Japanese Nostalgic Car

QotW: What’s the best shade of JNC green?

Posted on March 17, 2014 by Ben Hsu

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we celebrate the color green, aka midori in Japanese. It was prevalent in the golden age of JNCs, from drab military olives to citrusy limes.

What’s the best shade of JNC green?

In 1983 Suntory Brewery’s Midori Melon liqueur sponsored a contest in which the grand prize was a brand new Datsun 280ZX, slathered in a bespoke shade of green. As far as we know there was only one like it, making it quite possibly the rarest S130 color there is.

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, “Which JNC are you never sellin’?” Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged Question of the Week | 18 Comments

BACK ROADS: Remebering the Honda City

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Dave Yuan

As long-time Honda enthusiasts, it is hard nowadays not to marvel at the many creative and awesome machines that bore the iconic “H” during the 1980s. One of our favorites from those days is the Honda City. An unassuming econobox it may seem, but the little Honda is actually chock full of charisma and historical significance. Over the last few years, there’s been increasing recognition and appreciation for this car in the US, so perhaps the time is ripe for another article about this bona fide JNC. Continue reading →

Posted in Back Roads | Tagged city, Hirotoshi Honda, honda, motocompo, mugen, n-one | 15 Comments

MINICARS: Hot Wheels X JNC Datsun 620, now in red

Posted on March 13, 2014 by Ricky Silverio

We at JNC are proud to present the latest Hot Wheels car to bear our inkan logo. The red Datsun 620 is the third recolor of a casting so popular some has built a life-size replica of it. This was actually leaked a while ago, so it’s safe to show you our samples fresh off the assembly line. Continue reading →

Posted in minicars | Tagged 620, datsun, hot wheels, nissan, trucks | 4 Comments

VIDEO: Circumnavigating North America in a Datsun Roadster

Posted on March 13, 2014 by Justin Principe

How should one traverse the continent of North America, spanning 37,850 miles, and have the most unadulterated and visceral driving experience? Do it in a Datsun. Or better yet, do it like Scott Fisher in his 1967 Datsun Sports 1600, in this latest video by Petrolicious. Continue reading →

Posted in Video | Tagged datsun, fairlady, nissan, roadster | 3 Comments

ART CORNER: The custom 1:24 models of Luis Aguilar, Part 02

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Guest Writer

We met Luis Aguilar at a local AE86 owner gathering and immediately had our brains melted by his astounding 1:24 scale plastic models. It wasn’t just his tremendous attention to detail that caught our eye, but his highly accurate adherence to Japanese customizing styles. We’ll let Luis tell you about his cars in his own words. This is Part 02 of his story. — Ben

In scale form I have many kits of all makes and models: American hot rods, muscle cars, some Euros as well, but with Japanese cars being the majority of my collection. Most of my kits are 1:24 or 1:25 scale, but I have a few 1:12 and the more rare 1:16 and 1:20 scale kits too. I cannot say that I am influenced by just one style for my builds. It’s a mixture of a lot styles — kyuusha-kai, shakotan, bosozoku, drift and a bit of the performance side as well. I tend to throw in a bit of all that I like. Continue reading →

Posted in Art Corner | Tagged 280zx, 510, aoshima, bluebird, chaser, datsun, fairlady z, mark II, nissan, s130, toyota | 15 Comments

VIDEO: Jay Leno drives the Nissan IDx NISMO

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Justin Principe

Nissan has been parading their IDx concept cars all over SoCal recently, and this weekend they ended up in the garage of car enthusiast and comedian Jay Leno.

Tonight Show prop master Greg Elliot joins the show once again with his restomod Voodoo Blue 510. Accompanying him is Nissan Creative Design Manager Giovanny Arroba and the head-turning, charismatic Nissan IDx NISMO Concept. Continue reading →

Posted in Video | Tagged 510, datsun, IDx, jay leno, nissan, Video | 8 Comments

QotW: Which JNC are you never sellin’?

Posted on March 10, 2014 by Ben Hsu

Maybe it’s your first. Maybe it’s got some uber-rare option combo. Maybe you put your blood, sweat and tears into building it exactly way you want it. It might note even be that special to anyone else but you, but you’re keeping it forever anyway.

Which JNC are you never sellin’?

Look at the story of Alfred Morris. He kept and restored his beloved Mazda 626 5-speed, even though he earned $2.2 million with his NFL contract last year. How many JNC readers would do the same in his situation?

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 best JNC for a new driver?” Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged camry, cr-x, cressida, honda, leone, Loyale, Question of the Week, subaru, toyota, V20 | 30 Comments

MINICARS: Red Line Club Carroll Shelby Toyota 2000GT

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Ricky Silverio

Um, you might want to join the Hot Wheels Red Line Club this year. It was announced today that one of the club exclusives this year will be none other than the SCCA Toyota 2000GT campaigned by Carroll Shelby. Last year Mattel introduced a BRE Datsun 510, which sold out in two hours, leaving many collectors out in the cold. Continue reading →

Posted in minicars | Tagged 2000gt, carroll shelby, hot wheels, minicars, motorsports, toyota | 1 Comment

ART CORNER: The custom 1:24 models of Luis Aguilar, Part 01

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Guest Writer

I’ve been into models since I was a kid. It’s been an on-and-off hobby, but I’ve always been drawn in by hot rods, lowriders and pretty much anything low. Growing up in LA I was surrounded by it all. Once I hit high school I was introduced to the import side, mainly by the older brothers or uncles of some buddies in old school Corollas going to “street racing” spots in Carson. Continue reading →

Posted in Art Corner | Tagged a20, a60, Art Corner, bosozoku, celica, Luis Aguilar, nissan, r30, skyline, supra, toyota | 8 Comments

1974 Mitsubishi Lancer 1600GSR at Geneva Motor Show

Posted on March 6, 2014 by Ben Hsu

The Geneva Motor Show is happening in Switzerland right now, and unless you’re into hideously modified exotics there’s not much of interest to the typical JNCer. Except, that is, if you happen to wander into the Mitsubishi booth where the the humble winner of the 1974 East African Safari Rally stands on display in honor of the Triple Diamond’s 40th anniversary in Europe. Continue reading →

Posted in mitsubishi | Tagged lancer, mitsubishi, rally | 7 Comments

THE ENGINE: HKS Mitsubishi Astron II twin-cam

Posted on March 5, 2014 by Matt De Mangos

Nissan had the OS Giken TC24 twin-cam conversion for its L-series motors. Toyota had its 151E 16-valver. Let’s not forget, however, that Mitsubishi had their own ridiculously expensive marvel of engineering, and it was built by none other than the famous Japanese tuning house HKS. Continue reading →

Posted in mitsubishi | Tagged hks, mitsubishi, rally, starion | 11 Comments

KIDNEY, ANYONE? Ex-works Toyota Celica ST185 Group A rally car

Posted on March 4, 2014 by Justin Principe

We have seen other historic Toyota race cars hit the market recently, and the appearance of this 1993 ex-works Toyota Celica ST185 indicates their collectability is increasing. Building on the victories of the ST165 chassis, the ST185 was introduced to usher Toyota into the 90’s with more success; thanks to improvements to its frame, turbo system, and suspension. Continue reading →

Posted in for sale | Tagged carlos sainz, celica, group a, kidney anyone, motorsport, rally, st185, toyota, wrc | 7 Comments

QotW: What’s the best JNC for a new driver?

Posted on March 3, 2014 by Ben Hsu

Last week we asked which JNC would get you the most dates. Let’s say the advice dispensed by our readers worked and netted you a mate. First comes love, then comes marriage, now it’s 16 years later you have a teen getting behind the wheel for the first time.

What’s the best JNC for a new driver?

The E70 Corolla might be the perfect ride for a new license holder. It’s unassuming, mechanically simple, and reliable as an oak tree. It comes in a variety of body styles and is common enough that you won’t feel guilty if the newb puts a ding in it. And yet, it has all the underpinnings of an AE86 so your budding Takumi Fujiwara can learn RWD dynamics in a well-balanced chassis without the perils of too much power. Best of all, it’s a sensible, economical Corolla, making for an easy sell to your non-car enthusiast spouse.

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, “Which JNC will get you the most dates?” Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged QotW, Question of the Week | 28 Comments

Ten years, 100,000km of Mitsubishi ownership

Posted on February 28, 2014 by Matt De Mangos

Back in 2010 Mitsubishi went around Japan looking for the most loyal members of the triple diamond clan. They sent journalist Hirohisa Kaneko across the country looking for individuals who had owned their Mitsubishis for either 10 years or 100,000km to share their stories. What he found was everything from a guy with two matching 1970s Debonairs to an elderly gent who’s had his Galant GTO GSR for 41 years. Continue reading →

Posted in mitsubishi | Tagged chariot, debonair, delica, dignity, gto, kei, lancer, minica, minicab, mitsubishi, montero, pajero, proudia | 13 Comments

MINICARS: Hot Wheels Kenmeri Skyline hints at what could’ve been

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Ricky Silverio

The Hot Wheels kenmeri Nissan Skyline in the Flying Customs series has been one of the hardest of Mattel’s Japanese classics to find. If you were lucky enough to score one, look inside. There were actually two different interiors: a full stock cabin with rear bench and passenger seat, and a racing cockpit with just one racing seat. Today we’re going to answer two mysteries. Why the two interiors, and why was it so damn hard to find? Continue reading →

Posted in minicars | Tagged c110, flying customs, hot wheels, kenmeri, minicars, nissan, skyline | 10 Comments

VIDEO: This OS Giken twin-cam is the most glorious sound you’ll hear all week

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Ben Hsu

You know the OS Giken TC24: The 9,000rpm twin-cam head for Nissan‘s L-series motor costing somewhere in the realm of $30,000 and harder to find than Yeti dandruff (only 11 were built). Last year we saw a new version, the TC24-B1Z, at Nos2Days with a completely re-worked valvetrain, gear-driven timing and a new-and-improved 10,000rpm redline. Well now the mad scientists at OS Giken have dropped it in a car, and here’s what it sounds like. Hint: It’s like a million-angel chorus. Continue reading →

Posted in Video | Tagged datsun, fairlady z, nissan, os giken, s30 | 21 Comments

CATALOGUER: Hondas from around the world, circa 1983

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Ben Hsu

Starting in 1979 Honda held yearly photography competitions among its distributors from around the world. Most appear to be brochure images localized to the many corners of the atlas where Hondas were sold. The best pictures were assembled in a calendar. Here’s the winners from the 1983 contest, a parade of early 80s Civics, Accords and Preludes with a dab of Quintet from far-flung reaches of the globe. Continue reading →

Posted in Cataloguer | Tagged accord, cataloguer, civic, honda, prelude, quint | 6 Comments

Mazda Cosmo Sport and Toyota 2000GT in this month’s Hemmings

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Justin Principe

A Toyota 2000GT and a Mazda Cosmo 110s will both grace the cover of the upcoming April issue of Hemmings Sport & Exotic Car. The pivotal pair of shiro historic flagships was garnered together by our buddy and fellow J-tin enthusiast Jeff Koch, who was also fortunate enough to give each a spin for his cover story.

Also included within the issue is a brief biography of Datsun-Nissan historian Dan Banks along with a Buyer’s Guide for the 1968-1973 Datsun 510.

Posted in media | Tagged 2000gt, 510, bluebird, cosmo sport, datsun, hemmings, mazda, toyota | 7 Comments

QotW: Which JNC will get you the most dates?

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Ben Hsu

For most of their existence Japanese cars have been seen as economical, practical and reliable. Those may be great qualities, but they won’t necessarily improve your love life.

Which JNC will get you the most dates?

The Toyota 2000GT may be the obvious choice, though not necessarily for the obvious reasons. Sure it costs a million bucks so it’s right up there in Ferrari territory when it comes to symbolizing your net worth, but it’s not the price that does it. It’s the Toyota emblem. In fact, the non-car nut you’re wooing will probably assume that it is a Ferrari of some sort. Then they’ll see that Aichi badge and suddenly it becomes interesting, a conversation starter, and an indicator that you’re not just a Richie Rich who thoughtlessly plunked down a million bucks for a status symbol. Also, it’s beautiful as hell.

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, “Which JNC had the greatest interior?” Continue reading →

Posted in Question of the Week | Tagged QotW, Question of the Week | 41 Comments

GALLERIES: Nissan Yokohama Headquarters Showroom

Posted on February 21, 2014 by Ben Hsu

In the 80 years Nissan’s been around, its flagship showrooms have moved several times. The first truly glamorous location was at the 4-chome intersection in the heart of Ginza, sharing real estate during the booming 1960s with some of Japan’s oldest and most expensive department stores. Nissan eventually got tired of switching out display vehicles into the distinctive curved glass building by crane and relocated a few blocks away, to the lobby of Nissan’s massive Tokyo headquarters. Then in 2009, to the surprise of many, Nissan left its long-time home in Japan’s capital for brand new digs in Yokohama. Continue reading →

Posted in Galleries | Tagged Galleries, nissan | 12 Comments