When we started racing with YouTube’s premiere diecast motorsports league, we had no idea it would come to this. My wife Carrie took the JNC team trophy, after ruthlessly decimating every writer on the staff and also our own two-year-old son. Her Hot Wheels Nissan Skyline gave no mercy to our Toyotas, Mazdas, or Datsuns. Now, her JNC tournament-winning Hakosuka is taking on the winners of 3DBotMaker‘s other tournaments, going up against everything from a BMW M3 to Vin Diesel’s blown 1970 Dodge Charger from the Fast & Furious movies. Continue reading
QotW: What are you asking Japanese Santa Claus for this year?
It’s a well known fact that Japanese Santa Claus, a magical yokozuna in a red and white yukata, travels all over the world to in a flying Hino Ranger dekotora to bring those on his “nice” list. You can ask him for anything you want, from a $1 Hot Wheels car to a 1 of 1 priceless race car currently in the possession of an automaker’s museum collection.
What are you asking Japanese Santa Claus for this year?
The best comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What made you fall in love with cars?“. Continue reading
Nissan T12 Bluebird becomes 80s retro-electric “Newbird”
Eighties culture and fashion is, like, so rad these days. Nissan has gotten in on the fun by 80s-fying a T12 Nissan Bluebird — what we would have called a Stanza 5-door in the US — with a modern powertrain. The so-called “Newbird” was built to mark the 35th anniversary of Nissan’s Sunderland plant in the UK, where European-market versions of the Bluebird were originally built. Continue reading
Suzuki Samurai, Mazda RX-7 are classics to watch for 2022, says Hagerty
Hagerty Insurance has come out with their list of top ten classics to watch in 2022. The list is a reflection of how many customers ask for classic car insurance quotes for a particular model, with a focus more on the monetary — rather than historic or performance — value. This year there are two Japanese cars on the list: The first-generation Mazda RX-7 and the Suzuki Samurai. Continue reading
The Lexus Electrified Sports concept sure looks like the stunning Mazda RX-Vision
Akio Toyoda surprised the world with a mega press conference yesterday, announcing Toyota’s plans for electrification. He showed no less than 16 concept cars in dramatic fashion, talking about a packed lineup of five before dropping the false wall behind him and revealing 11 more. A few of them stood out in particular, including a Lexus flagship called the Electrified Sports that looks suspiciously like an old friend, the Mazda RX-Vision. Continue reading
VIDEO: The Impreza 2.5 RS proved Americans could accept a sporty Subaru
It’s kind of hard to imagine, but even back in 1998 the idea of a sporty Subaru was still pretty foreign to most Americans. Its most well-known US model was the Brat, and the marque was known mostly for utilitarian machines like the Justy or Loyale Wagon. Sure, there was the SVX, but that might as well have been a spaceship, and depressingly few people knew about the GT. The idea that Subaru could build a sports coupe that could give the Eclipse Turbo or Toyota MR2 a run for their money was unthinkable to most. Continue reading
Honda leaves Formula One with bittersweet championship win
The 2021 Formula One season concluded over the weekend. That means it was Honda’s final F1 race in an on-again, off-again factory effort that spanned over half a century. This time, though it seems fairly certain that the exit will be a permanent off. Continue reading
QotW: What made you fall in love with cars?
We all had to start somewhere. Whether it was toy cars, books and magazines, or just a relative that had good taste, our passion for cars probably came at a pretty early age. We’ve asked about your love for Japanese nostalgic cars in particular, but many probably did not start out with an interest in J-tin to begin with. But no matter if you loved American muscle, Euro exotics, or started right off the bat with Nihon steel, we want to know:
What made you fall in love with cars?
The best comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Will cars of the 2010s be collectible, and if so, which ones?” Continue reading
The 1984 Plymouth Colt GTS Turbo Twin-Stick gets glowing review, some 40 years after its debut
It only took 37 years, but the 1984 Mitsubishi Mirage Turbo is finally getting its due. Back in the day the captive import, sold here as the Plymouth Colt GTS Turbo, was not given a ton of respect. Sure, it had some unique features for its time, but the Turbo model’s adjacency to the lowliest budget offering in the cubic inch-obsessed Mopar empire didn’t do it any favors. But times have changed, and a recent glowing review of the Plymouth version made us want to revisit the Mirage Turbo and its under-appreciated, ahead-of-its-time technology. Continue reading
NISMO’s $430,000 restored R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R: what it’s like to drive one
The R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R is already a car that few people outside of Japan get to drive. Even fewer will ever ever sit behind the wheel of one of NISMO’s $430,000 factory-restored R32 Nissan Skyline GT-Rs. The program takes each example down to bare metal and rebuilds it by hand, resulting in what is essentially a brand-new GT-R. But just in case you were wondering what it’s like to drive one, here is your answer. Continue reading
Posted in News
Tagged Michael Krumm, NISMO, nissan, Nissan Heritage Program, r32, skyline
5 Comments
Suzuki-Toyota-Daihatsu mid-engine sports car rumored to be under development
There’s a rumor coming out of Japan that a new mid-engine sports car is being jointly developed by Suzuki, Toyota, and Daihatsu. If true — and that’s skyscraper-sized if — it could kill two birds with one stone for Toyota. It could represent the “third brother” in the three sports car lineup that Toyota has claimed to want ever since the debut of the S-FR concept, and mark the long-awaited return of the MR2. Continue reading
The Nissan Cima of actress Kazue Itoh has been factory restored
Just over a year ago, Japanese actress Kazue Itoh made headlines when she revealed that she was still driving a decades-old Nissan Cima that she’d owned since new. After she noted some of its imperfections on social media, her fans urged Nissan to restore the car for her. Nissan agreed, and she handed over the keys in April. Now, nearly seven months later, the car has been fully restored was just unveiled in Tokyo a few hours ago. Continue reading
New Nissan Z GT500 race car launch brings out the legends
Nissan has announced its newest car for the 2022 SuperGT season, and it’s no surprise that it will be based on the new Nissan Z. For the last 15 years the GT-R has been Nissan’s fighter in the ring, but the Z, whose last appearance in SuperGT was based on the Z33, will take over next season. To launch the car, Nissan brought out the legends, both in metal and carbon fiber, as well as flesh and blood. Continue reading
Posted in News
Tagged 300zx, fairlady z, haruhito yanagida, john morton, Kazuyoshi Hoshino, nissan, peter brock, Steve Millen, Tsugio Matsuda, z32, Z34B
5 Comments
QotW: Will cars of the 2010s be collectible, and if so, which ones?
The other day we came across a company selling clothing “inspired by” 2010s style. That seems absolutely insane to us, as most of us probably have actual clothing hailing from before that era in our closets. Cars from the 80s and 90s are on the rise right now, just like cars of the 60s and 70s before them. But does that mean that one day mint condition Toyota Venzas and Mitsubishi Eclipse Crosses will command top dollar on Bring a Tractor Beam?
Will cars of the 2010s be collectible, and if so, which ones?
The best comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What do you do with dumb car toys?“. Continue reading
A 1974 Toyota Celica has sold for $61,000
We don’t need to tell you that the acceptance of Japanese cars as collectible classics is pushing prices to previously unseen heights. Among some makes and models, values of so-so condition cars are shooting past what cream puffs once traded for, which only ratchets the prices of the truly well-preserved examples even higher. The latest example is a Cincinnati, Ohio 1974 Toyota Celica that just sold for $61,000. Continue reading
KIDNEY, ANYONE? Feast your eyes on a 94-mile Toyota Truck
We are constantly surprised by the prevalence of not-beat-to-dust Toyota pickups at shows like Toyotafest. Almost all of those, though, are examples that belie their actual mileage thanks to caring owners who have our full admiration. Then there’s this 1993 Toyota Truck coming up for sale, which is basically brand new with a jaw-dropping 94 miles on the odometer. Continue reading
Rays releases new wheels for 80s cars, celebrates anniversary of another classic
Rays has launched two new wheels that may be of interest to JNCers. One is new wheel specifically geared towards 80s cars. The other is an anniversary model for a take on a 90s classic, but sized for cars from the 60s and 70s. That was a mouthful, but let us explain further. Continue reading
Posted in Product Guide
Tagged ae86, mazda, miata, Miata NA, rays, te37v, toyota, Volk Racing TE37
4 Comments
Yamaha Racing Heritage Club launches to unite owners of historic bikes
We’ve seen many Japanese manufacturers launch heritage programs in recent years, but Yamaha is taking the idea to a new level. The motorcycle maker has just launched an official heritage club for collectors of their vintage racing machines. The Yamaha Racing Heritage Club will create a registry of historic bikes and give owners a direct line to the very people who built them. Continue reading
QotW: What do you do with dumb car toys?
It’s a problem that never crossed our minds before children, but it’s a real one. Many JNC staffers have kids and we are happily giving them lots of cool Hot Wheels, Matchbox, and other automotive toys (while also reliving our own childhoods). The tots like cars, which is great. Unfortunately, they also have many well-intentioned friends and relatives who know they like cars. The issue here is not so much the gifters, but the fact that there are far too many dumb car toys out there. Most are four wheels under an amorphous blob, but those aren’t even the worst. The worst are cars non-car people think car people like — the Lamborghini Venenos, chrome-wheeled DaimlerChrysler Chargers, and yellow Hummer H2s — or toys that are flat-out wrong, like a V8 RWD Honda Civic.
The kids don’t know any better and are pumped to get them, and soon they start to accumulate piles of unavoidable plastic crap, taking the place of actual good car toys. But you can’t tell people, “Hey, stop buying us crap toys,” and because they were gifts our spouses have deemed we can’t throw them out. With the holiday season upon us, we’re bracing for another avalanche of bad cars.
What do you do with dumb car toys?
The best comment by next Monday will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s your fondest auto show memory?“. Continue reading
Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ differences explained via curry
As one of the few surviving lightweight, rear-wheel-drive sports coupes left in existence, there is obviously a lot of interest in the Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ. Which one should you get, though? The specific differences between the Toyobaru twins have been hard to pinpoint, especially when it comes to driving feel. In Japan, however, there’s a new curry dish to help you make your pick, with different flavors to represent each car. So as we sit down this week to stuff our gullets with Thanksgiving meals, let us take a moment to consider the subtle contrasts between the GR86 and BRZ. Continue reading
