Japanese Nostalgic Car

Recently around the ol’ JNC water cooler, we had a discussion about movies that contained excellent scenes of Japanese cars. We’re not talking random fillers but, cars that served to enhance the character’s persona. We asked a similar question in May 2012, and an office favorite was The Wolf’s NSX in Pulp Fiction, where the producers could have made a more cliché, on-the-nose pick (like a Jag or something) but went Japanese instead.

But that was over seven years ago and there’s been a lot more movies (and cars that have fallen into the 25-year threshold of classic-dom) since. In September of that year, for example, Looper was released, in which Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s hit-man from a dystopian future kept an NA Mazda Miata as a collector’s car.

What’s the best use of a JNC in cinema?

The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Will the sport compact style make a nostalgic comeback?” Continue reading →

Ah, the late-90s. You know the style: retina searing paint, aftermarket roll call down the door, a wing that could double as a dining surface, unpainted carbon fiber proudly on display, Kanji that looked like the default font from a Chinese diner’s takeout box, and Hyper Combat body kit with enough cavities to trigger trypophobia. It was a massive cultural swell that spawned a million cold air intakes, angerd old hot rodders to no end, and launched a pretty mediocre movie franchise.

Recently, our Senior Midwest Editor Ryan Senensky and I were debating whether this style would even come back into fashion. I, who was well past drinking age during the “Rice Rocket” era, believe that while people might have nostalgia for the cars, the cars, the Wings West body kits would remain firmly in the past. Ryan, who was in his formative car discovery years when all this was taking place, said it would “absolutely, one hundred percent comeback.” We need you to settle the debate:

Will the sport compact style make a nostalgic comeback?

The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What car must be saved before they’re all gone?” Continue reading →

As much as we love Skylines, Zs, RX-7s, Supras, 2000GTs, and so on, perhaps there really isn’t a need to rescue them all, since there are so many well-preserved examples out there already. Or maybe there is, if it’s a particularly rare version. Then there aree the cars that no one ever thinks to save, which we will sorely miss when they’re extinct.

What car must be saved before they’re all gone?

The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s your best advice for a JNC road trip?” Continue reading →