Author Archives: Ben Hsu
JUN RX-7 at Le Mans, Circa 1981
We all know the story of how Mazda has been attacking the most punishing enduros in the world for the past 40 years (if you don’t, it’s all told in Issue 1 of JNC magazine :D), and in 1991 became … Continue reading
Posted in mazda, motorsports
7 Comments
Face 1 Meeting 2008
Ok, we have no idea what this Japanese gathering is really called; we’re just cutting and pasting into Babelfish like everyone else. So until someone who reads Japanese can come along with some better ideas, Face 1 Meeting 2008 it … Continue reading
Posted in events, japan
3 Comments
GPS Navigation Bear Is Your Co-Pilot
This may look like an ordinary stuffed bear, but what we have here is the convergence of at least three wildly popular Japanese trends – cuteness, robots, and completely useless technology. Meet Japan’s robotics firm iXs Research‘s latest product, the … Continue reading
Posted in japan
3 Comments
Creepy Guy in Van Stalks Woman Z Driver
From the Disco Ain’t Dead Bureau comes this video clip from devout reader SR-Fairlady Z. It’s part of a 1979 made-for-TV movie called Death Car on the Freeway in which a guy who looks like someone Chris Hansen might confront … Continue reading
Posted in datsun, nissan, Video Games
7 Comments
More Datsuns With Strange Drivetrains
Yesterday we saw an unlikely off-roader built in part from a small Japanese sports car in the 4×4 Datsun Fairlady Roadster mudder. Perhaps it was an omen for GM’s statement today that the entire Hummer brand is on the chopping … Continue reading
Datsun Fairlady Off-Roadster
O-kaaaaay. You don’t see this every day. And by this we mean a mud-splattered Datsun Roadster mounted on a Jeep CJ5 drivetrain. Here’s some videos of it doing it’s thang. Fairlady? More like bearded lady. [CarDomain Blog]
Posted in datsun, nissan
4 Comments
GrandJDM Migration 90% Complete
Over the weekend, we finally migrated the grandJDM posts over to JNC. You can find all the archived fabulousity by using the search box to your left. All of the info-rich text is there, but eagle-eyed techies have noticed the … Continue reading
Posted in jnc, Nuts and Bolts
14 Comments
H is for Honda, Hot Wheels, and Happy Childhood
We’re not sure how we became unhealthily obsessed with automobiles, but having kind parents who bought us Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars probably helped. It’s hard to believe that the little metal furniture scratchers will be 40 years old this … Continue reading
Posted in honda, minicars
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Datsun Sunny A Poster Child for Pollution
Here’s a bummer of a leftover from our NorCal photo reel. This billboard for California’s Bureau of Automotive Repairs, DriveHealthy.com, was spotted in San Jose and features a clapped out Datto Sunny as an example of a polluter. It turns … Continue reading
Posted in cm, datsun
5 Comments
WANT: 28,700-Mile '69 Corona on eBay
Once in a blue moon, something comes along that makes you want to sell your organs to black marketeers. In 2007, we saw a 1966 Toyota Corona sedan with 8700 original miles sell at auction for $16,740. Now, a similarly … Continue reading
Posted in for sale, toyota
6 Comments
JNC in NorCal Prizes
Congrats to Daniel and Zeb, who correctly guessed that two of the cars we were photographing for an upcoming issue of JNC were a Datsun 1600 Fairlady Roadster and a Dodge Challenger (aka Mitsubishi Galant Lambda). Actually, Kev’s post was … Continue reading
Posted in contests, jnc
6 Comments
EVENTS: Motoring J Style
We’ve been in NorCal manning the JNC booth at Motoring J Style and doing some photo shoots for upcoming issues of JNC magazine. We’re back now and, as promised, here’s a report from the show. There’s more photos in the … Continue reading
Posted in events
3 Comments
JNC Greetings from NorCal, Part III
Today we were all over the place, from Concord to San Fran to San Jose. The most exciting moment came when one of our subjects’ cars ran out of gas on I-280 and coasted to a stop in the middle … Continue reading
Posted in jnc
20 Comments
JNC Greetings from NorCal
Just before were were about to leave for the Motoring J Style show on Friday, the official JNC wagon experienced a technical malfunction. As a result, in a frenzied last minute decision we had to take a decidedly un-nostalgic car … Continue reading
Posted in events, jnc
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Beauty Is in the Eye of the Expressway Interchange
Our man Kev is in Japan right now seeing the sights. And oh what sights there are. Tokyo is so densely packed that expressways don’t run through it, they run over it. Legendary road systems like the Shuto and Wangan … Continue reading
Posted in japan
6 Comments
WANT: Nissan President Hearse on eBay
We mentioned Japanese hearses the other day, and as luck would have it, there happens to be one on eBay right now. And this one guarantees safe passage into the underworld because there’s a giant f’in golden dragon on it. … Continue reading
Posted in nissan
5 Comments
Reminder: Motoring J Style This Weekend
For those of you spread around this vast nation of ours, we just wanted to let you know that not all vintage Japanese car events are in SoCal. In fact, some are in NorCal. Check out Motoring J Style this … Continue reading
Posted in events
2 Comments
Bring Out Ye Dead: Japanese Hearses
When Japanese people die, it’s not enough to go out in a big, black, velvet-lined station wagon. You have to arrive at the afterlife party in style. That’s why we’re glad that alert reader Toyotageek posted a link to pictures … Continue reading
Posted in japan
10 Comments
