Here’s a collection of photos of nostalgic Japanese police cars strung together by an amateur, unidirectional Ken Burns. Some are equipped with high-power engine options and transmission pairings not available on civilian versions of the same model.
Sadly, Japanese patrol cars that have outlived their usefulness are scrapped when decommissioned, not auctioned off to the public like in the US. You can safely bet that only a few of these have survived, with the remaining examples locked away in museums (Nissan’s Zama collection has a genuine S30 Fairlady Z patrol car, for example). What we wouldn’t give for a kujira Crown black-and-white, an unmarked RX-4, or even that ‘73 Mustang! Watch the video after the jump. (more…)
This video comes courtesy of oldschool.co.nz via Retro-Classics. It’s from the heyday of the Fuji touring car championships and is unique in that the narration is in English! No more picking handfuls of syllables out of rapid-fire Japanese commentary that might as well be an auctioneer having an argument with the announcer at the Kentucky Derby.
This was likely a bit of Mazda propaganda from back in the day but we get to see all the Mazdafarian greats — Yojiro Terada, Yoshimi Katayama, and Takashi Yorino. It’s really an all-out battle between the rotaries and the hakosuka Skyline GT-Rs. Plus, we’ve got roaring J-tin and women in hip-hugging bell-bottoms. Part two after the jump. (more…)
The 1970 Nissan Fairlady Z432 is a beguiling blend combination of the twin-cam S20 six (shared with the hakosuka 2000GT-R) and sexy S30 Fairlady Z looks, making it a blue-chip Japanese collector car of the highest order. And now Jeweler Ginza Tanaka has made a one-off replica of the Tomica Z432 model in platinum! It’s 7cm long, weighs 210 grams, and everything down to the opening doors and the wheels (which can spin) and even the box has been faithfully replicated. It took a month to make by hand and a great deal of that time was spent polishing it to the high lustre you see right there. There’s only one made, it’s not for sale, although if you did want one, Tomica estimates its cost at a cool $80,000.
This very special model was made to celebrate Tomica’s 40th anniversary this year. Since 1970, over 800 different models have been made, and over half a billion of the little toys have made their way into the eager hands of young kids (and not-so-young kids) all over the world over the past four decades. The model will be displayed at the Hong Kong International Jewelery Show this month, and will return to the homeland to be displayed at the Osaka Tomica Fair in late April.
If a Tree Falls on a Nissan…: Today’s zen koan comes from Australia, where, as Kev informs us, there are indeed trees. And sometimes they upend themselves on some poor sheila’s newly restored Datsun 610. Zoe Michalski had just purchased her “pride and joy” a three months ago and finished some paint and body work. Unfortunately, she then parked it under an unstable 20-meter shrubbery. This happened in a place called Woolloomooloo. We are not making this up.
The streaks of sunlight are a perfect compliment to the angular 80s design of the R30 Skyline. This pic was taken during the closing minutes of the 2008 JCCA New Year Meeting in Odaiba, Tokyo.
Datsun 1200s of any condition are rare enough, but gaze upon the minty freshness of this 1972 example of the USDM Sunny B110 on craigslist. According to the seller, the previous owner worked at a Datsun/Nissan dealership for 33 years. Everything is in supposed perfect working order like it was on Day One. This Florida orange sure looks clean enough from the photos, and considering some of the prices on “ran when parked” 1200s, $15000 doesn’t really seem that ridiculous. More photos after the jump. (more…)
The Bug and the Beetle was a 1972 propaganda film by GM meant to whip workers into shape by stoking fear of foreign competition. How can you take a day off work when Germans and Japanese are pouring their cars onto our docks by the boatload? Franz and Hiro aren’t resting. If we don’t sell these Pontiacs, we’ll have to fire you, which means you’ll have no money with which to buy Pontiacs!
Of course, within a decade Japanese automakers would begin construction on US factories staffed with American workers. Times sure have changed, particularly at 5:50 when the company man voiceover says, “We cannot hope for the government to save us.” But if this film has taught us one thing, it’s that those minty fresh 1200s and 240Zs look mighty tempting. Then again, so do those Venturas. And those awesome Sony alarm clocks with the flip tiles!
Sorry to start the week with a bit of sad news. The South Canterbury Car Club of Timaru, New Zealand lost a valued and beloved member last week. David “Brownie” Brown was the driver of a 1976 Datsun Cherry 100A, an ex-Trans-Am 1600 from imported from the US. In fact, Brown was driving his “pride and joy” in a vintage race at the Timaru International Motor Raceway when he left the track and struck a tire wall, causing his death. Club members and family remembered him as a generous man eager to help fellow enthusiasts with their cars and “an unofficial ambassador for Datsun, choosing that brand ahead of all others.” His family plans to restored the damaged Cherry and donate it to a museum.
More photos of Mr. Brown’s car after the jump. (more…)
You know the drill. Bad guys with a militia’s worth of weapons, explosives lobbed from a truck, hapless black and whites led to the slaughter. It could only be another episode of Seibu Keisatsu. This time, a small twist. Instead of the customary Nissan Cedrics it’s mostly yonmeri Skylines that make up the patrol car fodder, and Detective Tatsu rather than Sergeant Daimon saves the day.
We know many JNC readers are already aware of ABC Hobby’s awesome Genetic R/C lineup. But for those that aren’t, these are extremely high quality radio control car chassis from Japan, and the best part is they have a wide selection of nostalgic car bodies! There are a few examples after the jump, but they also have old school faves like the AE86, hakosuka and kenmeri Skyline, FC RX-7, along with some new school ones you’d never think of like the Toyota Estima! Check out the ABC Hobby website for details. (more…)
