QotW: How do you live the JNC life?

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Ben Hsu

013dh5617_Toyota fest diecast

Not all of us are lucky enough to own the car of our dreams. And even if we do, sometimes that’s just not enough. Do you pore over every volume of Kousoku Yuen ever published? Build your dream garage in plastic model kits? Fill your house with thousands of little metal cars?

How do you live the JNC life?

What say you, dear reader? As always, the most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What should the next JNC wagon be?”  Continue reading →

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EVENTS: Nostalgic2Days 2016, Part 04 — Odds and Ends

Posted on May 27, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

SM80045_Nissan Skyline DR30 Utilitas

One of the excellent things about a show like Nos2Days is that there are plenty of things for sale. You never know what you’ll come across, which can make browsing the aisles rather dangerous to your wallet. From new-old-stock center caps to a complete, restored DR30 Skyline, there’s something for everyone. Continue reading →

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NEWS: Refreshed Nissan GT-R NISMO debuts

Posted on May 27, 2016 by Ben Hsu

2017 Nissan GTR NISMO R35 01

In a nod to Godzillas past, Nissan took to the Nürburgring today to debut the 2017 GT-R NISMO. It was only appropriate, since the famed German circuit was the site where its predecessor, the R33 Skyline GT-R, broke the production car record and brought the company worldwide notoriety in the 1990s. Continue reading →

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EVENTS: Nostalgic2Days 2016, Part 03 — The Fast & the Fastidious

Posted on May 26, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

SM80275_Mazda Capella RX2

In this installment, we take a look at two very different types of cars: original barn finds and restorations whose every last nut is factory correct, and those that were treated like instruments of war. In other words, all the stuff that’s prized by predictably obvious “traditional” collectors. Continue reading →

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EVENTS: 2016 All-Toyotafest, Part 05 — Editors’ Choice

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Ben Hsu

084-0270_Toyota Celica A20 GTV

For the final installment of this year’s Toyotafest we share the JNC staff favorites. In a show packed with prime Aichi steel, it wasn’t easy to narrow down the field, making the results probably over-long. But hey, it’s a good problem to have, right?  Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Australians explain why the “shovelnose” was so important to Toyota

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Toyota Corona shovelnose RT40 Shannons Insurance

The RT40 Corona was hugely important in the US, saving Toyota’s skin after an embarrassing debut with the S30 Crown. However, that was nothing compared to the way it utterly transformed the Australian market for Toyota when it debuted in 1965.  Continue reading →

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PIXELLATED: Gran Turismo Sport in-game trailer looks amazing, and you can now race on the Shuto

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Ryan Senensky

Gran Turismo Sport Shuto

Playstation owners, rejoice! Your racing sim is here. After a console generation of Forza giving Gran Turismo a run for its money, it looks as if Turn 10’s David has not beaten Polyphony’s Goliath. In graphics alone, Turn 10’s Forza franchise appears to have competition again.  Continue reading →

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QotW: What should the next JNC wagon be?

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Ben Hsu

JNC Wagon

After 9 years of dutiful service it has come time to retire the JNC Cressida wagon. It has faithfully carried the JNC crew to nearly every Toyotafest, JCCS, SevenStock, Nissan Jam, and SEMA — usually packed to the headliner with gear — for almost a decade, but California’s debris-covered, oil-pan denting roads and incessant sun have not been kind to this increasingly rare workhorse. Don’t worry, we’re not selling it. We’re going to give it a proper reconditioning so it can shine once again.

In the meantime, we’ll need another hauler. It doesn’t have to be a station wagon, but it’ll need to have at least as much cargo space as the Cressida, be somewhat reliable (or easy to find parts for), and be appropriately Japanese nostalgic.

What should the next JNC wagon be?

What say you, dear reader? As always, the most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s the baddest Nissan-Mitsubishi combo?”  Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Watch the Drift King drift a hakosuka GT-R

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Nissan Skyline sedan hakosuka Keiichi Tsuchiya drift king

Keiichi Tsuchiya might be happy smoking new GT-Rs, but he has nothing but admiration for the old ones. In another Best Motoring video uploaded last night Keiichi Tsuchiya climbs into a couple of Victory 50-tuned Hakos and gets ’em slideways like the days when Kunimitsu Takahashi would break loose his bias-ply tires.  Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Watch a Toyota Starlet destroy an R34 GT-R

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Hot Version Keiichi Tsuchiya Drift King KP61 Starlet R34 GTR

Power-to-weight ratio is the key in this old Hot Version race in which Keiichi Tsuchiya and Akira Iida pit a pair of Toyota Starlets against an R34 Skyline GT-R and the Kei Office S15 Silvia. The Drift King puts it all on the table in a classic David vs Godzilla battle, but the ending may not be what you expect. Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Honda Collection Hall video dump

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Dan Hsu

Honda Collection Hall 1987 CRX

The Honda Collection Hall museum at Twin Ring Motegi has just uploaded another several videos to their YouTube channel. Following on the series launched earlier this year, several 80s Honda cars and motorcycles get their turn to exercise their engines around the museum grounds. It’s not quite an extensive a collection as the first round, but we get some sweet Prelude and CR-X action.  Continue reading →

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EVENTS: Nostalgic2Days 2016, Part 02 — Tuning Houses

Posted on May 19, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

SM70012_Nissan Skyline C10 hakosuka Star Road

For our second installment of the 2016 Nostalgic 2 Days event coverage, we’ll take a look at some of Japan’s kyusha tuning houses, beginning with our friends at Star Road. The Tokyo-based specialists of classic Skylines and Fairlady Zs typically holds court at one of the biggest and most eye-catching displays of the show, and this year was no exception.  Continue reading →

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Sokichi Shikiba, 1939 – 2016

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Ben Hsu


Racing driver Sokichi Shikiba died yesterday, May 17, in a hospital in Tokyo as a result of liver failure. He was 77 years old.

Born to a hospital manager in Ichikawa City, Chiba Prefecture in 1939, Shikiba grew up with a generation of young men who came of age as Japan’s nascent auto industry was taking off. Carmakers were delving into motorsports to spur development, and Shikiba’s cadre of fellow motorheads — which included legends such as Tojiro Ukiya, Aritsune Tokudaiji, and Tetsu Ikuzawa — became the forefathers of motorsport in Japan. Continue reading →

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EVENTS: 2016 All-Toyotafest, Part 04 — Off-Road Kings

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Ben Hsu

136-9970_Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 & FJ45

There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and Toyota trucks. Tales of their indestructibility are told throughout the world, and this year’s Toyotafest saw a variety of Aichi dromedaries from all corners of the globe.  Continue reading →

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VIDEO: A brief history of the Honda Serial One N600

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

Honda Serial One N600

Honda has released the second installment of its video series documenting the restoration of the first car it built for the US market. If you’ve been keeping up with the story, the extremely brief video is unlikely to shed any new light on the topic. Still, it’s worth a viewing for any Honda head.  Continue reading →

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EVENTS: 2016 All-Toyotafest, Part 03 — Sporty Fours

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Ben Hsu

199-0015_Toyota Corolla TE27_Toyota Sprinter Trueno TE27 inkan

As we saw in Part 02, Toyota has had no shortage of grand, powerful machines powered by the legendary straight-six. However, the company built its fortunes on millions of inline-fours. Using its vast production reserves, it has over the years been able to bestow many of these four-bangers into an affordable sports coupe package for the masses. Here are some of them that showed up to the 2016 Toyotafest.  Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Best Motoring tests a Mitsubishi Mirage Cyborg

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Best Motoring Mitsubishi Mirage Cyborg

Ever since Best Motoring launched an official YouTube channel, it’s been delivering non-stop JDM goodness. But if you’re absolutely sick of watching S2000 touge battles and Silvias and Chasers duke it out for drift supremacy, then perhaps a video about the Mitsubishi Mirage Cyborg is more your pace.  Continue reading →

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REMINDER: Nissan Jam is coming

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Ben Hsu

NissanJam2016
Registration for the fourth annual Nissan Jam is open. The annual Datsun, Nissan, and Infiniti car show will be held on June 12 in a new venue this year, La Palma Park in Anaheim, California.

Registration is $35 for any Datsun, Nissan, or Infiniti vehicle. You can register by clicking this link.

Nissan USA has just announced they will be joining the festivities with an official display this year for the first time.

Yokohama Tire is also kicking in with awards and trophies. Thanks to the new location, the show will take place on grass rather than a dealership parking lot.

If you’re just there to spectate, admission is free. Mark your calendars!

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QotW: What’s the baddest Nissan-Mitsubishi combo?

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Maisto BRE Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X BRE 2

Almost exactly one year ago when news of the Toyota-Mazda partnership broke, it seemed like two companies, each excelling at their own particular skill sets, would only make each other better. Our QotW asked what the ultimate Toyota-Mazda combo would be. Somehow, though, Nissan’s takeover of Mitsubishi feels a lot more ominous. Therefore, you can choose whether to interpret this week’s question as “good bad” or “actually bad.”

What’s the baddest Nissan-Mitsubishi combo?

What say you, dear reader? As always, the most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What JNC should’ve had a shooting brake variant?”  Continue reading →

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NEWS: Fuji Heavy Industries changes name to Subaru Corporation

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Ryan Senensky

Subaru Building 1966

Subaru’s parent company, Fuji Heavy Industries, is changing its name. Stemming from what is known as “an extraordinary meeting of its Board of Directors” FHI will be known as Subaru Corporation starting in 2017, pending stock holder approval.  Continue reading →

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