How Reps Killed Rocket Bunny...

Title sums it up, how the prevalence of replicas lead to Rocket Bunny becoming less popular in the automotive scene.
Videos used:
Main video B roll
• Beach Bunnies | Rocket...
TRA Building
• Tuning Shop Paradise i...
Varis Evo
• EVO X ’17 Ver.Ultimate...
RB FRS B roll 2
• Rocket Bunny Scion FRS...
Blue RWB B roll
• RWB Atlanta #3 | "Shin...
Purple RWB B roll
• RWB Pittsburgh #1 "Dra...
RB Gr yaris
• POV: You just bought a...
RB Meeting B roll
• WEKFEST JAPAN 2021【PAN...

[@olivermikolajuk4631]

Personally I love the Rocket Bunny body kits, even the exposed bolts, giant wings and extreme width. But I know and understand this is a turn off for many but I like the rawness of it.

[@wercorteztv3603]

As long as it’s not a turn off for you is all that matters. I hate the scene in the US because it’s so demanding from everyone. We need to learn from japan and accept everyones build. Rocket Bunny kits are RAW.

[@getyoassonsomewhere]

Rocket Bunny NSX will always be one of the best looks I've ever seen. Some think it's sacrilege, others like me love it. That's just how taste works. Anyone making decisions based on what other people think are robbing themselves of the freedom in creativity.

[@Thoroughly_Wet]

Low and wide has always been cool imo. Shoot, chop tops, trimmed or deleted fenders, and wide slicks have been popular since the 30s.

[@lonelyboysole]

Any rocket bunny kit done right will always look good an people who are usually not into that style will still like it.. i got a pandem kit on my lexus rc an everyone whos seen it loves it i never got any hate irl for my car just love even my stepdad whos more into mustangs loves it an he usally hates imports lol... it just has to be done right wide never dies

[@contraband1543]

@@wercorteztv3603 accepting shitty "builds" is why the car scene is so trash. A bottomed out 350z p.o.s. on Ebay coilovers and a chopped off exhaust isn't a build, that's a disgrace

[@sheldonlamey7010]

This is kind of sad . I didn't think this could happen To Rocket Bunny. You said that they are still making kits and Im happy for that hope they continue. Im sure people will come back around. Now I'm thinking of I should buy a real front lip or not most of those companies are either closed or discontinued the product for my car. I do get a kick out of buying my parts directly from the manufacturer eg hasport.

[@cian___]

I personally dont see anything wrong with buying fake parts if they arent being produced anymore, might be a little worse than the original but not the end of the world lmao

[@dustinbrown7246]

@@cian___ in the classic world we do a lot of repop stuff. Try finding a real set of torque flights nowadays. I did buy a set off an og lowrider that was in his 70s or 80s and i can honestly say i have no idea how i got so lucky.

[@zeru4600]

@@cian___ kind of relating this to shoes. with the resale of the original product being 5-20 times more than the original value. i buy reps because i just want to use that said shoe. same with discontinued car parts, i dont see anything wrong with it if you cant get the original. more or so it looks almost similar to the original too but doesnt give u the same satisfaction as u would buying it from the original manufactuerer

[@JesusDisciple916]

@@zeru4600 why do you buy rep shoes? I always hear about them, how there are good and bad quality reps and so forth. I've just never known where to the good ones, so I've never pulled the trigger on any.

[@DEIFAN]

@@cian___ I have a rep body kit on my 01 civic

[@attackmaximum]

I think rocketbunny was a lot cooler in v1 frs/s13 phase. Back then most of the cars produced with the kits were really good quality builds from Japan. I think once it crossed over into the US, it just got bad. Nowadays I enjoy seeing the renders, and the recent releases for old muscle cars like the Camaro are cool. Edit: FRS V1 is my favorite and I will always enjoy seeing a well built V1 frs,brz,86 anyday.

[@ihaveunevennostrils9455]

i think rocketbunny peaked with the boss s14. take it with a grain of salt as i'm personally biased to my favorite RB kit, but i think the boss s14 proved that rocketbunny had the clout to take beloved sports cars and completely flip the script on it aesthetically. i'll acknowledge at the fact that it's still polarizing to this day but i think my other favorites would have to go to the cayman and GR yaris

[@max_coast]

"once it crossed over into the US, it just got bad" ... that's literally because most people were buying knock of reps and those affordable half baked messes spread everywhere. So many fenders murdered on horrible installs. Craigslist and FB Marketplace is full of wannabe Rocket Bunny abortions.

[@daruween1398]

I really like v2 because its not too aggressive and not too little. Its just perfect

[@eggreedgious5194]

I kinda feel the opposite, even the expensive stuff looks cheap. I honestly couldn't tell an authentic Scion from one with the ebay kit, and if installed incompetently it all looks like shit. and let's be real you got tired of the look real soon. Especially if you did it to your own car (and especially if you did it for the gram.) I always wonder where the cars go when they aren't online.

[@---CAPE]

I hated the dimple style that the v2 had, that's why V1 and V3.5 were my favorites

[@ben501st]

Your comment on how RB started with the people's car made me think that RB's departure from the everyman car to collector or high end cars could have negatively affected the company. It blows my mind that there's a kit for the Nissan Titan truck but not a single version of the 10th gen Civic.

[@ControlAllDa1337]

Rocket bunny was very much a product of its time. It became the Ed Hardy of body styling.

[@profpuffofficial2]

That's a perf example

[@Senza_1]

Very interesting take. Although I don’t like any Ed hardy but I do like the quality RB builds… although I probably wouldn’t do one haha

[@almostlastplace]

It makes sense plus a lot of purist really hate the look of the exposed rivets. But having seen real pandem kits before on well executed builds irl its so hard for me to hate them and I feel like their kits are as good as it gets for letting the hands of one's work be seen in a build it always leaves a nice impression on me.

[@firefightszz]

Not to mention they fit really well. If your building a race car and not a show car pandem/rocket bunny kits are great for just getting your car wider if you aren’t too particular about looks.

[@kaizer2k2]

tuff for those so called "purists", I have had a passions for aviation and automotive since I was 4, seeing exposed rivets on a car makes my cock hard.

[@ralcolfwolfcoon8207]

Don't leave out drift also

[@osmacar5331]

Am not the biggest rivet fan, but when done right...

[@beanieguitarguy4070]

I personally like the exposed rivets. Gives it more of a “built” look instead of a “Oh, the car is supposed to look like this” vibe.

[@basedautism2283]

Accurate. The rocket bunny frs was so hot for about a year then it got to the point that there were 3 in my local scene after a year. The kits got so common we used to clown on them

[@cian___]

I honestly still like them, I went through a phase of hating on them, but its hard to not admit they were baller when they first came out

[@Ixxlostinabox]

@@cian___ there are still people out there who are doing hood rocket bunny style builds, its just unfortunate that most people that go for this style half ass it, plus most of them all look the same.

[@projectsoul7300]

@@cian___ same they are still nice kits but yea it was like everywhere so obviously what was cool was not cool anymore sadly

[@ralcolfwolfcoon8207]

BRZ. Same styling

[@contraband1543]

@@ralcolfwolfcoon8207 Please tell me you know that the brz, frs, and gt86 are the same cars

[@KZ9955]

In a short summery: oversaturation, non-stop copy/paste format and overall degradation of quality control via non-professional fabricators is what killed interest and public appeal in Pandem's style. (Quick edit, Pandem is just Rocket Bunny US. Supposedly its for copyright reasoning, most people don't know that Ig)

[@texcortez5612]

This Is What Happeneds When We Stop Bulling... People Are Rolling Around With Knockoff Claiming Real Deal....And America Hardly Makes Anything Most Likely It With Say Made In China....China Doesn't Have Copy Write Laws

[@derb_]

It just became part of the endless hype train for influencer types I feel. The kind of people who create trends because they need content don't nurture said trends, they move on while suckers hold the bag.

[@KZ9955]

@@derb_ The issue isn't creating or being apart of trends, the issue is people thinking those trends are all that matter. Times change, naturally people look for ways to stand out from the crowd, but if everybody is doing the same thing then what exactly is the point. Worse, a decent sum of people in the car community (at least newbies) seem to forget that there was likely a point to those specific designs: Wide body kits, high profile rims, stance tuning...all to benefit the proformance in a certain way: They weren't just for looks. Today people dropping big bands on mods for attention rather than purpose. If dude is decent, they'd drop 5-15k on a body kit, nice wheels, maybe even go the extra mile to talk to a tuner about getting more power under the hood but in most cases, its all cheap parts, wannabe racers and no experience. Gilded exterior and clapped interior.

[@KZ9955]

All I can really say is that if your into cars and going fast, I suggest working from the inside out: Yes, having something that grabs attention is nice, but a stock looking sleeper will give you a better reputation than a riced out beater. Also, another reason why the car community catches such a bad rap is all those clowns doing stupid sh*t at meetups: too many inexperienced show-offs, no quality control on who can get in and who can't. Only two ways of finding a meet back then was by invite only or by chance, and if you acted an a*s, you weren't invited back...i.e. being reckless, talking about stuff you knew nothing about or snitching on yourself and your buddies by telling randoms, or these days, streaming yourself like a brainlet. Sorry to tangent off like that but I just wanted to share my opinion on the current state of the car scene.

[@Senza_1]

I think poor kids with no sense of quality style just ruin everything in the car scene. Like literally everything. They buy all the rare cars. Zip tie everything wrap everything around trees and curbs. Just total cancer

[@alan64047]

Pandem/rockt bunny kits are always amazing

[@unproductiveworkshop]

Awesome mini-documentary that you've got. I still remember my Dad and I finding early coverage of Rocket Bunny in 2013 on Speedhunters, and being amazed by it as a kid. The reception and attitude for it definitely changed in the past years, and it's interesting to listen to your take on it!! Keep on making contemporary tuning-culture videos like this, I love it!

[@VS666]

the thing about modifying a car in this way is that it attracts a much younger demographic usually, and by default a younger person probably has a lot less money to spend, thus rep kits getting the sales. another thing too is the wait on an authentic kit can be a long time, on top of very expensive. gen Z and millenials have a hard time waiting for anything. most of the rep kits were put on the car very poorly as well so its probably a good thing they didn't waste an authentic kit. i think eventually everyone got tired of the bolted on "widebody" look, as it took off pretty fast and seemed like everyone was doing it

[@robert7100]

The convenience of modern society makes it hard to not feel like everything is at your fingertips, this has nothing to do with genz or whatever bullshit you believe, most old people I see waiting for a pizza at the store are always so desperate for their pizza to finish.

[@robert7100]

It's easy to point fingers but I'm pretty sure you're part of the problem.

[@down2earth485]

Bolted widebody never looked good to me. But I always preferred late 90s styling.

[@choke-]

Idc I still like how it looks

[@PermissiveMoggy]

I immediately stopped liking the kits when I met a couple of the car's owners at a meet. 4 words. Douche. Bags. Parent's Money.

[@PandaOnSkis]

Any industry of creativity will ebb and flow between periods of flashy style to subdued looks

[@ililiiill5939]

Randomly found this on my recommended and I really enjoyed the video. Keep up the good work

[@f31roger]

Reps have always killed or slowed brand names. This is probably before you got into this, but Veilside, Bomex, Mint Blue and a few other JDM brands opened shop in LA in 2000/01. The amount of knock offs offered after about a year made a lot of those original companies close up (Bomex is still around). Almost all the knock off brands weren't as good quality and fitment, but people also didn't want to pay the high price. I got an original Feel's kit for my EK, but there were knock offs a few months later. I paid a high price for an original and it showed.. but knock off prices... you can't beat.

[@xr.spedtech]

If knockoffs kill companies. Should drivers design their own kits ?

[@f31roger]

@@xr.spedtech That's a different question that what put out. But nowadays, people have the resources to 3d print, 3d scan... I mean fabrication availability on IG is everywhere, 23yrs ago, it wasn't as plentiful. Then we start to get into the quality and quality assurance of products. It is what it is.

[@Kev27RS]

WINGS WEST made a look-a-like kit of the FEEL’S widebody kit.

[@nmode22]

The bolts always killed me! Molding the kit to the body is what turns my head.

[@KillerDeadXero]

i always thought of it as like med evil armor, or even futuristic video game space armor.

[@vortexx3028]

starting to realize why people dislike hyundai owners

[@nmode22]

@@vortexx3028 why? 😂 bolts showing just looks cheap. Looks so out of place to be on a car.

[@vlcallmeprince-x6032]

@@nmode22 No way bros talkin bout cheap with them bigahh crome badonkadonk wheels on his huyundai💀

[@nmode22]

@@vlcallmeprince-x6032 😂😂😂

[@boostd6]

Great video man, you just earned a sub. I love it when i find a small creator like you and others, because I know their is struggle and strife in the content.

[@TKDPandaa]

loved the music choice and video bro very well done

[@SALEENS7GTR5]

Stance is also on the way out in the scene. I'm seeing fewer new kits with the riveted fenders and "boxiness" of RB kits. If fewer people want the look, the kits will be bought less.

[@retrogamersev5543]

I think what started the downfall of stance was that clown who set his own rx8 on fire and blamed it on a "hater" that never existed I won't mention his name because I don't want to give that clown any attention

[@nikonordman7624]

@@retrogamersev5543 it was dying way before he ever got clout

[@circleofdrift]

We see a lot of people in our comments saying they straight up dislike (sometimes hate) the styling of rocket bunny, so it is hard for us to believe replica parts are solely responsible for killing off the RB brand. Just our opinion, This video is super well structured though keep going! 🙌

[@bennyb.1742]

Yeap. Reps didn't kill Rocket Bunny, its them becoming self generic and being the icon of the bolt on over fender trend, which went out of style, that killed Rocket Bunny.

[@max_coast]

I'd say those comments are nonsense because a quick scan through Craigslist, FB Marketplace, Offer-Up, etc. yields enough project cars with half assed Rocket Bunny style installs to tell me it's actually quite popular.

[@Loudest_Cricket_]

I'm not a fan of the RB kits, myself. I don't hate them, though at one point I'd certainly say that I did. I just don't find the look at all appealing.

[@cyberworld9000]

I mean that's just USA car fans. Our car scene is so emotionally stunted that's its all ego and very little about community or even about car builds anymore

[@ghettogarage6687]

Yeah, it would be this shit podcast defending reps.

[@johnmansfield4628]

this video is so well put together, honestly dude, topic of the video aside, kudos. this videos great

[@RoyTheBoy_yt]

This was a great video. Also thumbs up for the song choice. One of my favorites.

[@lucaspaulshinefagan5813]

What's the first song called

[@replynotificationsdisabled]

@@lucaspaulshinefagan5813 Najubes - too lazy to look up title

[@boofcat6804]

very cool video you should consider doing one on wheels from the 90s-00s. I've never seen a video like it and I feel like your style of video would shine some well deserved light on some really well designed and styled wheels. So many different wheels. so many different brands, and such a cool era in JDM history!

[@hugenerd8994]

one thing i gotta say is i LOVE the samurai champloo background music! the vid itself was highly informative and well put together but the music taste is def a cherry on top. Keep up the great content!!

[@ThatsKap88]

Bro this video is blowin you up 🎉 great video and congratulations on your growth!

[@Oreo2v]

I love the Najubes, Samurai shamploo in the background. It was a great informational video and the editing too. You deserve more credit and subs.ñ man so for now you got a New sub 👍🏻

[@EpicAutos]

Just found ur channel and loving the content and *aesthetic* . Well deserved sub, no idea how you don’t have way more subscribers

[@hugenerd8994]

agreed

[@Pika_Gabe]

I'm just here before you blow up. You deserve WAY more than 164 Subscribers!

[@sparky4845]

congrats on your first big video. 🎉 can't wait to see what you produce next!

[@morlaix6153]

this was a great video, your editing is so simple and good.

[@0xGRIDRUNR]

fantastic video! i love the comparison between rocketbunny kits and rwb kits. As well, it really goes to show that not only is it worth it to get the right stuff, that purchasing decision has farther reaching implications than just getting a good part.

[@aceplays9]

great video bro. and the nujabes. adds taste. Deserve much more than 1.4k subs !

[@TRJNMuster]

Bra.. U deserve so much more subssssss plss keep posting I love your vids🥺

[@-.-osas-san4399]

Ill leave this as a mark to remember I was here before u blew up….love ur content man I didnt even realize the 300 subs, thought it was sum big channel I followed ages ago…good quality content keep it up🙌🏽 Edit: From 300 to 900 followers in one day, u gooo

[@yeetbeam2273]

Imma do the same

[@EsotericRyoushi]

I hear the Nujabes and instantly know I gotta watch the whole thing... RIP Seba Jun

[@SleepInShards]

The champloo music though... Great taste my friend.

[@thatguyinpurple]

The moment I heard Racing Lagoon's soundtrack I had to hit like

[@basicallystock]

really well put together video 👌🏾

[@rb26pwrd]

Underrated channel 😢

[@ROS3btw]

Super high quality video tbh. Would watch again

[@keeganayala7185]

Dope video man, never heard of rocket bunny but i was hooked in the first 20 seconds.

[@fightmem8931]

First video from your channel i've seen. A well earned sub, surprised to see such a low subscriber count. with content like this its sure to rise quick

[@Redx-tc5vu]

love the background music choice, nujabes ftw

[@PlebLordThe3rd]

I would definitely consider buying a original RB kit if it wasnt so close to impossible to get it street-legal here in Germany.

[@redbullsauberpetronas]

You won't be driving cars there much longer anyway

[@schmodix]

Kannst du per einzelabnahme eintragen lassen.

[@opossozoku8005]

thank you for bringing this up, I had no idea how bad it was also subbed

[@bennetulbricht9922]

First of your videos I ever saw and pleasantly surprised! Dropped a sub and like 🙌🏻

[@cian___]

Legend

[@martintotev4508]

The samurai champloo background music is such a nice touch, good job

[@effingv]

Subbed. Well executed RB kits were extremely cool for a time and watching them become the replica standard on 86s was terrible.

[@ralcolfwolfcoon8207]

What? The BRZ looked slick with that kit. Plus power.

[@dweeb892]

I saw BRZ and FRS and I clicked, then learned something new. Thank you! :D

[@2j4747]

Love the channel love the video and I totally related to the super street browsing any time i had a computer at school!

[@xvextheoriginal3422]

A really aweasome video. Really enjoyed it

[@K0Y0I_sis]

You earned a sub just by your choice of BGM alone. Keep it up. When The Rocket Bunny rps 13 silvia notchback first came out, I've always it's just a more obnoxious rendition of Instant Gentlemen's kit. Never even thought of this brand being able to take off globally compared to it's contemporaries of the era.

[@eyebite007]

Nice to see old Alexi/Noriyaro at 2:35 in his s13

[@Dericgg]

Bro holy shit you don't have enough subs! This was such a great watch!

[@NotABrake]

This reminds me of what happened to the Meyers Manx. Replica buggy’s that did what Meyers did for cheaper, without sacrificing too much in style and functionality.

[@kioro2423]

Awesome content! You're underrated bro

[@GetinNutty]

Great video and fantastic music choice 👌

[@nikolozloladze3850]

i love how you used nujabes in the background as music , love champloo

[@DaleEarndhardt]

The samurai champloo background music goes hard.

[@MegaMjjordan]

I hear that Samurai Champloo Nujabes playing in the back🤌🏾 great taste

[@ichewtoast111]

Nujabes! I haven’t heard him in a minute, RIP!

[@tylerhuffman5427]

This video is nice and simple. Also i like the Samuria Champloo music in the background

[@electricblade3]

Great vid mate you got a new sub

[@leadershipprime6423]

Your gonna get big man more videos like this!!

[@Kaidopoet]

Well done on this video. We started yt around the same time and were roughly in the same sub counts until recent lol. I've been here since the North America Levin video, I am both jealous and impressed

[@cian___]

Thanks, I've seen your videos as well haha

[@9r4ss_]

loved that you used the soundtrack from racing lagoon you got my sub

[@sanderdude3901]

nice vid, music was fantastic, informative, excellent all around

[@Aearonjer]

Still have my V1 Rocket bunny fenders (Living in Japan, I sent them back to Australia and stuck them in storage), I'll put them on eventually. They take me back to my childhood, with the factory 1977 Holden Torana SS Hatchback bodykit. Watching Bathurst in the 70's with Peter Brock driving the A9X version and even owning a stock one in the 90's, as soon as I saw the 86 kit it was must buy...

[@sasocrack123]

Nice video bro!

[@tonybrown7563]

Mint choice with the Racing Lagoon background music.

[@calvinharris209]

Good video, liked and subscribed 👍 lol "...he is in great peril"

[@jaze7559]

to this day, i still love the rocket bunny kits, even with all the reps out there, they are just stunning.

[@brenxbux]

Man that Yaris RB kit is amazing on the eyes of a rally fan.

[@wyattcole06]

good vid man. enjoyment, some useless knowledge, and a good takeaway all in one

[@WH3Y]

Only 499 views deserve more this is a top quality video

[@tayladouglas2030]

Love the nujabes music in the background at the start man's the goat

[@nero7.171]

I was shocked when I saw your amount of subscribes, The quality of this video is insane. They do say quality over quantity

[@dividingdan]

great video man!

[@VinceBo]

Loved your comment about the S13 being the car of the people. By the way I’m the scum bag kid with one. 😂

[@pdee886]

Wow that AE86 is super nice. Love the cage from what I can see on this phone over here it's beautiful, amongst alot of those other builds. 👍😎

[@DawudSeni]

I think none of these are overplayed. This is like having body dysmorphia when all you see is swole people on social media. So little people have cars modified at all.

[@Led....]

Battle cry being used as the backround music >>>>>

[@Oreosh]

@1:03 that's my car when I purchased it from the previous owner! I watched this the first time around and didn't even spot it, a friend just let me know! Agree on the original body styles look so much better, sadly Rocket Bunnys problem was copy kits.

[@Eddierayy0]

Funny to stumble across this, seeing these cars cruising through Port Melbourne and down Beach Rd. Seen them driving around

[@almincikotic450]

Nice little morning vid with some breaky

[@TheEtherea]

Back when I was building a 240sx I wanted to get a RB kit as it was JUST released. Several months later it was so oversatured around and everyone it seemed "had one" I had to drop that idea eventually especially as replicas started getting produced originally for autosport to replaced expensive parts that were trashed on regularly basis. Later it found itself on the market of course and with BRZ specifically it was insane that barely 2 months had passed when you could see those RB BRZ everywhere.. Crazy.

[@Soipelez]

The samurai champloo background music was an excellent touch.

[@jotaro9471]

one takeaway from this video is that I saw my old house at the end. Very nice

[@NoAffiliation]

The Racing Lagoon and samurai champloo music was a very nice touch.

[@LapLandSystem]

I am glad tj hunt went eventually from the rathel horrible (in my opinion) purple and black with repkit to making his own line of widebody, which looks actually pretty damn great.

[@RiftWalker111]

I never knew people started disliking it in the first place, this is news to me.

[@jerseylife8701]

This dudes falling apart “race car” sat by my apartment for 3 years, his car was fully kitted out in body kits and had a huge rocket bunny decal on it.

[@GhostSpeedShop]

Nothing beats the quality of a real rocketbunny.

[@Caramelo9941]

came for the content stay for the music nice pick

[@wortexspeedruns]

Damn, that Racing Lagoon music is instantly recognizable

[@OversteerAllDay]

All I’m saying is the v1 kit on the brz with a chargespeed wing in red looks pretty damn sick

[@pedrosiqueira5235]

hey my dude a feed back here, point your channel in this direction,lofi music short stories about cars, keep going

[@NXT_LVL]

The market was flooded with them. It was the go to kit for SEMA when the GT86/BRZ and the A90 was fresh for the Aftermarket scene. I went from "Oh nice RB kit..." to "oh wow ANOTHER car with the same RB kit.. how creative" Then when you played, Forza, NFS or any other game that lets you customize, it's RB, Big Country Labs and Speedhunters. Its interesting how I saw 100s of RB kits on FRS/GT86/BRZs handful on some 350/370s, but they all looked the same. Peak lol is when a 240SX looks like a mix between a 67 Camaro and 1970s Cuda. Don't forget this is a trend society. Once the trend is set, they over commit to it and then it becomes "base"

[@Kev27RS]

True! 💯 Never really liked those kind of kits. Race cars in the past had riveted fenders for a reason! It was “Function Over Form”! On a street car it just looks cheap and unfinished… Back in the day people created proper molded-in widebodies for their cars in the Tuning scene!

[@brucedespain663]

Ill always love these kits and this style

[@ClaytonYatescarenthusiast]

I didn't even know what rocket bunny was but kinda glad to know it's gone. As a racecar builder and driver, road course, I struggle with useless design. Art and function can go together but art alone goes on the wall

[@JAWS_164]

Thanks for sharing this info