Acura has revealed its new RSX prototype, and it’s a big electric crossover. If this was five years ago we may have some reserve of anger left, but it’s 2025. We’ve suffered too many rug-pulls from automakers promising the return of a cherished nameplate while all the while knowing they’d deliver nothing like the original. We no longer feel outrage, just numbness. Continue reading
Toyota announces reproduction parts for AE86 twin-cam engine
A couple of months ago Toyota announced that it had barn-found an old AE86 in Japan that they planned to restore. The purpose was to show what could be accomplished with the roster of remade parts under the Gazoo Racing Heritage Parts program. That project is now underway and Toyota has posted an update and, man, this heap looks way worse than it did when they dragged it out. Continue reading
Indy 500 champ Takuma Sato will rally a first-gen Honda Civic RS in Monte Carlo
Two-time Indianapolis 500 champ Takuma Sato is jumping out of his Indy racer and into a vintage rally car. He’ll be piloting a 1975 Honda Civic RS in the Rallye Monte Carlo Historique, a vintage rally event that stretches 1200 to 1800 miles across Europe. The Civic is currently being built by students at the Honda Technical College in what is surely one of the coolest class projects ever. Continue reading
This model of a Honda F1 race car costs as much as a real Civic Si that you can drive
Decisions, decisions. Buy a ridiculously detailed scale model of the first Japanese car to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix, or a real 1:1 Honda Civic Si? Both cost around $29,000, but only one can actually be driven. In honor of the 60th anniversary of their F1 win, Honda has just announced the most elaborate scale replica of the 1965 Honda RA272 ever made. Continue reading
Posted in minicars
Tagged Amalgam Collection, formula 1, honda, Monterey Car Week, ra272
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QotW: What’s an automotive bonding activity you can do with kids?
Today, August 11, is National Sons and Daughters Day. I’ve played Hot Wheels with my son as soon as he was able, but now he’s aging out of them and getting serious about Pokémon cards. Still, I’ve found ways to bond with him over car-related things like going to shows or building a Tamiya Mini 4WD. One of my favorite road trips was a recent one when the two of us flew one-way to Phoenix to pick up a low-mileage Acura TSX Wagon for a friend and drive it back to LA. We both had a blast and it’s something I’ll never forget and
What’s an automotive bonding activity you can do with kids?
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s your favorite piece of infrastructure?“. Continue reading
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Williams-Honda FW11 championship winning F1 car restored
In 1987 Honda embarked on an epic streak of Formula 1 supremacy. The Honda RA166 1.5-liter turbocharged V6 mounted in the Williams-Honda FW11 produced 1200 to 1500 horsepower at 12,000 rpm and was one of the most powerful motors of the era. It would secure Honda’s first Constructors’ Championship in what would be a six-year era of dominance of the sport. Now nearly 40 years later, Honda and Williams have restored this piece of history. Continue reading
Posted in motorsport
Tagged Goodwood Festival of Speed, honda, Nigel Mansell, Williams-Honda FW11
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Suzuki celebrates 40th anniversary of GSX-R motorcycle with special editions
The Suzuki GSX-R series has long been designed to be the hardest core of the crotch rockets. Others Japanese motorcycles were street bikes that were adapted for racing; the GSX-R was built as a race bike for the street. Incredibly, that formula has survived for 40 years across multiple models. To honor this legacy, Suzuki has introduced 40th anniversary models of the GSX-R750, GSX-R1000, and GSX-R1000R. Continue reading
Tomica celebrates 30 years of ‘Initial D’ with detailed premium sets of AE86, RX-7, S13, and more
Great news for Hachiroku fans this AE86 Day. Tomica has announced a set of highly detailed toy cars in honor of Initial D‘s 30th anniversary. The cars include Takumi’s iconic Toyota AE86, Keisuke’s Mazda RX-7, Iketani’s Nissan Silvia, and a replica of the Fujiwara Tofu Shop. Continue reading
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Here comes the Sunny: B110 grille trend continues with Suzuki Jimny mask
The B110 Nissan Sunny had one of the most distinctive grilles of all time. It has become a trend to mount its face on new, non-Sunny Japanese cars to evoke a retro feel on the modern machinery. The latest to don the Sunny mask is the Suzuki Jimny, thanks to an aftermarket company called Beyond Japan. Continue reading
The second-gen Lexus LS400 was even LS-ier than the first
After the original Lexus LS400 turned the traditional luxury car market upside down, engineers for the second-generation asked, “Why mess with success?” The XF20 gave customers more of the LS’s trademark opulence, sumptuousness, competence, and overall value, just more of it. Despite the car being 90 percent new, it can be hard to tell the difference between the pre-facelift XF20 and the XF10. Continue reading
QotW: What’s your favorite piece of infrastructure?
Today, August 4, is Bridge Day, a pun on the words eight (ha) and four (shi), which form hashi, or “bridge” in Japanese. It was first held in Nobeoka City, Kyushu Prefecture, known for its many bridges and is now celebrated in all 47 prefectures. However, there’s a competing holiday, Suspension Bridge Day, that also takes place today and was started by Totsukawa Village, Nara Prefecture, whose mountainous terrain is home to 60 bridges.
There’s always something a bit breathtaking about driving across a bridge, or any massive piece of engineering, and thinking about, however briefly, the vast amount of brainpower and muscle that we tiny humans put forth to build such a structure.
What’s your favorite piece of infrastructure?
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Daily, Garage, or Sell — Transformers, Go-Bots, or MASK“. Continue reading
Posted in Question of the Week
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Safari Rally Datsun 240Z celebrated with trio of Seiko limited edition watches
Welcome to another edition of Japanese Nostalgic Chronograph. Hot off the heels of the Initial D 30th anniversary collaboration, Seiko has released three watches honoring the rallying successes of the Datsun 240Z. The trio are part of Seiko’s Speedtimer series, which was launched in 1969, the same year as Nissan’s famed S30 chassis, and have always been designed for timekeeping in motorsports and athletics. Continue reading
The last Honda V10 to power Ayrton Senna is up for auction
Honda will soon be auctioning off the last V10 engine that powered Ayrton Senna’s rise to become the 1990 Formula 1 Drivers’ Champion, and helped McLaren-Honda clinch that year’s Constructors’ Championship. Until now, it’s been in Honda’s possession exactly as it was at the end of the 1990 season. Come August, it’ll be sold to one lucky collector. Continue reading
Initial D celebrates 30th anniversary with limited edition Seiko watch
Automotive culture was forever changed when when Initial D launched in July of 1995. To mark the seminal touge manga’s 30th anniversary, author Shuichi Shigeno and publisher Kodansha have teamed up with renowned watchmaker Seiko for a limited edition timepiece. Its design features several notable design cues from Takumi Fujiwara’s tofu delivery Toyota AE86. Continue reading
Why a 2001 Acura Integra Type R sold for over $200,000
A 2001 Acura Integra has sold for $204,204. Unfortunately, your clapped out Viper killer is still going for the same price as it did before, because the record breaker is no ordinary Integra. For one, it’s an Integra Type R, the best-handling front-wheel-drive car ever built. It also has less than 4800 miles on the odometer, making it about as new as new can be. Continue reading
QotW: Daily, Garage, or Sell — Transformers, Go-Bots, or MASK
Welcome to another edition of Daily, Garage, or Sell, JNC‘s version of FMK. We’ve asked the question of 90s roadsters, flagship sedans, 80s drifters and more, but this time we’re turning our attention to 80s toys with their own cartoon lines. Transformers, Go-Bots, and MASK competed for the after-school attention of kids by telling elaborate tales of vehicles that changed into formidable battle machines. And when the same kids went to the toy store, complex toy versions of those vehicles competed for their parents’ dollars. It was the first generation to have such an overabundance of pop culture, and it was a great time to grow up.
Daily, Garage, or Sell — Transformers, Go-Bots, or MASK
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s the most scenic place you’ve driven to?“. Continue reading
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Six-wheeled Toyota Century is the ultimate last ride
When it comes time to take that final trip by car, there aren’t many better ways to go than with a Toyota Century hearse. However, if a funeral car built from even the most luxurious of Japanese sedans is too ordinary for you, there is a solution. Up for sale is a modified Century that has been stretched over six wheels. Continue reading
Register now to celebrate 20 years of the Japanese Classic Car Show
America’s premier show for classic Japanese cars is turning 20 this year. It’s an amazing achievement for JCCS, which started at a time when the idea of a Japanese car being worthy of collecting or restoring was still in question. Today nobody would dare challenge that notion, and the JCCS had a lot to do with that cultural shift. The first JCCS was held in 2006, making this year’s show the 20th anniversary of that seminal event. Continue reading
RIP Shunsaku Tamiya, the man who made plastic model kits a global obsession
Shunsaku Tamiya, former president and chairman of Tamiya, Inc., passed away on July 18. His death was announced on July 21, with funeral services attended by close family and friends. Mr Tamiya led the transformation of Tamiya into a world-renowned manufacturer of high-precision plastic model kits, radio control vehicles, and motorized Mini 4WD racers.
He joined the company founded by his father originally as a transport firm, and switched to supplying lumber after the war. That brought about an expansion into wooden models, primarily of ships and planes. After a fire destroyed the company’s lumber supply, it focused primarily on the models.
Not long after, plastic technology improved and began taking over the model kit market. Shunsuke Tamiya spearheaded the shift to puramo (a portmanteau of “plastic” and “model”) and in the process changed the industry. He helped fuel enthusiasm for cars, as well as other types of transportation, for generations of children and adults alike. Continue reading
Weds Wheels debuts steelies for kei cars and vans
Forged alloys take the cake when it comes to pure function, but there’s always going to be something sinister about a set of steelies. Recognizing that steel wheels are from the factory these days, Weds Wheels has developed a steelie that gives kei cars and vans a bit of that old school cool. Continue reading
