Japan is a country of great things. It’s a place that continues to interest the West with its unique mix of new and old; a place where deep-seeded culture clashes with the modern; a place where, at times, the future seems to have arrived way before the rest of the world. It continues to be a mysterious land for many, and because of this it’s deeply attractive.
When it comes to cars, many people draw inspiration to the styles and practices that are spawned from this tiny little island nation, yet at times we may also feel massively confused by what some choose to do with their cars. Shinichi Morohoshi challenges people; what he likes to do may not be for all, but in typical Japanese style he simply doesn’t care.
It’s all about creating something unique that will get you noticed out on the street. It may have all started out as some fun in the beginning, but Morohoshi has managed to build a following and an appreciation for what he does.
It was late last year when I heard he was about to open his very own shop, appropriately named Fighting Star, in the Tokyo business district of Nihonbashi. It’s not the sort of area you’d normally find a car shop in, but that’s how Morohoshi likes to do things. Last week I decided it was about time I headed over to check it all out.
You could almost think of Morohoshi’s shop as his own personal man cave. It’s somewhere he’s able to display his beloved customized Lamborghinis alongside the wide variety of merchandise he’s designed and created to further fuel his inner passion. While his daily-driven 50th Anniversary Aventador usually sits outside when he stops by the shop, there’s always a car inside on display.
Morohoshi’s Murciélago is such a perfect example of what his style is all about: loud, shiny, in your face and oozing an impossibly Japanese character about it. An insane number of hours went into laying down all the tiny little Swarovski crystals that make up the carp design, itself mimicking the sort of tattoos you might find on some shady, underground individuals in certain Tokyo neighbourhoods.
I had to laugh at how he’d left a parking fine attached to Lambo’s windscreen!
Morohoshi could be described as a Lamborghini bososzoku, because a lot of what he does with his cars can be traced back to these bikes, their style and the way in which their riders use them. So it’s no surprise he’s got a pretty cool two-wheel custom creation in the shop as well.
Fighting Star has a lot of Lamborghini themed stuff to check out; no matter what the scale, Morohoshi seems to have collected every Lamb0-related item out there!
A big part of his persona is the style in which he dresses. Just like his cars, Morohoshi likes stuff to be colourful and flashy, and that’s exactly the thinking he employed when selecting these bags to sell in his store.
Oh, and apparently you can never go wrong with metal studs.
Check out Morohoshi’s shoes for example. Like half the stuff he owns, they’re custom, in this case metal studs covered in colourful Swarovski crystals.
Fighting Star: The Brand
But the main reason that Morohoshi opened Fighting Star was a desire to create his very own aero line. He currently has a selection of FRP and carbon fiber kits for the Aventador, with more soon coming for the Gallardo and other Lamborghini models.
He’s made the most of his popularity and created a very recognisable brand out of it all, hence why he was chosen as one of the characters in the current Need for Speed game.
Morohoshi tells me the Aventador iPhone cases are a popular seller, but I do have to wonder who would part ways with around US$3300 for a Swarovski crystal-covered 1/18 scale Aventador…
To this question he simply replied: “If I make them it’s because there are people out there that buy them.”
His love of pika-pika – the Japanese word used to describe anything that shines and sparkles – stretches to pretty much everything, and Morohoshi was quite proud to show me the latest addition to his watch collection.
His rebellious image is something that made him one of the biggest spectacles at the 50th Anniversary Lamborghini meeting, for which he shipped his purple Diablo to Italy for. With air-horns blasting The Godfather theme tune and fire-spitting exhausts, he won the love of the Italians – but not so that of Lamborghini’s president. But we’ll get to that in the second part of my meeting with Morohoshi, where I had time to sit down with him and ask some questions.
While it was parked outside, I wanted to take a closer look at the Fighting Bull aero bits that Morohoshi’s fitted to his own car. You could call this the shop’s current demo machine, which is running a one-off treatment that’s not yet on sale.
As you can see, the additions follow the Lambo’s angular and recognised design language, but add some extra aggression around the car.
The Pikapika character poking out from the front though? That’s there because he likes his things to be pika-pika of course!
The blue film covering the headlights was something Morohoshi had just done, and he was very satisfied with the resulting look.
And the aftermarket wheels run thin fluorescent vinyl stripes to highlight their five-spoke design.
Moving to the side, Morohoshi’s added an underskirt section to beef up the profile. Yes, I know an Aventador is probably the last car on the planet that needs to be injected with more aggression, but do you think Morohoshi cares?
As I was looking at this particular angle of the car I remember the first press event for the R35 GT-R in 2007, where Gundam was quoted as inspiration for the design. I think Morohoshi must also like Gundam too…
And how could a treatment of this type possibly be complete without the addition of a carbon spoiler?!
Onwards Across Tokyo
Having just received our all-new 55SH (Go-Go Speedhunters) t-shirts (now available to purchase from our store), I thought it would be cool to give Morohoshi a few. After all, I was sure he was going to like the bright colours we chose for this particular collection.
He immediately picked the red tee and put it on, giving a nod of approval.
As I mentioned earlier, another reason I paid Morohoshi a visit was so I could sit down with him for a short interview, but by the time I was done shooting the shop and his car, he had to leave for an appointment.
Not to worry though; he said that if I followed him down to the Lamborghini service center, where his car was booked in for scheduled maintenance, we would have plenty of time there.
This turned out to be a cool thing as I got to follow the Aventador through the center of Tokyo for a good half hour.
Aside from the pleasure of hearing the custom exhaust crackle every time Morohoshi down-shifted and backed off the throttle, seeing the attention the car was getting drove home the point of why he has developed his very unique style.
That’s something we would later discuss once the Lamborghini Tokyo mechanics got busy servicing the car.
Make sure you tune back soon to hear how Morohoshi’s passion for Lamborghinis started, and how it all developed from there.
Dino Dalle Carbonare
Instagram: speedhunters_dino
dino@speedhunters.com
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
TOWIE... he'll be bleaching his Barnet and shredding his D&G jeans soon. A pity there's nobody about to tell him when to stop? No. Not my bag. In fact, none of those bags...
Hey, it's his trust fund. If he wants to blow it on ridiculous Italian cartoon motors then let him enjoy his taste by-pass. Agreed it's lacking in any style or substance but then it's well documented that money can't by taste or breeding.
Get a bleach eyebath and forget it never happened. Enjoy your carbon grey, minimalist world!
flashy is an understatement with this guy.... im i the only one think the aventador is very sedate for him? compared to the others a quite tame look.
i still occasionally watch the streets of japan gopro video he has a presence for sure
Ok. See your point. What I like isn't what he likes. What I admire as restrained good taste isn't what his world looks like. Thankfully. If you're interested, there's an ex-premier league footballers Bentley ragtop up for grabs in south London? Basically fuschia pink, 24" blue and white rims, zebras died for its seating and dash, mirror ball, white leather roof. Your sort of motor? Here comes my lunch...
I love those crazy lambos. Totally how I'd do mine if I had the dough.
HORRIBLE Oo
The reason i love this guy is he doesn't give a single f*ck about people opinion.
Sure his taste about car is"only in japan" style, but i respect it.
Great article
he've a purse? villanous
I bet this guy loves nawledge.
Seriously though, good on him for making himself happy.
Never heard of bososzoku before.
In case you miss the Pink Lambo, you find it here!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_OdDbscs94
Is it just me or are there a lot of parallels between his cars/style and American lowriders? Same principals, different execution. Neither are for me but hats off to the amount of effort put into this!
You can have bad grammar, that can be overlooked. What kills me, are those who start a sentence with a lowercase letter.
As for the Lambos, they are...uniquely different.
90nissanS13@my350z bad ellipse use
step it up toad
How nice of him to put that 'Lamborghini' decal on. Wouldn't have noticed that it still is one.
Great
article Dino! Man I was just thinking about that video the other day and
was planning on searching for it on here between work projects this week and
here he is!! I was really inspired
by the video you guys posted about him last year and his story with the pink
Diablo last year and always loved and admired his style. He does what he
likes with his dream cars that he always desired from childhood and could care
less of what anyone thought of how he lived his life and how he modified his cars
to his personal taste. Pure respect for taking his flavor and adding it
to his dream cars despite what probably 99% of the rest of the Lamborghini
owners around the world would despise and throw serious shade for sure on his
style!
I was
always hoping that if I ever got the chance to go back to Japan, I would
randomly drive down the streets of Tokyo one night during a late night commute
in my rental trying to cope with the jet lag- and encounter this exact guy with
his crew and one of his special Lambos fly by me in the early hours of the
morning with a flash of strobes, neon pink/blue/green, and a screaming V12
shooting flames so there was no mistaking who it was!
I think
it's refreshing see an already exotic car, then see him change it to bring it to a whole other level with
paint, lighting, and aero bits to give it that much more of an aggressive style
and stand out beast of a car than it already is. I really can’t wait for
part 2 of your interview in person with him at the dealership, so feel free to
PM me a sneak peek version of it and I'll forever be a loyal grateful S.H. fan
Dino! Hahaa!! Do you know if his shop sells any shirts of his company online or
was it just in person do you know? Would love to show support for this dudes
shop all the way in Tampa FL during monthly car meets! I already plan on
getting one of your new ones too for the same reason to be honest but great article
though and thanks for sharing it- really looking forward to part 2!
Diesel Dude I agree totally from the metal flake paint to the lights and chrome polish it equals countless hours of labor to complete. Nothing but respect for this guy as he does what he wants just like Magnus Walker and his Porsche's for his own style. I think Magnus even created his own version of denim inspired clothing as well it seems to be such a cool parallel it proves no matter what the country or culture we are more similar than different in the world!
JoshuaIvan So true and he does it with such flair with the best Lambo's around on top of it all! So bad ass I love this guys style man
HAIL ZEON.
That rear shot of the car moving through the city streets.. Fist bitingly good and I can really see the Gundam thing you mention.
(I'm not going to repeat my few fucks given, top work etc adage as usual, but it's heavily implied)
Doing his own thing, (pikapika studs and all) regardless of anyone else's opinion has been very good to Mohoroshi clearly! Plus, the reaction of others and the outrage is part of the fun, people forget that a lot these days.
I'm intrigued by him now, well written piece, looking forward to the next instalment Dino.
(Under the shots of the T shirt exchange, to clarify, there are a lot of shots of this cars rear. Not complaining, I like big butts and I cannot lie....)
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I dig his aero design. They aren't so over the top and in your face. They simply flex the muscles of the original design curves.
JeremieSunico I suppose it's also down to how people paint them...
TarmacTerrorist Doing his thing indeed
E30M3 Robb I'm planning of meeting up with his crew one of these nights and get the other whole side to these cars, as they are really made for the night. Not sure about his t-shirts, I didn't see anything on his website but can ask him
Morohoshi-chan I will fight u girl man
Mitchellol Google to the rescue!!!!!!
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@turbo BEAMS ae86 You mean the bag? No, he has many hahaha
JoshuaIvan Yeah and he's genuinely unfussed about what people say. Some comments on here he wouldn't even give a second glance too. Just a guy doing his thing and loving it
difflocked_mees Yeah being a daily it has to be haha. We have to take a look at this car at night however...it looks a bit different
Electron1990 Tust fund? This guy worked his ass off from a young age. It's all earned
Solittletaste Now now, negativity won't get you anywhere...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRIsHRHNU5k
speedhunters_dino E30M3 Robb I too would love to buy a shirt. Seeing Luke's video back in the day was one of the things that really got me deeper into car culture.
As an aside, I really don't understand the people that come in here to complain, especially when they don't even know who Morohoshi is. It's definitely a specific aesthetic, but it's something he's crafted over years and years of work.
Props to him, and nice coverage.
speedhunters_dino Mitchellol It was more of a little reference to your spelling mistake haha.
Them christian louboutin tho $$$$
Last October I was in Tokyo and on my first night there I spotted some of Morohoshi-san's Lambo's down near Roppongi. They looked and sounded amazing. They fit in so well in Tokyo.
Horrific...
pikapika I find very interesting because I also happen to know the scientific name for a Eurasian magpie (a bird that is traditionally fascinated by shiny things) is Pica pica. Is that purely coincidence? Is Morohoshi-san a Kasasa-gi?!
#poindexter #shutupnerd #facthunters #maximumlearn
Lamborghini Aoyama? I'm assuming that's where you went, based on the photos.
Also I find it pretty cool that this story was published exactly three years after the release of the 'Underground Hero' film!
This dude and his creations are straight up ridiculous, but i just cant hate the flashiness of it all.
Love it.
3200 for the Louboutin shoes...
Mfabs plus the Swarovski ...
@2DK That's one of the dealers, this is the place where they do maintenance
Pedders That's so true, you have to view them on their own environment
Slappy_Pistons Maybe not a coincidence! Kasasa-ji?
Morohoshi is just a wild man all around, I can't wait to read up on what happened at the 50th Anniversary.
Ever since I saw Underground Hero I've looked at this guy with respect. I love his attitude and the cars he builds suit him super well. Good work as usual Dino, can't wait for the interview.
last photo, i get my car fixed there too
speedhunters_dino Solittletaste well the name is solittletaste, obviously that statement is void lol
I don't even like Lamborghinis but this is awesome! Go Morohoshi!
Ehh... eeh... where's the interview!?!
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The diffuser / lip for the Murcielago isn't attached is it? Its boggling my mind that it looks so off center...
I enjoy how flashy his cars are. And he drives them.
Ok... Fortunately there's nobody about to tell him to stop! Oh goody, a bag. In fact, many pretty bags...
speedhunters_dino Slappy_Pistons Perhaps not. I'm good on quiz teams ha. That's the Japanese for Magpie apparently
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LouisSoon Coming coming...
HarryLiang How often does it break?
Been in the work shop 2 months out of 6 months ownership hahaha... morohoshi suggested me to go there, couldn't find anyone around my area to fix it, sold it last month, these things are too much trouble
That's Lamborghini Azabu, according to shishikura at Azabu, they used to go to aoyama, but had some issues with modifications, so they all moved to Azabu
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You HAVE to get a free bowl of soup with one of those cars!
That's some of the worse, tackiest, poorly-thought-out, sophomoric, wasteful, trend-driven, pathetic, inexcusable, common "design" I've seen glued to a car! I would no more buy a part or car from a man that "beedazles" purses and tennis shoes than I would fly to the moon! I'm not sure I understand the value in article like this. This isn't "speed hunting" this is Hello Kitty meets Kardashian!
Well done on being Brave enough to be a dick, however I find it odd that you are NOT brave enough to register an account to do it.
It's not your money, it may be called speedhunters, but the tag line that explains the site is
"Car Culture at large"
He is a part of that culture, as are his cars and his OTT style.
Jog on bruv.
...Complete 180 deg turn from my own style, but here's to beating your own drum Fighting Star!
@turbo BEAMS ae86 90nissanS13@my350z
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TarmacTerrorist
Tim Oliva No it was not
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at least I register an account to be a dick.
say you don't understand something, long devision, the human rights act, how to make waffles. does that not understanding give anyone the right to shout how terrible it is? Or does that make you look like a four year old having a hissy fit?
he didn't expand on his opinions he just shouted them out with little or no reasoning behind them.
Kind of like all those American muscle heads who hate on imports:
"OH GOD ITS DIFFERENT: KILL IT WITH FIRE.
LETS ALL LOOK THE SAME - WICKED HOOD STRIPE BRO"
It's parroting public opinion, it's saying the right thing for your friends to like you, hell, it's fake as fuck. It's like kids who buy the same sneakers to fit in. One way road to banality.
And if he really "meant" it, perhaps if he used more descriptive words then "hate it" trolls/internet agitators like me wouldn't find it so fun to target....
I'm not stepping on you, Or whatever amendment to whatever bill of rights you believe in - freedom of speech and thought needs to be respected and protected from people who feel it gives them the right to be an arsehole and do what they want under its banner. It's the difference between knowing a "Right" and understanding your - and everyone else's rights and what that means IRL.
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Dino,
I am in Tokyo atm near Skytree. I am having a lot of trouble locating the address of Morohoshi-san's shop. Do you have it on hand, I really want to visit it.
Thank you in advance
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I live in North America, been to Japan 9 times and absolutely love everything about this guy, and his country Japan. If any country cares about values it's Japan. Next time I'm there 100% going to visit his store and I love anything customized and that people have added their own personality to.