Japanese Nostalgic Car

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 →

This week’s QotW comes from long-time JNC reader Cameron V., who hails from Cleveland, Ohio and goes by camshaft in the forums. He wrote us for help with deciding how to cull his herd to just one JNC, a question we turn over to you, dear reader. Will it be the Mazda, Toyota or Nissan? We’ll let him describe his dilemma in his own words. Continue reading →

Keychains. They will soon be a thing of the past thanks to fancy push-button starters and “smart” keys. Can something really even be called a key fob if there is no key attached?

Well, at least when you drive a JNC you can still get that visceral, at-one-with-the-machine thrill when you rotate a lock tumbler with a good, old-fashioned blade and bow. Plus, they provide another personalizable connection with the car because they can be unique, sentimental or a collector’s item unto themselves, rather than a uniform black oval designed specifically to fly out of your shorts pocket and into the driver’s seat-center console trench because it is smoother than a suppository. What symbol of motoring tradition sways from your steering column as you bomb down the streets of your town and what does it mean to you?

What say you, dear reader? As always, the most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a toy. Click through to see the winner of the last QotW, “Is Toyota making the right move?”  Continue reading →

Last week it was confirmed that Toyota USA would be moving from its home of 57 years in southern California to new digs in Plano, Texas.

Is Toyota making the right move?

On the one hand, there are dollars to be saved and Toyota will be closer to its manufacturing plants in San Antonio, Mississippi and Kentucky. On the other, it will be leaving the car culture mecca of the US and the only place thus far that has a thriving scene devoted to classic Japanese cars. There are hundreds of other factors at play, and the fate of the Toyota USA Museum is still unknown at this time.

What say you, dear reader? As always, the most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a toy. Click through to see the winner of the last QotW, “What’s the greatest nostalgic Toyota?”  Continue reading →