America's Next Itasha - Team LoveHate and Kazu cover Endless Motoring show
Last Sunday, Endless Motoring sponsored a car and bike show. Team LoveHate joined in and featured the previously introduced G35 Itasha: (http://www.dannychoo.com/post/en/25051/America+Itasha.html)
While Kazu was covering the event- the team decided to do an Itasha style hood on a different car. I was unsure what character they used, but it was mostly for the show. Team LoveHate has quite a bit of plans in the Itasha world soon, so for those of you interested I'll be there covering it to bring to you. One idea floating around is that they'll be possibly working on a Black Rock Shooter car sometime in the near future...mmmmm. :D
The full article from the show can be found here: (http://runaroundkazu.blogspot.com/2009/10/team-lovehate-and-itasha-at-car-show.html)
-Below are some photos from the show:
"Either you love it or you hate it." says team member Jazel, which fits pretty well with the world's reception of Itasha cars- something that is brand new and just starting out here in the USA. In Japan, Itasha (literally translated to "pain vehicle") are ridiculed amongst other otaku hobbies and activities. Same goes here in America, where prideful automobile fanatics cringe at the mere site of a vinyl wrapped G35.
But there are many who love it. Team LoveHate wants to target those who love anime, and focus on apparel and custom wrapped cars. When I say "wrapped" I'm talking about the Vinyl that is used in making Itasha graphics of superb quality- none of which would truly exist without the genius mind of Steve Crain, manager of Signs By Tomorrow, and Itasha extraordinaire.
Team LoveHate as a whole wishes to move forward, customizing cars with Anime, Manga, and Game characters, and then moving into clothing and apparel alongside their Itasha otaku shenanigans.
-Team LoveHate and friends (including myself and colleague Jacob in the bottom left) gather for a group photo after taking the "Best Exterior" award on Sunday, October 4th, 2009. The award that was won was related to the G35 eroge themed Itasha I wrote about in early September, also mentioned above.
The first layer.
Cookies to anyone who guesses the character and/or series.
Wow looked very fun, and liked all those cars that I saw, too bad they didnt have an event like this in my area =/ But that blue car...amazing! Too bad she has a tire for a leg XD
So the stickers will stick permanently? It looks like it won't last long to me.
Nah, the vinyl used tends to be pretty hardy. I've had a couple of little "eX-D" decals on my car for a few years. They're just a head of the rear wheel arches, so not the cleanest part of the car ever, sharp corners and everything but they're still fine. It's nothing on this scale mind you, but I don't think there's any cause for concern longevity wise.
Looks great! But I wonder what will happen if I wax those cars?
do you see tuner cars with any decals? if so, you can bet at least 1 waxes their car and have no problem with yinvl coming off. it comes down to the quality of the vinyl and the person who puts it.