Author Archives: Ben Hsu
NEWS: Toyota’s new concept was designed to be passed down from one generation to the next
Toyota has created a car that lasts 100 years so it can be passed down within the family from one generation to the next. “But they already make the Camry!” you might say. That is true, but the Toyota Setsuna concept isn’t just an insanely … Continue reading
Happy 4/11 Day from JNC
In honor of today, here’s a photo from the time we drove a Datsun 411 through a sea of supercars during Monterey Historic Car Week. Happy 4/11!
QotW: What nostalgic-new body kit will be next?
The new Rocket Bunny Boss kit that turns unsuspecting FDs into some kind of Mazda centaur with an RX-3 head on an RX-7 body was, um, polarizing. It’s not the first new cars have been faceswapped with older fronts — as you can … Continue reading
A note about last weekend’s outage
The JNC server experienced a disk failure Friday night. It took almost the entire weekend for our webhost to diagnose and rectify the problem. We had to restore to the most recent backup, which was taken at 9:00am Friday. … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
18 Comments
KIDNEY, ANYONE? Custom Toyota Hilux Dually with fifth wheel and camper
Okay, time to pack it up. It’s done, people. This is the last car you’ll ever need to buy. Sell your house, quit your job, and leave the grid in the comfort of this custom Toyota Hilux and its matching camper.
NEWS: Mazda is working on a new, possibly turbo, rotary engine
Last fall at the Tokyo Motor Show Mazda revealed a stunning vision for the future. Appropriately, it was called the RX-Vision, and as the name implies, it was a rotary-powered sports car in the tradition of the Mazda RX-7 and Cosmo Sport. While … Continue reading
QotW: What’s the most interesting JNC throwback design cue?
Automakers often incorporate classic design cues into the modern cars. Sometimes they’re obvious, like the quad taillights of the Nissan GT-R. Sometimes they’re obscure, like the C-pillar of the second-generation Scion tC. There are probably some that only the most die-hard otaku … Continue reading
GRAND TOURING: Godzilla invades New York — Behind the scenes of the NY Auto Show with a Hakosuka GT-R
There is no US city more hostile to the automobile than New York. Most of its 8.5 million residents don’t own cars. Here, they are nothing more than 3,000-pound accumulators of parking tickets and dents. Some of the city’s roads aren’t even paved. Then we … Continue reading
Posted in Grand Touring
Tagged c10, gt-r, Hakosuka, kpgc10, nissan, ny auto show, skyline
11 Comments
VIDEO: One man’s obsession with his Dekotora
Takuya Sosogi’s work is ostensibly the shipping of fresh fruit and vegetables. In reality, though, it’s modifying his Mitsubishi Fuso dekotora. Like many dekotora drivers, he became obsessed with “decoration trucks” after watching the 1975 film Torakku Yarō and hasn’t looked back.
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 2,500-mile Toyota 2000GT sells for $4.1 million
This is getting ridiculous. If you thought prices on J-tin have been skyrocketing before, you ain’t seen nothing yet. A 1967 Toyota 2000GT, the bluest of the Japanese blue chip classics, has sold for $4.1 million. That price obliterates the previous … Continue reading
NEWS: Honda’s Ohio factory evacuated due to bomb threat
2,000 employees at Honda’s Marysville, Ohio plant were evacuated just after 11:00 am local time today due to a bomb threat. Everything is fine, and no one was hurt, and business as usual has since been resumed. A note saying that the … Continue reading
NEWS: Japan raises its national speed limit
Last Thursday, the Japanese government passed a law allowing the raising of the national speed limit for the first time. Ever since the opening of Japan’s first highway, the Meishin Expressway, in 1963 the speed limit has been pegged at 100 kph … Continue reading
Mazda to run three heritage vehicles in JNC Touge California
We are very proud to announce that Mazda will be bringing three of its cars out from their heritage collection for a 200-mile drive in this year’s JNC Touge California. The vintage rally takes place this Saturday, April 2, and earlier this month the folks at … Continue reading
Official 2016 JNC Touge California poster
For 2016, the official poster for the JNC Touge California features two landmark cars that will run the 200-mile vintage car rally this weekend. To honor title sponsor Mazda, we are highlighting a rare 1974 Mazda RX-4 Hardtop Coupé. A similar car will be … Continue reading
Posted in Touge California
Tagged 240z, datsun, luce, mazda, mr k, nissan, rx-4, Touge California, yutaka katayama
10 Comments
VIDEO: Toyota Corolla 50th Anniversary
Last week Toyota threw a party in New York celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Corolla. This is a copy of the video that was playing on loop on TVs during the event. KE10, TE37, TE51, AL10, AE86, and a bunch of … Continue reading
Posted in Video
Tagged ae86, corolla, corolla levin, e30, sprinter trueno, te51, tercel, toyota
3 Comments
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 24k-mile Z31 Turbo
The charms of this 1985 Nissan 300ZX are many. It appears to have every box on the options menu checked. It’s got the proper transmission. It’s a turbo and not a 2+2. It seems to have been very well preserved. And it has … Continue reading
QotW: What’s your most brutal tale of JNC price inflation?
If there’s one thing new JNCers hate, it’s when old JNCers tell stories of how, back in the day, [insert rare model name here] could be had all day long for $500. Or how [insert rare part here] were so plentiful people would send … Continue reading
Akio drives his favorite Toyota Corolla
In honor of the Corolla’s 50th anniversary, Toyota has posted a photo of their CEO in a TE71. “My used 4th generation Corolla 1600 GT was like a best friend to me. I shared my youth with it! That car showed me … Continue reading
NY Auto Show: Acura made a RWD non-hybrid NSX
Like the title says, Acura unveiled an NSX powered purely by the back wheels and which threw out the electric motors, batteries, and other hybrid gear. The bad news is, if you buy one, the only place you can drive it is in … Continue reading
NY Auto Show: Hope for humanity confirmed as Mazda Miata wins World Car of the Year
The world may be rushing headlong towards domination by blundering crossovers and autonomous hybrids, but there’s still hope for a light, impractical, rear-wheel-drive sports car. Proof of that came today when the ND Mazda Miata won two of the five World … Continue reading
