Quiet Confidence

Words & Snaps By Ben

It's always hard to decide when to stop building a car. Many of you out there will agree that once you go down the car modding road, it's hard to stop. Very hard.

There's always something more to do. "One last mod" before calling it a wrap. Even when you're on a budget, you always find spare change under the mattress for that last little addition to the already stretched parts list of your project car.

Ryan is one of the rare exceptions to that rule. Being on a tight budget, he is a man who plans twice and executes once. And when he does, the result is eye catching.

As a kid, Ryan already had gasoline running in his veins. Matchbox, Tonkas, Lego, he had it all.
"I liked disassembling my toys and see how things worked" Ryan recalls. "Naturally, it progressed to customising cars when I got my first ride when I was 15."

He started off with a Ford Pinto, which got a new paint job and stance. Following this, he stanced a Lite Ace, and built a JDM AE91 Corolla in College.

After coming to Singapore, the restrictive cost of cars had him going around with company vehicles for a few years, but the flame never stopped burning in him. When he finally had the financial opportunity to own a car, his search led him to find this '05 Galant.

"It was destiny, really", he recalls. When he saw the ad for the car, he instantly knew that this was the one, and quickly made the deal.

Right away, he started his research on how to make "DeeDee" (which stands for Daily Driver) match up to the Galant he envisioned in his mind's eye.

Inspired by the builds of Chip Foose and Pure Vision, Ryan went for a "super stock" look - DeeDee is meant to look almost as if it rolled out of the factory lines looking this good, yet the keen eyes will spot some well executed mods and details that will make it stand out from the crowd.

In such spirit, this Galant has probably the shortest mod list in all the cars featured on POWAA Garage. Yet its look match up with any of these effortlessly.

This JDM era-correct build has JDM bumpers and rear wiper. Ryan went to the extent of shaving off the side skirts fins to preserve the purity of the Galant's lines.

He then went hunting for the perfect set of wheels. Once again, they had to be era-correct, and as the Gen 8 Galant was in production from 1996 to 2006, he had to find wheels that matched these dates.

When he finally found his "holy grail" 18" ARD GT Spoke by 5zigen, they were resting in a barn, somewhere in Texas.

He shipped them over, shod them in Yokohama S-Drive 205/40 rubber and set them on DeeDee, along with a set of Ralliart suspensions to give her the perfect stance.

To complete the exterior looks, Ryan chose to dress her up in BMW's Marrakesh Brown paint, and the result is stunning. The mods are so simple, yet work together flawlessly to make anyone stare at this Galant for hours.

Inside, Ryan kept things as they came from the factory, with the exception of Ralliart pedals, era-correct old school headrests and rear view mirror, and a very special steering wheel.

The wheel is what Ryan considers as being his most innovative modification. This is a genuine Momo Evo VIII steering wheel, which he adapted to fit with a fully functioning airbag system.

"I got the inspiration from a fellow Galant owner in the states who fitted an Evo IX wheel on his. His issue was that the US and JDM airbag mechanisms are different, and he didn't manage to make his airbag work." Explained Ryan.

Ignoring the many "it's impossible" or "it's too dangerous" warnings, he carefully researched and planned his moves. Ryan dismantled the steering wheel and had a custom adapter plate machined to make it fit. His hard work paid off, and he is now the only reported Galant owner who successfully rocked this mod.

Ryan kept the engine unmolested, as the 2.0L powerplant is, in his opinion, more than enough for Singapore's busy roads.

As of now, his work on DeeDee is done, and when it runs out of paper life in Singapore in 2015, he plans on exporting her out to the Philippines, where he will turn his expert planning to the engine and powertrain to turn her into a full-fledged VR-4, with a 6a13 twin turbo heart powering all 4 wheels, resting on airbag suspensions.

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication", said Leonardo Da Vinci. When you look at Ryan's Galant, you can't help but agree with this saying.

Specs
Make	Mitsubishi
Model	2005 Galant VR
Engine	1,997cc Inline-4 NA
Transmission	Automatic
Drive Layout	FF
Max Output	138hp, 178Nm
Modifications
Handling
Wheels	18” 5zigen ARD GT Spoke
Tyres	Yokohama S-Drive 205/40R18
Suspensions	Ralliart
Exterior
Body	JDM bumpers Shaved off side skirt fins Marrakesh Brown body paint
Interior
Steering Wheel	Momo Evo VIII Steering wheel (with airbag)
Pedals	Ralliart

Ryan would like to thank Green Star Spray Painting, AL Tyres and 73 Automechanica for their support and hard work to make his Galant the show stopper she is today.