Made the machine that runs through the circuit with his own hands.
Even when it comes to old cars, everyone has their own style. Some owners enjoy their cars as originals, while others tune them for absolute speed. The old car life of Hiroshi Kitagawa, owner of the Nissan C110 “Skyline”, known as the “Kenmeri GT-R Racing Replica”, started 26 years ago.
What is the machine called a phantom?
Looking back on the illustrious history of the Nissan Skyline, many machines have been dubbed legends. However, it may be fair to say that the only car with a phantom name is the ‘Skyline Hardtop 2000 GT-R Racing’ (‘Kemmeri GT-R Racing’), which was exhibited as a reference exhibit at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1972.
In the motorsport world, everyone was excited and excited about the success of the Kemmeri GT-R Racing, which was announced as the next-generation model of the Hakosuka GT-R, which recorded 49 consecutive victories and is still talked about today. Its looks were perfectly finished with a large chin spoiler, works wings, and gold-striped racing machine, so no one doubted that it would be a success on the circuit. But, tragically, the times prevented the Kenmeri GT-R Racing from making its debut, and it ended as a mirage without ever being seen on the track.
Having a yearning for such a fantastic machine, Hiroshi Kitagawa decided to create his own “Kenmeri GT-R Racing” that would race on the circuit with his own hands.
“If I recall, it was 26 years ago now?”
As one would expect, we couldn’t afford a real ‘Skyline GT-R’, so we went to a dismantling shop to see if there were any bodies that looked to be in good condition. It was there that I happened to find this C110 ‘Skyline’. Luckily, when I popped the bonnet, I found that the engine was fitted with an L28 SU carburetor, with an intake manifold and a ø44 Solex lying around in the boot.
It was within our budget in terms of price, so we bought it and started restoring it so that it could run first. Since Kemmeri is synonymous with cars driven by delinquents, immediately after purchasing the car, the suspension was cut, the ride height was shortened and racing tires were fitted to create a machine that pretended to be a street racer. There was a time when he enjoyed a bit of a wild remake of the car.
