The Story Behind Thailand’s Premiere JDM Car Community, Oak Club

Fans of JDM vehicles can be found the world over, and no less in the United States, where countless clubs exist to celebrate the heritage of Japanese classics. As it turns out, Thailand houses arguably the most passionate JDM enthusiasts of any nation.

YouTuber Larry Chen decided to make the trip to the country to meet one of the most enthusiastic fans by the name of Oak. He runs a JDM tuning and restoration shop that people from all over Thailand are desperate to visit to have their pride and joys achieve their ultimate potential. Appropriately named Oak Club, Oak explained to Larry how his business had come to be, and where his love for all things JDM stemmed from.

JDM Passion Came From Large Japanese Car Culture In Thailand

Larry opens the interview by introducing Oak. Born in Thailand, he grew up largely in the U.S. but eventually moved back to his native country after he had finished school. He explained that when he was at school during the early 1990s, he didn’t come across many JDM vehicles in the U.S., so they never resonated with him.

That all changed when he returned to Thailand though, where most of its brand-new cars were brought in from Japan. Pretty much every Japanese vehicle in the country is sold officially by the manufacturer, as used car imports are not allowed. Having been powerless to resist the JDM movement around him, he founded his Oak Club tuning shop in 1999.

He initially focused on selling performance parts brought in from Japan, a lucrative market considering used cars couldn’t be brought into the country. He began a long-standing relationship with Honda tuning specialists Spoon in 2003, one that remains strong to this day. Oak is currently the only official Spoon supplier in Thailand.

Oak Club Specialties

• Providing JDM performance parts to Thai gearheads
• The only official Spoon parts provider in the country has worked with JDM Legends for 20 years
• Provides restoration services for a wide range of JDM machinery
• Only five full-time staff keep the business running

Having built up the parts supply section of his business effectively, he later moved into doing extensive car restorations, which can come in all shapes and sizes. He built his vehicles and shared them on social media, which raised his profile considerably. Soon gearheads from all over the country were coming to him to have their cars restored. Oak revealed that he has had to start turning people away, as he has 19 projects that still need to be completed.

Successful JDM Business Only Has Five Full-Time Employees

Oak explained that due to the internet being in its infancy during the 1990s, it was difficult to come across the performance part brands making moves around the world. He revealed that friendships with older car enthusiasts helped him, as they introduced him to high-profile companies such as Trust and HKS that he could begin supplying.

Showing Larry around the workshop of Oak Club, the most eye-catching sight was Oak’s unique idea of how a desk should look. He had purchased an old TukTuk taxi and cut the front end off, before then fabricating a desk just behind the windshield. He finished off the project by painting his creation and applying Spoon branding to it.

Oak shared that his ultra-successful business employed just five people, including himself. He had three mechanics assisting customers and his restoration projects, and also a secretary to take care of the background aspects of the company. He showed off a ton of parts in the upper part of the workshop, though nothing could have prepared Larry for what he would find in the next room.

Back Room Full Of 1990s JDM Memorabilia

Continuing the tour of the Oak Club, the pair headed into an innocent-looking room towards the back of the building. Inside was an extensive amount of 1990s Japanese memorabilia, which ranged from toys to assorted performance parts like shifters from Veilside, which also designed the wide body kit on Han’s iconic RX-7 from Fast and Furious Tokyo Drift, and old gauges. All were still boxed, items he insisted he would never sell.

He also had a set of short shifters made by CS, which Oak revealed were the only ones of this type you could buy during the 1990s. They have since become very sought after and valuable, though for nostalgic purposes he is keen to keep them in his man cave.

Oak’s 1990s JDM Man Cave

• Huge rim collection consisting of between 40-50 sets
• Japanese parts such as gauges, shifters still boxed
• Assortment of toys/gaming devices from 1990s Japan

The most prominent resident of the room was Oak’s rim collection. Having previously collected boxed toys, he switched to 1990s Japanese rims after termites destroyed the toy boxes and left them undervalued. He revealed that he had sourced 40-50 sets in total so far, though this number would likely rise further still.

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Workshop Yard Full Of JDM Goodness

Heading outside, Oak was keen to show off some of the machinery he was currently working on for his extensive list of customers. First was a clean Mitsubishi Evolution III, which he revealed he had recently taken delivery of. It used to be owned by a friend of his, though the gearhead in question eventually got bored with trying to restore it. He elected to sell it to Oak instead so that it could be completed.

In the corner of the yard was what looked to be a highly sought-after Honda Integra DC2 Type-R. Oak clarified that it was a standard DC2 that its owner was keen to turn into a Type-R, so he’d left it at the shop to be upgraded. It had recently been repainted and was awaiting the next phase of its restoration.

He also showed off a couple of his daily drivers. First up was a little Suzuki Jimny, which was primarily used by Oak’s wife. Next to it was a Mitsubishi Colt, which had been lightly modified. It had a turbocharged 1.4-liter motor and had been fitted with large OZ rims and an aggressive body kit.

Oak Saves Best Vehicles Of His Collection For Last

Coming to the end of the Oak Club tour, Oak led Larry to the back of the yard. Underneath a pair of covers were his two most revered machines. First up was a custom Honda S2000, which featured a full technical rebuild from Spoon, a company Larry recently had an in-depth tour of.

He built the car in just five days at the Bangkok Motor Show several years ago, a project he came up with to get some of the many Japanese visitors more involved. Spoon sent a brand-new engine and transmission for the S2000 directly from Japan, complete with a special plate signed by all the staff who had built it.

Moving across to the second machine, he pulled off the cover to reveal a stunning Honda NSX NA2. Featuring a 3.2-liter V6 motor, Oak revealed that his example was ultra-rare in Thailand as it was only one of three NA2s in the country that had been blessed with pop-up headlamps. Most of the larger-engined models had fixed components, with many of the small 3.0-liter vehicles featuring pop-ups.

Acura NSX NA2 Pricing

(data provided by J.D.Power)

Oak said that he had chased its previous owner for around five years, begging and all, before he finally relented and sold it to him. He has since been offered around $700,000 for the car due to its exclusivity, though he warned he’d never let it go since he’d worked so hard to acquire it.

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Oak’s unbridled passion for all things JDM is infectious, and it’s difficult not to be won over by his insane workshop or car collection. It’s safe to say that Thailand looks to be the ideal place to emigrate for any JDM fans, they are without doubt in safe hands.

Sources: YouTube @ Larry Chen, J.D. Power