The AE86-osphere went kind of nuts last week when it was revealed that they can buy a complete unibody Sprinter Trueno shell on Alibaba. The iconic drift sled is a good candidate for this treatment, as the majority of original ones have been rusted out, drifted into walls, or otherwise had their numbers reduced by natural attrition (accidents, financially overwhelming mechanical failure, etc.). Yet it remains a platform with a dedicated enthusiast following. Surely there are other legendary cars that are impossible to find clean shells for.
What complete JNC body shell should be reproduced next?
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s the most 90s car?“.
Last week’s question prompted a lot great answers. They ranged from Christopher Scott‘s selection of rusty Japanese hatchbacks in general, to Lakdasa‘s pick of the crème de la crème Japanese sports cars of the era, like the Supra, Skyline, 3000GT and NSX.
Shall we start with the sports cars? Lee L, エーイダン, Negishi no Keibajo, and MWC70 reminded us of the embarrassing overabundance of incredible performance cars available at a variety of price points by nominating the Mitsubishi Eclipse, Nissan Sileighty, SW20 Toyota MR2, and Honda NSX, respectively. What a time to be alive!
For more obscure fare, Maestro opted for mostly forgotten machines such as the Geo Storm and Nissan NX 1600/2000. Meanwhile, Legacy-san promoted the entire Nissan lineup, while nlpnt offered up a range of cars both foreign and domestic.
However, the most prevalent answers dealt with the everyday cars that filled our 1990s roads. Ben E. and Jeff both suggested the E100 Toyota Corolla, one of the most common cars of the period. Land Ark picked its big brother, the XV10 Camry, while Sammy B chose the minivan of the Toyota family, the egg-shaped Previa. We didn’t have the P90 Starlet or the Starlet Remix in the US, but we’ll trust StreetSpirit and Yewnos100 that they were just as popular in their corners of the world. Nigel picked one of the few non-Toyotas in the “common car” category, the EG6 Civic.
Ultimately, the winner this week was Taylor C., for his thoughtful analysis that resulted in the CB7 Accord:
I love my 90s cars, some more than others. I had thought of all the super cars that came out during those times, but then took a step back and put a bit more effort into this response. There was mention of the 3rd gen Camry, and that was the category of cars I was leaning towards. I had thought about the second-gen Ford Taurus, but that’s not JDM. My submission is the 4th generation Honda Accord, which started in 1990. Just picture this: You close your eyes, and hear that distinct Honda “door ajar” beep, and then you hear the distinct Honda starter, and when you open you eyes, you see that signature “Hampshire Green” color that Ford copied onto their Taurus, Saturn copied onto their cars, etc. Get into the car, and if it’s automatic, you are reminded of the hard 1st-to-2nd gear shifts.
Having lived through the 1990s, I’ve seen friends’ parents buy those Accords as their family car, and then hand those down to the friends as their high school car. Therefore my exposure to these cars were definitely not uncommon. Add some clear corners, fuba antenna, some eibach springs along with DC Sports header and RS Akimoto intake, not to mention a GReddy muffler (too cheap to buy full-on exhaust), and it’s definitely listening to PM Dawn again! If it wasn’t a riced-out car, it was definitely one of the most common cars around the block.
I had thought about the 5th gen Accord, but even though they were prime 1990s cars, their popularity definitely rolled into the (then) new millennium, whereas the 4th gens sorta stayed behind as that decade’s placeholder.
I was thinking of the 3rd gen Acura Integra as a contender as well. Such a symbol of the 1990s, with “VTEC” belching out of everyone’s mouths. The Paradise Green, the fat fives, the oh-so-common clear corners, the throaty intake noise when you punch it, and everyone giving you so much respect when you roll into the school parking lot with one. I know Integras were still rolling off the production line in 2001, but its presence in the 1990s really sparks up nostalgia (along with the Accord).
Just try this; find an Accord or Integra and bring it to a car meet, and most everyone will say, “Man, I remember these from back in the day…” where “back in the day” will most certainly be the 90s.
Omedetou, your comment has earned you a set of decals from the JNC Shop!
the mazda cosmo sport, i mean, if any car looks moddable its the cosmo. slam it down on some Japanese Nostalgic Wheels, a kaido racer, a fastback, a breadvan, or maybe make it into an incredible outlandish multi rotored HOONICORN contraption.
if i could i would but here’s the thing, it’s royalty, rare, expensive and just too significant to cut up. if there was a company making shells though at a reasonable price i’d be ready to fulfill my fantasy cosmo build like you’ve never seen before!
S30 Datsun Z. Hands down the winner of this contest.
Datsun 240Z
although it could be an option that few may know about in the USA… isuzu Luv crew cab and sportscab… perfect base to assemble from a catalog, simple enough for the average person in terms of mechanics and with the possibility of putting a V6 or V8. many fans in Thailand and nearby areas, with dimensions very similar to a Ford Maverick (difference in width but comfortable for 4 adults) and with a chassis appropriate for 1 ton and towing capacity. The market is looking for vehicles of those dimensions as an option for some SUV, all brands are now making some model but a monocoque.
(yes, I know, the easy option would be to go for Toyota Hilux but I think it would be the obvious thing and they have Tacoma as a replacement)
Datsun 240Z, it should have been the first shell reproduced.
Datsun 510. Only the 4-door sedan would have the volume to be cost-effective though since the 2-doors (coupe and sedan) were only sold in a few markets each, everywhere 510s were sent got the 4-door.
I am biased but… Suzuki Cappuccino.
Every single one of them out there has had its floors welding at some point and unlike something as ubiquitous as the Z, it’s not like there is even many people (if at all) doing replacement panels.
Everyone is trying to rebuild these from what was already a very small pool of cars new. There were more Zs made for the USA alone in a single model year than there were Cappuccinos in total worldwide (Japan and UK) so there’s a lot of fabrication and scrounging for trim and parts.
How about an S13, because like AE86s most of them have either been beat to hell?
Quality welding on Alibaba?
https://www.thedrive.com/news/nissan-frontier-driver-finds-missing-frame-welds-on-certified-pre-owned-truck
That’s a fair point Negishi no Keibajo. Chinese “quality” is always an issue.
The Mitsubishi Starion ESi-R wide body! Many people would love to start with a clean, rust-free shell!
let’s be real here, if the form tolerances are up to spec i’d be fine with rewelding a couple mistakes and it’s probably gonna be stronger than an old fatigued shell regardless.
besides, if i got my hands on a reproduction body of any JNC i’d stitch weld and reinforce it anyways to tighten up the ride.
That’s insightful that even though Alibaba sells the AE86 shell now, there still needs to be ALL the other subsystems installed onto the car, and that’s going to be near impossible unless one just tracks / drifts the car. Therefore, I wonder if there are affluent folks who’d just buy as a museum piece and be done with it. If that was so, then I think the Toyota 2000GT would be pretty cool, granted it’s not the original.
I recall Toyota building that IMV 0 future truck, a way to return to basics. I think it’s a great idea, and one that folks should consider. With that said, why not start up Nissan Hardbodies or Toyota trucks or Mitsu Mighty Max or Mazda B-series again? Pretty simple, sell in masses, and at a decent price. It doesn’t take too much to recreate the cab, and I think the ladder frame can be optimized for structural rigidity this iteration around. Plus, Americans really like their trucks, and maybe they’ll realize it doesn’t have to be a full-on four-door lined with leather and stickered at $50k+.
Well everyone has said S30 Z cars so I’m going to come in with a different choice:
EG Civic hatchback
This is to FWD imports what the AE86 is to RWD drift cars. Once the backbone of the community and now a legendary chassis that is largely unattainable due to everyone using them up.
The FJ40 Toyota Land Cruiser. Because The SUV market needs a good throwback to build off of.
The same place that’s doing those AE86 shells is doing repro FJ40 shell I think so wish granted.