Need for Speed ProStreet In Real Life

Either you know what you’re looking at, or you’re probably upset by this Nissan S13.

So, what is it?

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This is video game character Ryan Cooper’s 240SX from Need for Speed: ProStreet – or at least a faithful, real-world reproduction of it. I thought a car like this would be impossible to properly implement, but after coming across it in person at a track day in Northern California I was quite surprised by the result.

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Half of the fun of this car is the entirely authentic execution; it’s obviously not a build that takes itself too seriously, and it was never meant to be. At the same time, it is so fantastically well done. It’s the perfect balance of silliness and dedication; a car that looks amazing because, well, it really doesn’t at the same time.

If you never got around to playing Need for Speed: ProStreet after it released exactly 10 years ago, you would likely look the other way if this car crossed your path on the street. Or you might think to yourself: “another ruined S13, those darned kids!” It’s definitely not a very polished car in the normal sense of the word, as evidenced by some issues it recently suffered at the track.

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However, if you are familiar with the ProStreet storyline you’ll know all about this car. It’s pure video game gold: Ryan Cooper’s 240SX, straight out of the 2007 arcade racer. And I mean straight out of it. From the faded grey fender down to the last custom decal, this is absolutely the S13 so many of us drove in the digital world. The mudflaps, the little spoiler, the (almost perfectly) mismatched wheels; it’s all there.

Performance-wise, the mod list is likely the shortest of any that’s ever been on Speedhunters. A stock S13 KA24DE rides along under the hood, and besides the Nismo LSD, the Nitrous Express wet system with a 75hp shot entirely sums it up. Just like in the game: nitrous on a bone stock motor.

But externally, it’s amazing to think of the time that has gone into this 240 that probably just goes over so many people’s heads. If the owner, Adam, isn’t an enthusiast, I really don’t know who is.

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As the starter car in the videogame, the real-life version has very much the same spirit. I think we’ve all been there at some point, too; there’s just something so relatable about a nearly stock car that likes to try and drive fast. Adam said he wanted something he could beat up on a bit, something that he could drift at a skidpad day or run grip events with on the cheap. While he’s doing just that, he even went as far as to admit that it’s actually more fun on the track than his other car.

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That statement carries a bit more weight when you realize he also owns a tastefully modified Subaru Impreza STI. While it might seem hard to believe that the old 240 is more rewarding on a circuit, I know exactly where Adam is coming from. With a built car, the expectations are so much higher. Not to mention, the walls seem to loom much closer in a car that costs roughly 10 times as much.

Even though I had first seen Adam a couple years back at a track day in California, I have to admit his Subaru just got lost in the sea of dozens of others running around the circuits up here. It wasn’t until his taillight hobby took off on social media that I began to really notice what he was up to.

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But there’s none of that fancy stuff for this car; when he showed up to the track with this a couple months ago I let out a bit of a laugh. He actually did it.

I’ve been playing Need for Speed games all my life and getting to run wheel to wheel with this thing at Thunderhill Raceway was one of those small moments that brings a big smile to your face.

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Like Adam, countless hours of my childhood were spent with friends huddled around a screen seeing who was the fastest. With a new game in the franchise releasing soon, I may just have to get back into the digital racers, at least for old times’ sake.

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But, in the meantime, I suppose we can all take a moment to enjoy the actual car that’s been created here. Despite all of those who might look at this thing and shake their heads, I know that Adam is certainly having a raucous good time in it.

Trevor Yale Ryan
Instagram: tyrphoto
TYRphoto.com

Additional Photos by Cody Wilbur

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39 comments

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1

Crazy effort to create a car from a video game instead of going from real life to in game!
I had to double take when i saw that Header Photo!

I WISH WISH WISH that they could make a remastered ProStreet game, with updated cars, or better even, make a NEW PROSTREET! In my opinion, it was the best Need for Speed to date! It had something for every car fanatic, and most importantly it had good drift competitions!.... Oh and add a little "Shift" in there to if you are reading this NFS team ;)

2

no. a large chunk of prostreet was horrible to play. if it wasnt that fugly now, NFSU2 would be the winner...but there's porsche 2000, which imho is still unmatched.

3
Ventsislav Georgiev

That is amazing <3

4

Oh man, Pro Street, despite all the media flak the game got, it was one of my favorites.
Even when the demo came out (remember those things?) I played it through and through, mainly because that was the first game with R35 GTR in it.
P.S. My man, mister Cooper!

5

No way this is sick! That man deserves a medal!

6
Wirenfeldt1990 .

that is awesome!.. i still get eye ticks when i hear the name RYYYYYYYYAN COOOOOOPER! though..

7

It's RYAN COOPER!

This is absolutely glorious. The attention to detail is kinda ridiculous :D

8

wow the guy behind car shop glow!

9

That's a Japanese outfit, but Adam started @illumaesthetic here in the States. I learned after talking to him that it was more of a personal project that just spiraled out of control, like I mentioned in the article.

10

oh dear, poor dave haha

11

Thank you everyone for the comments!! And big thanks to Trevor for the article, this is super well written and I think it captures the idea behind the car perfectly. If you have questions about the car throw them here or follow me on instagram @subaoru! :D

FAQ
- Decals were custom made myself pulled from screenshots from the game and hand-traced
- the base green is a honda midori green, bright green pulled off a ford fiesta

12

You wouldn't happen to have any Battle Machine, Togue Union, or Noise Bomb stickers on hand, would you? :D

13

Apex Glide, Boxcut, Grip Runners...man. Major #throwbackthursday feels right now.

14

shouldn't be too hard to make, but I didn't bother vectoring anything that wasn't on the car itself. Have you tried some other sources? Some people out there may have vectorized it already

15
Patrick Ruzman

You definetly deserve a reward for such dedication and detail. Hell, Electronic Arts should be paying you monthly for such a "commercial". That's really a great piece for any car enthusiast who played Pro Street. Really great job!

16

I've absolutely loved this 240 since first playing prostreet back in 2010. I am so happy to see that some one decited to bring it to life, now it makeseems me wonder if someone will recreate the king cars..

17

Ahh, the childhood memories! Thanks for posting this, it made my day :)

18

the biggest headache for me was that the e36 and e90 had a god-awful buzzing exhaust note

19
Nicolas Lietzke

This... This is AWESOME!

20

I love SpeedHunters a great bit, but....the Forza Horizon series, is far better than Need For Speed, in my opinion. Need For Speed has a long way to go, before it get anywhere close to how good the Forza Horizon series is (specifically FH3).

21

Speedhunters is EA games. Look no further. I love the car though

22

SH has official cars in both FH3 and nfsu 2015, i beg to differ.

23

Look at the very bottom of the page and you will see.

24

Dang

25

Another day, another unexpected post. Never thought someone would pull this off. Nice !

26

I have never clicked so fast on an article in my life

27
Jay Soh Tsu Chung

I'm truly impressed. Eventhough the game is the one I hate most in the whole franchise, this replica is simply just awesome!

28

this car is pure gold. has anyone ever built the m3 gtr in most wanted though?

29

No wonder this car looks so familiar! Great build!

30

i admit, i would love to have a 2f2f blue R34 replica, even if the movie is considered cringe-worthy nowadays.

31

Complete with neon undercarriage lighting? Haha

32

Even at 50 yo, that brought a huge grin to my face! Have owned and played about every NFS, and Pro Street always stuck out to me as one of the best overall games....wonky or not!.....Awesome recreation!

33

I loved NFS Pro Street, but my disc got scratched and it stopped working :(

34
Martín Brandán

That's a hell of an homage. The attention to detail is amazing! Bravo!

35

This man needs to recreate the Battle Machine RX-7 FD, right NOW! :D

36

This is so cool. I loved ProStreet and this brought a smile to my face.

37

u remind me with my childhood mann.. i love this game and this CAR, is so memorable

38

Now that I look at it... Ryan's car looks like someone tried to create a stickerbomb but gave up half-way through.

39

I hope he'll make the Battle Machine RX-7 too!

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