra, but I couldn’t. I can’t figure out what kind of front bumper this was, however, after some digging online, I looks to be an Ings N-Spec front bumper? I thought the fenders were Crowhouse, and then probably thought they could be J’s Racing? In the end, I don’t think they’re neither, but another brand I’m not too familiar with: JDM Shift Sport? Traveling to the side skirts, I thought they were Aztec skirts, but I don’t think they were. LOL!

I love the J’s Racing GT wing and couldn’t identify the rear valences/lip in the back. I love analyzing cars like this one. It allows me to learn of brands I never knew existed. Guess, I’m still a young buck then.

Another angle of this beautiful EK .

This S2000 also attended Wekfest last year. Still rocking the bronze Te37’s and a pair of Spoon monoblocks right behind the front wheels. The front bumper is ASM as well as the fenders. J’s Racing side skirts and wing helped carry out “flow.” Looks good!

I’m a sucker for Back Yard Special (BYS) parts! Especially the front DC2 or EK ones. Some Club Edition Te37’s, Wilwood brakes, and a forced induced B Series motor set up. This year, Wekfest was packed with a lot of Integras! And they’re all just clean and insane builds. Take this one as another example.

In my third attempt coming back to this car, I was finally able to capture a photo of it. I’m a big Civic fan, but even a bigger fan for the 99-00 models. I was never too fond of the 98’s. However, with this color, this style, and execution of parts, this EK looked absolutely amazing.

(And we bring it back to the NnovatioN line up! Kong, leading the way like usual with his NSX. The MF10’s have been swapped to this concaved Ce28n’s in a gloss black finish. The Spoon Sport side mirrors have also been swapped to these new ones from Renegade Motorsports. The biggest and most obvious change on the NSX this year was the front bumper.)

(Kong’s Civic was parked next to his NSX. The Civic took home “Civic of the Festival” award. It’s a good thing he listened to me when I have advised him to run the white Regamasters. I guess I know “flow” too. :D )

(Jackson’s EK in it’s best version yet! Se37ks was a good set up compared to the Magnesium Blue Te37’s.)

(Mee’s EG went through many changes this year. The Spoon theme have been ditched. Now, he is currently running a VIBES+ front spoiler and wing. If you look closely, he has also added in a roll cage onto the car as well. He gutted out his interior and instead of OEM+ look, it was time to change things up a bit. I didn’t realize the side mirrors have also been replaced by Mode Parfume ones.)

(Xue’s PY ITR is now currently running some 17 inch bronze Mugen wheels. A good contrast to the yellow.)

(Tilong’s AWD EG was stationed next to the Xue’s ITR.)

(Sua’s Integra with a propped hood demonstrating you can still make an untucked engine bay looks just as good.)

(Simon’s EM1 is probably the one of the two of three Civic coupes in the whole building. The rest were hatches.)

(Tou’s NSX has been the main focus of the many other projects he has stored at home. The NSX has undergone various changes from when he first purchased just months ago. And those changes? Expensive ones!)

(Brian’s Civic couldn’t park in the same aisle as us. Tou’s NSX took the last spot in that aisle so Brian had to park behind us. The Civic is now on some Magnesium Blue Te37’s rather than the Club Edition ones from last year. The valve cover has also been switched over to a carbon fiber one.)

I’ll conclude the coverage with my S2000.

I’ve been attending Wekfest San Jose since 2018. That was ages ago. From then until now, I have never skipped a year. I kind of grew old with the event, but still young at heart. I’m just fond of this event! The quality, the works in the background, the vision, as well as the amount of Honda builds in the show is just beyond my expectations. I’m very fortunate to be chosen each year to attend and demonstrate to the public what I have upgraded or subtracted from the S2000. Just like how you don’t like eating the same meal for a week, I guess with cars, it’s the same. You don’t want to running the exact same set up each year. There’s something deeply human about change, and what I’m trying to get across is that it reflects your self growth. If you ever get the chance, pull up an old photo of your build dating years back and then compare it to how it is now. I’m sure you can easily see the improvements you’ve made along the way.

Saying that I’m addicted to cars is an understatement. I live to improve myself on a daily basis. That’s how I perceive it when I look at my car as well. Like a child learning and accepting changes along the way in their life, as adults, we can still carry on that same mentality. So, I guess the better term to describe my perception with cars is not simply an addiction; rather, it’s: improvement. Not perfection, but progress. AND progress also comes with the vulnerability to accept change. Well, when it’s needed. In my opinion, growth doesn’t come from just sitting still, you gotta drive that $h!t forward! I guess it’s something you’ll catch when you realize there’s always room to grow. SO! Be vulnerable, young, and accept changes.

As we grow older and perhaps a little wiser, we realized time is EVERYTHING! You soon realize you’re not so young anymore and the things you want to do is now being substituted with new tasks or priorities in life. Makes you want to slow down, because there isn’t enough time in the day. In result, you gotta change; readjust to a new schedule and keep reigniting that youngness inside of you.

I will always find some time to tinker with car $h!t in my garage. Whether it be just a few minutes to an hour. I enjoy it…very much, actually; and I don’t think I’ll ever stop. I guess it’s a reminder to myself I’m never too old to do the things I love to do. LOL! Mr. Ichishima (founder of Spoon Sports) is a good example of that! If only we can only turn back time and start anew with the experiences we have now; wouldn’t that be nice? The world will be a better place, probably.

I guess as you DO grow older and get physically weaker, your mentality and perception can always remain FOREVER YOUNG and accept changes…for the good.

Thanks for reading. Joey Lee (The Chronicles) alongside Super Street have already published their coverage of this event, so here is my dosage. Appreciate you all, deeply.