If there’s one thing Toyota loves it’s reviving the chassis codes of past successes and making them full-blown model names. It did that with the FJ40-inspired FJ Cruiser back in 2007, then the AE86-inspired Toyota 86 in 2012. Now Toyota has trademarked the name “Land Cruiser FJ” in Japan. Could it be the spiritual successor of the FJ Cruiser? Continue reading
Plymouth Arrow promotional video from 1976 shows its many quirks
The Plymouth Arrow is nearly forgotten today, but the badge engineered Mitsubishi Lancer Celeste had a lot to offer. Its handling was rated quite positively in magazine tests of the era, and Mitsubishi’s signature “silent shaft” technology used a counterbalanced mass to run its inline-four with the smoothness of a straight-six. This 1976 promotional video, however, offers even more reasons to buy one. Continue reading
Posted in Video
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QotW: What technology made modern cars less interesting?
To the average consumer the formula is pretty straightforward: new = good. But JNC owners know better than that. The last couple of decades have seen an in-car technology boom, but if you’re reading this you likely long for the days when technology enhanced driving performance, not digital convenience; fuel injection, not
blind spot monitoring. Modern cars are faster than ever but arguably less fun. What was the turning point? CVTs? Drive by wire? Touchscreens? Mandatory traction control? Let us know when tech began detracting from the driving experience rather than amplifying it.
What technology made modern cars less interesting?
The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What works from your childhood fueled your love for cars?” Continue reading
Follow vintage Toyotas from factory to family in this 1973 promotional film
In 1973 Toyota released a 20-minute promotional film called “In Small Packages”. It was created to introduce the company and its various models to Americans. Not only is it filled with beautiful footage of Corollas, Celicas, Coronas, and Land Cruisers, but it delves into how the cars were built before they landed in the hands of the customer. Keep in mind that it was filmed less than 10 years after the Corona clawed back some of the embarrassment that was the original Crown, so Toyota still had to convince us that they made dependable cars. Continue reading
Posted in Showa Snap
Tagged a10, a20, carina, celica, corolla, corona, Corona MkII, e20, ex-III, fj40, hilux, land cruiser, te27, toyota
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Toyota teams up with streetwear brand Huf for 70s-inspired swag
Toyota is teaming up with streetwear brand Huf on a new line of apparel. Said to be inspired by 70s graphics, the clothes and accessories feature heaps of Toyota trucks and plenty of the red-orange-yellow tricolor. Some of the designs are pretty cool, but most of the vehicles depicted hail from the 80s and 90s. Is this cool? We are too old to know. Maybe you can tell us. Continue reading
Japan Automotive Hall of Fame honors Lexus founder, Honda F1 engineer, pioneers of four-wheel-steering
The Japan Automotive Hall of Fame has named four individuals to be inducted into their ranks. Each has been chosen for their contributions to Japan’s automotive industry. As with the four cars that were announced this year, there are names that we assumed would’ve already been included long ago. Better late than never, though. Continue reading
Posted in Legends
Tagged 2012 All-Toyotafest, Airtrek, cordia, daihatsu, debonair, Diamante, formula 1, Galant Σ, honda, honda 1300, japan automotive hall of fame, Lancer EX Turbo, lexus, mazda, Miata NA, mira, mitsubishi, Mitsubishi i, prelude, ra271, ra272, RA300, RA302, Shoichi Sano, Shoichiro Toyoda, toyota, Tredia
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Japan Automotive Hall of Fame welcomes Nissan 510 Bluebird, Mitsubishi Pajero, Mazda 787B, and more
The Japan Automotive Hall of Fame has announced the inductees that will honored in its Historic & Heritage Vehicles category. The vehicles chosen have each determined to have contributed to the development of Japan’s automobile industry and car culture, and are deemed worthy of preservation. Continue reading
Posted in News
Tagged 24 Hours of Le Mans, 510, 787b, bluebird, datsun, japan automotive hall of fame, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, otomo, pajero, prius, toyota
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QotW: What works from your childhood fueled your love for cars?
Last week I visited the home of some distant in-laws who were meeting my 4-year-old for the first time. They’re grandparents already and asked my kid if he’d like to play with some toys that once belonged to their now-adult son. To my surprise, they went into the garage and pulled out a giant box of first-generation Transformers complete with original instruction manuals and weapons still attached to the plastic sprues.
My son was stoked, but I think I was more excited. I had maybe a dozen Transformers as a kid but this collection was expansive, with nearly an entire archive of full-size Autobots, Decepticon jets, several combiners, and a couple of the transforming cities. I’d always loved cars, and cars that turned into robots were ultra cool to me. Memories of the watching the cartoons on UHF and poring over the catalogs came flooding back. This, along with MASK, Turbo Teen, Knight Rider, and Dukes of Hazzard, it was a great time to be a petrolhead kid.
What works from your childhood fueled your love for cars?
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 most terrifying car story?” Continue reading
The Toyota Retro Cruiser concept restored, 25 years later
The Toyota Retro Cruiser concept made a big splash when it debuted in 1999. It looked like an FJ40 from the outside, but the running gear underneath came from the most advanced Land Cruiser at the time, the J100. Not only was the Retro Cruiser was fully functional, which is rare for a concept, but Toyota let journalists beat on it in off-road testing. It was then put away for a quarter century. For SEMA this year, Toyota brought it out of retirement and restored it to its former glory. Continue reading
Posted in concepts
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Toyota Tacoma X-Runner revived to take on the new Nissan Z
A huge SEMA surprise from Toyota this year came in the form of a revived Tacoma X-Runner. The original Tacoma X-Runner debuted in 2005 as a hot rod variant of the popular pickup. At the time, Toyota admitted to a rather shocking performance benchmark — the Nissan 350Z. Now there’s a new Z and a new Tacoma in town. Continue reading
Toyota’s “FJ Bruiser” is a mean, green rock crawler built from a worn-out FJ45
The over-the-top builds from SEMA keep on coming. Toyota’s centerpiece vehicle this year is the FJ Bruiser, a beast of an old Land Cruiser built to take on grueling rock crawls like King of the Hammers. The one-off started as beat-up 1966 FJ45 pickup, but has been thoroughly reconstituted with a tube-frame chassis and a Toyota Nascar V8. Continue reading
Nissan builds Safari Z tribute to Datsun 240Z rally car
We’ve grown pretty bored of the “safari” build trend that seems, inexplicably, to be still going strong. However, Nissan has built a car that actually deserves to be safari’d due to historical precedent. The Datsun 240Z actually did race in the real Safari Rally in the 1970s, so a modern tribute just makes sense. Continue reading
QotW: What’s your most terrifying car story?
Boo, it’s Halloween! Gather around the campfire and tell us your spookiest tales of automotive terror. Was it that time a simple repair turned into a months-long jack stand occupation? A near miss on the road? A 10mm nut disappearing into a dark and unreachable crevice?
About a year ago I was driving my original, 67,000-mile factory 5-speed SC300, a car I have babied for over 20 years. Suddenly, a truck tire came bounding over the freeway jersey barriers, bouncing a good two stories high and headed right towards me. Luckily traffic was light and I swerved two lanes to get out of its way. In the rear view mirror I saw it obliterate the front end of the Prius behind me. I don’t think my heart moved for a good three minutes afterwards.
What’s your most terrifying car story?
The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What Toyota model is the most Toyota?” Continue reading
Daihatsu brings the kawaii to Tokyo, may be prepping the Vision Copen for export
Daihatsu always has one of the coolest booths at the Tokyo Motor Sh— er, I mean Japan Mobility Show. This year they were one of the few companies to bring some classics from their heritage collection to the big show. The 1957 Midget and 1977 Charade were important cars for Daihatsu but they weren’t considered beautiful or fast. They’re just honest transportation and that’s refreshing to see. It’s probably also somewhat easier to throw a few extra cars in the trailer when they’re so small. Also, there’s some exciting news about the Copen. Continue reading
Nissan Hyper Force concept is a brutalist silhouette GT-R
The hits from the Tokyo Motor Show — sorry, Japan Mobility Show — just keep on coming. Nissan has revealed its Hyper Force concept, an absolutely insane take on a future GT-R. An unsparing collections of edges and angles, it looks like something from a dystopian cyberpunk future. But, it seems like there are nods to Skyline history, and we are all about that. Continue reading
Honda Prelude revived as electric sports coupe
The rumors have been swirling since around this time last year, but now it’s confirmed. Honda has revived the Prelude name on a new sports coupe boasting an electrified powertrain. While not a drop-dead stunner like the Mazda concept revealed earlier in the day, the Prelude is still a fairly decent design, as far as modern Hondas go. Continue reading
Posted in Japan Mobility Show, Tokyo Motor Show
Tagged honda, Japan Mobility Show, prelude
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Mazda Iconic SP concept blends Miata and RX-7 into future rotary sports car
The Japan Mobility Show (formerly known as the Tokyo Motor Show) is happening today, and Mazda is kicking things off with a bang. The Mazda Iconic SP concept presages what the future might hold for its sports car lineage. Problem is, Mazda has two sports car lineages, the Miata and the RX-7. The concept combines both into one car, and it’s so beautiful it hurts. Continue reading
Posted in Japan Mobility Show
Tagged fc3s, fd3s, Iconic SP, Japan Mobility Show, mazda, miata, Miata NA, Miata NC, Miata ND, Miata NE, rx-7
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Never before seen Honda concepts reveal sports cars that didn’t make it
To celebrates its 60th anniversary of building cars, Honda has shared some images of never-before-seen concepts. Like the unbuilt V8 NSX from the 1970s, these cars were dreamt up at Honda’s Wako, Saitama design studio. They have something else in common: they’re all sports cars, as Honda has been committed to building drivers’ cars since the 1963 S500 roadster. Continue reading
QotW: What Toyota model is the most Toyota?
Several weeks ago we asked you to pick the one Honda that best represents the marque. Now do the same for Toyota. In theory it should be a lot harder, as Toyota had built a wider variety of cars than Honda. Is it the ubiquitous Corolla? The rugged Land Cruiser? The legendary Supra? Which single model embodies the fundamental aspect of the Toyota name?
What Toyota model is the most Toyota?
The most entertaining comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What would you put in a JNC theme park?”. Continue reading
Posted in Question of the Week
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Honda S500, S600, and S800 explored with no stone unturned: The First Honda Automobiles 1958-1970
In the volumes of information available on Hondas, most of it centers on cars of the 1980s and newer. There hasn’t been a whole lot written about the earliest models that paved the way for the Civics and Accords we know and love. This weekend Don Laughton, author of The First Honda Automobiles, 1958-1970, will be at the inaugural Cars, Bikes & Coffee event at Honda’s US headquarters, signing copies of his book. We got an (very) advance copy of is book for review: Continue reading
