It’s a new year, and that means a new selection of Japanese-market cars will become eligible for import in 2026. Our 25-year import law states that cars built in 2001 can now enter the country. While the thought of a second-gen Nissan Stagea or DC5 Honda Integra Type R is tempting, this era was peak minivan. The year 2001 saw the introduction of the Toyota Noah/Voxy, Estima Hybrid, E25 Nissan Caravan/Isuzu Como, Suzuki Every Landy, and our favorite, the Honda Mobilio.
Which car from 2001 would you import?
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “What’s your new year’s resolution for 2026?“.
Most readers have an ongoing project or twelve, so it’s no surprise that getting them done is a goal of 2026. Lavender Null aims to rebuild a Honda CR-V engine and daniel resolves to restore a motorcycle. Meanwhile, Sammy B has the extremely worthy ambition of spending more time driving a Toyota van.
A couple of readers had JNC-related wishes. Kyuusha Corner wants higher-res photos and Ian G. pledges to stop reading JNC at work (we hope you don’t).
The winner this week was streetspirit, who we can already tell is going to be a great dad:
my new years resolution is to jumpstart the next gen of JNC enthousiasts!
If all goes well i’ll be becoming a first time dad in 2026 and well…nevermind restyling the nursery for the fourth time around or babyproofing my precariously glass filled house.i’m working on a pedal car version of the Daihatsu P3 and Hino Samurai!
with the help of a buddy with a 3d scanner i scanned my model cars, then used the raw scan as a template to make 3d models which i altered to pedal car/powerwheels type dimensions.
next up is 3d printing the bodies and making the first two JNC pedal cars.
sure, the kaido racer soarer or skyline will be the next lesson but i gotta start with the classics.P.S. my wife already vetoed Cedric but if it’s a girl Gloria is still on the table!
Omedetou, your comment has earned you a set of decals from the JNC Shop!
2001 Car would choose Daihatsu YRV Turbo with steering paddle shift and four wheel drive.
A cute, but very fast, reliable 4 door hatch back. Still have the car providing me commute 25 years and 230,000 km later in Australia.
Ideally, I want to acquire a Nissan Skyline 25GT Turbo coupe. Probably snag one within the next 3 years. I really like that generation Skyline, but I need a non-AWD version to reference its front suspension for a custom build I’m working on.
Toyota Verossa VR25. Extremely ugly, extremely cool
for sure, i’d love to get my hands on one of those!
It’d be very hard to pass up on a DC5 Honda Integra Type R , since it’s everything that the North American Integra Type S was not: a real engine, limited-slip diff, real seats, real brakes, far better handling, much less body roll. A complete car. Where as the Type S (I had a couple of sessions with a student of mine’s Type S at an HPDE event at a “handling” track, and it was just lousy) was such is a disappointment.
But something much more rare and interesting would be the S2000 Type V – with the VGS steering system. Technically fascinating and extensive, although not altogether successful in road tests then. But a bold stroke and one worth collecting and taking good care of.
Not a “car” but a Honda Gyro Canopy with the factory cargo box.
A 2001 Honda Accord Euro R in Milano Red. I had previously bought and very-briefly owned a 1991 Accord EX sedan with an H22A, but it was DOA because the clutch wasn’t installed properly; I offloaded it and never truly got a chance to experience VTEC on a larger Honda sedan.
Fast forward three years, and I have the itch again. The 6th generation still retains the three-box shape that, in my opinion, looks more tidy than today’s “swoopy” lines. My parents bought a 2002 Accord SE new back in the day and I had put a few miles on it during my college days; it was a spacious, quiet, and comfortable car, but was just missing the Euro R powertrain.
H22A, LSD, Recaro, subtle body kit, dual exhaust, slightly lowered stance, I love these sleepers.
Right there with you! While working with my Uncle to restore my dad’s old 2nd gen Accord in high school, I fell in love with his 6th gen Accord (and my cousin’s 3rd gen TL). Both are criminally underrated in their beauty (simple, subtle lines don’t age!). It didn’t hurt that helping me with the 2nd gen gave reignited his tuning bug and we wound up (tastefully) modifying his ’99 LX sedan until it was t-boned & had to be totaled. At nearly 300,000mi, it was so young! :'(
My wish list won’t be JDM. If I can import a 25 year old car, it would be in my hot hatch wheel house… a Ford Focus RS MKI. Rally bred and in limited numbers. I’ve just always wanted one to go with my FoST MKIII . Esp after watching them in WRC or seeing Jeremy Clarkson hooning one on Top Gear. Then someday a MKII RS just because they are awesome.
one of the last nissan skyline GT-R R34’s. my specific variant pick is actually still 1 year out, from 02. the absolute final runs are the v-spec ii nur, but there’s only about a thousand of those so i don’t think that’s feasible. still, a final production R34 would be symbolic, the last of the (in)famous “skyline”s.
Land Cruiser 70 series flatbed or Dyna double cab flatbed. For work purposes, also Right-Hand Drive is handy for setting up construction zone signage, because I’d be stepping directly onto the curb/shoulder rather than stepping out into the traffic. The flatbed is key, for traffic cones, signs and other equipment. The double-cab is so I can accommodate an entire traffic control crew.
I think it was introduced in 1999 or maybe 2000, but since I do not know much about JDM cars of this era other than the usual stars, I would say the first gen Honda Insight. The few domestic ones are gone, and last year a guy came at a meet in one and taught me about how ultra-lightweight this car was, I kind of dig it now. Surely the JDM must have had some cool bits, right? If only they treated it like the OG CRX with a fuel-sipper one and a hairy one.