Category Archives: News
Nissan Silvia CSP311 concept gains momentum as EV
Back in September, Nissan released some illustrations of an electric Silvia revival. Penned by Matthew Weaver, a vice president at Nissan’s European design studio, it pays homage to the original Silvia, the 1965 CSP311. At the time, it was just … Continue reading
Mazda 3-rotor, rear-wheel-drive flagship, and how to make it happen
Mazda has filed a patent application for a 3-rotor hybrid drivetrain configured for a rear-wheel-drive layout. Obviously, if built, it would be the first rotary-engined car since the 2012 death of the RX-8, and the first triple-rotor production car since … Continue reading
Toyota Corolla celebrates 50 millionth sold with manga series
This year marked a milestone for the unassuming Toyota Corolla. The bestselling nameplate in history sold over 50 million units. In Japan, Toyota celebrated by releasing a trio of special edition cars and a series of Corolla-oriented comic strips that … Continue reading
Toyota’s MegaWeb showroom in Tokyo is closing so here’s a video tour of the History Garage
This will be the last week you’ll ever get to visit Toyota’s sprawling MegaWeb gallery in Tokyo. It will close for good on December 31, 2021, after 22 years. That includes not only the main showroom of new cars, but … Continue reading
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Nissan T12 Bluebird becomes 80s retro-electric “Newbird”
Eighties culture and fashion is, like, so rad these days. Nissan has gotten in on the fun by 80s-fying a T12 Nissan Bluebird — what we would have called a Stanza 5-door in the US — with a modern powertrain. … Continue reading
The Lexus Electrified Sports concept sure looks like the stunning Mazda RX-Vision
Akio Toyoda surprised the world with a mega press conference yesterday, announcing Toyota’s plans for electrification. He showed no less than 16 concept cars in dramatic fashion, talking about a packed lineup of five before dropping the false wall behind … Continue reading
VIDEO: The Impreza 2.5 RS proved Americans could accept a sporty Subaru
It’s kind of hard to imagine, but even back in 1998 the idea of a sporty Subaru was still pretty foreign to most Americans. Its most well-known US model was the Brat, and the marque was known mostly for utilitarian … Continue reading
NISMO’s $430,000 restored R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R: what it’s like to drive one
The R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R is already a car that few people outside of Japan get to drive. Even fewer will ever ever sit behind the wheel of one of NISMO’s $430,000 factory-restored R32 Nissan Skyline GT-Rs. The program takes … Continue reading
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Tagged Michael Krumm, NISMO, nissan, Nissan Heritage Program, r32, skyline
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Suzuki-Toyota-Daihatsu mid-engine sports car rumored to be under development
There’s a rumor coming out of Japan that a new mid-engine sports car is being jointly developed by Suzuki, Toyota, and Daihatsu. If true — and that’s skyscraper-sized if — it could kill two birds with one stone for Toyota. … Continue reading
The Nissan Cima of actress Kazue Itoh has been factory restored
Just over a year ago, Japanese actress Kazue Itoh made headlines when she revealed that she was still driving a decades-old Nissan Cima that she’d owned since new. After she noted some of its imperfections on social media, her fans … Continue reading
New Nissan Z GT500 race car launch brings out the legends
Nissan has announced its newest car for the 2022 SuperGT season, and it’s no surprise that it will be based on the new Nissan Z. For the last 15 years the GT-R has been Nissan’s fighter in the ring, but … Continue reading
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Tagged 300zx, fairlady z, haruhito yanagida, john morton, Kazuyoshi Hoshino, nissan, peter brock, Steve Millen, Tsugio Matsuda, z32, Z34B
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Toyota South Africa celebrates 60th anniversary
Toyota South Africa is celebrating its 60th anniversary today. The subsidiary was established in 1961, just four years after Toyota got a small foothold in California with the S30 Toyopet Crown. It shows just how rapidly — and perhaps optimistically … Continue reading
Integra was almost the original name for the Ford Taurus
Companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to pick names for their products. They have to sound good, be memorable, and not accidentally mean something offensive in other languages. Despite the number of words, the pool of usable names is … Continue reading
EVENTS: Radwood NorCal 2021
Outside of genre-specific gatherings like JCCS or All Toyotafest, the automotive event that’s most embraced classic Japanese cars is Radwood. While cars from all countries of origin are welcome at the series of 80s and 90s-themed shows, rather than being … Continue reading
Japan’s Automotive Hall of Fame inductees for 2021 include Toyota Celsior and Nissan Be-1
The Japan Automotive Hall of Fame has announced its 2021 inductees. Each year three vehicles representing milestones in the country’s auto industry are selected for the honor. This year, they include two cars from the Bubble Era and a classic … Continue reading
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Tagged be-1, f10, japan automotive hall of fame, kawasaki, lexus, Lexus LS, ls400, nissan
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Toyota will begin making new parts for the AE86 again as the Hachiroku joins the Heritage Parts Program
Toyota announced on November 1 that it will begin remaking parts for the AE86 Corolla Levin and Sprinter Trueno. The beloved Hachiroku is the latest car to be added to the Toyota Gazoo Racing Heritage Parts Program. What’s more, Toyota … Continue reading
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Tagged ae86, corolla, corolla levin, GR Heritage Parts Project, Heritage Parts Program, sprinter trueno, toyota
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Reborn Acura Integra’s manual transmission confirmed
Stick shifters, rejoice! The 2022 Acura Integra will have a manual gearbox. Acura revealed the teaser in a clever video titled “Generational Shift” that depicted the standard transmissions (remember when they were called that?) of all past Integra models, including … Continue reading
Megaweb has reopened before closing permanently at the end of the year
As we reported back in July, Toyota’s Megaweb showroom in Tokyo will be closing for good at the end of the year. If you wanted to see it, though, there was a slight hitch: the showroom had already closed, as … Continue reading
Happy 929 Day from JNC
The pre-facelift second-generation Mazda Luce is probably one of the most underappreciated 1970s Japanese designs. Called the 929 when equipped with a piston engine and the RX-4 under rotary power, it struck just the right balance of elegance and menace. … Continue reading
