We take a ride in Steve Sole’s fat boy JZX Slider.

I’ve never liked the idea of a five-point harness. It has always seemed too much like putting on a bright red pair of undies, walking into a field of bulls and hoping for the best. And yet, despite my (probably) baseless fear of castration, there I was, yanking down on the Sparco straps in the passenger seat of Steve Sole’s new drifter, a 1994 Toyota JZX90.

At the heart of the five-metre-long sedan is a big, Garrett-fed 2JZ-GTE motor. More commonly found in a Toyota Supra, the three-litre, six-cylinder 2JZ is an absolute weapon of an engine. “After seeing what Tony Brennan’s 2JZ in his RX-7 could do, I decided this was the right motor to go for,” explains Steve. “I’m used to working on Nissan RB motors, which are a lot harder to get the same amount of power out of.”

Currently pushing 416 kilowatts out to the massive 12-inch-wide rear Work Meister rims, the motor is completely standard in the bottom end — a testament to just how strong Toyota builds these things. With the big TO42 turbo pushing 18psi of boost through the system, Steve has plenty of torque and power to play with. 

Steve shifts the 5-speed dog box into first gear and there’s a shudder as he lets the triple-plate OS Giken clutch out. It’s not the most graceful of operations, but what it lacks in subtlety, it makes up in pure, unadulterated awesome. Suddenly the JZX issnaking out of the pit lane and onto the front straight of Pukekohe.

The big 265s on the back light up through first, second, third and fourth as the dog gears whine through the revs. This is one seriously fast car and, as Steve yanks on the deep-dish OMP steering wheel and buries his right foot to the firewall, a seriously sideways one, too.

The JZX steams angrily from corner to corner, switching much faster than you would expect from such a big car. Looking across at Steve, it’s easy to see that the new Toyota is demanding all his attention as his hands and feet wrestle furiously with the controls. Even so, with its wide track, the Mark II is nice and stable through the bends. Steve and the team at Bell Block Panelbeaters spent a good few weeks hand fabricating the JZX’s new 100mm-wider haunches from steel. “I was sick of fibreglass,” Steve says. “Using all steel means I hopefully don’t have to constantly replace guards. Steel doesn’t just smash to pieces if a tyre delaminates or you get a tap from another car like fibreglass does.”

It’s not just the guards that have received hours of attention. The Mark II features a later model JZX100 Chaser complete        front-end conversion. It doesn’t particularly improve how the car performs, but it looks damn cool. “I just wanted to see something really different out on the track,” Steve explains. “It’s not a Nissan for a start, but there are also one or two other Toyota JZX90s floating around, so I decided to do the front-end conversion to make it really unique. I’ve never seen it done before and it was surprisingly easy, much easier than the R32 to R34 conversion I did on my old Skyline.”

After spending time in the passenger seat, you will be happy to know that NZPC’s bits are still in one piece and, as an added bonus, we have a new favourite Kiwi drift car.

The build quality is awesome; the car’s unique, it’s viciously fast and the sound of a hard-boosting 2JZ-GTE is hard to beat.

However, after competing in his R32 Nissan Skyline since drifting first became a sport in New Zealand, the change to a new marque, a new motor and a new chassis has been challenging. “The car is a bit of a handful at the moment,” Steve says wryly. “In the Skyline you could get on and off the gas and the car would continue to slide, but in the Toyota you have to stay up it the entire time. It’s a fast car — if you’ve got the nuts to drive it properly.”

Steve readily admits to the need for some more time in the seat, which, all going well, he should get before the drift season starts up again later in the year.

With a bit more testing and a few more shredded tyres, this car looks set to do well this summer. You’ll know which one it is: just keep an eye out for a biggest, rowdiest four-door barge you can find.

1994 Toyota Mark II (JZX90) – Specifications

Engine: 2JZ-GTE 3000cc straight six cylinder, heavy duty valve springs, HKS cams, HKS cam gears, Rolling Addiction inlet manifold, 90mm throttle body, custom 100mm intake, HKS filter, 3-inch intercooler piping, Garrett TO42 turbocharger, custom manifold, Tial 48mm external wastegate, Tial BOV, HKS intercooler, 12-inch fans, custom surge tank, Bosch lift pump, Bosch 044 feed pump, Sard 850cc injectors, Sard fuel pressure regulator, custom fuel lines, NGK plugs, Bosch waste spark coils, Bosch leads, Link igniters, 3-inch exhaust system, Trust GReddy oil cooler, GReddy remote oil filter, Megan 3 core radiator, Link G4 Extreme ECU, Link G4 dash, seam welded engine bay,  de-loomed engine bay, Nolathane solid engine mounts
Driveline: R154 PPG 5-speed dog box, OS Giken triple-plate clutch, Cusco LSD
Suspension: Dodson Performance HSD coil-overs, JIC sway bars, braced and solid mounted subframes, Redline Performance castor, camber toe and traction arms, JIC rod ends, Nolathane bushes
Brakes: Factory JZX-90 callipers and slotted rotors
Wheels/Tyres: (F) 18×10-inch Work Meister rims, (R) 18×12-inch Work Meister rims, (F) 235/40R18 Toyo R888 semi-slicks, (R) 265/35R18 Neuton tyres
Exterior: Steel widebody front and rear guards, Streetpro fibreglass bonnet, Streetpro BN bodykit, Streetpro custom wing, Steve Sole Customs paint, custom decals
Interior: Full 8-point roll cage, Bride seats, OMP deep-dish steering wheel, Skull gear knob, Link dash, Hydraulic hand brake, Sparco harnesses, push button start, custom dash, custom door trims
Performance: 416kW at the wheels on 18psi

Steve Sole – Owner Profile

Age: 26
Location: New Plymouth
Occupation: Owner of Steve Sole Customs
Build time: 12 months
Length of ownership: 18 months
Thanks: Ross and Tony @ Dobson’s Dyno Tune, Dwayne and Kirsty @ Bell Block Panelbeaters, Peter Sole Transport, Steve and the crew @ Demon Graphics, Andy @ Dodson’s Performance, Jono, Street Pro kits, Total Paint Supplies, Frano @ Tyres by Frano, Mike @ Waitara Tyres, EDABOC Streewear, Bruce @ Mag and Turbo, Totally Toyota, special thanks to Tony, Matt, mum, dad and family, Michelle, Sleepy, Shaun, Curt, KC and all my supporters

Words: Peter Kelly Photos: Adam Croy