APAC: SEMA Bound

Words: Mark Aquino
Photos: Mark Enriquez | Thomas Million

Auto Performance and Aesthetics Center, otherwise known as APAC has set their footprint in the automotive industry. Hailing from humble beginnings, this once started from a small shop with a single bay garage at Elkridge, MD. Even back then, Derrick Nowell and Paco Duarte were already pumping out custom body work, wide body installs and hundreds of winning show cars. With every car that goes through them, there’s always this creative twist they put in (molded kit, color-matched rivets, etc.)

We’ve always supported them and their work. I still remember bringing my Evo to them back in 2012, I had a vision they brought to life. The first Evo X with a ChargeSpeed wide body kit in the US. Since then, they’ve supported my build all the way till I made it to SEMA 2014. Our content manager, Mark Enriquez brought his Evo X in as well to have it ready for the show season. From his Varis front and rear bumpers, Victory Function wide fenders and all the way to the Origin Lab GT Wing, the whole car was under the careful hands of Paco and Derrick. Loyalty goes a long way and we give them credit for all the success we’ve had with our Evos.

In early 2014, APAC expanded. Sean Der and Byron Mapp, once loyal customers, now share the APAC vision as co-owners. Going up was the only direction this company was moving towards. From a small shop with a single bay, they’ve acquired ample space for a paint booth, two lifts, a showroom, a car storage area and enough room for a half court game of basketball. With the help of Khris Uybengkee from KU Connection, their support and network grew even bigger.

A lot has changed but hard work and dedication to the craft hasn’t, along with great customer service. They’ve gained even more recognition when they built the first molded Liberty Walk kitted GT-R (what did I tell you about that twist), even LB’s Kato was impressed. The LB equipped GT-R was driven (yes, driven..) down to Florida to be the lead car in Liberty Walk’s Parade. Since then, Liberty Walk and APAC formed a partnership to bring out the very first Liberty Walk equipped V10 R8 and yes, it will be featured at the biggest show – SEMA. Both Liberty Walk equipped super cars will be at the SEMA show this year. To show support to the local car community, APAC hosted a meet to display the SEMA bound vehicles to the public before they got transported to Las Vegas. Keep in mind, the GT-R and R8 are both for sale.