Monthly Archives: August 2015
QotW: What’s the greatest nostalgic Nissan?
Last week we learned that an R35 GT-R is not the only Nissan that knows how to steal a supercar’s thunder. It’s hard to believe, but we haven’t yet asked what the greatest nostalgic Nissan is. We’ve inquired about the greatest Toyota, … Continue reading
NIHON LIFE: Summer Evening on the Wangan
The O-Bon is an annual festival that honors the souls of one’s ancestors. Many Tokyoites head to their hometowns to visit the graves of their forebearers, leaving the city strangely free of its dreaded logjam traffic. In other words, it’s the perfect … Continue reading
Posted in Nihon Life
Tagged Caterham, century, chaser, DeTomaso Pantera, gt-r, honda, integra, Integra Type R, isuzu, isuzu 117, JXZ100, lamborghini, mini, Nihon Life, nissan, nsx, r32, r34, s800, skyline, toyota, vw, wangan
13 Comments
MINICARS: Scale-Master’s “Zero Celica” Hot Wheels custom
One of the great things about customizing Hot Wheels or building model kits is that you are free to create cars that you can’t build in real life. In the modern automotive universe, drifting is probably as close to the epic … Continue reading
Posted in minicars
Tagged a20, celica, daruma, hot wheels, Hot Wheels customs, Mitsubishi Zero, ScaleMaster, toyota
3 Comments
GRAND TOURING: Driving Monterey in a couple of old Datsuns
You might have heard that Monterey Historic Car Week is great, and it’s true. You can’t swing a monocle without hitting a million-dollar supercar or legendary racer. Then there was us, tooling around behind the wheel of a Datsun that cost less than $2,000 when … Continue reading
A Brief History of the Toyota AE86 Corolla
In the second of a series, JNC is teaming up with our friends at Petrolicious to launch simultaneously a video and an article about historically significant Japanese cars. Be sure to check out the excellent Petrolicious and their beautiful short … Continue reading
Posted in Video
Tagged ae86, Antonio Alvendia, corolla gt-s, corolla levin, Petrolicious, sprinter trueno, toyota
10 Comments
VIDEO: Jay Leno goes bananas for a Savanna
Jay Leno was is probably the most famous Mazda Cosmo Sport owner out there, but that doesn’t mean he can’t still get his socks knocked off by a bridgeported 13B turbo RX-3. In the latest Jay Leno’s Garage video, the host meets … Continue reading
Posted in Video
5 Comments
QotW: What car of the Nineties will be the next sought-after classic?
With cars like the R32 Skyline GT-R increasing in price, other Bubble Era sleds are sure to follow suit. Though the Nineties are not quite nostalgic, we can already predict what might be the next sought-after rarities (a 320hp, AWD, 6-speed folding … Continue reading
SAN MAMIYA’S CORNER: San Mamiya X JNC debut
We are proud to welcome Japan-based artist San Mamiya as a regular contributor to JNC. After we featured his brilliant artwork in March, some of the JNC staff commissioned him to draw their own cars. That project snowballed into a deeper collaboration, and we hope readers … Continue reading
Posted in San Mamiya's Corner
Tagged 240z, 510 Wagon, bluebird, bongo, c10, celica, cressida, daruma, datsun, datsun 620, fuji speedway, Hakosuka, hot wheels, jun imai, mad manga, mazda, Mazinger Z, miata, mx-5, nissan, rx-3, rx-7, s30 fairlady z, San Mamiya, savanna, skyline, toyota, Tsukuba Circuit
33 Comments
VIDEO: Oka no Blume Meeting 2015
Watch as the purveyors of Japanese shakotan style head to a meet in Shiga Prefecture. Words cannot do these cars justice so you’ll just have to watch the video itself.
VIDEO: Watch a Kenmeri Nissan Skyline GT-R sell for $176,000
A 1973 Nissan Skyline GT-R sold for $176,000 at auction at the recent Monterey Historic Car Week. As the first Kenmeri GT-R sold at auction in the US, it’s a significant milestone. We were fortunate enough to be able to witness the historic … Continue reading
Posted in for sale, marketwatch
Tagged fj40, gt-r, kenmeri, kidney anyone, kpgc110, nissan, skyline
10 Comments
Why the R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R has “doubled” in price
According to several Japanese car importing businesses, prices of the R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R have doubled in Japan. This is not surprising, as the R32 is one of the most sought-after cars from the tuner era and it is now federally legal to import … Continue reading
QotW: What JNC design has aged better with time?
Like many JNCs, when it debuted the X70 Cressida was an utterly nondescript family hauler. The ur-Avalon’s boxy lines were dismissed as typical Toyota conservative styling and it sat completely unrecognized for decades. Now we’re in a Cressida renaissance, and it’s the … Continue reading
SHOP LIFE: The return of Racing Mate
Racing Mate, the Japanese motorsport accessories company, founded in the 1960s by race car drivers Soukichi Shikiba and Tokudaiji Aritsune, is back. While the relaunch has been planned as early as 2013, they have just recently released the first complete kit, and it’s … Continue reading
TUNE UP: Kujira Crowns in K-pop video
A couple of Kujira Crowns, both in wagon and sedan form, have popped up in the most unlikely of places — in a K-pop video. At first glance this may seem unusual because, according to the Toyota South Korea website, … Continue reading
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 1989 Mitsubishi Delica Star Wagon Turbo-D Chamonix
Hey ladies, do any of you want a ride in my diesel Mitsubishi van? That might not sound like the best pick up line ever used, but once you see today’s Kidney Car, you might change your mind. Browsing through my … Continue reading
EVENTS: Old School Love, New School Flavor, Part 03: Mazda, Honda and Mitsubishi
In the Part 01 and Part 02 of the coverage from Team_Nostalgic’s Old School Love, New School Flavor show, we featured exclusively the cars of Toyota and Datsun, respectively. In our final upload we arrive at Mazda and include two less well-represented … Continue reading
Posted in events
Tagged crx, ef, fc3s, Galant VR-4, lancer evolution, mazda, mitsubishi, Old School Love New School Flavor, rx-3, rx-7, SA22/FB
6 Comments
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 1989 Isuzu Bighorn Irmscher R
Are grown men allowed to cry about cars? It was a normal Thursday evening just like any other. I sat down at my PC after work to check a couple of eBay auctions, and something caught my eye on eBay’s tailored (to me) … Continue reading
QotW: What JNC race replica would you buy?
Last week Ricky wrote about a British builder’s 1968 Honda RA302 replica. That gave us fever dreams of apexing an old JNC racer full tilt through a chicane, preservation of history be damned. Oh, how we wish we could buy a vintage body-in-white to pound on harder than Justin … Continue reading
MINICARS: 2015 Japanese Model Kit Roundup
It’s summertime, time to go outside and play! Or, whip out those Tamiya paint cans and spray the plastic bodies of your favorite JNC model kits. Do it outside when it’s sunny and dry to avoid accidentally painting your furniture or … Continue reading
