Author Archives: Ben Hsu
SHOWA SNAP: Nagoya, 1972
The Nagoya TV Tower was completed in June of 1954 is one of the key landmarks of the central Japanese city. In this photo from 1972, a lineup of taxis before it have the typical Toyota Crowns and Nissan Cedrics, … Continue reading
VIDEO: Dirt track oval racing in Japan
Dirt track racing is stupid fun, doing with real cars essentially what every kid does with Hot Wheels. That, apparently, is true no matter what country you’re from. Back in the day, with plenty of big, rear-wheel-drive cars available for … Continue reading
Posted in motorsport
Tagged Cima, gloria, mark II, nissan, Option Video, r31, skyline, soarer, supra, toyota, x70
4 Comments
EVENTS: All-Toyotafest 2019, Part 02 — Fun Fours
This year’s Toyotafest was headlined by the many generations of Supra in support of the A90’s debut. With all the focus on the new six-cylinder sports car, let’s not forget that Toyota has built plenty of fun fours. More and … Continue reading
MOTORSPORT: Three Paris-Dakar drivers are reunited with the Mitsubishis they raced to victory
The sun is setting on the Mitsubishi Pajero, but before the legendary nameplate enters twilight, the company is honoring its many successes in the Paris-Dakar Rally. A new video released by Mitsubishi Motors titled “The Spirit of Pajero” highlights the … Continue reading
Posted in motorsport
Tagged Hiroshi Masuoka, Luc Alphand, mitsubishi, montero, pajero, Paris-Dakar Rally, Patrick Zaniroli
7 Comments
EVENTS: All-Toyotafest 2019, Part 01 — Real Supras
The theme of this year’s All-Toyotafest was, unavoidably, Supra. The 24th gathering of the Toyota Owners and Restorers Club featured generations of this one model on the offiical merchandise and promotional materals this year. Toyota gave many of the attendees … Continue reading
VIDEO: 60 years of Honda at the Isle of Man TT
The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy is perhaps the world’s most famous motorcycle race. Honda won its first constructors’ championship there in 1959, thanks to their RC141 and RC142 race bikes. It’s been 60 years since, and today the marque … Continue reading
SHOWA SNAP: Ginza, Tokyo, 1971
The clock tower of the Wako department store has seen countless cars pass beneath its face. Standing over one of the busiest intersections of Tokyo, the 4-chome crossing in Ginza, since 1932, it even predates times when cars were common … Continue reading
Happy S30 Day from JNC
2019 is a very special year for the Nissan Fairlady Z. The iconic sports car turns 50 this year, a huge milestone for the iconic sports car that changed the very notion of what a sports car could be. Along … Continue reading
NEWS: Acura might bring back the Legend
A beloved Acura nameplate might be making a comeback. Honda has filed a trademark application for the word “Legend” in the category of vehicles with the Europe’s intellectual property office. The speculation, of course, is that it would be applied … Continue reading
JNC THEATER: Sarah Connor saves the day with an 80-Series Land Cruiser in the new Terminator: Dark Fate trailer
If you’re going to spend your life fighting unstoppable robots from a post-apocalyptic hellscape, there’s probably no better vehicle to drive than a Toyota Land Cruiser. It’s tough as nails, can go anywhere and, most importantly, is dead reliable. There’s … Continue reading
JNC THEATER: Hot Version is coming to Amazon Prime with English subtitles, floodly!
Hot Version, the Best Motoring spinoff about Japan’s top tuner cars, is headed to Amazon Prime with English subtitles. They might not be good subtitles per se, if the promo video in which they promise “Episodes will be added floodly … Continue reading
NEWS: Toyota will produce parts for the A70, A80 Supra again
There’s some great news coming down the pike for Toyotaku. Toyota will soon make parts again for the A70 and A80 Supra. The news was revealed by none other than Shigeki Tomoyama, head of Gazoo Racing and A80 owner, at … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged a70, A80, A90, GR Heritage Parts Project, Shigeki Tomoyama, supra, toyota
32 Comments
Happy 521 Day from JNC
The Datsun 520 and 521 were the first real compact pickups to make it big for Nissan, and their endless charm is still readily apparent today. In age where pickups are mostly gigantic and laden with the bells and whistles … Continue reading
NEWS: It’s the end of the road for Mitsubishi Owners’ Day
For all the hardship Mitsubishi Motors has been going through, it was the only Japanese carmaker to officially welcome its owners and fans to its US headquarters for a big car show and party every year. Sadly, after 15 years, … Continue reading
QotW: How would you spend $1 million on your JNCs?
It seems strange that someone would mark May 20 as National Be a Millionaire Day because, frankly, every day would seem like a holiday with that much money. Still, we can dream about how we would spend that kind of … Continue reading
VIDEO: Don’t underestimate the 1986 Mitsubishi Galant
The 1986 Mitsubishi Galant occupied a strange space in the 1980s Japanese sedan segment. It was only offered with a four-cylinder, so it would have made sense to cross-shop it with an Accord or Camry. But, it was catapulted it … Continue reading
NEWS: Arkansas changes historic plate cutoff from 25 to 45 years
We at JNC have always had a rolling 25 year cutoff for what is considered a classic. That’s because 25 years is when the US allows cars to be imported, and when most states allow for historic registration plates. Sadly, … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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