In its fifth year, NISMO Fiesta has become the premiere event for Nissan nuts of Texas. With a new venue in the capital of Austin, the Nissan devoted came from all over the Lone Star State, with a few traveling from as far as Louisiana and New Mexico! The three-day event had a host of activities lined up, so we made the trip from Fort Worth. Continue reading
Of all the great automobiles to emerge from Japan, Honda’s NSX occupies a singular plane. While Nissan, Toyota and Mazda built GT-Rs, twin-turbo Supras and rotaries with endless potential for power, Honda built a car that did not need to be modified at all. It was simply great. Everyone has a favorite story, trivia fact or sighting for the NSX.
What made the NSX so special?
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 your dream touge build?” Continue reading
There are many things to hate about Los Angeles, but its car culture isn’t one of them. As the trendsetting capital of the custom automobile, it holds the motorcar in such high regard that there’s a shrine to it located smack dab in the middle of the city. Located at the corner of the famed avenues of Wilshire and Fairfax, the Petersen Museum is featured just as prominently as galleries of art, natural history, and architecture along what’s known as “Museum Row.” And recently, the Petersen hosted its second-ever event dedicated to Japanese cars. Continue reading
One heritage car may be dead, but another lives on, sort of. Since its US debut at the Chicago Auto Show we’ve been immensely curious about the front-wheel-drive Nissan GT-R NISMO LM. And no, that is not a typo. The car with which Nissan intends to challenge the toughest enduro in the world is indeed front-wheel-drive. And now they’ve revealed its new livery, a throwback to Nissan’s 1990 Le Mans prizefighter, the R90C. Continue reading
In 1946 Soichiro Honda began strapping surplus WW2 generators to bicycles to create the first Honda motorcycles. In a new series of videos issued by Honda Japan, excerpts of the Honda origin story come to life in videos narrated in English and Japanese. Continue reading
Talk about a dream touge build. Back in 2007, my brother from the same mother Ben and I were freezing our arses off in a drafty Nagasaki apartment dreaming about insane Japanese hot rods that we wanted to build. None was nuttier than a Honda S-chassis with a liter-bike engine. Why? Because at the time decrepit S600 shells were plentiful and worth nothing on eBay, we believed in only same-marque engine swaps, and we wanted above all to keep the spirit of S600 in tact. Of course, the unholy trinity of funds, space and time (or lack thereof) prevented it from happening. Fortunately Matt Brown made no such lame excuses and did this exact thing. Continue reading
The news is out: The Nissan IDx is dead. This sad revelation is being reported after The Truth About Cars talked to Pierre Loing, VP of Product Planning at Nissan North America.We at JNC can confirm we’ve been hearing rumors about the IDx being stillborn from Nissan engineers as early as August 2014. TTAC says that the IDx concept’s styling may live on in a small, front-wheel-drive coupe, but we’ve heard that from Nissan that there’s is a chance it will come to market on an AWD platform. Continue reading
Touge. It’s the reason Japanese sport coupes adhere to the doctrine of lightweight, high-revving philosophy. 73 percent of Japan’s landmass is mountainous, and the touge roads are where a uniquely Japanese form of hoonage was born. So, if you live in a country where the best roads snake like ramen noodles over drastic elevation changes, you’re going to want to drive a certain type of car.
What’s your dream touge build?
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 ultimate Toyota-Mazda combo?” Continue reading
The Old Car Club of Tokyo recently held it’s 3rd annual Showa no Kurma wo Mamoru Tsudoi or “Preserving cars made in the Showa Era” meeting. This is a gathering for cars made during the Showa Era, which ended in 1989 according to the Japanese calendar and encompassed the Post-War, Golden and most of the Bubble Eras of Nihon automaking. In other words, all the best Japanese nostalgic cars. Continue reading
Many automakers claim to sell cars that are fun-to-drive, but is there anyone walks that walk more than Mazda right now? Communicating that message to the unwashed masses, on the other hand, hasn’t always been easy. Thus, the Hiroshima company’s long-standing “Zoom-Zoom” catchphrase — practically nostalgic itself after 15 years in use — will now take a back seat to a new one: Driving Matters. To the enthusiast who is sick of committee-built cars it’s as much a tagline as it is a plea to the broader public. Continue reading
Living in Tokyo’s 23-ku has many benefits, and detractions too I suppose. However, one of my great pleasures is the early morning commute across town. Many years ago I decided to ditch the usual meek-gray-mouse-crammed-onto-the-Ginza Line experience for a motorcycle. Continue reading
This past Saturday a group of select cars and their drivers gathered in Thousand Oaks, California for the inaugural running of JNC‘s Touge California. Named for the hallowed Japanese roads where racing heroes honed their skills and where drifting was born, the event was a 120-mile touring rally through some of the nation’s most scenic and renowned driving roads, through the Santa Monica mountains and along the Pacific Coast. Continue reading
Last week we learned that Toyota and Mazda have become bedfellows. We don’t yet know what will come of the union, but let’s imagine for a second that anything goes and that a time machine is involved. A V8-powered Luce? A three-rotor 2000GT? An AE86 with a tiny 1.8L V6?
What’s the ultimate Toyota-Mazda 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’s your dream Datsun 510 build?” Continue reading
In the final installment of our 2015 Toyotafest coverage, we take a look at two types of vehicles Toyota is known for — its compact, rear-wheel-drive sport coupes and its famously indestructible workhorse trucks. The former once dominated the company’s lineup and the latter still lives on, and both are fast becoming classics.
Toyota and Mazda have signed a deal to enter a technology-sharing partnership. Besides bringing together two of Japan’s most renowned companies, the agreement also unites the world’s largest automaker with one of the world’s smallest independent automakers. So what does this mean for Toyotaku and Mazdafarians? Continue reading
If you’re going to be in Austin, Texas next week, don’t miss the NISMO Fiesta, a three-day celebration of all things Nissan. Cars from all over the Lone Star State and beyond will attend, and JNC will be making the trek in a Datsun 620 King Cab. Continue reading
So this is rather insane. UK-based FRP Automotive has developed an entire Datsun 240Z body made of, you guessed it, FRP (fiber reinforced polymer). The company offers the entire body, or individual panels including doors, hood, trunk and fenders. Now you can build the Frankenstein hybrid or circuit weapon Z of your choice without dealing with the dreaded iron oxide cancer. Continue reading
The third annual Nissan Jam show is now taking registrations for the upcoming event on Sunday, June 7, 10am-2pm.
Please take note of a couple of new announcements for 2015. First, the show is moving to West Covina Nissan, which has a much bigger space for both show cars and spectators. And this year, Nissan Jam welcomes Infiniti branded cars for the first time!
Registration is about 80 percent full already, so hurry if you want to guarantee a spot for your Nissan, Datsun, or Infiniti. You can sign up here.
JNC will be there with a booth and to cover the event. In case you missed it, here’s coverage from 2014 (Part 01, 02, 03) and 2013 (Part 01 and 02).
Take a dollop American car kulture, filter it through the distance of 5,500 miles and 12 time zones, sprinkle in a dash of home grown Japanese cars, and you get the Mooneyes Street Car Nationals. Continue reading
