In some small, sick way, Supertyphoon Pongsona did a favor for sports car owner Jaycee Jimenea. Of course, that's not how he felt in December 2002, right after the storm. That's when he felt like crying, because the powerful winds rolled a huge container truck on top of his customized Mitsubishi Eclipse GTS, destroying it.

But now that he owns one of the top extreme imports on Guam, Jimenea's Eclipse is all but forgotten. Tons of labor and a $13,000 investment into his 2003 Toyota Celica were all he needed to make the bad thoughts go away.

"This car is way better than my Eclipse," he says. "If I ever sell this, I'm done with two-door cars. I'll just get me an SUV."

For now, Jimenea can just sit back and bask in the greenish glow of his Celica, one of the breakout cars of 2005. Already under his belt are top finishes at April's Island Import Nights (2-door Extreme, Best Toyota Tuner), a third-place showing at March's Import Rage and a third-place finish in the extreme category at the X-5 Super Show, held June 4.

And to think the only reason he went with the Celica is because immediately after the typhoon, it was the only sports car available on island that fit his very simple requirement.

"No way I was buying a Honda. I'm not really a Honda guy and there's too many of them out there," he says. "I wanted something different."

After driving the car stock for a few months, Jimenea slowly began the work. He enlisted fellow team member Richard Abac of RTOY/Guaranteed, who wound up doing everything significant on the car, says Jimenea.

Jimenea chose to go with a Blitz front bumper and Invader side skirts and rear. The custom fenders gave it a wide, low-profile look while seamless bodywork pulled the frame together. A set of Lambo-style doors, hood scoop, carbon-fiber mirrors and a wing rounded out the racer-style look, but it was the rear end -- cut to fit a set of Infiniti G35 taillights -- that makes it a one-of-a-kind ride.

"I like to tease the G35 drivers on the road, because I have their taillights," he says. "When I first suggested that we get them and mount them, I said it was a joke. Richard said, 'let's do it,' and he was serious."

The interior includes all the sporty bolt-ons: fuel meter, Pivot tachometer and turbo timer, Momo shift knob, steering wheel and racing seats and a custom painted interior.

As for in-car entertainment, Jimenea spent a bundle for an impressive setup. He went with a Sony Explod CD/MP3 head unit, two 1000-watt amplifiers, a Starvision DVD player and three 7-inch monitors -- one in the dashboard, one in the headboard and one in the engine bay.

"I was looking for a place to put it and I saw this engine cover and I was like, 'hmm, will it fit?' And it did," he says.

His Celica isn't all show, either. An IHI turbocharger gives him added horsepower, a feature he loves to test when he can. "I love that boost, that's my favorite feature on this car," he says.

Future dreams for the car include an airbag suspension and nitrous oxide injection system for even more power. Although he knows that his car is way too heavy to drop serious times on the quarter-mile, he does appreciate that he has a faster-than-average car.

Jimenea sends shouts to his wife Maggie, congratulations to RTOY/Guaranteed for winning best team at the X-5 show, Richard and Totoy Abac and all the members of the RTOY/Guaranteed team for making the club what it is today.

Originally published June 28, 2005

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