Author Archives: Ben Hsu
FRIDAY VIDEO: Kei Miura, TRA Kyoto, and the Rocket Bunny FR-S
At this point cave dwellers and castaways may be the only people on Earth who haven’t had their senses assaulted by Rocket Bunny‘s insanely wide-bodied Scion FR-Ss. However, it’s Kei Miura, Osaka Kanjo racer, ex-bosozoku and shacho at TRA Kyoto that’s the man … Continue reading
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 25,000-mile 1974 Mazda RX-4
Here’s another garage gem for east coasters JNCers. A seller near Philadelphia is unloading a 25,000-mile 1974 Mazda RX-4, and it’s a beaut. We’ve long contended that the pre-facelift big Luce coupe was one of the sexiest cars from its … Continue reading
FRIDAY VIDEO: Initial D Fifth Stage, Episode 01 – Encounter of Destiny
Admit it, you’ve been waiting for this, ever since Fifth Stage rumors surfaced months ago. There’s no shame in being a fan of Initial D. After all, it features some of our favorite cars drifting through the mountains of Japan, and it can’t … Continue reading
Posted in Friday Video, mazda, toyota
Tagged ae86, corolla, Fifth Stage, Initial D, levin, mazda, miata, mx-5, nb, rx-7, sprinter, Takumi Fujiwara, trueno
18 Comments
GRAND TOURING: Sailing through the desert in an Infiniti QX56
Lawrence of Arabia. The Road Warrior. Return of the Jedi. These journeys into the desert and the hazards that befall their heros were fully seared into our minds as we traveled from Los Angeles to Phoenix, Arizona for the 25th … Continue reading
Posted in Grand Touring
Tagged 240z, bob bondurant, datsun, fairlady, fairlady roadster, infiniti, L320, nissan, qx, qx56
12 Comments
American Suzuki Motor Corp, 1985-2012
After 27 years American Suzuki Motor Corp. has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. Though it will no longer be selling cars in the US, the motorcycle and ATV side of things will continue on.
QotW: What music do you listen to when driving your nostalgic?
We all know the correct answer is “the engine,” but sometimes you need to rock out to some tunes to fully capture that nostalgic feel. What music do you listen to when driving your nostalgic? With songs their bosozoku-inspired costumes … Continue reading
Posted in nissan, Question of the Week, toyota
Tagged 2000gt, kishidan, nissan, QotW, Question of the Week, skyline, toyota
27 Comments
Reminder: Less than a month to go for Classic Japan 2012
Just a friendly reminder that there’s less than a month to go before the Classic Japan show of 2012 kicks off! The Melbourne, Australia event will showcase over 200 classic Japanese cars and over 50 motorcycles on the lawn at Como … Continue reading
Mazda RX-7 reportedly returning in 2017
2017 will be an important year for Mazda‘s rotary engine, as it will mark 50 years since the revolutionary motor’s debut in the 1967 Cosmo Sport. However, our mates at Australia’s aptly named The Motor Report are, well, reporting that 2017 is … Continue reading
EVENTS: 2012 ZCon
In the automotive kingdom there exists only a handful of models that can inspire a car show at the national level. We’re not talking about marques here; we mean a single model so iconic and beloved that its devotees have formed … Continue reading
Posted in events, nissan
Tagged 240z, 260z, 280z, 280zx, 300zx, black gold, black pearl, datsun, fairlady z, nissan, s130, s30, safari rally, shiro, z31, z32, zcca, zcon, zzzap
7 Comments
QotW: What car would you drive across Japan?
From Hokkaido to Kagoshima, Japan has some of the coolest highways and mountain passes known to man. We live vicariously through Skorj’s Grand Touring stories, in which he travels across Japan looking for nostalgic cars “in the wild.” Though he owns a Honda … Continue reading
Posted in minicars, Question of the Week
Tagged ae86, corolla, hachiroku, levin, QotW, Question of the Week, sprinter, te27, toyota, trueno
44 Comments
Friday Video: Jay Leno drives Toyota’s 1936 Toyoda AA
What’s it like to drive the first Toyota ever built? Jay Leno answers that question. Leno’s been on a whirlwind tour of Japan. First he stopped by the Nissan design center to drop hints about the 2014 Fairlady Z and take a … Continue reading
QotW: What’s the greatest Japanese racing livery?
Graphics. Livery. Warpaint. Originally meant to identify the country of origin and visually distinguish fast-moving cars on the track, they are now the domain of corporate sponsors. Either way, there have been some darn cool ones. Therefore we ask: What’s … Continue reading
Posted in honda, minicars, nissan, Question of the Week, toyota
Tagged 240z, 260z, 280z, chaser, choro-q, cressida, cresta, f1, fairlady z, formula 1, honda, mark II, mark x, minicars, nissan, QotW, Question of the Week, ra272, s30, toyota, X100, X110, X120, x20, x30, x40, x60, x70, x80, X90
31 Comments
Friday Video: God Speed You! Black Emperor
God Speed You! Black Emperor by award-winning director Mitsuo Yanagimachi is a documentary following junior members of Black Emperor, the infamous bosozoku gang, or “touring club,” as they prefer to call themselves. This is not a car movie by any means. However, if you can … Continue reading
Posted in bosozoku, Video Games
Tagged Black Emperor, bosozoku, God Speed You Black Emperor
7 Comments
EVENTS: 2012 Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 07: Trucks & Vans
Thought we were done with our barrage of 2012 JCCS photos? Think again! From mini trucks to land crushers, trucks have been part of the Nihon nostalgic scene for decades. And like their car counterparts, they have just as many … Continue reading
Friday Video: IndyCar’s Alex Lloyd drives the BRE Datsun 510
We all know why the BRE Datsun 510 rules, but what’s it like to actually drive? In this fantastic video by Road & Track, professional IndyCar racer Alex Lloyd gives viewers a seat-of-the-pants rundown on what makes the car so magical. This … Continue reading
Posted in Friday Video, motorsports, nissan
Tagged 510, bluebird, bre, datsun, Friday Video, nissan, Pete Brock, peter brock, scca
15 Comments
EVENTS: MazFest/SevenStock 2012: The Sevens
As the name implies, SevenStock was originally a gathering for Mazda‘s iconic sports car, the RX-7. Over the years it’s evolved to include all rotaries, and this year they teamed up with MazFest to throw one giant celebration of all cars flying … Continue reading
EVENTS: 2012 Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 06: Wagons & Hatchbacks
It’s no secret that many of us on the JNC team are certifiably nutty about wagons, yours truly included (There are a couple that aren’t, and they look at us as if we’re the weird ones when it’s clearly the … Continue reading
Posted in events, honda, mazda, nissan, toyota, wagons
Tagged 411, 510, 610, accord, bluebird, civic, corolla, corona, datsun, e70, ed1, ed4, honda, japanese classic car show, jccs, kp61, liftback, ln360, mark II, mazda, MkII, MkIII, mx29, n600, nissan, rx-3, savanna, sr20det, sr5, ssr, starlet, te51, te72, wagon, wagons, x20
6 Comments
EVENTS: MazFest/SevenStock 2012, Part 01: Early RX and Pistoned Mazdas
Mazda likes to brag that on any given weekend there are more of their cars on America’s road-race circuits than any other marque. It’s true that Mazdafarians love wringing their cars out, and MazFest has been one of the best events … Continue reading
Posted in events, mazda, motorsports
Tagged 323 GTX, 929, acura, capella, cx-5, familia, honda, mazda, mazdaspeed, mazdaspeed 6, MazFest, miata, mx-5, nsx, protege, r1100, racing beat, repu, rotary, rx-2, rx-3, savanna, sevenstock, ssr, wankel
19 Comments
