Jingle All the Way

Posted on December 18, 2007 by Ben Hsu

After going through the infectious US-market Toyota ads last week, we were inspired to see what catchy ad jingles would haunt our brains till we needed to bang our noggins against a fencepost to get them out of our heads. Well, here’s what we found – a pair of Toyota ads. You’ll thank us later. Or not.

The first, the 1979 Sprinter, chilling in all-white Grecian architecture by the Mediterranean Sea. Feta cheese, anyone?

To complement that, we have the ad for the 1980 Celica Camry. That’s right, the name affixed to the number-one selling American sedan was a sub-model! This was more or less a slightly redesigned Carina, but the Celica name was hot, and what better way to convince buyers they were buying a four door sports coupe?

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Charade 926R: When Daihatsu Met DeTomaso

Posted on December 17, 2007 by Kevin San

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Many apologies for the shortage of new posts in the past week or so, if you knew what we’ve been working on then you’d forgive us! Anyway, back to regular programming. A couple of weeks ago we did a piece on the short lived joint alliance between Nissan and Alfa Romeo. Certainly one of the most bizarre automotive joint ventures, but it is not the only weird JDM corporate marriage.

For a time in the 80s, Daihatsu had an arrangement with DeTomaso, to create an odd mix of JDM econo-hatch manufacturer with hardcore Italian supercar maker.

Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

JC Taylor Wants YOU!

Posted on December 17, 2007 by Ben Hsu

Great news, nostalgic car fans! Collector car insurance company JC Taylor wants to feature a Datsun Z Car or a Toyota Land Cruiser in an upcoming advertisement. They’re interested in the possibility of serving vintage Japanese car enthusiasts, so please help them with the ad and support their cause! Contact us via email or message in this forum thread if you’re interested.

Posted in cm, datsun, nissan | Leave a comment

JCCS DVD On Sale Tomorrow

Posted on December 14, 2007 by Ben Hsu

Speaking of video, the Japanese Classic Car Show 2007 official DVD goes on sale tomorrow, December 15. Until time machines are invented, it’s the next best way to experience the madness that was the 2007 JCCS. To order, go here.

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NEW SECTION: Video

Posted on December 14, 2007 by Ben Hsu

For those of you who may have missed it, several months ago we put together a video of nostalgics prowling the streets of Tokyo and posted it on this blog. But like a dinosaur carcass, as time progressed it got buried to make way for more civilized fare. Although some things are best left forgotten, we went ahead and created a Video section anyway, where our short film, which has been nominated for zero Oscars, will reside full time.

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What's the 411, Yo?

Posted on December 14, 2007 by Ben Hsu

Reader extraordinaire gamby sent us a link to this BringATrailer.com, which posts on interesting classics up for sale, including some of Japanese stock. That got us thinking, one of the most frequent questions we get is, “How much should I pay for a [insert Japanese classic of choice here]?” to which we usually answer, “How ever much you want.” This usually results in, “Thanks for nothing.”

Perhaps it’s about time we started following the market and giving you, our dear readers, reports on how it’s looking for J-tin. After all, we’re entering the era when Japanese cars are truly being recognized as serious classics. If you think this would be useful, let us know in the comments. Without further ado, here’s the car that gamby sent us.

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1967 Datsun Bluebird 411 Wagon. Predecessor to the iconic 510, the 411 was styled by Italian design house Pininfarina. This example is a not a pure survivor. It was repainted and reupholstered at least once in its lifetime, but the good news is it spent most of its life as an exhibit in a dealership showroom. 65,000 miles, aftermarket wheels of unknown brand, virtually rust-free. According to the owner, only minor rust exists, such as in the battery tray. Starts right up and runs, he says. It would take far more than the selling price to restore one to this condition (seller claims $8500 spent on restoration), if you can even find one. Sold at $4000 [ebay]. A very reasonable buy for a virtually one-of-a-kind car.

Posted in datsun, for sale, marketwatch, nissan, wagons | Leave a comment

Get a Life

Posted on December 13, 2007 by Ben Hsu

hondalife.jpgHere’s a rare bird, spotted by our resident Honda head reader colhogen, who heroically posted it in our forum. It’s an ultra-rare 1974 Honda Life, which, in Honda genealogy, succeeded the N360 and N600, and spawned variations such as the Life Step Van and, later, the Life Dunk. Although not mentioned in the auction, this example is actually a Life Van/Wagon, which has a larger rear and no sloping hatch. Either way, it’s scarcer than Bigfoot in a party hat, having never been officially sold US. As a result, it’s got RHD JDM exclusivity, and could be yours for the BuyItNow price of $2800. That way, the next time someone tells you to “get a life,” which happens to us frequently, you can say, “I already have one, so there.” That’ll show ’em.

Posted in for sale, honda, kei, wagons | 2 Comments

Get Out Ya Seat and Jump Around

Posted on December 13, 2007 by Ben Hsu

toyotaads.jpgOur blogospheric partners in crime over at Jalopnik are having way too much fun digging up old Toyota commercials in what they’ve dubbed “Oh What a Feeling Week,” featuring nothing but ads that conclude with people jumping for joy at the purchase of a brand new ‘Yota.

Who are these leapers? Well, they come from just about every walk of life you can imagine – manly pickup-abusing cowboy types, feral but fuel-economy- minded jungle dwellers and their pet chimps, Celica-driving yuppies/alien abductees, Ebenezer Scrooge with a team of Governator-esque body-builders, and sexy sophisticated ladies who are into RWD Corollas.

We have to give it to the Tercel ad, though, because there’s something to be said about not one, but two of the most intelligent species on the planet simultaneously endorsing a product with an airborne fist pump.

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Garage Mahals

Posted on December 13, 2007 by Ben Hsu

garages.jpgThis doesn’t directly have to do with cars, but we found it interesting nonetheless. Online magazine Slate has an article about the exciting world of parking garage design. They’re not just concrete slabs and shadowy meeting places for Hollywood crime dramas anymore. Architects are now putting some thought into the ol’ ramps ‘n’ columns, in many cases camouflaging them with steel, glass, and even vegetation so they look more aesthetically pleasing and less like, oh, a big gray stack of cars.

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How To Stretch a Tire

Posted on December 12, 2007 by Ben Hsu

So you’re an aspiring bosozoku looking for a that stretched tire look on your old school cruiser. You could go to a tire shop, but they might turn you away or scratch your super rare ultra-deep dish SSRs, and then what? A proper bosozoku would have no choice but to break some heads open right there.

But say you’re no good a intimidation and strongarm techniques. Well, for the price of some cinder blocks, a flammable aerosol spray such as deodorant or brake cleaner, a match, and a few singed eyebrows, you too can have your own wide rubber bands in no time! Thanks to super-reader gamby for posting this video in our forum, showing how to do it without chipping those shiny polished lips. Do we even need to say it? This involves fire. Kids, don’t try this at home. Not without your parents or Aquaman around, at least. Then again, facial hair is overrated anyway!

Posted in bosozoku, how to, wheels | 1 Comment

Datyota Zupra

Posted on December 11, 2007 by Ben Hsu

zyota.jpgWhat’s crazier than an Australian footballer? Or do they call it soccer down there? We don’t know the answer to the latter, but to the former, the answer is: his car. Check out this story on Autospeed, about Michael Galluzzo’s ultra-early 1969 240Z powered by a 7M-GTE from an A70 Toyota Supra. This does not appear to be the same video in which such a setup races, and beats, a Ferrari, but perhaps our Aussie readers can clarify. All we know is, this has “Ace Hoon Potential” written all over it.

Posted in datsun, nissan, toyota | 3 Comments

March Superturbo: Mighty Mite!

Posted on December 9, 2007 by Kevin San

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A recently notable new car release has been the VW Golf GT. Both supercharged and turbocharged, the boosted 165ps 1.4L does a pretty good job of moving the big Mk5 Golf body along. VW claims that it is the very first twincharged direct injection production car, and that is certainly true, but it isn’t the first production car to use twincharging.

Lancia tried it with a small number of Delta S4 homologation specials (so they don’t really count as proper production cars) but Nissan also had a twincharged production model, as long ago as 1989. And it came in the unlikely shape of the March subcompact.

Continue reading →

Posted in nissan | 2 Comments

Obsessions Come In All Shapes and Sizes

Posted on December 8, 2007 by Van

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So, I have an A3 (as in the paper size) flatbed scanner sitting on my desk, taking up a lot of room. ‘Til now, it’s had some toys sitting on it, etc. When it’s not being used, obviously. But I’ve recently decided to turn it into a proper scene.

Continue reading →

Posted in nissan | 1 Comment

Isuzu Piazza: Media Ownage

Posted on December 8, 2007 by Kevin San

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The other day we did a feature on the Isuzu 117 Coupe and we concluded the article with a short mention of its replacement, the Piazza. That got us to thinking about the Piazza and now that we have 20yrs worth of hindsight, I think it’s about time we examined the oft-scorned coupe.

In Australia the image of the Piazza is unambiguous: it’s a lemon. But did fate play the attractive Italian-styled coupe a bad hand? Was it really such a bad car? We at GrandJDM are willing to fire up our trusty time machine to find out!

Continue reading →

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Mister Bishi’s Motoring Museum

Posted on December 7, 2007 by Van

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Heh, Mister Bishi. You see what I did there.

Mitsubishi—a company for which I’ve not yet been able to find an appealing enough classic to feature on grandJDM—have got a great section of their website devoted to keeping stans informed about the history of the company. When a lot of car enthusiasts think of Mitsus, they think of Evos. And fair enough, because not much else of the caltrops western-released wares in recent years has been especially worthy of any drooling.

But looking back, the Colt range is an example of a damn fine Mitsu—at least as far as I’m concerned. And that’s just from a sports perspective, without even thinking about the wealth of other classic Mitsus shown at their museum. So jump over there and check it out.

Posted in mitsubishi | 2 Comments

Car Crazy for Nostalgics

Posted on December 7, 2007 by Ben Hsu

carcrazytv.jpgWe can’t afford cable so we missed it the first time, but luckily some friends and readers sent us a DVD of Meguiar’s Car Crazy TV‘s recent episode about Japanese collector cars. In this episode, Barry Meguiar goes on the scene to the Japanese Classic Car Show, Motoring J Style, and Toyotafest. With only 30 minutes to cover all three shows, the profiles of cars are very limited, but we’re still jazzed to see some vintage Japanese iron get their propers on the telly. In fact, what’s that behind Mr. Meguiar’s right shoulder? In this opening scene, he’s saying, “One of the great phenomena taking place in the car hobby today is the evolution of Japanese cars becoming collectors cars.” We could not agree more. Hats off to Mr. Meguiar and Car Crazy TV, for being one of the first TV shows to recognize this movement.

CORRECTION: The next airing will be this Sunday, December 9, at 8:30am Eastern Time, 5:30am Pacific Time on SpeedTV (thanks elmonoloco). Check this site for your local times. Gentlemen (and ladies), start your Tivos! And if that doesn’t satisfy your need for car show footage, there’s always the JCCS DVD.

Posted in events, media | 5 Comments

Knight Rider‘s KITT was originally a Datsun 280ZX

Posted on December 7, 2007 by Ben Hsu

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The cultural landmarks of our youth continue to be mined like blood diamonds. This time, it’s that shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man – who does not exist. Yes, Knight Rider is the latest 80s nostalgia to be unceremoniously harpooned and dragged aboard the H.M.S. Hollywood Remake.

Last week, news broke on Jalopnik that the star car playing the Knight Industries Two Thousand would be a Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR. While this might ignite a self-aware pony car war that could see KITT going mano-a-mano with the autonomous Camaro Bumblebee from Transformers, what does any of this have to do with nostalgics, you might ask.

And we might answer, the original KITT was supposed to be a Datsun! According to the book Hollywood and TV Movie Cars by G. William Krause, “[Producer Harker Wade] said he was working with Glen Larson (The Fall Guy) on a new action- adventure show that starred a computerized talking car. A Datsun Z was written into the original script…”

Like, totally awesome! From the years 1982 to 1986, for one hour a week, you couldn’t pry us from the TV with a 6-foot crowbar as The Hoff and KITT turbo-boosted their way into our hearts and minds. The Datsun 280ZX was the car to have in ’81, and computers were finally getting small enough to fit on two or three desks put together, so a sentient AI living inside a dashboard wasn’t completely out of the question, was it?

If GM hadn’t been ready to debut a new Pontiac Firebird in 1982, this plan would have gone through, and we’re sure that in the resulting timeline of that alternate universe Datsuns would bring peace to the Middle East, solve global warming, and everyone would be able to afford a vintage Skyline. Imagine the uber-great story line potential when the digital-agey stylings of the 300ZX debuted in 1984. Then, for the present-day remake we could have a NISMO 350Z or GT-R. The possibilities are endless. Ah, what could have been…

Silver lining: 229 now-rare Dodge Chargers were used/destroyed during the run of Dukes of Hazzard, so at least a few Datsuns were spared from a similar fate. Also, from this.

Posted in datsun, honda, jnc, nissan, Video Games | 7 Comments

Demon on Wheels Screenshots

Posted on December 6, 2007 by Ben Hsu

speedracer.jpgBack in June we mentioned that a Speed Racer-inspired movie was in the works. Now, thanks to Jalopnik, we have the first screenshots from the upcoming film. To call the Wachowski Brothers’ take on the anime classic “live action” would be a stretch, given all the apparent computer animation going on. Let’s hope it’s a little bit more comprehensible than the brothers’ Matrix trilogy and a little bit less of a nostalgia exploiting money-grab than the VW commercial. The movie is scheduled to open May 9, 2008.

UPDATE:  See the trailer here.

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Toyota 2000GT Is Teh Sex

Posted on December 6, 2007 by Ben Hsu

See what we mean? The amount of attention lavished on antique J-rides simply continues to grow. As a result, the most expensive nostalgic, the Toyota 2000GT, is getting more ink than a yakuza lieutenant’s torso. It’s been making the lists at Forbes, Jalopnik and Winding Road, but the latest – and possibly the most pointless – example comes from Motive Magazine, which has named it one of the top 10 cars whose silhouette resembles a giant donger (NSFW if the word “phallic” in 150-point font would be deemed impolite at your office).

Now, we’re sure this is a real honor for the guys back in Nagoya, but the point of this post is to illustrate how the notion of Japanese classics has permeated the collective psyche of the mainstream media. If the 2000GT is on the tip of every auto journalist’s tongue, suddenly the idea of a Japanese collector’s cars won’t seem so far-fetched any more. It wasn’t always this way, even as recently as a couple of years ago. In other words, better buy ’em while you can. [via Autoblog]

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Beauty Contest

Posted on December 6, 2007 by Ben Hsu

rx7.jpgJapanese nostalgic fever is spreading like a top secret government bioweapon experiment gone awry. Is it just us or has the mainstream automotive press suddenly taken a liking to vintage J-tin?

Online magazine Winding Road recently had a brief love affair with the Honda T500. Now on the rebound, they’ve gone and compiled a list of the Japan’s Most Beautiful Designs. Of course, the superlative implies that all Japanese cars were considered for the pageant, but were they? Naturally, the perennial Angelina Jolie of nostalgics, the Toyota 2000GT opens the list. Others include the S30 Fairlady, first-gen RX-7 and, um, the Isuzu Impulse? The Subaru SVX? What, no Mazda Cosmo Sport, Celica or Silvia?

Granted, it’s just one magazine’s opinion, but we think the web deserves better. So we’re going to be coming up with our own list of Japanese nostalgic cars we’d like to own. Stay tuned for that.

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