Tag Archives: levin

QotW: What’s the best car commercial from Japan?

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Ben Hsu

Now that the star of one of the most famous Japanese car commercials has been rediscovered, it’s time we asked: What’s the best car commercial from Japan? The 1972 Nissan Skyline hit the market just as Japanese citizens getting hooked … Continue reading →

Posted in mazda, minicars, nissan, Question of the Week, toyota | Tagged ae86, c110, corolla, cosmo, eunos, furata, gc110, jc, kenmeri, kgc110, levin, mazda, nissan, Question of the Week, skyline, sprinter, toyota, trueno | 30 Comments

EVENTS: The Bayline Gathering, Part 01

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Ben Hsu

Ever since Motoring J Style faded in 2008 there’s been a void in the NorCal nostalgic scene. The Bay Area is rife with vintage Nihon steel, and it needs a bona fide show to bring the cars out from their garages.

Posted in events, nissan, toyota | Tagged 240k, 240z, 260z, 280z, 510, ae86, aw11, b110, bbs, bluebird, c10, c110, corolla, corona mark II, cressida, datsun, diane krey, fairlady z, fj cruiser, gc10, gt-r, Hakosuka, jdm legends, jzz30, kenmeri, kgc10, kgc110, kpgc10, kpgc110, levin, lexus, lexus sc, mini, MkI, mr2, mx72, nissan, panasport, rs watanabe, s30, skyline, sprinter, ssr, sunny, toyota, trueno, tsurikawa, watanabes, x70 | 27 Comments

Kidney, Anyone? 1979 TE51 Toyota Corolla SR5 Sport Coupe

Posted on July 10, 2012 by Ben Hsu

This 1979 Toyota Corolla SR5 Sport Coupe popped up on eBay over the weekend with a $4,250 asking price and several days left on the auction clock. Then, faster you can say “Kidney, Anyone?” it was gone.

Posted in for sale, toyota | Tagged corolla, kidney anyone, levin, sprinter, sr5, te51, toyota, trueno | 52 Comments

JNC Toyota RWD & Z Heritage shirts available in the shop

Posted on June 22, 2012 by Ben Hsu

JNC‘s 2012 Z Generations and Toyota RWD shirts are now available online. Actually, they have been for a while and eagle-eyed JNCer’s have been getting them, but we neglected to make an official announcement. Z Generations debuted at the Z-Car West Coast … Continue reading →

Posted in nissan, nostalgic wear, toyota | Tagged 2000gt, 240z, 260z, 280z, 280zx, 300zx, 350z, 370z, ae86, brz, corolla, datsun, fr-s, gt 86, hachiroku, JNC shirts, levin, nissan, s130, s30, scion, sports 800, sprinter, subaru, te27, toyota, Toyota RWD, trueno, Z Generations, z31, z32, z33, z34 | 2 Comments

Four new Choro-Q Zero models spotted at Shizuoka Toy Show

Posted on June 6, 2012 by Dan Hsu

The discontinuation a few years ago of Choro-Q, also known as Penny Racers or Turbo Tricksters to USDM fans, will remain one of the great injustices of modern Japanese society. Last year the line was relaunched as Choro-Q Zero with a focus on … Continue reading →

Posted in honda, minicars, mitsubishi, nissan, toyota | Tagged 300zx, ae86, caravan, cedric, choro-q, choro-q zero, city, corolla, delica, fairlady, gloria, group 5, honda, levin, mitsubishi, nissan, r30, skyline, soarer, sprinter, super silhouette, toyota, trueno, y31, z10, z31 | 8 Comments

Question of the Week: What’s Japan’s most luxurious car?

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Ben Hsu

From the world’s first production GPS system in the JC Eunos Cosmo to the Cressida’s redundant stereo volume dial next to the steering wheel, Japan has always been a pioneer of automotive luxury. That is why this week we ask, … Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week, toyota | Tagged ae86, century, civic, corolla, eg, hachiroku, honda, levin, QotW, Question of the Week, sprinter, toyota, trueno | 29 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 All-Toyotafest, Part 04

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Dan Hsu

We’ll let Patrick Ng‘s gorgeous TE27 kick off the fourth and final installment of our 17th Annual All-Toyotafest coverage. This tasty mango began life as a 1973 SR-5, an ultra-rare US-spec version of the Corolla Levin, with metal flares and all straight from the factory but … Continue reading →

Posted in events, toyota, trucks, vip, wagons | Tagged 2012 All-Toyotafest, 4runner, 5-axis, a60, ae83, august, aw11, barikan, camry, celica, corolla, corona, e70, estima, feroce, five axis design, fj40, fj45, fr-s, gt 86, hilux, junction produce, kp61, land cruiser, levin, liftback, ma61, mr2, n1, pickup, previa, ra21, ra22, ra28, ra29, riverge, riverside, rs watanabe, rt40, rt52, s-5, scion, soarer, sprinter, sr-5, ssr, star shark, starlet, stout, supra, sw20, t40, te27, te72, tom's, tosco, toyota, toyota 86, toyotafest, trd, trueno, v10, vip, watanabe, work wheels, z10 | 16 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 All-Toyotafest, Part 03

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Dan Hsu

We start the 17th Annual All-Toyotafest coverage with a perennial fave, Jorge Aguilera‘s Fuji-reminiscent green 18R-G turbo Celica. Note the fender mirrors, which are not green but gunmetal carefully matched to the accompanying Wats.

Posted in events, toyota | Tagged 2000gt, 2012 All-Toyotafest, 3s-ge, 4a-ge, a3a, a60, A80, advan, ae86, barikan, bbs, cabe toyota, camry, celica, century, chaser, corolla, corona, cressida, crown, cusco, e70, fj40, fj55, hachiroku, jza80, land cruiser, levin, lexus, Lexus GS, Lexus LS, Lexus RX, ma61, mark II, mf10, mx32, mx62, mx73, ra21, ra22, rs watanabe, rt40, RX330, s190, s50, sprinter, stout, supra, t40, ta22, te72, toyota, toyotafest, trueno, vip, watanabe, x30, x60, x70, xv30 | 23 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 All-Toyotafest, Part 02

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Dan Hsu

Part 02 of our 2012 All-Toyotafest coverage starts off with a pair of our favorite neoclassic Celicas. Moises Rivera (white) and Jesse Ortiz‘s (blue 1JZ-swapped) wedge-shaped A60s are the very definition of 1980s knife’s edge styling, and the US-spec GT-S flares … Continue reading →

Posted in events, toyota | Tagged 2012 All-Toyotafest, 2jz, a20, a40, a60, a70, advan, ae86, aw11, celica, chaser, corolla, corona, corona mark II, coupe, cressida, dori, e100, e70, fj40, hilux, land cruiser, levin, liftback, ma70, ma71, mark II, MkI, mr2, ra21, ra22, sa3r, scion, sprinter, ssr, supra, t130, t60, ta22, takechi project, te72, toyota, toyotafest, trueno, wagon, wangan, x60, xb | 13 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 All-Toyotafest, Part 01

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Dan Hsu

The 2012 All-Toyotafest was abuzz with the excitement generated by the neo-hachiroku. After a decade and a half of supposedly sporty front-wheel-drive offerings, the lightweight FR Toyota is back with a vengeance. For throngs of Toyotaku in attendance it was cause … Continue reading →

Posted in events, toyota, wagons | Tagged 2012 All-Toyotafest, 5-axis, 80-series, a20, ae86, august, celica, corolla, corona, ct200h, e20, feroce, g's, land cruiser, levin, lexus, mango, peanut, ra29, sprinter, sr-5, ssr, star shark, t80, te21, te27, te28, te37, tosco, toyota, toyotafest, trd, trueno, wagon, work equip 01 | 27 Comments

JNC “RWD Toyota” shirts will debut at Toyotafest this weekend

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Yee

Three letters — RWD. That says it all for the shirt we’re debuting at Toyotafest this Saturday, May 5. The lightweight rear-wheel-drive sport coupe is the magic formula that made us fall in love with old school Japanese cars in … Continue reading →

Posted in jnc, nostalgic wear, toyota | Tagged 2000gt, ae86, corolla, fr-s, gt 86, jnc, levin, mf10, RWD Toyota shirt, scion, sports 800, sprinter, te27, toyota, toyota 86, trueno, up15, yotahachi, zn6 | 12 Comments

EVENTS: AE86 Nights 5th Anniversary

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Dan Hsu

SoCal may have its drawbacks, but there aren’t many places where you can put the call out for a hachiroku party and have over 100 cars show up. AE86 Nights has been doing this almost every Saturday night since April of 2007, … Continue reading →

Posted in events, toyota | Tagged 510, a60, ae86, AE86 Nights, bluebird, corolla, corona, cressida, datsun, e20, e70, enkei, enkei 92, gt-s, gurachan, levin, mark II, mx73, nissan, peanut, rt112, sprinter, sr-5, ssr, supra, t110, te21, te72, toyota, trueno, vip, x60, x70 | 17 Comments

Neo-86 jumpstarts Japan’s waning car culture

Posted on March 30, 2012 by Kevin San

Even up until the mid-2000s Japan was swarming with sleek, souped up performance machines that would give any JDM nut seizures of joy. A stroll down any major street was like tracking a pre-race establishing shot from Tokyo Drift. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Friday Video, toyota | Tagged ae86, corolla, fr-s, Friday Video, gt 86, hachiroku, keiichi tsuchiya, levin, scion, sprinter, touge, toyota, toyota 86, trueno | 8 Comments

EVENTS: Eagle Rock Datsun-Nippon Swap Meet

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Ben Hsu

Laugh all you want at our super-strict smog tests, but at the end of the day SoCal has at least one redeeming trait — enough nostalgics to hold a regular swap meet. Here’s what you missed from the recent Eagle … Continue reading →

Posted in events, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, toyota, wagons | Tagged 510, 720, a20, b310, bluebird, c22, celica, colt, corolla, datsun, dodge, galant, king cab, levin, libre, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, nl320, phantom, rx-3, sprinter, ssr, SSR MkII, te27, te28, techno, toyota, trueno, vanette, wagon | 21 Comments

Nostalgic Hero selects Top 20 Japanese Classics

Posted on March 13, 2012 by Ben Hsu

The 150th volume of Nostalgic Hero just hit the stands as a special edition in which the editors pick the Top 20 Nostalgic Cars of 2012. Back in 2007 they issued a Top 50 list, and some have risen, some have fallen. … Continue reading →

Posted in honda, isuzu, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, subaru, suzuki, toyota | Tagged 110s, 117, 2000gt, 240z, 240zg, 260z, 280z, 510, b110, bellett, bluebird, c10, c110, c210, celica, colt, contessa, corolla, cosmo sport, daihatsu, datsun, datsun 1200, fairlady, fairlady z, fronte, galant, gt-r, gto, Hakosuka, hino, honda, isuzu, kenmeri, kgc10, kpgc10, kpgc110, levin, liftback, mazda, mf10, midget, mitsubishi, nissan, ra28, roadster, s30, s600, s800, skyline, sp311, spl311, sports 800, sprinter, sr311, srl311, sss, subaru, subaru 360, sunny, suzuki, ta22, te27, trueno | 38 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 New Year Meeting

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Dan Hsu

This year’s New Year Meeting was a bit less exciting as a large number of cars were repeats from previous shows, but hey, it’s Japan and there’s tons of vintage steel.

Posted in events, isuzu, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, prince, subaru, toyota | Tagged 110s, 117, 1600gt, 2012, 240z, 240zg, 260z, 280z, 2t-g, 330, 430, 910, a20, autech, b110, bluebird, c10, c110, c210, cedric, celica, civilian, contessa, corolla, cosmo sport, crown, csp311, datsun, datsun 1200, fairlady z, fb, florian, galant, gloria, gto, Hakosuka, hiace, hino, isuzu, itasha, kenmeri, kgc10, kgc110, kpgc10, kpgc110, levin, mazda, mitsubishi, MkIII, new year meeting, nissan, prince, r30, rx-7, s110, s50, s54, sa22, sa22c, sambar, savanna, silvia, skyline, sprinter, ssr, stelvio, subaru, subaru 360, sunny, ta22, takahashi kunimitsu, te27, toyota, trueno | 20 Comments

Wednesday Wall: Racing Toyotas from TRD

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Ben Hsu

As the Toyota 86 inches closer to its Japanese debut the Aichi mothership is releasing a slew of propaganda. The latest is a series of TRD wallpapers beautifully illustrated by Masahisa Higuchi. They depict the neo-hachiroku and its racing forebears, including the … Continue reading →

Posted in toyota, Wednesday Wall | Tagged 2000gt, 86, ae86, brz, corolla, crown, fr-s, gt 86, hachiroku, levin, mobilgas trial, prius, s30, scion, sports 800, sprinter, subaru, toyota, trd, trueno, Wednesday Wall, yatabe, yotahachi | 9 Comments

The Vintage Japanese “OK” Hand Logo Explained

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Kevin San

Few things in life are cooler than vintage racing liveries. The colors, the typefaces, and the long-extinct corporate logos (of often just-as-extinct corporations) capture a moment in time that can never be replicated again. Add to that the rawness of … Continue reading →

Posted in japan, mazda, motorsports, nissan, toyota | Tagged 240z, 240zg, 260z, 280z, c10, capella, celica, condom, corolla, fairlady z, fuji, gt-r, Hakosuka, katayama, kgc10, kpgc10, levin, mazda, nissan, ok symbol, okamoto, rx-2, rx-3, s30, savanna, skyline, ta22, te27, toyota | 23 Comments

EVENTS: 2012 Tokyo Auto Salon

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Dan Hsu

Every year more and more vintage Japanese steel forges its way into the Tokyo Auto Salon. But as Japan’s equivalent of the SEMA show, the theme favors “custom” over “classic”.

Posted in events, honda, mazda, nissan, subaru, toyota | Tagged 1uz, 2000gt, 240z, 260z, 280z, a70, ae86, c10, chaser, corolla, cressida, cresta, datsun, fairlady z, g-works, gx71, Hakosuka, jza70, kgc10, kpgc10, levin, lexus, mark II, mx73, nissan, option, rb26, rocky auto, s30, skyline, sprinter, subaru 360, supra, toyota, trueno, v8, x70 | 11 Comments

Hot Wheels selects AE86 Corolla to represent the 80s in “Cars of the Decades”

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Ben Hsu

Hot Wheels‘ “Cars of the Decades” is a special edition series that selects one iconic model to exemplify the decade in which it was born. Each car comes in special packaging and paint schemes reflecting that period — flower power … Continue reading →

Posted in minicars, toyota | Tagged ae86, corolla, hot wheels, levin, toyota, trueno | 18 Comments