From Nissan GT-R to Honda CR-Z: 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon

Just the Facts:

• The 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon, Japan's premier tuner show, kicks off today.
• Dozens of hyper-power Nissan GT-Rs dominate the show.
• Japan's customizers and tuners have also taken a big liking to Honda's CR-Z.

TOKYO — Back when the Nissan GT-R was introduced in 2007, remember how Nissan went out of its way to make it difficult, if not impossible for the aftermarket guys to trick the car up? Fast forward to today, and Japan's army of customizers and tuners have clearly cracked the code.

Nissan GT-Rs with serious horsepower under the hood littered the show floor at the 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon, which opened Friday. The best-known tuning names — Top Secret, TommyKaira and Blitz among them — all had a crack at the GT-R. The highest number we saw was on the Blitz stand, where a heavily massaged yet surprisingly tame-looking white GT-R was reputed to put out a staggering 1,000 horsepower.

On its own stand, Nissan introduced the GT-R RC, a lightweight, track-based special with slick-tire-compatible suspension, yet this paled in comparison with the other more steroidal GT-Rs in the halls.

Toyota already had body-kitted versions of its new Vitz (Yaris) compact on its stand, but many were disappointed that the eagerly awaited FT-86 sport coupe, co-developed with Subaru, didn't get another airing. Subaru, in turn, has now said it will preview its version of this boxer-engine, rear-drive coupe at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show in March.

Buried at the back of Toyota's stand was the TES Concept T-Sports, a lightweight open sports-car concept that's actually a Daihatsu Copen underneath. Too bad about the styling, but the 1.5-liter, rear-drive package, in theory, puts it in the Miata ballpark.

Honda's showcar was the TS-1X, a matte-black CR-Z with some highly evolved aerodynamic add-ons, but stock engine/suspension. The tuning community clearly thinks differently from Honda: Top Secret, for one, had a CR-Z turbo kit on show that could bump the hybrid's output up as far as 310 horsepower.

Then there was the Value Progress Drag Star F1 Dragon, a fearsomely long-nose "drag" special (it's a Toyota MR-S underneath). The Honda-based Artis Fit Hybrid Type Grinder Tattoo with luminous paint also stood out. So did the eye-popping NATS Wamerican, which, believe it or not, was once a first-generation Miata.

Times might be tough for automakers in Japan, but the three-day Tokyo auto salon is always a fascinating high-watt break from normality where, it seems, almost anything goes.

Inside Line says: As Japan's answer to the SEMA show, the 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon can always be relied upon to push the envelope. And then some. — Peter Nunn, Correspondent