Miss Chané
Tuesday 06 November, 2012 | By Ken
Miss Chané (pronounced “Sha-nay”), as she is known throughout the car community, came onto the scene with her Lexus, not too long ago. Having owned her IS300 for only 2 years, she transformed her IS from pretty-much-stock to what you see before you, this past year. It’s not too often that you find hardcore, dedicated female enthusiast, although we have noticed a growing trend in recent times. It’s even more rare and unique to find a female enthusiast that has fully immersed herself in the VIP Life.
Chané, born and raised in small island in Japan called Okinawa, has been around JDM culture for all her life. She has also had the privilege of having first-hand inspiration from her older brother, Andre Pham. Andre, also a member of Liberty VIP, has made a name for himself with his VIP’d out Lexus GS. If you aren’t sure who he is, a simple google search of “Mr. Pham, Liberty VIP” will ring bells. Like her brother, Chane doesn’t take things lightly with this car culture. Rather than mod her Lexus one mod at a time, she took her time during planning, and stuck to her vision while working hard, making sacrifices and saving up during the first year of ownership. When the time was right, she had all the work, from the body to the interior, done at the same time.
Chané’s car club, Liberty VIP, is world-renowned. She knew, to properly represent her club and as one of the few females in the VIP car game, she would have to come harder than the guys, in order to earn her name and respect amongst the die-hards. Thanks to careful guidance from her Liberty family, her plans were properly executed. VIP life can be defined by various attributes such as quality, class and sophistication to go along with the proper stance, fitment, body work, proper wheels. But it goes further than all of that. Living the VIP life involves having “gangster” steez that has its roots from the legendary Japanese gangs such as the Yakuza, and later on the Osaka street racers-turned-vip sedan-cruisers as well as the Bōsōzoku. Both the ride and the owner. It’s a trait you find with VIP car culture enthusiast. Chané lives what she loves. And she loves what she lives.
Once Chané’s IS was ready to roll with her Liberty VIP Fam, she wasted no time showing hitting the streets and the show scene. Just recently, you could have seen her and her ride at East Coast’s premier VIP car show, Black 3, as well as Canibeat’s First Class Fitment a couple of weeks ago. As a matter of fact, this photoshoot took place during the early morning hours before Black 3, which was at Englishtown Raceway Park. Once the shoot was completed, we traveled from Philly to Old Bridge Township, New Jersey for the show.
Don’t get it twisted though. She didn’t build her ride for some show-time glory. Miss Chané drives her car. Static with BC Extreme Drop Kit Coilovers, and sitting on Leon Hardiritts aka “Ritters”(18X8.5 front / 18X9.5), she goes anywhere and everywhere with her Lexus. A true driver, she knows how to handle her car through various situations that the streets may throw at her.
For this particular Feature shoot, Chané, who hails from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, drove out to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the photoshoot. If you had the opportunity to visit Philly, you would know that some of the roads aren’t the most smooth nor flat roads around. Like any urban city, the roads can get downright ugly. As we traveled through Philly, there were times we were were reconsidering shooting in the city itself. But Chané displayed serious skills as she maneuvered and got around some of the potholes and hair-raising “wavy” roads that can be any lowered cars worst nightmare.
We hit up several locations throughout Philly to capture the essence of Miss Chané and her IS300. The city lights, the landmarks of Philly and the beautiful sunrise all made for excellent backdrops. For more Feature photos and the full modifications list , please scroll down.
Chané would like to send special thanks to her brother Andre, her Liberty VIP Family as well as her go-to mechanic Beau Myers. Big things are in the works for 2013. Don’t be surprised if she switches things up completely. Stay tuned! In the meantime, she has been making waves on the interwebs as well as social media outlets. Make sure to follow her on Instagram at @misschane.
Photos by: P R A V A N Photography | Chris Mallari
Modification List:
Body Work
Vertex front bumper | Wald side skirt | Rear lip kit | Tinted headlights/taillights | smoked fog lights | 3M vinyl wrap (by N8VCOMP)
Wheels and Suspenion
Leon Hardiritts aka “Ritters”(18X8.5 front / 18X9.5) | BC extreme drop kit coilovers | Tires – front 215/35 and rear 215/45
Engine
Ingen air intake | Greddy Spectrum Elite exhaust
Interior
Custom Leather – Tiffany blue diamond stitching inserts and side panels, black suede headliner on black perforated leather (by Idealistic Design) | Polk Audio speakers, amp, 12″ sub, Kenwood DNX6180 GPS Navigation system.
About the author
Co-founder, Managing Director, Photographer, and editor for SNTRL. To many in the Tri-State, Kenny aka "MAD JDM" needs no introduction. Always out there, always ready, always down.
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