Spoon Sports: Ichishima's Honda Obsession
Tatsuru Ichishima's Spoon Sports has only ever tuned Hondas. Since 1988, the blue-valve-cover workshop has won Japanese N1 championships and built the Honda aftermarket.
Spoon Sports: Ichishima's Honda Obsession
Tatsuru Ichishima founded Spoon Sports in 1988 in Tokyo with one rule: they would only tune Hondas. Nearly 40 years later, that rule still holds. Every Spoon-built engine wears a blue valve cover — an unmistakable signal at any JDM event.
The Founding Idea
Ichishima came from a Honda racing background. Most Japanese tuners of the era were general shops, happy to work on any chassis. Spoon was different from day one: if you wanted Spoon work, you brought a Honda. If you didn't own a Honda, you bought one first.
The focus produced depth nobody else had. A Spoon Sports B18C-tuned head was refined through hundreds of iterations. Their Civic suspension geometries were developed over decades of N1 championship racing.
The N1 Era
Spoon dominated All-Japan N1 Endurance racing throughout the 1990s with Civic EG6, EK9, and later Integra DC2 platforms:
- Ichishima-san at the wheel of the factory Spoon Civic
- Hand-built B16A/B18C engines running 10,000+ race miles without rebuild
- Aero packages refined at Suzuka and Tsukuba
- Championships won in 1994, 1996, 1998 (Civic Type R class)
The Demos
Spoon's catalog car list:
- Spoon Civic EK9 — the track-focused B-series car with hand-built Spoon head
- Spoon Integra DC2 — N1 champion variant, matte silver with blue detailing
- Spoon NSX NA1 — refined NSX with C32B motor and custom suspension
- Spoon NSX-R GT — the legendary widebody NSX with hand-fabricated aero and C30A stroker
- Spoon Civic Type R FK8 — modern era demo car keeping the philosophy alive
The Engineering
Spoon's parts catalog is narrow but deep:
- Cylinder heads (hand-ported B16/B18/C30B by the same craftsman for 20+ years)
- Suspension systems (Spoon's own dampers, springs, sway bars)
- Brake rotors and pads (paired with Endless for calipers)
- Exhaust systems (stainless steel, unique sound profile)
- Oil coolers, radiators, intake manifolds
Ichishima's Philosophy
Ichishima rarely speaks to media. When he does, the quotes are always about craftsmanship and respect for the chassis. "A fast Honda is built with small improvements in 100 places, not one big upgrade in one place." The line became a Spoon motto.
Why Spoon Matters
Spoon proved specialization wins. By restricting their scope to Honda, they developed depth that general shops couldn't match. Every Spoon Sports part carries 35+ years of focused development. When a B-series owner wants the best head work in Japan, there is only one answer: Spoon, Setagaya, Tokyo.