Author Archives: Ben Hsu
Mr. Craft Closes Its Doors
Any car nut who has been to Tokyo has surely passed through the doors of Mr. Craft, a five-story building full of toy cars in every scale, brand, and material you can imagine. Radio control, plastic model kits, diecast, wind-up … Continue reading
Posted in japan, minicars
3 Comments
Tire Stretching Guide, With Pictures
We all know there are few things sexier than stretched tires flush mounted on an old school Japanese car, right? The problem has been trying to figure out how a particular tire will look on your rim without a bunch … Continue reading
Posted in wheels
7 Comments
MX41 Toyota Chaser Meets Crusher
Here, have a sad. This is what happens at Japanese junkyards every day. In this case, a perfectly decent-looking MX41 Toyota Chaser, a 2-door version of the Cressida that we never got, is introduced to the Grim Crusher. It was … Continue reading
Posted in japan, toyota
11 Comments
Z Club of San Diego Sweetheart Run
Just got this email from the guys at the Z Club of San Diego. Join them this Sunday if you want to drive through Temecula Wine Country. Details below.
Posted in datsun, events, nissan
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President's Day Miracle: Nissan President Wagon
In celebration of President’s Day here at JNC we thought we’d bring you a photo of the baddest, most mind-numbingly awesomest example of Nissan’s flagship that we could find. That’s right sportsfans, it’s a 250 President wagon. As if having … Continue reading
Happy Valentine’s Day from JNC
Japan’s Frantz Kobe Sweets releases a popular set of chocolate tools around this time each year. It even comes with a cocoa sparkplug for lending a little spark to amorous moments with your loved one. Kev is going to present … Continue reading
Toyota Crown on Crown Violence
It’s Friday, so here’s your weekend video. This video clip causes me actual physical pain because it combines three of my deepest loves – the kujira Crown, wagons, and vintage work vehicle paint schemes – and blows them all to … Continue reading
Posted in toyota, Video Games, wagons
10 Comments
Nissan Silvia Dies, But Mazda RX-7 Lives!
Oh noes! Our friends a The Motor Report, um, report that the upcoming revival of the Nissan Silvia is dead in the water. Anyone care to venture a guess as to why? Ding ding ding! That’s right, the correct answer … Continue reading
Slidin' Sunnys and Coastin' Corollas
We know not all JNC readers baby their nostalgics, so here’s some examples of nostalgics behaving badly from a couple of blogs we like. Nori Yaro‘s gallery of drifting remind us of the guys from the Japanese KE70 drift team … Continue reading
Posted in datsun, nissan, toyota
Tagged datsun sunny, drifting, ke70 corolla, nissan sunny, toyota corolla
2 Comments
Happy Birthday, Mazda MX-5
Has it really been 20 years since the birth of the Mazda MX-5? Indeed. The little two-seat roadster was unveiled in February 1989 at the Chicago Auto Show. Okay, we know this really isn’t a nostalgic yet, but it was … Continue reading
Arthur Garage, Used Car Dealer Manga
Here’s another car-based manga to add to your library in addition to Initial-D, Wangan Midnight and Garage Restore 251. It’s Arthur Garage, a series published in Kodansha’s Weekly Young Magazine. From what we can gather based on extremely limited Japanese … Continue reading
Hanshin Expressway Plows Through Building
This is the Gate Tower Building in downtown Osaka, an otherwise nondescript office high-rise except for the fact that the Hanshin Expressway plows right through the middle of it. How did this happen? Apparently it’s the result of a freak … Continue reading
Cash for Clunkers, UK Edition
Egad! As if the moist climate of Ye Olde World hasn’t taken enough old J-tin, it appears that Cash for Clunkers programs are now being rolled out in the UK as well. In this piece titled “Money for old rope? … Continue reading
Posted in laws
6 Comments
Honda S800 & S2000 Rendezvous
How about a nice Honda screensaver, illustrated by master automotive artist Bow? It’s called “Dream,” a charming little story in which a vintage S800 has a coastal rendezvous with a new S2000. Unfortunately the S-car lineage has just ended for … Continue reading
EVENTS: JCCA New Year Meeting 2009
Ok, we lied. This is the last post before the weekend. Click the picture above for nearly 300 pics from the JCCA New Year Meeting. Enjoy!
Posted in events, new year meeting
6 Comments
Mazda Cosmo Sports Monster Fighter!
It’s Friday and you’ve made it through another week. We thought we’d end this one with another old Japanese clip featuring a nostalgic car. This time it’s Return of Ultraman, the fourth in the tokusatsu television series, running from 1971-72. … Continue reading
Posted in mazda, Video Games
Tagged mazda, mazda cosmo 110s, mazda cosmo sports, mazda cosmo ultraman
12 Comments
Famous Toyota and Mazda Racers, JNC Issue 3 Sneak Peek
Time to check in with our friends at Speedhunters, who have had the fortune to see the famous yellow and green Toyota 2000GT land speed record car in person. If you’ve read Lifelong Pursuit, our profile about Shunichi Kasai’s Toyota … Continue reading
Posted in mazda, motorsports, toyota
Tagged imsa gtu mazda, mazda, mazda rx-7, mazda rx7, rx-7, rx7, toyota 2000gt, toyota 2000gt land speed record, yatabe, yatabe 2000gt
8 Comments
Honda Builds 20M Cars in North America
On November 1, 1982, the first Japanese car built in America rolled off the assembly lines in Marysville, Ohio. The manufacturer was Honda, and the car was a gray Accord sedan wearing the license plate “USA 001”. Today, Honda has … Continue reading
