Charles Wong joins the Right Hand Drive Guys to share his extensive journey in the automotive world, focusing on Nissan Skylines and his experiences with Garage Sorus. From his first GTR to developing custom parts like center lock wheels, Charles discusses the evolution of his passion for cars, the differences between North American and Japanese tuning philosophies, and the importance of reliability in builds. The conversation also touches on his favorite cars, the thrill of track days, and his upcoming projects, including new aero parts for the R34 GTR.
In this episode of the Right Hand Drive Guys Podcast, we sit down with Charles Wong, founder of CW Collective — a company known for manufacturing hard-to-find and unique parts for Nissan Skylines, as well as restoring these legendary cars to factory-fresh (and often better-than-new) condition.
Charles isn’t just the man behind the brand — he’s a true Skyline enthusiast. With multiple R34 GT-Rs in his personal collection, he uses his own cars for R&D and prototype testing, ensuring every product meets the high standards these cars deserve.
We talk about how CW Collective began, the challenges of sourcing and reproducing rare components, the art of full restorations, and how Charles keeps the Skyline spirit alive through modern craftsmanship.
🎙️ From innovation to restoration — CW Collective is redefining what it means to preserve Japan’s greatest legend.
"Yeah, I mean really cool guy and I just so happened to be buying a Rear diffuser for the 34 off him and I was like, hey dude, like let's just chat about what you're up to on the on the podcast"
A rear diffuser is a part of a car that helps it stay stable when driving fast by improving how air flows underneath it. This helps the car grip the road better.
A rear diffuser is a component located at the rear underside of a vehicle that helps to manage airflow and increase downforce, improving stability and handling at high speeds. It works by accelerating the airflow under the car, reducing drag and enhancing aerodynamic efficiency.
"I started out with Sylvia, you know, I did a lot of importing..."
The Nissan Silvia is a sporty car that many people enjoy modifying and racing. It's known for being fun to drive and easy to customize.
The Nissan Silvia is a sports coupe that has gained a cult following for its performance and tuning potential. It is often associated with drifting and motorsport culture.
"eventually I moved up to, you know, author for Skyline, you know GTR which is one of my dream car."
The Nissan Skyline GT-R is a powerful sports car that many car enthusiasts dream of owning. It's famous for its speed and performance, especially in racing.
The Nissan Skyline GT-R is a high-performance version of the Nissan Skyline, known for its advanced technology and motorsport pedigree. It became iconic in the tuning and racing communities, particularly for its dominance in Group A racing.
Parts import means getting car parts from another country, usually to improve or fix cars. It's something many car fans do to make their vehicles better.
Parts import refers to the process of bringing automotive parts from one country to another, often to enhance or repair vehicles. This is common in the car enthusiast community, especially for performance upgrades.
"we build a lot of carbon fiber parts, you know, center lock wheels..."
Carbon fiber parts are made from a special lightweight material that makes cars faster and easier to handle. They are often used in racing cars.
Carbon fiber parts are components made from a lightweight and strong material that is often used in high-performance vehicles. They help reduce weight and improve handling and acceleration.
"we build a lot of carbon fiber parts, you know, center lock wheels..."
Center lock wheels are a special type of wheel that has one big nut in the middle to hold it on. This makes it faster to change tires, especially in racing.
Center lock wheels are a type of wheel design that uses a single central nut to secure the wheel to the hub, allowing for quicker tire changes and often reducing weight. They are commonly found on racing cars.
"Yeah, like Resto mod. That's like, yeah, yeah, that's big time stuff, man"
Restomod is when you take an old car and fix it up with new parts to make it work better, while still looking like the original car. It's a way to enjoy classic cars with modern technology.
Restomod refers to a classic car that has been restored and modified with modern components, such as engines, brakes, and technology, while retaining its original appearance. This approach allows enthusiasts to enjoy the aesthetics of vintage cars with the performance and reliability of contemporary parts.
"Yeah, so what what year did you get your first GTR? Like what was your first GTR? my first GTR was Whoo 2007"
The Nissan GT-R is a fast sports car that has a reputation for being very powerful and technologically advanced. The R32 is one of its older models, famous for its racing success.
The Nissan GT-R is a high-performance sports car known for its advanced technology and engineering. The R32 GT-R, specifically, is celebrated for its dominance in motorsport and its innovative all-wheel-drive system.
"Okay, so I know like, you know from what I've heard through the grapevine. You've had a few cars built by a garage source, right? Yes, yes, I have I have and so what you know, there's"
Garage Source is a company that specializes in building and modifying fast cars, especially ones from Japan. They help car enthusiasts make their vehicles perform better and look great.
Garage Source is a company known for building and modifying high-performance cars, often focusing on Japanese models like the Nissan Skyline GT-R. They are recognized for their expertise in tuning and customization.
"...one of the guys from car source. They said they were opening a shop here in Vancouver..."
Car Source is a company that helps people find and build custom cars, especially popular Japanese models. They are known for their knowledge about these types of cars.
Car Source is a company that specializes in automotive services, including sourcing and building custom cars. They are known for their expertise in Japanese performance vehicles, particularly those from the Nissan brand.
"...he flew the engine in with the OS 88 sequential gearbox..."
A sequential gearbox is a special type of transmission that lets drivers change gears quickly and easily, which is great for racing. It’s different from regular gearboxes that require more effort to shift.
The OS 88 sequential gearbox is a type of transmission that allows for faster gear changes compared to traditional manual gearboxes. It's commonly used in racing applications for its quick shifting capabilities.
"Do you think that, you know, North America the tuning shops over here are..."
Tuning shops are places where car enthusiasts go to make their cars faster or look better. They can change things like the engine or the way the car looks to improve performance or style.
Tuning shops specialize in modifying vehicles to enhance performance, aesthetics, or both. They often focus on upgrades such as engine tuning, suspension modifications, and aesthetic changes to improve the car's overall appeal and performance.
"...we never run any crazy ECU. We're running XJS F-con. Wow..."
An ECU is like the brain of your car's engine. It helps the engine run smoothly by making sure everything is working together properly.
An ECU, or Engine Control Unit, is a crucial component in modern vehicles that manages engine functions by processing data from various sensors. It controls fuel injection, ignition timing, and other parameters to optimize performance and efficiency.
"You know, the car is pushing probably 700 800 horsepower. And you know, that that was my daily driver with whenever I visit Japan."
Horsepower is a way to measure how powerful an engine is. The more horsepower a car has, the faster it can go and the better it can accelerate.
Horsepower is a unit of measurement for power, commonly used to quantify the power output of engines. In automotive terms, higher horsepower typically indicates better performance and acceleration.
"...we have our own brake system from AP Racing..."
AP Racing makes brake systems that help cars stop better, especially for racing or high-performance driving. They are trusted by many in the motorsports community.
AP Racing is a well-known manufacturer of performance brake systems, widely used in motorsports and high-performance vehicles. Their products are designed to provide superior stopping power and heat management.
"I think it's a central lock conversion of the car... a lot of people are selling center lock with their adapter..."
A center lock conversion changes how wheels are attached to a car. Instead of using several bolts, it uses one big bolt in the center, which can make changing wheels faster and looks cooler.
A center lock conversion allows a vehicle to use a single central nut to secure the wheel, rather than multiple lug nuts. This can improve wheel changes during racing and enhance the aesthetic of the car.
"You know, it is super hard to justify because yeah, the whole thing like one axle would take up probably 25 to 30 parts per axle..."
An axle is a part of the car that helps the wheels turn. It's like a rod that connects the wheels to the car and helps them spin when the car moves.
An axle is a central shaft for rotating wheels or gears. In vehicles, axles are crucial for transferring power from the engine to the wheels, allowing the car to move.
"We run our own nitron suspension. Um, this is our custom..."
Nitron suspension is a type of shock absorber that helps cars handle better and ride smoother, especially during racing or performance driving.
Nitron suspension refers to high-performance shock absorbers designed for racing and performance vehicles. They provide improved handling and ride quality by allowing for precise adjustments to damping settings.
OEM means that the parts are made by the same company that built the car. So, if you replace a part with an OEM part, it's like getting the same part that was originally in the car.
OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer, referring to parts or vehicles made by the original manufacturer. In automotive terms, it often implies that the components are made to the same specifications as the original parts used in the vehicle.
"I think they are more into let's say doing like a crs more oem with aftermarket parts. I could so I I think we have a different approach."
Aftermarket parts are parts made by other companies, not the ones that built your car. They can be used to improve or replace parts of your car.
Aftermarket parts are components made by companies other than the original manufacturer. They can offer enhancements or replacements that may not be available through the OEM.
"Yeah, but you know, if you know, if I can't get my car to you, can I purchase any of those carbon parts or can I purchase those brakes?"
Brakes are what help your car slow down or stop. There are different kinds, and some can be better for racing or performance.
Brakes are essential components of a vehicle that allow it to slow down or stop. They can come in various types, including disc and drum brakes, and can be upgraded for better performance.
"What uh was is the brake kit you're talking about is that what you had on your 34 at fuji?"
A brake kit is a set of parts that help your car stop better. It usually includes things like pads and discs that wear out over time, especially if you drive fast or race.
A brake kit typically includes components like brake pads, rotors, and calipers designed to improve braking performance. Upgrading to a high-performance brake kit can enhance stopping power and reduce brake fade during intense driving.
Term
R35
"...many competitive guys selling r35 kits. So we make couple you're like, okay, let's just keep it on couple of cars and..."
The R35 is a model of the Nissan GT-R, a fast sports car that started being made in 2007. It's famous for being very powerful and having lots of cool technology.
The R35 refers to the Nissan GT-R, a high-performance sports car that has been in production since 2007. It's known for its advanced technology and powerful twin-turbocharged engine.
Term
R34
"...the rear hats only for the 35 conversion for a 34, you know what I'm saying finding those rear hats..."
The R34 is an older version of the Nissan GT-R, made between 1999 and 2002. It's very popular with car fans because it's fast and looks great.
The R34 is the previous generation of the Nissan GT-R, produced from 1999 to 2002. It is highly regarded among car enthusiasts for its performance and iconic design.
"On the street, you know what believe it or not get ready. It's my uh tesla model 3
The plug-in jobby"
The Tesla Model 3 is an electric car that is popular for being more affordable than other Tesla models. It has a lot of technology and can drive fast without using gas.
The Tesla Model 3 is an all-electric sedan that has gained popularity for its performance, range, and advanced technology features. It's known for being more affordable compared to other Tesla models while still offering impressive acceleration and a high-tech interior.
"[1848.7s] rear-wheel drive standard range
[1851.6s] model thing"
In rear-wheel drive cars, the back wheels get the power from the engine, which can make the car handle better, especially when driving fast. It's a common setup for sports cars.
Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is a vehicle configuration where the engine's power is sent to the rear wheels, providing better handling and acceleration in many performance cars. This layout is often preferred for sports cars and performance vehicles due to its balance and driving dynamics.
"Stay tuned. We'll be a whole new different like nobody has ever seen it before full dry carbon..."
Dry carbon is a strong and lightweight material made from carbon fibers. It's used in cars to make them lighter and faster.
Dry carbon refers to a lightweight composite material made from carbon fiber that is used in automotive applications to reduce weight while maintaining strength. It's often used in high-performance vehicles to enhance speed and handling.
"Yeah, so there's one time we took the nsxl. She's like, is anyone gonna take pictures? I'm ..."
The Acura NSX is a fast and stylish sports car that was first made in the 1990s. It's famous for being fun to drive and has a unique design that makes it stand out, which is why people love to take pictures of it.
The Acura NSX is a high-performance sports car known for its innovative design and engineering, particularly its use of a mid-engine layout and hybrid technology in its latest iteration. Launched in the early 1990s, the NSX has become a symbol of Japanese automotive excellence and is often discussed for its balance of performance and everyday usability.
Select text to request an explanation
Hey, and welcome back to the next episode of the right hand drive guys podcast the podcast for guys
Who like right hand drives? I'm Bobby. This is Aaron. Yeah. Oh, and here we are for episode 158 and
You know if you listen last week, we just kind of updated you on what we were up to and
Now we want to get into
What is the guest up to yeah, right?
Who's the guest this week? So the guest is actually a guy that I met at Fuji Speedway last January
He during the top-ranked track day, but
you know, we'll ask him like I'm not completely positive by believe he or him and a group of guys rented out the track that morning and
Garage source was there with some of their cars and then Charles has had a car or cars
Modified our garage source. So they were doing like a test in tune. So that's cool. That was really cool to see like and then
Charles allowed Jesse to drive his car and you know, try to see what type of lap times he could get so that was cool
To see Jesse drive something that was not a stock skyline around the track. So yeah, that's that's kind of how I met him
And you know, so who is it Charles Wong? Oh, yeah, I didn't even say his name Charles Wong and
Yeah, I mean really cool guy and I just so happened to be buying a
Rear diffuser for the 34 off him and I was like, hey dude, like let's just chat about what you're up to on the on the podcast
And he said hell yeah, so yeah, what do you say dude? Let's do it. All right episode 158 with Charles Wong
All right, and we're back with Charles. What's up, man?
Hey, man, how you doing? Good. Good. Thanks for coming coming on man. It's it's definitely a pleasure to have you
Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for inviting me over. I've been watching you guys podcast before too. So, oh sweet
Thank you. We appreciate that support
So, you know, I already kind of did a little intro just so you know that kind of talked about how I knew about you
And so I was curious if you could just kind of tell the listeners a little bit about yourself
I know you're doing a lot of things. So
If you could just give us a little rundown on, you know, who Charles really is
Okay. Well, my name is Charles. I have been
doing car stuff
Especially in these on stuff since I was 19. So it's almost 19 years ago when I first graduate from high school. So
I started out with Sylvia, you know, I did a lot of importing and then, you know, slowly moving on to author to
GST when they were legal in Canada
And then, you know, eventually I moved up to, you know, author for Skyline, you know GTR
Which is one of my dream car. I'm sure most of the that's dream car for most of the guys who are into Nissan's
so
You know before I was doing more importing and then I did a lot of parts import
You know, obviously I built my own car and I think what got me to
Meet out of a lot of the guys was when I had my blue author for GTR would speed hunter
You know, I send my car back to Japan and have car source built the car
You know, I met a lot of guys from from the States. I did a lot of track days in the States and track days in Japan
So I think that's when
Everything, you know, come together with how I meet all the guys in the States and then eventually now I'm putting my own parts
We ain't you know, we are doing
Wrestle mod on a skyline GTR
We build a lot of carbon fiber parts, you know, center lock wheels and
Yeah, so that's kind of sums up what I've been going for the past 19 years
Dang, yeah, I mean you just threw some some really cool words out there like building your own parts center lock
Yeah, like Resto mod. That's like, yeah, yeah, that's big time stuff, man
Yeah, I mean, I've been you know building cars for a long time and there's a lot of parts
I really wanted but they are not what I
Imagine they would be
So I figure, you know, I now I have the resources. I have more time and funding
It's it's time for me to do to build a part
Exactly how I wanted when you know when I was a kid and the technology wasn't available back then
So right now the technology the equipment is more used to come by so it's like I think it's it's a good time for me to
You know easier for me to do that
Right now. Yeah, it makes sense
Yeah, I mean even you know, we were kind of talking about this with the scanners and 3d printers
Yeah, and all of these different tools that you have now that before it was
Casting and just trying to figure out. Yeah. Yeah, no 3d printing, you know, just doing solid work auto like
Auto cat it's just super hard. It's not for someone who's a hobbyist, right?
Mm-hmm, but now, you know with the internet with YouTube, it's it's a lot easier to make things happen
And let's say 10 years ago. Yeah
Yeah, so what what year did you get your first GTR? Like what was your first GTR?
my first GTR was
Whoo 2007
Wow, 2007 was when I first got my
R32 GTR because you know, I live in Canada. We have a 15 year rules. So I was 20
Wow, that's when I bought my first GTR
Surprisingly, there wasn't that there weren't that cheap back then. They were still
$20,000 before it, you know, it dropped to like five six thousand dollars
It still took me quite a bit of time to save up on was 20 to get you know, 20 25 thousand to to to buy that car
Oh, yeah, for sure. I mean, yeah, but like to have a 32 GTR before your 21st birthday
Damn, that must have felt pretty good though
It is until I told my girlfriend at that time was my wife now. I told her what a new car
She came to take a look at the car. She said that's not a new car
Yeah, she wasn't impressed
Hey, man, she must have she must have not been too mad because she's married to you now
And I think you got a little bit more than a 32 GTR nowadays, huh?
I do I do I have quite a bit of cars right now. I have you know, lots of skyline GTR
Got some, you know, exotic. I really wanted when I was a kid
So I'm not gonna complain. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, for sure
So
Okay, so I know like, you know from what I've heard through the grapevine. You've had a few cars built by a garage source, right?
Yes, yes, I have I have and so what you know, there's
You know, of course, we've all been in this, right?
So there's so many guys right that you could you could take this to you know, especially in Japan
You you kind of had the pick of the litter as far as I'm sure you could have taken these cars to anybody you wanted to
You know, so to speak. Yeah, why why garage source? Like just tell us what is so special about them?
They earned your business. I
Think it's more of a coincidence. So when I first bought my R34 GTR the blue one
You know, I bought it into Canada the plan was to build it ourselves with you know, a bunch of our friends, you know
spend a weekend at the at at the garage, you know, we do our own thing and
then at Instagram I screw up to one of the feeds and then it was
One of the guys from car source. They said they were opening a shop here in Vancouver
So I'm like, oh, this name sounds familiar. You know, I saw them before on you know, feeder options
And I wouldn't expect them to have a shop here. So I reach out to the guy and
Then apparently he he's Japanese. He doesn't speak that much English and
I'm like, oh, he didn't reply to me
So I got a hold of one of my friends who speak Japanese and then they were talking and actually they need some help send them a shop
I'm like, well, I am here. Let's let's see if we can meet up and then we'll talk about it
So I meet up with him and then he is one of the workers who you know source sent from Japan to here
He knows nothing about Canada
so eventually we become friends and then
He has Mr. Hayashi from source in Japan flew in
To help us with our cars in the beginning. So in the beginning, we just wanted to have someone to you know
Kind of, you know, look around the car see what it needs. I
Don't have a set mind of how I wanted to build the car
But you know, he came over he give us some insight. He fixed the car which you know
It doesn't prompt with the cover knife first bought it from Japan
So he came fix a car and then we become friends and eventually he talked us into, you know
Building the engine and you know do a sequential transmission
And then I realized, you know, there's no guys here in Canada. I would that would you know be able to you know do anything like that
You know, everyone say they can you know, there'll be a car, you know, Vancouver is a really small car community GTR
Being specific, there's not a lot of guys who have been working on them
Even though we know we have GTR for a long time
So, you know, we had Garstorz came in to he flew the engine in with him
And then you know, he yeah, he flew the engine in with the OS 88 sequential gearbox, you know with his check-in luggage
So he came in he put the car together
somewhat somewhat put together and then being in Canada, obviously we're missing out on the parts still to get the car running
so we put a bunch of old parts back and
and then
He's like, you know, this is not gonna work, you know, we can't finish it within five days
Let's plan it again and the car runs, you know, you drive the car break it in and then I'll come back
And then we'll finish it after well, so that's how the whole thing gets started
That's how we met and then it's throughout one year. Yeah, that he helped us out a lot
Yeah, that's it's a big coincidence
It's a big coincidence. Yeah, and then since then I stick with for a long time
Yeah, loyalty is huge, right? Yeah
Yes, yes, so you said something there that just pop made some pop in my head
Do you think that, you know, North America the tuning shops over here are
You know kind of behind Japan or do you think nowadays that there's some US shops that are starting or US or Canada shops
that are starting to come up and
Be able to compete. I would say I
Said they do have a different philosophy on how the cars being built between North America and Japan and
In in North America, you know, we focus more on how the car looks
Engine-wise, you know, how the parts were built and you know, we we looking for the billet parts clean engine day
Big power but in Japan they're more focused on the copying reliable
With a bit in a certain budget, you don't have to go all out buying other crazy parts
but they wanted to how put the car together with
How the how all the parts were
Make it into one big
It has more soul then, you know, I don't have to explain it
But all the parts they choose would work together flawlessly compared to you know, having all the ball apart here
With a big crazy partless, but in Japan it's more about being reliable and how everything work together
So their philosophy is a little different than than here which and in Japan then
The crowd who was into GTR older guys
So they're looking for more refinement
Um, they're cutting some breakdown
Instead of being you know flashy big power. So it's I wouldn't say which one is better. It's it's it's different
That makes sense too. Like yeah, right like Japan. Yeah, they want they want to find balance and harmony
Whereas like you said, right, you know, you you land in America and all of a sudden
Yeah, it's it's the crazy huge turbos the
Yeah, it's a whole it's a whole thing for sure
Yeah, so I wouldn't say which one is better. But you know for the experience that I have with them on my cars
I took my GTR too. Let's say
I've been to track day like probably 20 times in my GTR with the same builds
All we have to do is regular maintenance. All right, I never have any hook any breakdown any hiccup on the car
You know what I gotta gonna say car people cars breakdown
And you know, we did
The whole day three drivers the car was all in it was just gas
So I I think I think it's it's different like my car
Definitely does not look
Crazy, you know, when you pop the engine bay, it still looks like Japanese build car
You know, I don't I don't have other fancy fancy am plumbing stuff like that
But it gets a job done. I think that's more important
Right. Yeah, that I mean that does make sense, right? Like your engine is built to work not to necessarily look look great
Look pretty so to speak. Yeah
Yeah, not to put anyone down in the states. I know they have a different philosophy on building
I like the look but when I propose them to saw us they're like
Nah, we're not doing that
I can't
I can't I can't force them to do anything. So
If you put in the engine all I can do is, you know, when they build the car, I ship it back
I did my own little touch when it comes back to Canada. Yeah
Yeah, that's cool though. I mean that they're not willing to necessarily
You know break from what they know and what they do just to be cool, you know, that's what I do love about
Japanese tuners and shops is they really stick to like they have pride in who they are. They don't
flex in Japan
Yeah, yeah, for sure
Super stubborn. Yeah, that's what it is. I guess. Yeah
um, so
Okay, that's cool. So what what is like so out of
What you've done to your car with sorus like what do you feel like was the best
That you've done to your 34 that really
Gave you what you were looking for
I would say overall
Modification wise would be the engine obviously
Surprisingly, we never run any crazy ECU. We're running XJS F-con. Wow
definitely Japanese
The newest XJS ECU
So it's still pretty old. Yeah, but that thing does not give me any hiccups. No cold start issue hot start issue. There was
Zero issue on the car
You know, the car is pushing probably 700 800 horsepower
And you know, that that was my daily driver with whenever I visit Japan
I drive that everywhere we we drove to Hokkaido. We drove around Hokkaido. We drove to
Osaka everywhere in Tokyo. I had the car there for three years. Oh, and
All it did was just we need oil change and then that that's it
Wow, that is sweet to say 700
The way they set it up. Yeah, the way they set it up is it's very good. It's like I would never imagine my
Build GTR to be the most reliable car in my in my fleet
That that is true to say right? I mean, yeah, yeah, and that's a testament to the recipe that Soros has figured out
Yeah, oh
And I think the second thing that I went with them is that gave me the most
What I'm looking for was, you know, when I every time I go there they treat me like a family
And when I go to track days, they they take my car there
And then they told the car there we do a couple laps of warmed up came back
They check the ecu. They check the tire pressure check the brake check all the oil pressure
Have me go back out again
So every session they would you know, they would look after the car
And then when the day is over, they load it back on the trailer
And then I drive my rental car home
So it really spoils me going to track day. So I don't I really go to check day here
Nowadays back in you know back to canada
It just I can't I I don't want to do any work myself. All right. I don't want to load the trailer
I feel like a VIP going there. So and if they do to all the customers
Right just to show appreciation that they support the shop. Mm-hmm, which I think it's it is really cool
That's very cool. That is cool. That's like Soros spoiled. You're like Soros spoiled, man
Yeah, I am I am like I go check day here the guys all my friend was like, you know, no one's gonna check a tire pressure here
Man, you gotta do yourself. I'm
Yeah, that's cool, man
And so you've been to the track, you know, it sounds like you've been to the track period a ton of times
A lot of times a lot of times. Yeah, and so was where any of those visits for
R&D for what CW collective has turned into
Uh
Yeah, I would say in the beginning not so much in the beginning is more from my personal enjoyment
And then eventually, you know, when I was starting to
Learn about the car more, you know, I drive a lot more on the track
By all means, I'm not a crazy driver. I'm not like a professional driver, but I
Do have a lot of track, you know, check time on in my own personal car and, you know, how the car I wanted to handle and power coming wise
Um, I think I've a lot more of experience on my own car. So
After I go to more track days and I decided, you know, let's make more parts to
Turn to car how I want it to be
And so that's when so last a year or two, you know, when we started the centre lock stuff and then we have our own brake system from ap racing
We took it to japan. We have it in the salt air
and
So trying out to see hopefully the wheel doesn't fall off and
The color is a fly off, right? So I think that's more
At least I want my product to be
tested, you know
before, you know, selling it to
Any guys who who who's using it, right? So if it doesn't pass my expectation, I don't think I should
Give it to anyone. Yeah, that's like that's I feel like that's rare nowadays, right?
Like a lot of people are so quick to just push out a part to market just so that they can start recouping that investment
Yeah, I think it just
Like most people have unlimited resources too. I I I'm pretty happy
I got more resources nowadays that I have the opportunity to try stuff like this
But I understand, you know, it's it's just r&d takes a lot of money
It takes a lot of time and with the market now people copy each other, right? So if you don't launch your product fast enough
You know, you eventually get copied before you even release the product. So that's true
I wouldn't say it's right or wrong, but it's it's just a competitive market
Now it's it's yeah, and so so all right
So you've created some parts
Tell us like what are you the most proud of like what what where
Because you know when you accomplish something that you either didn't think you were going to or or or didn't realize you're gonna
You get that feeling of like that like oh, yes, like
Did it, you know, like what what parts made you feel that way?
I think it's a central lock conversion of the car
yeah, it's uh
it's it
There's nothing like this out in the market, you know, a lot of people are selling center lock with their adapter
Which is a spacer brought onto the car
How we did it was we have to send the whole hub replacement
Using Porsche Lamborghini architecture. So our threat is actually inside the hub instead of being exposed
And we have like a locking mechanism in the center of the hub
so it's
Both left and right side wheel are running the same threat directions. You don't need left and right
We first pitch to to lock the wheels
and then you know the the nut itself has like a
Has like a cone like a
Like a cone so if you float it doesn't damage your your wheels or like a actual oem car
That's I think all these small details. That's what makes it
What I'm super proud of, you know
Having this thing on on the car
Instead of you know, just having like a big chunky spacer and a big big nut, you know, you put it onto the car and call it
Senderlock
Trying to be as old. Yeah, it's like legit center lock. That's sick. Like oh, yeah
And that thing it's we can't make there's no money to be made in that thing
I I'll be honest if the r&d cost is so high
It's and you know, we we try to sell it and then we realize, you know what?
Let's just keep it to ourselves and then, you know, whoever was built in the car with us
We would sell it to them and I think that's for as an appreciation for them supporting us
You know have the car built here
And in such a selling because selling individually it's it just costs too much. It's not cost effective to sell it
As is to a partner
No one's gonna buy it. Right, right. It's it would be such a
Such a baller part like such a high price that yeah, it would be hard to justify, right?
You know, it is super hard to justify because yeah, the whole
thing like one axle
Would take up probably 25 to 30 parts per axle
O-length seals and springs and eclipse. So it's not just a nut and a hub which which yeah, it's
It just I don't know. It's super complicated design
I mean, but that is a cool thing to offer a customer who's willing to come to you. It's almost yeah
It's one of those super unique like niche parts that it's almost worth coming to you
To have you work on the car for that alone if that's what you're into. Yes
And so on that on that point, right like
I've definitely been watching, you know, your cw collective page and just the things you've been doing. So
um
You know because it's really quite unique a lot of people aren't willing or maybe like you said don't have the capital to
Go that far, right? So when you see a guy going that far you you take notice and
so if I you know, I have a
When when I actually saw you at Fuji
I bought my 34 GTR from top rank. So I have a 34 GTR that is
You know should be getting in a container this month, right?
Yeah, if if I wanted to bring
My 34 GTR to cw collective and work with Charles Wong
Like what are my options? Like what you know, I have no no idea what you really even do
But I've heard you're the best. What are my options?
We I would say we do not do any engine work, right? All our engine work is done by God source
We used to do a couple engine builds, but we decided, you know, this is not our expertise
We leave the engine the drive chain everything would be done
by God source
For the body we only do the body we do the whole underbody
On the rotisserie, you know, we take everything apart. We blast everything off. We repainted whole body. We
Spotboarded everything so we run our own nitron suspension. Um, this is our custom
The valve thing that we've worked with
Wow for all of the cars
We do our own development on our AP racing brick kit
Front six rear four we tried, you know multiple setup to find the best balance AP racing
Ratio between front and back so
We do
Other titanium stuff on the car every boat in, you know, whole car with titanium. We also work with drops and weather
Um, you see the in kind of back. We do all the whole leather alcantara interior
We work with raps and a lot for most of our cars that we we built
Oh, yeah, we also do a lot of carbon fiber stuff
So most of carbon fiber stuff is making canada and making germany. Oh, wow. So that's pretty heavy
Yeah, we we have a race shop in in germany that helped us with a lot of the the front end dry carbon parts that you know
Our CNC morning
Wow, that's so would you uh, you know, and there's no i'm not trying to compare here, right? I'm just saying
You know if we had to say
You know, it's almost like a
A built by legend style program ish, right? Like yes
Just in the sense of you're working with all of these really excellent people
To create this one project
I think we we had like they actually helped me out a lot on a different insight on how things should be
Especially on the chassis side of things, you know, they they helped me out with gacha shita to do the shock tower
Um, but we do have a different approach. They are more
Leaning to let's say japanese style. Let's say how our source is right? So they they work with a lot of japanese famous shop
Um, they like the japanese style built
Whereas I wanted to make a car to be more modernized
Yet still stay oem with more power
um
So the center locks up, you know, like I'm trying to make the car into like a Porsche style singer style
I think they are more into let's say doing like a crs more oem with aftermarket parts
I could so I I think we have a different approach. I we have a different customer
Base, obviously
Yeah, yeah, but definitely room for both like that's what's really cool about it
Especially because you're clearly on exact opposite sides of the world anyways, you know, so
Yes
And so on that note, can you purchase? I know you said the center locks are kind of exclusive to your program
Yeah, but you know, if
You know, if I can't get my car to you, can I purchase any of those carbon parts or can I purchase those brakes?
Or are those also exclusive? Yes
Yes, we're trying to work out. Let's say a whole
Yeah, let's get the DIY package for people who aren't been a car to us
um
But it would be best to have the car here like doing the install is kind of tricky on some of the parts
carbon fiber parts
Yes and no, it's it's really depends on how
I would have to talk to the clients to to get a few how if you know, if they are
If they don't know much about the car, it's hard to send a body kit and then to put it on together
Because you know, there's always fitment issue with carbon fiber stuff. It doesn't matter
Who makes them?
So and who is prepping the the carbon fiber those pinholes and I don't I just don't want any disappointment, you know
For the client. So it's always the best to have the car here
With us. Yeah, yeah
But the brake kit send a lot. Yeah, I can sell those. Yeah. Yeah
What uh was is the brake kit you're talking about is that what you had on your 34 at fuji?
No, that one was from guard source. Yeah, that was a source kit was yeah. Yeah, we have got the ap wasting stuff on
On this car
It's on the floor
Oh, I see on the floor. Yeah. Yeah, this is how the
We also make it like r35 conversion kit
but
Not we don't we haven't talked to the public yet
Yeah, just a few many competitive guys selling r35 kits. So we make couple you're like, okay, let's just keep it on couple of cars and
Yeah, I see what you're saying. Yeah, the you know, what's actually really hard to source and I've been trying to find is
the rear hats only for the
35 conversion for a 34, you know what I'm saying finding those rear hats
Is really hard that fit a 34 that is only only super tech mix them super tech. Okay. You just gave me the cheap
We make them but we only have one
One set on one of the cars. Yeah. Yeah, it's it's one of those things, right?
It feels like in this culture
You know thing it like ebbs and flows in the sense of you can find stuff and then you can't find anything
And then you can find stuff and then you can't find anything. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah
That's the reason why I started my own thing. Yeah
Dang
He built his own factory. I will make my own if I can't find anything
Wait, man. Well, speaking of your cars
Can you give me a quick rundown on what your favorite car is to drive on track and maybe what your favorite car is to
drive around on the street
That you won't
That I own
I would say the favorite car to drive on the track
Would be my gtr
Any of them any of them I I love them it's
It's it's it's fun. It's it's you know, it brings me joy. I smile if I'm getting to the car
It's my pride and joy
On the street, you know what believe it or not get ready. It's my uh tesla model 3
The plug-in jobby
The cheapest
Model 3 standard range. Oh, wow. It's not even the performance
It's not the performance. It's a black
rear-wheel drive standard range
model thing
with no option
That is my um
That is my go-to car every time I leave the house. That's the only car I would get in
Unless my wife takes the car
You know, like this this just made me think of a really good point because
You have you have like if you have obviously some 34s you have some exotics too as well, right? Yeah
Yeah, so yeah, yeah
You know like a guy that doesn't have any of that right and and just has the base model 3
imagine how how like
Just how the thought process is so different
He's like thinking like oh if I had these super cars and if I had gtrs
I'd be driving them all the time
But when you do have those things, right? It's so easy to jump into the model 3 and just go
Yeah, you're brainless. You don't need a key. You hop in I pre-warm the car when it's cold
I can leave it outside. I don't care. It's the duality of man. Yeah
I can I can drive like an asshole and there's 10,000 of them out on the street and nobody know it was me
That's true. I'll just cut anyone off. Very nobody would know
Yeah, and I mean a door ding on that thing is is not a big deal. Yeah
Yeah, it's it's it's a car is leased when it's done. I'm returning. I've got another one
That's true. I mean you're right, you know, it is true and especially because some of these cars, you know
Like for example, if you did get in a fender bender with a 34 gtr. How like you're so heartbroken over
Yeah, like I I can't I can't I don't want to claim insurance. I don't want record on the car
Yeah, which means the other guys get to get off easy
And then I have to put on our own pocket fix the door thing and then the pain will be mismatched. Yeah, that's so true
So I do drive my 34 a lot here
You know, but you know
Day-to-day driving going to work or let's say doing errands. I should take the test take the test on all three
But I say, you know, if I'm gonna go for breakfast go for dates
I'll take the sports car out. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah for sure special occasions
Makes sense. Yeah, it just makes it more special. Yeah
Man, I don't know about you, but
It was it was hard this past weekend watching all the ours meeting posts, you know
Everybody's everybody's out there and it just felt like it's a little a little bit of fomo, right?
I did I did. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, me too. Um, we have we have gtr festival coming
Yes, gtr festival. So are you going to be down in texas for that?
I'll be in texas for I'll I'll just be there for two days. Um, so no cars just you're just coming charles
I'll spring. Yeah, I'll come in. I'll I'll you know hang out with the friends
Say hi. Yeah. Yeah, so I can't I can't bring the car everywhere. Yeah, that's true. Yeah, you can't can't bring it everywhere
No, so yeah, we'll be out there. We're gonna do some uh live episodes from gtr festival
That'll be cool to you know, really, you know, put the face to the name
again as well
um
So before before we let you get back to creating amazing stuff on the other side of that screen
What's next for cw collective and charles wong?
We are actually making our new own arrow now. Oh, we just finished the rendering
So we are doing the 3d modeling upcoming
upcoming
winter so
Stay tuned. We'll be a whole new different like nobody has ever seen it before full dry carbon
um
And this is for 34
This is for 34
Hopefully we get something done before autoslawn then I can have a prototype sent out
Oh, wow in autoslawn and put it on one of the cars that I have in japan
Hopefully, I don't know yet. Hey, we're rooting for you. That's for sure that that would be cool
Is so but for your gtr collection?
Are you
Are you done?
Are you done?
No, never. No, I
You know what every night before I go to sleep I have different ideas on how the car should be built
And
It is a never-ending process, you know, once I finish one kind of like oh
There's something I want to do to a different car maybe different color different arrow
different kind of wheels
set up
Then different color combination, you know what?
Let's liquidate something and we'll buy another car. We'll build another one. Yeah, it's always it's a non-stop cycle
Hey, I think you know as some people would call that like crazy or insane, but I feel like that's
part of like the
You know the fruit of life is being able to continuously
Imagine innovate, you know, these things are what keep you going, you know
Yeah, it's crazy. My wife lost track. She's like, I don't care what you do anymore
As long as I'm not in the car
She doesn't sit in any of the gtrs anymore
That's crazy from the girlfriend who is mad about the 32 to the wife that says just get out of my hair and go
Play with your skyline. Yeah
He's like you try to skyline people are taking pictures. I don't want to be in any pictures
So she doesn't get into any car. Oh, she can't handle the fame, huh?
Yeah, so there's one time we took the nsxl. She's like, is anyone gonna take pictures? I'm like, no, no
It's just an nsx. No one's gonna take pictures
Five minutes after this in the stoplight people taking pictures. She's like
I can only imagine, right?
Man, Charles, uh, we'll let you get back to your thing, but we do appreciate you being on man
Um, we're looking forward to seeing you in a few weeks for sure. That'll be cool. Oh, yeah
Sounds good. Sounds good. And then hopefully in japan as well. I'd love to love to see out there
And include you again. Um, let the listeners know charles. How can they find you on the internet?
Follow my instagram cw underscore units
Message me. I I reply to all the dm. So, you know, if I message me say hi
I'm there
Dang, all right. That's a real one right there. A lot of guys are too quick to just
Ignore those things. So that's dope on you, man
Thank you. Thank you. All right, charles. It was good to talk to you and and we'll see you again soon, man
All right, I'll see you guys. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for coming. All right, but
Man, that that's cool. I love being able to meet people
From, you know across really, I mean the whole other side of the country, but world in a sense, you know in that sense like
A guy from canada who was just in the car since he was 19 now creating his own
Centerlock wheels arrow parts working with garage sorus like what?
Yeah, like crazy stuff. Yeah, something no one else is really doing which is cool. Yeah, like he's he's found his own little niche
Yeah, and even though I can imagine that that's a
Kind of a hard road like he said, you know, like he put all this rnd into this centerlock wheel kit that then
Really is too expensive for him to even sell
Like, you know beyond obviously some certain people right, but he did it for him
Right, which is even crazier, you know, which speaks volumes to the fact that he is doing it for him, right? Like
Which yeah, like he said like we aren't all we aren't all fortunate enough to be able to create our own parts and rnd them at
different circuits in japan and all these things, right, but
Dude, you know, some people would be hating on him. Whoa must be nice. I'm like, dude. Thanks. Yeah
Like you're you're doing this like for you, but in a direct reflection to us
You know because now these parts become available to us whether it's through him or somebody that even copies him, right?
He knows it, but um, yeah mad props to charles
It was cool to get him on here and just kind of you know chat and just hear about what he's up to
I was hoping we could get him to list out all of his cars, but you know, I get it. We probably still be there
Yeah, I get it. I get it, dude. I get it. Um, but yeah, all right guys, we definitely appreciate you listening
Hopefully you enjoyed charles interview. Please sub to us on youtube follow us on instagram at our hd
guis
Look in the con or in the show notes for the facebook group, but for episode 158
I'm bobby. This is erin. See ya. Peace
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