Tommykaira

Founded in 1986 by Yoshikazu Tomita and Kikuo Kaira, the company began as a tuner of luxury and performance vehicles, initially modifying Mercedes-Benz models before shifting focus to Japanese manufacturers like Nissan and Subaru. By the 1990s, the company gained significant recognition for its 'complete car' conversions, which involved extensive mechanical and aesthetic modifications that elevated the performance of standard production vehicles. In 1996, the company transitioned into a manufacturer in its own right with the launch of the Tommykaira ZZ, a lightweight, mid-engined sports car. This was followed by ambitious projects like the ZZII, a high-performance supercar prototype powered by the Nissan RB26DETT engine. Throughout the 2000s, the company underwent several corporate restructurings and ownership changes, eventually leading to the development of an electric version of the ZZ in the 2010s under the GLM (Green Lord Motors) entity. In 2016, GTS (Genuine Tommykaira Studio) was established to inherit the development, manufacturing, and sales rights for Tommykaira complete cars. Today, the brand remains a cult icon in the JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) scene, celebrated for its unique tuning philosophy and its historical contributions to Japanese automotive performance culture.