Mooneyes Mania Cruise
Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture
March 9, 2008
Words by Ben Hsu, Photos by Shige Suganuma

here's a distinct flavor of cars that show up for the Mooneyes Mania Cruise. As the name implies, the motley crew of nostalgists that gather for the event are not about all-out speed, but cruising in style. It's a rare mixed-marque vintage Japanese car meet that isn't dominated by Zs, 510s or Celicas. But if those are the runts in the world of the mainstream auto enthusiast, the cars at the Mania Cruise are the disowned orphans left on a random doorstep.

That's why you'll see elegant, blacked out Mitsubishi Debonairs alongside rat rod Datsun pickups. Or a fleet of Thai tuk-tuks alongside a custom Nissan Caravan van. And of course there's wagons, wagons and more wagons!

To underscore the eclectic gathering, let's just say this: there are precious few places on Earth where you can see a Nissan Silvia CSP311, and even fewer where you can peep a Cedric Wagon, yet here they were, both at the same show. A practically mint two-tone 810 wagon even made it all the way from California.

Lastly, we would be terribly irresponsible if we failed to point out this living embodiement of rarity - an early 70s Nissan Cherry Cab. Consider our minds blown.