10-22-2008 03:12 AM

Last month the bankruptcy declaration of Trust, one of Japan’s most respected tuning houses and parent company of GReddy, surprised many in the Japanese auto aftermarket industry. But it looks like they will stay afloat to fight another day. Rumor from Japan has it that Nippon Seiki, makers of Defi brand gauges, will supply the necessary cash infusion needed for Trust to continue normal business operations. Defi has been a supplier of gauges to Trust for a while now, and their finances seem to be on the plus side. That’s good news, but we’re not if sure this is just a temporary fix for a much bigger issue - the overall decline of car enthusiasm in Japan. We hope that companies as storied as Trust can continue to support Japanese car enthusiasts like they have since 1977, but only time will tell.

[image: Trust]

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I'm sensing an overall decline of car enthusiasm in the US. Ask a high school kid today what his favorite car is. You often hear that he doesn't know. He'll tell you his favorite video game, though. Cars are just appliances to the new generation, when compared with how kids thought about them in the 70s and 80s. Collectible cars are hot right now because the baby boomers are at the stage in life where they have money to play with, and they want to have something they've always wanted. That will pass, unless the current high schoolers get the car bug. Somehow car offerings from the 90s and 2000s don't inspire that bug. The really cool ones are too expensive for the masses, and the rest of them are not memorable. Wonder how the aftermarket and tuner industry is going to fare here in 10 more years.

I have teenage boys and car enthusiasm is still there, at that age the car still very much is a part of who they are and their identity.

The problem is that like with everything else the economy is hurting this industry terribly, the first things to go are luxuries and modifying cars is a luxury, buying that 7k twin turbo kit for a 350Z doesn't look that appealing any more.

Things are tight and then you add the weak dollar and these companies will falter.