Lest you forget what Toyota’s neo-hachiroku is about, the 86 just set a new alleged world record for longest non-stop drift. This is not the first time this has happened; the previous Guinness-certified world record was set in 2014, also by a Toyota 86. The record now stands at 168.502 kilometers (over 104 miles), besting the previous by 24.376 kilometers. Continue reading
Happy Father’s Day everyone (well, yesterday, but you get what I mean). This week I want to ask you all about a fond memory with your father (or father figure) and how it relates to JNC. Maybe you were given a hand replacing the points on a 1968 Toyopet, or learned how to take an oil filter off without breaking out the kitty litter. Tell us,
What JNC memory do you have with your dad?
Briefly, mine involves an RX-4 wagon (in silver), a snowy day and floor mats. My family received an RX-4 hand-me-down from my grandfather when I was just old enough to really remember. We lived outside the city and would have to make a trek up a steep hill with plenty of twists and turns until it plateaued towards downtown. I never thought much of that hill. In fact, in my later years I drove an AE82, in 3rd gear, up it without a second thought. Most sane people drove the hill in second, and barely at that.
During the winter months, we found a large land yacht parked on the side, extremely close to a drop off. The driver had lost traction on a sharp corner and slid to the edge from the icy slush on the road. My dad stopped to give a hand. He was a volunteer firefighter so he had been to the same hill for emergency calls and knew how serious the situation was. Those days guard rails were sparingly used.
We tried to gather some nearby tree branches and rocks to cram under the tires but it didn’t help much. Then, we pulled the rubber floor mats out of the RX-4 and tried to give traction to the big car, with some success. Finally, I ended up sitting in the trunk with my dad pushing from behind for the big American beast to get enough traction to pull itself out of the slushy rut and back onto the road.
My dad may not have rocked a sweet Mazda jacket without a shirt like in the lead pic, but he was just as cool by saving the day in a raspy rotary wagon with grippy floor mats.
Let us know your memory. The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Take the JNC Challenge, Part 06” Continue reading
Assuming you haven’t been up all night watching Toyota try break their Le Mans curse, or even if you have, come down to Nissan Jam at La Palma Park in Anaheim, California from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.
This year celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Datsun 510, but all Nissan, Datsun and Infiniti models are welcome.
Vendors like Powertrix and others have offered special deals on parts that will only be available at the show.
Nissan North America will have an official representatives there as well, and will be giving a special award to the car they feel best captures the spirit of Nissan Jam.
Depending how that race in France goes (we’ll know by 6:00 am Sunday) either you will be celebrating with your fellow J-tin enthusiasts or commiserating with them. See you there!
One of the world’s great motoring contests, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, takes place this weekend. Toyota was already a strong favorite to win, but now even more so after Kamui Kobayashi pulverized the track record during his qualifying lap. If he wins, it could send massive reverberations through Japan’s car culture. Continue reading
Are you tired of purported car shows that promise wrenching but end up being a collection of character tropes manufacturing drama while standing next to muscle cars? The answer is yes, we all are. That’s why this web series from Mazda Deutschland could be the most interesting car show on air right now. The format is instantly recognizable to anyone with a cable subscription — hosts pull a rusty heap out of a barn and restore it — except the car is a Mazda Cosmo Sport and everyone’s speaking German. Continue reading
Today’s Kidney Car post is unique because we’re not really trying to draw anyone’s attention to an actual ad. In fact, we think it’s probably a scam. But what’s not a scam is how unbelievably beautiful this Mitsubishi Lancer Celeste is. Continue reading
For years a giant, 15-foot-wide image of Nissan’s championship GTP ZX-Turbo prototype racer has been displayed at the automaker’s marketing agency’s offices in Los Angeles. That piece of history is now up for grabs, completely free, but the catch is you have to remove it from the property by the end of the week. Continue reading
The S130 Z-car is perennially known as the most affordable Z car around, often being priced in the same range as a mid-90s Honda Civic. However, this particular example is already fetching some decent numbers. It has a price of $52,000 with a day left in the auction. As you can see in the pictures that this isn’t just any old 280ZX but, rather, is Jim “Fitzy” Fitzgerald’s ex-racer. Fitzy is famous for being the most winning driver in SCCA history along with being Paul Newman’s teammate. Continue reading
We have $3800 for a new JNC purchase. The sky’s the limit.
What should we buy next? Still need it to be a daily driver and be able to survive the summer heat (and some winter chills!).
What JNC should we buy for $3800 as a daily driver?
To find out why we have $3800, hit the jump!
The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Take the JNC Challenge, Part 05”
As we gear up for the next annual Touge California in the hills of Southern California, we are reminded of the cars that came with us last year. We had a truly eclectic mix ranging from built track beasts to pristine grand tourers — and one yellow subcompact hatchback. The Mazda GLC, or Great Little Car, was perhaps the rally’s underdog, cheered upon by all and putting a smile on everyone’s face. Its cute mug, however, belies its importance to Mazda history. Continue reading
As Japanese classics gain recognition in the real world, so too do they increase in popularity in the diecast realm. For most of its existence, diecast brand M2 Machines (not to be confused with Mazda’s M2) has focused on detailed miniatures of American muscle cars, hot rods, and the occasional Volkswagen. Later this year, however, they will debut a new line of vintage icons from Japan. Continue reading
Above is a press photo from 1997 of the then-newly debuted Subaru Impreza WRC, built to the new World Rally Car specification that replaced Group A rules. Though similar in livery as Subaru’s older works Impreza and Legacy, this model would go on to become one of the most iconic cars in racing history. The very car in this photo — chassis “PRO/WRC/97001” — was recently offered for sale at an auction. Sadly, you can’t have it. Continue reading
A couple of months ago, I enlisted the help of JNC readers to pick a chariot for my soon-to-be wife. She got one, and though it isn’t a Japanese nostalgic car yet, we think one day it might be. This was one of our most popular Questions of the Week and some have asked for an update, so here’s what’s sitting in our garage now. Continue reading
We all know the FJ40 is legendary in its off-road capabilities. It’s also one of the hottest SUVs in the very hot segment of classic SUVs that are skyrocketing in value. It’s no wonder then that a beautiful Coronado Beige example stars in a Hankook Tires spot called “Chasing Daylight,” in which a landscape photographer tackles mud, rocks, and steep mountainsides to get the perfect shot before the sun goes down. The ad has been out for a while, but we just saw it recently. Kinda makes you want to go out and conquer the world with an FJ of your own, doesn’t it? Continue reading
Imagine if your actual car, the one you’ve owned, built, maintained and cleaned for over a decade was immortalized in Hot Wheels form. How would you feel? Roy De Guzman knows exactly how it feels, because it happened to him, and he describes it thusly: “In a word, astonished.” Continue reading
We don’t know where Elyria, Ohio is, but we do know that right now there’s a 1984 Nissan 200SX Turbo there pulling some pretty impressive prices on eBay. It’s got all the right ingredients to justify the numbers, too. It’s a rare first-year-only color, has super-low mileage, and three pedals. It’s also a paragon of 80s radness. Continue reading
Welcome back everyone to our QotW challenge. As a refresher, we started off this challenge by tasking JNCers with buying a reliable JNC for $2,000 or less. As a result, the Honda Shuttle came out victorious. Next, despite getting offers for a first-gen RX-7 and an Isuzu Impulse, you all made it clear that we needed to hang on to the plucky Shuttle to fight another challenge.
Later the Shuttle was given a new purpose in addition to being a reliable chariot: Gymkana warrior. After the 4th installment of the QotW challenge, Randy suggested the Shuttle get a good set of tires while taking note of the suspension situation for future upgrades.
Well, we did indeed take the Shuttle out to a gymkhana and the thing dove into the corners and wobbled out as the tires held up but not the crusty suspension. A set of bushing are definitely in order!
Now, for the challenge. We have a reliable, newly-shoed Honda Shuttle. Some of the interior is still yanked out from the gymkhana (and really, who are we kidding. It will most likely be out for a while). The gymkhana was fun, but now we want to push the endurance of the Shuttle by taking it on an extended road trip. Let’s say we are starting in sunny California, and have 1 week (7 days) to make the trip, where do you go? How do you prepare? You will have two friends accompanying you as well. They are not mechanically inclined but can “kinda” read a Rand McNally road map.
We have a budget of $600 and that includes food, lodging (if needed) and parts/upgrades for the trip. (excludes fuel, this time). Be creative and you can go as far, or close as you see fit. Give an account of how 3 people set off together on a grand tour, err.. adventure!
The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What JNC model has been most consistent?” Continue reading
Our friend Jun Imai is in Japan for the Tokyo Toy Show right now, and brought along some new goodies to reveal at the event. Both are turbocharged JDM cars from the 80s that were never sold in the States. The first is the estimable hot hatch, the Honda City. With new small aero-style wheels and an boxy body kit, it epitomizes Soichiro’s bulldog. The second is a slightly more traditional model in the modern Imai Era of Hot Wheels. Continue reading
In Japan, the police don’t like doughnuts. Especially not the kind made by a Toyota Soarer on the pedestrian-dense and high-traffic streets of Shibuya, one of the busiest districts of Tokyo. Don’t try this at home and happy National Doughnut Day, everyone.
