To all the daddy JNCers out there, Happy Fathers Day.
PROFILES: Sid Chiang’s 1986 Mugen Honda CRX Si
Sid Chiang is a long-time veteran of the automotive design world. He’s held positions at GM, where he worked on cars like as the C7 and Camaro, and before that Ford, where he was lead exterior designer on the ST44 Probe and Ford GT. Prior to today, there were only three known photos of Sid’s Mugen CRX on the internet, all mysteriously taken inside a Ford studio. Here’s how it happened in Sid’s own words. —Ben
I’ve always had the love of sporty cars, especially small displacement 4-cylinder imports. As a teenager in the 70s, my first car was a rusty 1969 Triumph GT6+ that I loved and cherished. I drove it to into the ground and as many teenagers do, ended up nearly killing myself in it. But it didn’t kill my addiction to 4-bangers. Continue reading
NEWS: Pre-1969 California Legacy Plates approved
Residents of California can now get classic black license plates for their vintage cars. In 2012 the state began taking applications for the Legacy License Plate program, promising to re-issue the classic colors if at least 7,500 people signed up.The black plate, originally produced from 1963-69, just reached that magic number and all systems are go. They will go into production in January 2015.
Unlike this diesel Isuzu Bellel, however, most cars owned by JNCers were built in the 1970s and require blue plates to be period correct. Unfortunately for those, there’s still a ways to go.
KIDNEY, ANYONE? Bubble Economy Honda Civic Si trio
Have you noticed? Original, mint-condition, late-80s Hondas have been coming out of the woodwork over the past year. On eBay, right now, there are two Civic Si examples, both incredibly clean, while a similar-condition CRX Si auction just ended. Are we seeing a classic Honda boom? Continue reading
Reminder: Nissan Jam 2014, Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!
Just a reminder, the 2014 Nissan Jam show will be this Sunday, June 15 in Costa Mesa, California.
There will be over 100 Datsun and Nissan cars at this event, from Sunnys to GT-Rs, hakosukas to Zs.
Special guest MC Alain Montiel will be hosting, and vendors include Stillen Motorsports, Barramundi Wheels, and more.
Stop by the JNC booth — we will be debuting an exclusive T-shirt created by DesignerD, the Nissan designer who created the Nissan IDx!
Doors open at 10am and the show goes till 2pm. See you there!
Location: Connell Nissan, 2850 Harbor Blvd. Costa Mesa, CA 92626
NEWS: The end of the kei car era?
For Japan’s largest automakers, the kei car has outlived its usefulness. The government is aware of this and is ratcheting up taxes on the uniquely Japanese microcars to make their cost of ownership more on par with regular passenger cars. The move could signal the end of the kei car era as we know it. Continue reading
Happy 610 Day from JNC
On this day, our day of 610s.
QotW: What’s your greatest JNC tragedy?
This weekend’s sad news about a 2000GT being at the wrong place at the wrong time got us thinking about the heartbreak our cars cause us.
What’s your greatest JNC tragedy?
Sure, Mother Nature showing us who’s boss by cold dropping a 6.2-foot diameter tree on the most coveted Japanese car of all time is a bummer, but that’s what they call a freak accident. What’s less forgivable is when human hands ruin a 2000GT, on purpose. Now that we’re in the crying mood, we want to hear your automotive sob story. Accidents, forced sales, abandoned projects, make us weep!
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 the last QotW, “What would Bunta drive in an Initial D prequel?” Continue reading
NEWS: Passing Toyota 2000GT crushed by tree
There were only 337 production examples of the Toyota 2000GT built. Now there’s one less. At about 9:00 am this morning in the Gokayama area of Toyama Prefecture, the classic flagship car passed under a 100-foot beech. Unfortunately, that’s the exact moment the tree came down. Continue reading
MINICARS: Get these 2014 Hot Wheels right now
Can’t find any J-tin on the pegs? You must live in California. However the consensus from other parts of the country seems that miniature Nihon steel is getting hard to find in those areas too. Much like 1968 was a banner year for traditional Hot Wheels collectors, 2014 is turning out to be the most Japanese year in Hot Wheels history. Continue reading
Classic & Sports Car pits Toyota 2000GT against UK and US counterparts
The June 2014 issue of the UK’s Classic & Sports Car pits a Jaguar E-Type against a 1965 Corvette and a Toyota 2000GT to see which continent produced the best sixties sports coupe. Long-time readers know what’s coming next: A genuflecting ode to the perennial British favorite, a car that God himself did bestow on mankind because he felt bad about the whole global flood thing, while the Toyota, created only to pay tribute to the all-great Jaguar, is just lucky to be in the E-Type’s beatific presence.
Except, that didn’t happen. Continue reading
GRAND TOURING: Okinawa
To Americans, the name Okinawa immediately conjures images of US military bases. However, the archipelago located south of Honshu, Japan’s main landmass, is also a popular subtropical tourist destination. Okinawa literally means “a rope in the open sea” and is comprised of a 600-mile chain of over 160 individual islands, only 49 of which are inhabited. But where there are people, there are cars. Continue reading
BOOK CLUB: Koichi Inouye’s 1960s Japanese sports cars volumes now available in English
Three Koichi Inouye books about 1960s Japanese sports cars have been translated into English and published as e-books. The works cover seminal automobiles from Japan’s largest automakers, the Honda S-Series, Toyota 2000GT and Sports 800, and the Datsun Fairlady roadster. Continue reading
Posted in Books
Tagged 1600gt, 2000gt, datsun, fairlady roadster, honda, nissan, S-Series, sports 800, toyota
8 Comments
QotW: What would Bunta drive in an Initial D prequel?
With the Initial D series winding down those craving more tales of the touge will have to wait for the feature film reboot this August. However, some JNCers have suggested the idea of a new story instead, one focused on the background of Takumi’s mysterious guru of a father.
What would Bunta drive in an Initial D prequel?
According to MyAnimeList, the sleepy-eyed chain-smoker is 43 or 44 years old during the series. That means he would have come of age smack dab in the middle of Japan’s automotive golden era. A TE27 Sprinter Trueno seems like the logical predecessor to the hachiroku, but then again Bunta doesn’t seem like the brand loyal type.
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 the last QotW, “Which JNC is the rarest coelacanth?” Continue reading
Posted in Question of the Week
Tagged Dodge Challenger, Galant Lambda, Initial D, mitsubishi, Plymouth Sapporo, Question of the Week
34 Comments
FAUX-STALGICS: 2000 Toyota Origin
On the heels of another Toyotafest, let us return to the series where we check out some examples of modern retro-inspired cars along with the JNCs they mimic. In this post, we turn to a quintessential classic Toyota, the Crown, and a special model that was built in commemoration. Continue reading
JNC THEATER: Initial D Final Stage
The anime that brought touge culture to US screens is coming to an end. Initial D, in manga form, concluded its 18-year run last summer. Now, the animated account of the story is following suit. Animax will air a total of four 30-minute episodes wrapping up the story of the humble tofu delivery boy who became a mountain racing legend in his Toyota AE86. Continue reading
KIDNEY, ANYONE? Original-owner 44k-mile Nissan 240SX
We’ve lamented the fact that AE86s have nearly all been drifted into oblivion, but what about its cross-town rival? The Nissan 240SX sold in larger numbers, but finding an unmolested one can still be a challenging proposition these days, especially when it’s a one-owner car with less than 44,000 miles on it. Continue reading
NEWS: LA Times discovers classic Japanese cars
The Los Angeles Times recently published an article about the rising costs of classic Japanese cars. And while it’s likely not breaking news to JNC readers, it provides an interesting outsider’s perspective to something you know intimately. Plus, it profiles everyone’s favorite kyuusha power couple, Koji and Terry Yamaguchi, founders of the Japanese Classic Car Show. Continue reading
QotW: Which JNC is the rarest coelacanth?
The coelacanth was a species of deep-sea fish thought to have gone extinct 66 million years ago, during the age of the dinosaurs. That is, until 1998 when the L. menadoensis species of coelacanth was rediscovered in modern times by a UC Berkeley marine biologist at an Indonesian fish market. Not knowing how rare it was, he did not buy it. We think it’s an appropriate term that can be used in the automotive world as well.
Which JNC is the rarest coelacanth?
At Toyotafest we spotted an all-original 1974 Toyota Corolla SR-5 with only 27,600 miles. It was the top-spec version of the TE27 offered in the US, equipped with a 2T-C mated to a 5-speed manual — one more gear than the standard — but with the factory metal fender flares found on the twin-cam 2T-G version sold in Japan and never exported to our shores. Most were driven into the ground or converted to race cars. Some were brought back to life and nowadays Japan-spec examples have slowly migrated to our shores, but a bone-stock USDM version? We thought there weren’t any left.
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 the last QotW, “Which JNC should Cameron keep?” Continue reading
KIDNEY, ANYONE? 20k-mile 1986 Isuzu Trooper II
Although there are still quite a few of these old workhorses around, they’re never in this kind of shape. Typically, Isuzu Troopers were rode hard and put up wet. They were used for transporting people and ab-used while hauling stuff. So today, most early two door originals come up for sale in despicable condition with “mechanic’s special” disclosures, and low prices to match. But not this one. Continue reading
