Category Archives: Video
OS-Giken’s Nissan twin-cam straight six assembly is a wonder to behold
The OS Giken’s twin-cam head for the Nissan L-series inline-six is a mythical engine. The TC24-B1 was developed in the 80s by OS Giken’s founder Osamu Okazaki, but at tremendous cost. Its retail price was approximately the same as that … Continue reading
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A Toyota MR2 SC lost out to a Fiero in Motorweek’s comparo, thanks in part to its eye-watering cost
When Toyota debuted its supercharged MR2 for 1988, it was a revelation. While several automakers experimented with supercharging in the 1950s, it hadn’t really been used in a production car for decades. Sure, there were Lancias and Japanese-market Toyotas that … Continue reading
Watch an EK9 Honda Civic Type R receive the ultimate restoration
By most accounts this bones-stock 2000 Honda Civic Type R with only 4500 km on the odometer would not have needed a full nut-and-bolt restoration. It got one anyway, with fresh paint and loads of brand-new OEM parts. The result … Continue reading
Toyota is restoring an FJ40 Land Cruiser with reproduction parts
Toyota is releasing a series of videos documenting the restoration of an FJ40 Land Cruiser. The stated purpose of the project is to demonstrate the use of reproduction parts from the Gazoo Racing Heritage Parts Program. We’ve seen Toyota work … Continue reading
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The Honda Super-One meets the City Turbo II
Despite Honda’s wholesale scuttling of its planned Honda Zero lineup, elsewhere in the world electric Hondas aren’t dead. The Honda Super-One was designed to be an EV hot hatch, with distinct styling that recalls the Honda City Turbo II. Now, … Continue reading
Supra Turbo, Prelude Si, Mitsubishi Galant: Japanese cars at the 1987 LA Auto Show
The Los Angeles Auto Show opens tomorrow. It was once one of the four “tier one” shows (others were Detroit, Chicago, and New York, Chicago), where automakers would unveil their new models with press conferences and big production numbers. The … Continue reading
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Tagged a70, galant, Galant E10, honda, mitsubishi, prelude, supra, toyota
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Jay Leno pits Toyota Supra TT against Mercedes Evo II and Aston Martin Vantage
The latest episode of Jay Leno’s Garage centers around a comparison test of sorts. Three non-American “muscle cars” — hailing from Japan, Germany, and Britain — face off. It’s a battle between a 1994 Toyota Supra twin-turbo, 1990 Mercedes-Benz 190E … Continue reading
The Infiniti Q45’s active suspension was too complex for its own good
When Nissan launched the Infiniti marque in 1991, it gave the company a chance to showcase all the technology it had been developing for the Japanese home market. The advancements would have made the Nissans too expensive for cost-sensitive buyers … Continue reading
SuperGT champ puts five NSX versions to the test
Continuing on its 35th anniversary celebration, Honda has released another NSX video featuring five iterations of its flagship supercar. This time, it has recruited two-time SuperGT champ Tomoki Nojiri to provide his driving impressions of the five cars. Nojiri drives … Continue reading
Honda NSX celebrates 35 years with retrospective video
The groundbreaking Honda NSX forever changed the world when it debuted on September 14, 1990. The slogan in its home-market ads read ,”Our Dreams Come True.” Not your dreams, but ours, as in the Honda engineers who had sought from … Continue reading
The second-gen Lexus LS400 was even LS-ier than the first
After the original Lexus LS400 turned the traditional luxury car market upside down, engineers for the second-generation asked, “Why mess with success?” The XF20 gave customers more of the LS’s trademark opulence, sumptuousness, competence, and overall value, just more of … Continue reading
Toyota GR Garage acquires a clapped out AE86
Here’s a good one for Toyotafest Eve. Toyota’s Gazoo Racing division has picked up a decrepit AE86. They say it’s the start of a new restoration project, but why begin with something so far gone? Surely Toyota has the resources … Continue reading
A closer look at the Tommykaira ZZII prototype
At the turn of the century Tommykaira was on the verge of building a Japanese supercar. Gran Turismo players may remember the Tommykaira ZZII as a super light, mid-engined, all-wheel-drive weapon that decimated the competition. Sadly, that was as far … Continue reading
The Infiniti J30 was hard to look at but surprisingly well-appointed
If you were alive during the launch of Lexus, you’ll remember the army of naysayers decrying the LS400 as a cheaper version of established European luxury sedans. Infiniti, on the other hand, tried really hard to introduce a Japanese idea … Continue reading
How far can a Nissan kei car go without refueling?
It’s easy to dismiss kei cars as weak, un-serious shoeboxes for misers. However, there’s a good reason why they comprise more than 34 percent of car sales in Japan. Even if you take the registration, parking and tax benefits out … Continue reading
Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX: Once beloved, now extinct
If you didn’t live through its introduction it’s hard to grasp just how big of an impact the Mitsubishi Eclipse made. The all-wheel-drive turbo sports coupe was so beloved that major magazines devoted extra pages to it beyond the typical … Continue reading
The Mazda-built Ford Festiva was technically the first Kia sold in the US
Korean cars are common sights on the road today, but in 1987 the name Kia was a complete unknown in pre-internet America. Long before our streets teemed with Sephias and Souls, the first Kia to achieve widespread sales in the … Continue reading
Watch a Toyota Comfort GT-Z get a supercar-worthy restoration
The Toyota Comfort GT-Z Supercharger looks like a taxi, but is one of the best sleepers and rarest car Toyota ever made. Only 59 were built and, as the name implies, the base 3S-FE engine was forcibly induced by a … Continue reading
Finally, a Mitsubishi Galant Sigma review from when it was new
One car that has always held a strange fascination for us when it was new was the US-market Mitsubishi Galant Sigma. We vaguely remember seeing these when they were new but they weren’t very common then; today they seem to … Continue reading
