Smokey Nagata's Top secret!

 Top secret Co.

Top Secret is a highly respected Japanese automobile tuner founded by Kazuhiko "Smokey" Nagata in 1990. Nagata is a legendary figure in the world of high-performance cars, known for his bold and innovative modifications that have pushed the limits of what is possible on the road and track.

Born in 1949 in Chiba, Japan, Nagata developed a passion for cars at a young age. He started working for a Nissan dealership in his teens, and by the age of 24, he had become a master mechanic. In the 1980s, Nagata gained notoriety as a member of the Midnight Club, a group of Japanese street racers who competed on the Wangan highway in Tokyo.

In 1990, Nagata founded Top Secret, a company dedicated to building the fastest and most advanced performance cars in the world. The company quickly gained a reputation for its bold and audacious modifications, which included transplanting engines from one car into another, using unconventional parts, and experimenting with new technologies.

One of Top Secret's most famous projects was the V12 Toyota Supra, which Nagata built by transplanting a 5.0-liter 1GZ-FE V12 engine from a Toyota Century into a Toyota Supra. The resulting car produced over 930 horsepower and could reach speeds of up to 222 mph.

Another one of Nagata's most famous projects was the Top Secret GT-R, a heavily modified Nissan Skyline GT-R that produced over 1000 horsepower and could reach speeds of over 200 mph. Nagata achieved this by using a twin-turbocharged 3.2-liter RB26 engine, as well as custom suspension and aerodynamic modifications.

Throughout his career, Nagata has been known for his willingness to push the limits of what is possible with cars. He has been arrested multiple times for speeding and illegal street racing, and he once drove a Top Secret Supra at over 200 mph on a public road in the UK, earning him a lifetime ban from driving in the country.

Despite his controversial reputation, Nagata is widely respected in the automotive community for his innovation, skill, and dedication to the art of automobile tuning. His legacy lives on through the cars he built and the many enthusiasts and professionals he inspired to push the limits of performance.

An Engineering Masterpiece: The Legendary V-12 Powered Top Secret Toyota Supra

In 1997, Toyota introduced its first V12 engine in a luxurious limousine available only in Japan. Smokey Nagata, founder of Top Secret, took the 276-horsepower Toyota Century V12 engine and modified it to replace the 3.0-liter inline-six engine in the Supra. However, adjustments were necessary because the Supra had 54 more horsepower than its replacement.

Smokey installed custom-forged internals and twin HKS GT2835 ball-bearing turbochargers that delivered tremendous power across the RPM band. He also added a wet nitrous system to increase the Supra's top-end power even further. With two HKS F-Con V Pro standalone ECUs, the car produced an impressive 930 horsepower and 745 Ib-ft of torque when dyno tested.

The Supra received custom aero parts, including Top Secret's Super G-Force kit, and was mounted on Aragosta's harmonic drive suspension. The suspension was connected to a Roberuta Cup kit that allowed the car to raise and lower itself three inches on the fly.

The original goal for the project was to reach a top speed of 249 mph, but it never achieved it. Instead, the finished car was flown to Italy for testing and reached a top speed of 222.6 mph on the Nardo Test Track before topping out its engine at 7,300 rpm.

Despite not achieving its original goal, the Top Secret Supra remains a highly respected and iconic vehicle in the world of high-performance cars .The car had an approximate value of $500,000. However, it sold at auction for around $80,700 in January 2018.