Author Archives: Dan Hsu

Honda celebrates Collection Hall reopening by revving classic race engines

We can’t think of a more Honda way to open a museum than revving the crap out of some classic racing machines. Recently, the Honda Collection Hall in Japan reopened after a months-long remodel, and Honda held an opening ceremony … Continue reading

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Kawasaki Ninja’s 40th anniversary colors are awesomely retro

Real ninja, the silent assassins of feudal Japan, date back to the 15th century. The iconic Kawasaki Ninja, however, turns 40 years old this year. The moniker debuted in 1984 as a rebranding of the GPZ900R, a groundbreaking sportbike that … Continue reading

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Toyotafest 2024 date and location announced

Public Service Announcement: Toyotafest 2024 will be held at the Marina Green in Long Beach, Calif. on Saturday, June 8, 2024. This will mark the 28th annual All-Toyotafest, which welcomes Toyota, Lexus, Scion, and Toyopet vehicles. Vendor registration is already … Continue reading

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Happy TE27 Day from JNC

The great-grandfather to the AE86, the Toyota TE27 still isn’t that well known among car collector circles. We spotted this one in with glorious glass-smooth paint in the parking lot outside the Tokyo Nostalgic Car Show in 2010. A VW … Continue reading

Posted in Holidays | 2 Comments

Honda’s new “H” logo looks a lot like the one from the 1970s

Honda revealed a new logo today, and it looks a lot like one from decades ago. The new “H” mark removes the square frame that has surrounded the logo for the last 43 years. The framed H was introduced in … Continue reading

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Happy New Year from JNC

The Japanese tradition for New Year’s is getting up early to watch the hatsuhinode, or first sunrise. By watching the inaugural dawn you’ll be starting the year off right. The preferred viewing spot is usually somewhere that requires a bit … Continue reading

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Happy Holidays from JNC

Happy Holidays from JNC! We hope Japanese Santa Claus gave you everything you wished for. QotW will be back on Tuesday. メリークリスマス!

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Hundreds of Honda SuperCub fans gathered to celebrate bike’s 65th anniversary

This year marked the 65th anniversary of the venerable Honda Super Cub. It also happened to be the 75th anniversary of Honda Motor Co. As such, the annual Cub Cafe Meeting at Honda’s headquarters in Tokyo had even more cause … Continue reading

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Marvel at Honda’s 1962 motorcycle manufacturing prowess, now in English

A few weeks ago we shared a wonderful 30-minute Honda promotional movie from 1962, just one year before they started building cars. The film went deep behind the scenes in Honda’s motorcycle manufacturing facilities, showing how raw steel and plastic … Continue reading

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Honda engines of street and circuit sound off at 75th anniversary event

As part of Honda’s 75th anniversary festivities this year, the Honda Collection Hall in Japan invited guests to listen to the sound of engines. Taking a series of classic motorcycles, cars, and racing machines from the museum, curators fired them … Continue reading

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Honda’s behind-the-scenes motorcycle manufacturing doc from 1962 is a must-see

Honda has released an astounding documentary from its early days of motorcycle manufacturing. The 34-minute This is Honda dives deep into Honda’s factories, depicting every step of the production process, from raw steel to finished bike. Arguably the most amazing … Continue reading

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Yamaha’s miniature SR400 fuel tank marks over 40 years of production having ended

In 2021 we reported on the sad end of the Yamaha SR400, a beloved motorcycle that had been in production for 43 years. Not only did it have a long life but Yamaha kept it remarkably faithful to the 1978 … Continue reading

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JCCS Preview: A Toyota Celica Supra is the first ever JCCS “Event Car”

The Japanese Classic Car Show has always had great memorabilia, from dash plaques to T-shirts to stickers. This year the JCCS crew have come up with something truly special, their first “event car”. It’s a 1982 Toyota Supra in TRD … Continue reading

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JCCS Preview: Sam Mitani’s Red Mist book signing

Are you revved up for the 2023 Japanese Classic Car Show yet? If you’re going, we have a special announcement that you might be interested in. Sam Mitani, former International Editor of Road & Track, will be a the JNC … Continue reading

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Honda Motocompo revived as Motocompacto electric foldable bike

Honda has revived its foldable Motocompo city bike for the modern era. It’s called the Motocompacto, as trademark filing in 2020 revealed, and it’s a little bike that folds into a tidy rectangle. This time around, it’s electric. The original … Continue reading

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Yamaha launches retro-colored motocross bikes in honor of YZ250’s 50th anniversary

The Yamaha YZ250 is has been in production in one form or another for 50 years. That makes it among the longest production runs of any motorcycle ever built, and definitely the longest-running dirtbike. To celebrate this incredible streak, Yamaha … Continue reading

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Happy Sevens Day from JNC

It’s easy to forget how dreary the mid- to late-1970s were. The oil shortage and new emissions regulations meant that cars with larger engines than their predecessors struggled to achieve the same performance. The Nissan Fairlady 240ZG was a benchmark … Continue reading

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Happy 4th of July from JNC

The original Toyota 4Runner was known as the HiLux Surf in Japan and became quite popular during the 1980s boom in recreational vehicles. In its marketing materials the HiLux Surf was promoted as an “American Offroad Machine” and actually launched … Continue reading

Posted in Holidays | 4 Comments

Yamaha to end snow machine production after 55 years, closing the chapter on Japanese snowmobiles

Japan’s motorcycle companies have a long history of revolutionizing the powersports market, from motorcycles boat motors. Of the Japanese Big Four, however, only Yamaha has seen any success in snowmobiles. Not only that, but Yamaha managed to keep its highly … Continue reading

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Happy 620 Day from JNC

Compact trucks like the Datsun 620 were one of the ways Japanese companies really made an impact with American customers. Post fuel crisis, they were well poised to save some dough at the pump. Nissan launched a whole campaign around … Continue reading

Posted in Holidays | 3 Comments