QotW: How has ‘The Fast and the Furious’ impacted your local car scene

Posted on June 22, 2026 by Steve Chang

Twenty-five years ago today, on June 22, 2001, The Fast and the Furious hit theaters. Love it or hate it, the movie and its sequels have left a massive footprint on the movie industry, car culture worldwide, and Instagram reel audio. What was originally a story about crime in LA’s street racing underground has somehow spawned an 11-installment franchise about fighting global terrorist organizations. It’s been a quarter of a century and we’re not even done with the universe yet. Most of the time we veer away from any Fast discussion here at JNC but its influence is, unlike a rocket-propelled Pontiac Fiero against Earth’s gravity, inescapable.

How has The Fast and the Furious impacted your local car scene?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What license plate frame would you rock on your car?“. Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged | 1 Comment

ND to FD: A body kit to convert your Miata into an RX-7

Posted on June 19, 2026 by Justin Principe

The ND Mazda Roadster is already a good-looking and curvy car, a design feat that’s pretty difficult achieve on a small platform. Its lines evoke a natural connection to the very curvaceous FD RX-7. They pair so well, in fact, that it’s surprising it has taken this long for someone to create an aftermarket kit that transforms an ND to an FD. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Here’s Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda doing the viral boat race dance

Posted on June 18, 2026 by Steve Chang

Despite helming the biggest car company in the world Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda never fails to have a good time. Whether he’s racing under his alter ego Morizo, trolling the press by showing up at a rally event in a Honda, or winning a best dressed CEO award, the man knows how to not take himself too seriously. For the recent Music Award Japan show, he even donned a lowly chauffeur’s cap and gloves to pose with a GRMN Century, reportedly used to escort award winners to the red carpet. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Toyota TE27 nose works surprisingly well on a Suzuki Jimny

Posted on June 17, 2026 by Steve Chang

We’ve seen all manner of Nissan nose swaps. There’s the Hakotora which takes a C10 Skyline mask and puts it on a Sunny Truck. But there’s also the Sunny nose on a Suzuki Carry or the R32 Skyline kit on a Suzuki Twin. But what about Toyota’s classic front ends? Well, now there’s a conversion that turns a Suzuki Jimny grille into a TE27’s. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Congrats to Toyota on their first ‘real’ 24 Hours of Le Mans win

Posted on June 16, 2026 by Ben Hsu

Toyota claimed its sixth 24 Hours of Le Mans victory over the weekend, tying Bentley to become the fourth winningest manufacturer in the race’s history. Until this year, however, Toyota never succeeded against any real competition. For 2026, it had to fend off challenges from Ferrari, Cadillac, BMW, Aston Martin, and Genesis. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

QotW: What license plate frame would you rock on your car?

Posted on June 15, 2026 by Steve Chang

Today, June 15, is National License Plate Frame Day, which is not a thing in Japan because owners are not allowed to remove their license plates, ever. Here in the US, the license plate frame is yet another way to express your automotive individuality. Do you get a frame from the dealer and era your car came from? A brand that you support? A pithy message for a cause? Or is frameless the way to go? The possibilities are endless.

What license plate frame would you rock on your car?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Which Japanese crossover will be the first classic?“. Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged | 17 Comments

RIP Jiro Yamada, legendary automotive cutaway illustrator who turned engineering into art

Posted on June 12, 2026 by Ben Hsu

Jiro Yamada, the singularly talented automotive artist, passed away in August 2025 at the age of 65 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. Out of respect for his lifelong preference for privacy, news of his passing was only shared with the automotive greater community last week. Yamada was renowned for his cutaway illustrations, which depicted not just beautiful exterior lines, but the many layers of mechanical parts that make cars cars. Continue reading →

Posted in Art Corner | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Japan’s carmakers to jointly relax standards for what makes a part defective

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Steve Chang

It’s well known that Japanese carmakers employ the highest quality standards in the entire industry. Parts with even the smallest defects are discarded, ensuring that the finished product will be the benchmarks by which all others are judged. However, due to the unpredictable situation in the Middle East, raw materials are becoming scarcer and a coalition of carmakers are developing new standards that won’t be so quick to toss “defective” parts into the rubbish. Continue reading →

Posted in News | 4 Comments

We regret to inform you that Mitsubishi has desecrated the Eclipse name even more

Posted on June 10, 2026 by Steve Chang

Mitsubishi has once again exhumed the Eclipse name and slapped it on a car completely unrelated to the sports coupe it originated with. We’re not sure what’s more incongruous, the fact that the new Mitsubishi Eclipse Sportback is an electric crossover or that it’s not even really a Mitsubishi. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The 2027 Nissan Z comes with even more nostalgic nods

Posted on June 9, 2026 by Ben Hsu

We covered many of the upgrades and throwbacks of the facelifted 2027 Nissan Z, but Nissan just pointed us to a few more that we missed. One of the coolest is the fact that the Performance trim wheels are inspired by those of the Z31. These are 19-inchers made by Rays, its thin spokes revealing Akebono calipers, and wrapped with wrapped with Bridgestone Potenza S007 tires that are half an inch wider on the rear. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

QotW: Which Japanese crossover will be the first classic?

Posted on June 8, 2026 by Steve Chang

If you lived through the 90s, you saw the rise of crossovers as the downfall of humanity. They were called names like soft-roaders, cute-utes, faux-by-fours. It seemed impossible that people would one day think of them as desirable classics, but today is a new landscape. Younger buyers are drawn to cars like the Honda Element and picnic-tabled CR-Vs. Importers are bringing in Nissan Rasheens and Honda HR-Vs to sell in the US. Matchbox even released a 1/64 version of the original Toyota RAV4 this year and it’s one of the coolest castings in the lineup. Perhaps it’ll soon be time for a new car show, Crossovers D’Elegance.

Which Japanese crossover will be the first classic?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “How are your automotive new year’s resolutions coming along?“. Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged | 6 Comments

The revived Nissan Primera nameplate has a lot to live up to

Posted on June 5, 2026 by Ben Hsu

After nearly two decades, the Nissan Primera nameplate has been revived. Those expecting an SR20-powered sports sedan may be disappointed, though, as the Primera has been resurrected as an EV. While it shares a name with its predecessors, it likely won’t have as storied a motorsports history. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Listen to Subaru boxer engines revving though the decades

Posted on June 4, 2026 by Steve Chang

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Subaru boxer. The venerable horizontally opposed engine has powered nearly every star-badged car since the 1966 Subaru 1000. The company has just published a retrospective video of its signature powerplant, revving each evolution of the iconic motor. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged | 4 Comments

The Tommykaira ZZ returns with a modern facelift to show carmakers what’s possible

Posted on June 3, 2026 by Ben Hsu

The last of the Tommykaira ZZ sports cars was built in June 2021. However, the hand-built Japanese sports car may seems to have risen anew at the Automotive Engineering Exposition in Yokohama. Strictly speaking, this isn’t a Tommykaira, but is based on the beloved mid-engined roadster. Officially it’s called the No.9 Sweep9, and it wears a modern nose. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged | 1 Comment

Mazda Miata’s new color is a departure from the green you know

Posted on June 2, 2026 by Justin Principe

Back in the days of print magazines, there was a Road & Track column in which the prolific British roadster fan Peter Egan searched desperately for the proper shade of British Racing Green to paint his restoration project (we can’t recall what the car was, maybe an Austin-Healey or Morgan). He went to a British car show and looked at all the restored cars there. None of them looked right, until one perfect BRG car stopped him in his tracks. Egan asked the owner what paint he used. Somewhat embarrassed, the owner whispered, “It’s a Mazda Miata color.” Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

QotW: How are your automotive new year’s resolutions coming along?

Posted on June 1, 2026 by Ben Hsu

It’s June 1, which is New Year’s Resolution Recommitment Day. They call it a midyear milestone even though it’s not actually the midpoint of the year, but with summer starting it’s probably a good time to dig in to whatever project you have brewing. I started 2026 resolving to build my dream garage. To be perfectly honest, I have yet to begin. The garage is part of a larger house remodel and, according to my wife, for some reason  the living quarters take priority. Hopefully y’all are making more progress than me.

How are your automotive new year’s resolutions coming along?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Why do you like cars?“. Continue reading →

Posted in News | 11 Comments

The Mitsubishi Pajero will officially return in fall 2026

Posted on May 29, 2026 by Ben Hsu

It’s official. Mitsubishi has announced that the Pajero will return by year’s end. The revived SUV will serve as the company’s flagship as it tries to rebuild its brand. Its comeback has been speculated upon since 2024, but we started feeling pretty good about the Pajero’s chances last December when Mitsubishi restored its first Dakar-winning Pajero. An official teaser followed soon after. Now we know for certain it’s a true body-on-frame vehicle developed entirely in-house.

Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The original Honda Accord was almost a shooting brake

Posted on May 28, 2026 by Ben Hsu

Though we think of the Honda Accord as the quintessential family sedan today, the original Honda Accord debuted in 1976 as a three-door hatchback. As Honda’s first mainstream car it didn’t break any molds in terms of design — that would come later. The first-generation Accord was just a good, honest steed that didn’t break the bank. However, it turns out Honda had some pretty funky alternative designs for the Accord, and if a butterfly in Brazil had given its wings an extra flap we might have gotten a very different car. Continue reading →

Posted in Design | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Turns out the Honda Motocompo fits perfectly into the trunk of an NSX

Posted on May 27, 2026 by Dan Hsu

Everyone knows that the Honda Motocompo was designed to stow neatly in the back of the Honda City. As it happens, it also fits so perfectly into the trunk of an NSX that it almost seems intentional, despite the supercar arriving decade after the City’s 1981 debut. And then it took until 2026 for someone to figure this out. Continue reading →

Posted in Motorcycles | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Nissan to open first NISMO Performance Center outside of Japan

Posted on May 26, 2026 by Ben Hsu

Nissan has announced its first NISMO Performance Center outside of Japan. The facility will be located in Ferntree Gully, Victoria, about 45 minutes outside of Melbourne. Nissan states that the center will provide a direct link to the NISMO Omori Factory headquarters in Japan, with support for restoration programs. Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged , | 2 Comments