My Journey to Wekfest East 2024

There’s a unique kind of energy you feel when you travel just to hunt down car content.

Last year, I packed my gear and flew out from Kingston, Jamaica, straight into New Jersey. The original mission was an ambitious one: hit three massive car shows back-to-back. Plans always change when you’re on the ground, and I only made it to two—but the absolute crown jewel of the trip was Wekfest East 2024, hosted at the New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center in Edison.

If you know anything about Wekfest, you know they don’t just let anyone roll in. The screening process is brutal, and the result is pure, unadulterated quality.

The Welcome Wagon & Golden Era Nostalgia

The moment I arrived at the venue, the energy outside set the tone. The staging area was a playground of Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions and aggressive Subaru WRXs clearing their throats. But once you actually stepped past the threshold of the main building, the sheer scale of the turnout hit you. It was a massive, packed crowd—the kind of turnout that instantly triggered a flashback for me.

Standing there, looking out at the rows of meticulously built cars, my mind flashed straight back to 2003. It felt exactly like the first American car show I ever attended—Hot Import Nights in Houston, Texas. Wekfest East brought back that exact flavor of nostalgia. It felt like the glory days of the sport compact and import scene all over again.

Everywhere you looked, there was immaculate paint, insanely rare parts, and unique platforms you just don’t see every day.

The Honda community represented heavy, which is always close to my heart. But the absolute highlight of the day wasn’t an engine bay—it was a conversation.

I happened to run into Joey Lee, the mastermind behind The Chronicles (stickydiljoe.com) and a legendary shooter/writer from the golden print eras of Honda Tuning, Import Tuner, and Super Street. Joey is basically the gatekeeper of high-end, functional Honda styling, so chopping it up with him was unreal.

We spoke briefly about the pristine EK9 Civic Type R he’s currently building over in Japan, but things got really interesting when we started chatting about the Type R scene back home in Jamaica. Talking about how deep Honda culture runs in Jamaica—especially our love for the EK9 and DC2 Integra Type R—with a guy who has documented the best builds on earth was a surreal moment. It reminded me just how global this community really is.

Euro Flavors, JDM Icons, and Unexpected Wheels

While the Hondas held it down, the Euro crowd came out swinging too, packed with clean modern Audis and sharp BMWs. But for me, the cars that truly stopped me in my tracks were a bit more unexpected:

• The Air-Cooled Classics: A few older Porsche air-cooled builds that completely commanded the room with timeless presence.
• The Nismo 944: A breathtakingly immaculate Porsche 944 sitting, wildly enough, on a set of iconic Nismo wheels. It’s a cross-breeding of styles that shouldn’t work on paper, but it was executed so flawlessly it was easily a show-stopper.
• The Ghost of Mount Akina: A flawless Initial D style Toyota AE86 Corolla Trueno that looked like it drove straight out of the anime.

Why We Do This

Walking those halls, you see more than just metal and rubber. You see thousands of hours, meticulous planning, and an insane amount of money poured into passion projects. That dedication is the exact reason why we love car culture so much.

Seeing the level of execution at Wekfest is the ultimate motivator. Hopefully, with time, I can build one or two of my own personal project cars to this exact standard. Only time will tell, but the blueprint is there.

If you are ever in the US or even Japan and one of these Wekfest shows is coming to a state near you, I highly, highly recommend you go. The experience is unmatched, the inspiration is infinite, and I honestly can’t wait to go back.