Each fall Honda Racing puts on something called Thanks Day at their Twin Ring Motegi complex. Any machine that has fought to bring home a checkered flag for Honda is honored, from MotoGP bikes to SuperGT NSXs to F1 cars. This year it took place on the November 24, just a few days before our Thanksgiving Day, but the weather didn’t cooperate, making it far too risky to run vintage F1 cars on the track. In past years, however, it was not a problem. Check out the 2007 Thanks Day in this Urban Racer article. Best of all, it’s called “Thanks Day” as a show of appreciation for fans of the Honda marque. We know we’d be very thankful if our favorite automakers held events like this stateside.

In any case, we want to wish you, dear JNCers, a very happy Thanksgiving! Thank you for reading JNC and thank you for continuing to carry the old school torch for our rare and often unloved cars!

There’s more than a few Toyotaku who come to JNC because, let’s face it, most of the exciting machines in the automaker’s portfolio are in its past – RWD Celicas, Supras, Sports 800s, MR2s, twin-cam Corollas and the glorious 2000GT. But ever since the Celica and MR2 Spyder were given the axe in 2005, the wealthiest car company in the world has been missing some excitement in its lineup. Some say that the drought began a full decade ago, with the discontinuation of the 1998 JZA80 Supra. Regardless of the exact date, nowadays the Big T is known more for sensible but bland people movers than pulse-quickening sports cars.

However, according to the New York Times, this could all change if Akio Toyoda, grandson of founder Kiichiro Toyoda, becomes president of the company. (more…)

Old School Japanese Drag Cars

Break out the earplugs before watching this footage of vintage Japanese iron doing the Zero-Yon (0-400m, approximately a quarter-mile), circa 1986. Unlike the nostalgia drag racers of the US, these cars sport canister mufflers and big fat turbos instead of superchargers and open headers. This setup probably favors trap speed over low E/Ts, but the ear-splitting echoes in the mountains of Fuji Speedway sound incredible all the same. The majority of cars in this video are radically modified Datsun Fairlady Zs, but some Toyotas and Mazdas appear at the 3:00 mark. Thanks to Daron for the tip!

Last month, Toyota launched the iQ city car, to much fanfare amongst the green-machine crowd. Within days, speculation began on a sporty two-seater roadster based on the same small platform. Naturally, the first thing we noticed was its resemblance to the 1965 Toyota Sports 800, itself based on a lesser commuter car, the Publica. If built, the yet-unnamed iQ-based convertible could be powered by a 1.0 or 1.3-liter gasoline or diesel engine. Sadly, unlike its predecessors, both this roadster and the iQ are front wheel drive. Expect to see a prototype at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show.

[Auto Motor und Sport via TheMotorReport]

This is sad news. Sport Compact Car, one of the most authoritative and well-written magazines about small engines and tuning tips for compact cars has been killed off by its parent company, Source Interlink, along with Truck Trend, with 115 employees cut loose. It’s one of the few import scene titles out there that had informative articles about the import scene, with no fluff about bikini girls and rap albums to distract from its core content. They even did the occasional story about an old school ride. This comes hot on the heels of Source Interlink discontinuing Turbo magazine as well, and rumor has it that more are on the chopping block. This kind of thing makes us uneasy, being small-time publishers still in the process of starting a new magazine. (more…)

We’re getting on our favorite hobby horse again and talking about how Japanese automakers don’t talk about enough their past products. We’re lookin’ at you, US subsidiaries! For example, this year was Nissan USA’s 50th anniversary, but you wouldn’t know it from attending the LA Auto Show. The event was dominated by Nissan, but at no point, not in CEO Carlos “Mr. Bean” Ghosn’s keynote address, or the debuts of the Nissan 370Z, Cube or Infiniti G37 convertible did the speakers give any hint of this milestone.

On the other hand, if you have Issue 2 of Japanese Nostalgic Car magazine, you’ll know that Subaru’s 50th birthday party in Japan has been one year-long bash. In fact, they won’t shut up about it. Here’s a cute post titled “Grandfather and Grandson” from the company’s blog, talking about a photo shoot that paired up a 360 with a new Impreza STI for Cartopia, their monthly magazine. Here they are teaming up with toymaker Tomica for vintage Sambar Fire Truck and FF-1 models. (more…)

This is a ways off, but we thought you Subaru 360, Honda N/Z/S and various kei-car owners might be interested in making plans for the World Micro/Mini Car meet. It’s the brainchild of Ken & Sylvia Weger, owners/curators of the Small Wonders Microcar Museum and will take place in downtown Crystal Lake, IL at the University Center, located at 100 S. Main Street, on August 21-22, 2010.

From the website:

This will be the first ever WORLD MEET of its kind. Microcar and Minicar owners and their cars, will gather from all over the world to share their enthusiasm for these small wonders. The Weger’s are expecting over 500 Micro and Mini cars. Those cars under 500cc are considered to be “Microcars”, and those between 500-1500cc are considered “Minicars”. Many marques are expected to fill the lush lawns surrounding the University Center. Vendors will provide food and beverages. Alongside the car show, workshops and classes/seminars are being planned.

[Edmunds]

Today at the LA Auto Show, Nissan finally revealed the 370Z to the world, finally, at long last, and for reals. Mitsubishi also brought out a couple of classics to show the world, “Hey, we’ve been doing this since waaay before rebadging ourselves as Plymouths!” (more…)

Mazda has announced last night that it is breaking up with corporate partner Ford. Until now, Ford owned a 33.4 percent of Mazda’s stock, giving it control over the company under Japanese law. But now it’s selling off 20 percent, worth approximately $540 million, to raise desperately needed cash.

The alliance began back in 1979, when Mazda spent much of the decade developing the fuel-thirsty rotary engine, even after the 1973 oil crisis. Ford purchased a 27 percent stake then and slowly increased its share during the 80s and early 90s. Together, they shared many platforms such as the Mazda MX-6/Ford Probe, 323/Escort and 6/Fusion. The two companies have said they will continue to save costs by working together on more platforms in the future.

This news follows GM’s announcement yesterday that it would sell its remaining 3.02 percent stake in Suzuki.

[AP]

Here’s a quick reminder for our Aussie JNCers in Melbourne, Australia. This Sunday November 23 is the Cars of the World show, and the featured marque is Nissan. There will be a concours type show and a charity auction. See these posts Go Baby Go and ajax240k for details.