CUSCO is a Japanese automotive parts company, specializing in car suspension parts. They are most famous for their coilover suspensions, and are a large presence in the Japanese automotive aftermarket in the domestic Japanese market and around the globe.
A notable product of CUSCO is the "E-CON", a coilover suspension set with electronically controlled dampers.
Cusco sponsored a high performance, RWD mid-engined two-door version of the Subaru WRX STI for professional racing.
Company Information
CUSCO Japan is an automotive company that was started in December 1977. As stated above it is a company specializing in car parts specifically suspension and coilover kits. Its company name is actually Carrosser Co. Ltd with Cusco being one of four brands. The four brands are as follows: Cusco, Vacanza, Carrosser, and Safety21. The President of Operations is Tsutomu Nagase and they are a considerably small company, with only 45 active members as of 2011. They have a capital of 10 Million Yen (roughly 100,000 USD).[1]
Foreign Expansion and Auto History
Cusco have had a history of providing parts for Rallycross races, and even having a Rallycross car represent them in a race.[1] An example would be when they sponsored Subaru. Carrosser is actually the only brand in Japan that has participated in all of the events at the All Japanese Championships.
Brands
The company is divided into 4 separate brands each having a purpose to the company. These brands are Cusco, Vacanza, Carrosser, and Safety21. Each brand plays a part in manufacturing and selling parts for a type of car. Some parts are tested on the track in racing events, and all products are tested in the laboratory.
Cusco
Cusco is the main brand, responsible for selling generic and racing gears.
Vacanza
Vacanza manufactures coilover kits and parts for minivans, SUVs (Sports Utility Vehicles), and station wagons. Designed by Carrosser.[1]
Carrosser
The design philosophy of both Cusco and Vacanza lie in the Carrosser brand.
Super GT/JGTC
From 1997 until 2008, Cusco Racing participated in the GT300 class of JGTC (renamed Super GT in 2005) with a Subaru Impreza WRX STI. Cusco Racing made their JGTC debut at the 1997 season finale at Sugo.[2]
in the GT300 class, the team achieved four pole positions and three race wins, one of which in 2008 saw the Subaru Impreza become the first AWD vehicle to take victory in the championships history.[3]
Complete JGTC Results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Note: Non-championship races (NC) do not count towards the championship
Complete Super GT results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
References
- About Us Cusco, retrieved April 13, 2018^
- Subaru in Super GT: The Story So Far www.dailysportscar.com, November 24, 2021, retrieved 2022-08-20^
- Ben Hsu. MOTORSPORT: A brief history of Cusco Racing Japanese Nostalgic Car, 2017-12-28, retrieved 2022-08-20