Opera Performance

18/09/2026

BBL Spoon EG6

18/09/2026

Built by Legends Spoon EG6 Civic — Chassis Reinforcement

Episode 1: Prologue

In July 2019, I began the chassis reinforcement work on this EG6.

The original request from BBL (Built by Legends) was fairly conventional: install a roll bar and add spot-weld reinforcement.

However, because this car was intended primarily for street use, I felt it was better to keep additional welding to a minimum.

By that time, I had already reinforced cars such as the DC5 Integra and 350ZRS using a combination of OEM steel panel doubling and roll bar reinforcement. The next method I wanted to explore was carbon fiber doubling.

Before starting this EG6, I had also worked on reinforcing an S2000 with preformed carbon panels. That process required female molds, and to create those molds, the chassis side first had to be built up by the intended thickness of the carbon panel. It required an enormous amount of time and labor.

For the EG6, I therefore decided to take a different approach.

Instead of making female molds, I would lay carbon fiber directly onto the existing chassis and use vacuum infusion to draw epoxy resin through the carbon, creating a second structural layer over the original steel panels.

A production car body is a monocoque structure made from many steel panels joined mainly by spot welds. Because of that, there are countless panel seams, bolt holes, clip holes, and other small openings throughout the body.

For vacuum infusion, the area being laminated must be sealed under plastic film and held under vacuum before the resin is introduced.

That meant the biggest challenge was not simply laying the carbon fiber — it was finding a way to stop air from entering through all of those seams, holes, and gaps, and to maintain a stable vacuum over an automotive body shell.

After a great deal of trial and error, I developed a method that allowed the vacuum to hold properly, making it possible to apply carbon fiber doubling directly to the EG6 chassis.

For this first episode, I’m sharing photos of the car before and during disassembly, together with the finished carbon reinforcement on the interior floor, front chassis structure, and strut tower areas.

From the next episode, I’ll go back to the beginning and show how the work was carried out, step by step.

16/09/2026

Thank you for your support.

Yesterday, I shared the supporter program for the Australia Dirt Kart Challenge 2026 on Instagram and Facebook.

Since then, I have already received support from 8 people — 3 from Japan, 3 from the United States, 1 from Italy, and 1 from New Zealand.

I sincerely appreciate everyone who has chosen to support this new challenge.

For me, this project is not only about racing in Australia. It is also about learning from a different grassroots motorsport culture, bringing that experience back to Japan, and exploring what may come next.

Knowing that people from different countries are willing to be part of this project means a great deal to me.

Thank you again for your support and for continuing to follow Opera Performance.

Australia Dirt Kart Challenge 2026
Supporter Program

Supporter payment links are available through the link in my profile.

If your country is not listed as a shipping destination, please send me a DM.

ご支援ありがとうございます。

昨日、Australia Dirt Kart Challenge 2026 Supporter Programについて、InstagramとFacebookでご案内しました。

その後、日本から3名、アメリカから3名、イタリアから1名、ニュージーランドから1名、合計8名の方から早速サポートをいただきました。

今回の新しい挑戦を応援してくださった皆さまに、心より感謝いたします。

このプロジェクトは、オーストラリアでレースに参戦することだけが目的ではありません。現地のグラスルーツ・モータースポーツを実際に経験し、そこで得た知識や経験を日本へ持ち帰り、その先の可能性につなげていきたいと考えています。

国を越えて、この挑戦に参加してくださる方がいることを、とてもありがたく感じています。

あらためて、応援してくださった皆さま、そしていつもOpera Performanceを見守ってくださっている皆さま、本当にありがとうございます。

Australia Dirt Kart Challenge 2026
Supporter Program

サポーター決済リンクはプロフィールのリンクからご利用いただけます。

発送先の国が選択肢にない場合は、DMでご連絡ください。

13/09/2026

OPERA PERFORMANCE
AUSTRALIA DIRT KART CHALLENGE 2026

This October, I will travel from Japan to Australia to take on dirt kart racing for the first time.

After more than 40 years in cars and motorsport — including racing in Japan, Midget racing in the United States, and the Nürburgring 24 Hours — I still want to experience forms of motorsport that are new to me.

At 62, I want to experience this one firsthand.

This challenge also has another purpose.

Dirt kart racing has developed in Australia as a unique form of grassroots motorsport, while in Japan it is still virtually unknown.

By competing myself, I want to learn about its actual running costs, chassis and tire life, safety, race organization, and how the sport can be sustained over the long term.

I also want to explore whether dirt kart racing could be introduced in Japan, including the possibility of giving karts that are no longer competitive in paved-circuit racing a new purpose.

For those who would like to be part of this project, I have created three supporter levels:

SUPPORTER — JPY ¥5,000
Official Supporters List

Opera Performance mini sticker

STICKER SUPPORTER — JPY ¥10,000
Official Supporters List

Mini sticker
Opera Performance sticker

CHALLENGE SUPPORTER — JPY ¥15,000
For those who would like to support the project at a higher level.
Official Supporters List

Mini sticker
Opera Performance sticker

Shipping is included in all supporter levels.

Physical rewards will be shipped during November 2026, after I return to Japan. Any import duties, taxes, or customs fees are the responsibility of the recipient.

This supporter program is not a condition for me to race.

I am going to Australia and racing regardless.

I will share the preparation, the BRK team, the races, what I learn in Australia, and what may come next in Japan.

Payment links will be announced once the final Stripe setup is complete.

Commercial Disclosure is available through the link in my profile.

13/09/2026

OPERA PERFORMANCE
AUSTRALIA DIRT KART CHALLENGE 2026
今年10月、日本からオーストラリアへ渡り、ダートカートレースに初挑戦します。
これまで40年以上、自動車とモータースポーツに関わり、日本国内のレースだけでなく、アメリカでのMidgetレース、ニュルブルクリンク24時間レースなどを経験してきました。
62歳になった今、まだ経験したことのないモータースポーツを、自分自身で走って確かめたいと思っています。
今回の挑戦には、もう一つ目的があります。
ダートカートレースはオーストラリアで独自のグラスルーツ・モータースポーツとして発展してきましたが、日本ではまだほとんど知られていません。
近年の舗装路カートレースは、車両、タイヤ、消耗品、練習、メンテナンスなど、競技を続けるための負担が大きくなっています。
今回実際に参戦して、ランニングコスト、フレームやタイヤの寿命、安全性、レース運営、競技を長く続けるための仕組みを現地で学びます。
そして、舗装路レースでは戦闘力を失ったカートを新しい形で活用できないかも含め、日本でダートカートを普及させる可能性を探ります。
このプロジェクトに一緒に参加してくださる方のために、3つのサポーター枠を設けます。
SUPPORTER — ¥5,000
公式Supporters Listへのお名前掲載
＋ Opera Performanceミニステッカー
STICKER SUPPORTER — ¥10,000
公式Supporters Listへのお名前掲載
＋ Opera Performanceミニステッカー
＋ Opera Performanceステッカー
CHALLENGE SUPPORTER — ¥15,000
より大きな形でこのプロジェクトを応援してくださる方向けのサポート枠です。
公式Supporters Listへのお名前掲載
＋ Opera Performanceミニステッカー
＋ Opera Performanceステッカー
すべてのサポーターレベルに送料が含まれています。
物品リターンは、オーストラリアでのレース終了・帰国後、2026年11月中に順次発送します。
発送先の国・地域で関税、輸入税、通関手数料等が発生した場合は、受取人のご負担となります。
今回のサポータープログラムは、参戦するための条件ではありません。
サポートが集まるかどうかにかかわらず、私はオーストラリアへ行き、レースに参戦します。
日本での準備、BRKとの交流、実際のレース、現地で学んだこと、そして日本での次の展開まで、このプロジェクトの過程を共有していきます。
決済リンクは、Stripeの最終設定完了後に公開します。
特定商取引法に基づく表記は、プロフィールのリンクからご確認いただけます。

10/09/2026

10/09/2026

DC5 Type R – 2004–2005 Build

Episode 18 – Final Assembly and Completion

From March through April 2005, the final assembly began.

The wiring, pedals, dashboard and interior were installed, followed by the engine and transmission.

Even during final assembly, I continued looking for small areas where unnecessary weight could be removed. Bolts that were longer than required were shortened wherever possible.

Each one made only a tiny difference, but across the entire car, I estimate that shortening the bolts alone reduced the weight by around 1 kg.

After all of the chassis reinforcement, fabrication, exhaust work and final assembly, the DC5 was completed in April 2005.

A carbon fiber scuff plate with the Opera Performance logo was also fitted as one of the finishing details.

The final photo shows the car just after completion, when the Opera Performance garage was still located in Fujisawa.

This brings the original 2004–2005 build story to a close with Episode 18.

Now, more than 20 years later, the same DC5 is back at Opera Performance undergoing a full restoration, including a complete engine rebuild, transmission overhaul, repainting of the engine bay, and refinishing of the subframes.

That story will continue in another series.