Author Archives: Ben Hsu

VIDEO: The Toyota Land Cruiser helped build Australia

Toyota Australia is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, and the company is celebrating the brand’s early years in the country. The back story starts with the Snowy Mountains Scheme, Australia’s largest construction project. With seven power stations, 16 large … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

VIDEO: The Mitsubishi Galant GSX offered AWD in a sporty sedan package

Everyone remembers the Eclipse GSX, Mitsubishi’s wildly popular sports coupe. Everyone also remembers the Galant VR-4, their rally-bred, turbocharged, AWD sedan. Before that arrived, however, Mitsubishi also offered a car that we almost forgot existed: the Galant GSX.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

VIDEO: Nissan gets the whole family together to celebrate 50 years of GT-R and Z

As regular JNC readers know, 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Nissan GT-R and the Nissan Fairlady Z. The GT-R debuted on February 21, 1969 and the Fairlady Z debuted on October 18, 1969. Nissan has released two videos … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

VIDEO: Honda’s early F1 years, told in manga form

Honda periodically releases videos that tell its history in manga form. The latest is about Honda’s early years competing in Formula One. In 1964, just two years after Honda produced its first cars, it formed an team to take on … Continue reading

Posted in manga, Video | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

NEWS: NA Mazda Roadster, Mitsubishi Model A inducted into Japan Automotive Hall of Fame

The 2019 inductees for the Japan Automotive Hall of Fame have been announced. The ceremony took place earlier this month, welcoming four historically significant vehicles and three important individuals for their impact and contributions to Japan’s automotive industry.

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

SEMA 2019: Honda had the best booth of the show, and there was even a Chevy in it

There used to be tons of Japanese manufacturers at SEMA. One by one, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Mazda, and Lexus have all pulled out. And in a year that marked the 50th anniversary of Nissan’s two most beloved models and the second … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

SEMA SPOTLIGHT: Daniel Wu’s show-stopping Honda S800

Even with countless companies spending big bucks, it’s hard to find anything truly stunning at SEMA anymore. The race to outdo each other and grab eyeballs, has resulted in some high-dollar builds, but when everything is extreme, nothing is. It’s … Continue reading

Posted in Spotlight | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

SEMA 2019: Finally, you can get an inexpensive ultra-wide bosozoku tire in the US

One of the most unexpected treats of the SEMA Show was the surprise appearance of Banzai Sports’ Bluebird SSS Sanitora. We first spotted this eye-catching ute at the Tokyo Auto Salon in 2018 and were extremely taken by it. Half … Continue reading

Posted in Spotlight | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

VIDEO: Behold the now-extinct B11 Nissan Sentra hatchback

The B12 Nissan Sentra didn’t really make shockwaves in the American car market, but according to Motorweek, it was once the best-selling import in the US. Not only that, but the car review program actually named the Sentra their top … Continue reading

Posted in Video | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

QotW: What’s the last car you will ever own?

This week’s QotW can be read any number of ways. Our younger readers will likely witness the dusk of the traditional human-driven car in their lifetimes, or at least the end of the internal combustion engine. Older ones are paring … Continue reading

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged | 21 Comments

SEMA 2019, Part 04: More Nihon Steel

It’s really hard to capture everything at a show as big as SEMA, but here are a few more slabs of Nihon Steel we found lurking around. There was everything from slammed sleds to off-road heroes, sometimes both in the … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

SEMA 2019, Part 02 – The coolest cars at the Toyo Treadpass

Toyo Tires consistently has one of the best displays at SEMA. It offers the most diverse lineup of cars of any company, from classics to supercars to scratch-your-head stuff like a slammed Mercedes G-Wagen. It also offers a convenient pass-through … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Happy 117 Day from JNC

The Giugiaro-designed Isuzu 117 was so beautiful that when it debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in 1966, it won the Concours D’Elegance at the event, likely a first for a Japanese car. Today, November 7, is the day when … Continue reading

Posted in Holidays | Tagged , | 2 Comments

NEWS: Toyota and Subaru might be collaborating on the next WRX STI

Rumor around the interwebs is that Toyota and Subaru will join forces for not only the next-generation BRZ/86, but also the next WRX STI. The scuttlebutt comes courtesy of Japan’s automotive-tabloid-best-picked-up-with-can-coffee-and-onigiri-at-your-local-convenience-store industrial complex, so taking the news with a mountain … Continue reading

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

SEMA 2019, Part 01 — Japanese Hot Rods

When there are 2,400 companies and 2.2 million square feet of exhibits, limits are constantly pushed in order to garner attention. It can result in show cars that are insanely expensive but absent of taste. Still, there can be gems … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

QotW: Share with us your JNC selling stories

Sometimes you just have to part with your beloved automobile. Whether it’s financial hardships, a life change, the fact that you’ve simply done all you can do, or a simple loss of interest, it’s time to pass it on to … Continue reading

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged | 12 Comments

Here’s how Nissan can make reproduction body panels for the Skyline GT-R

When Nissan became the first Japanese automaker to announce it would start making parts for the restoration of classics — the R32, R33, and R34 Skyline GT-R, specifically — we were pretty impressed. When it said that the program had … Continue reading

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Watching Subaru EJ20 motors being built is supremely satisfying

After three decades of production, the Subaru EJ20 engine is coming to an end. To mark the occasion, Subaru has released a video of how they assemble the boxer four that has powered everything from speed record Legacys to S-series … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Japan’s postal service celebrates 50 years of the Z with stamps, postcards

The Nissan Fairlady Z celebrated their 50th anniversary earlier this month, and the country’s official postal service is honoring the milestone. Japan Post has issued a stamp and postcard set commemorating half a century of Nissan’s revolutionary sports car.

Posted in News | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

MOTORSPORT: RealTime Racing Integra Type R restored (and raced)

“Between 1997 and 2002 the Acura Integra Type R dominated the Speed Touring Car Championship,” says Peter Cunningham. The founder of RealTime Racing and prolific Honda/Acura racer and collector would know.  “RealTime won five of the six championships, and no … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments