Tag Archives: 510

EVENTS: 2018 Japanese Automotive Invitational

It has been a banner year for Nihon steel at Monterey Car Week. The annual series of ultra-prestigious automotive events have traditionally excluded Japanese cars, but 2018 saw, for example, Nissan become the first carmaker from Japan to be honored … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

MOTORSPORT: The most epic gathering of historic racing Datsuns we’ll see in our lifetimes

We cannot overstate the importance of this year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. It the first time a Japanese carmaker was celebrated as the featured marque since the event’s inception in 1974, and Nissan’s brought a tremendous display of racing heritage, … Continue reading

Posted in motorsport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

MOTORSPORT: The best display of Nissan race cars ever assembled in North America

Never before has a Japanese carmaker been the featured marque at the Monterey Historics. That is, until this year, when Nissan received the honor. As a result, collectors, racers, and Nissan themselves have brought together a truly epic assembly of … Continue reading

Posted in motorsport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

JNC THEATER: The Nissans of Seibu Keisatsu visit the Zama garage

Long-time readers of JNC need no introduction to the cars of Seibu Keisatsu. Japan’s most popular cop show, which aired form 1979-1984, was sponsored by Nissan and starred several customized law enforcement vehicles that are as instantly recognizable to Japanese … Continue reading

Posted in JNC Theater | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

NEWS: Nissan to exhibit racing legends, R390 GT1 road car at Monterey

Nissan has announced some details about its plans for the upcoming Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. The event will be a significant milestone, since it is the first time a Japanese marque has headlined the RMMR since its inception in 1974. … Continue reading

Posted in motorsport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

EVENTS: Petersen Museum Cruise-in, Part 02

The Petersen Museum in Los Angeles puts on many events throughout the year, each with a theme ranging from hot rods to Porsches. Recently, they hosted their annual cruise-in for Japanese cars, inviting Nihon Steel both old and new to … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

VINTAGE RACING JOURNAL: Five forgotten heroes of Datsun racing

As we prepare for Datsun race cars to flood Raceway Laguna Seca for the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion in August, let’s take a moment to remember the forgotten heroes of Datsun racing. You’re probably already familiar with names like Brock Racing … Continue reading

Posted in Vintage Racing Journal | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 39 Comments

JNC THEATER: Datsun 510 spotted in Bumblebee trailer

Paramount Pictures has just released the Bumblebee trailer, and we couldn’t help but notice a BRE-themed Datsun 510 lurking in the background. It’s not the first time a Datsun 510 has made an appearance in the Transformers film universe, and though we hope … Continue reading

Posted in JNC Theater | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

JNC THEATER: A Datsun 510 episode of Wheeler Dealers

It’s been a while since we mentioned Wheeler Dealers (is the show any good since Edd China left?) but tonight’s feature car is something that piqued our interest. It’s a Datsun 510, that seemingly had hopes of being a BRE tribute car … Continue reading

Posted in JNC Theater | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

MINICARS: the Jun Imai Era comes to a close at Hot Wheels

There is just one more bit of Hot Wheels news left for today, and it’s a sad one. Our friend and star designer Jun Imai has left Mattel for new opportunities. We had known it was happening for a couple … Continue reading

Posted in minicars | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

Happy 50th Birthday to Hot Wheels from JNC

Today we mark 50 years of Hot Wheels, the brand that changed toy cars forever and stoked the flames of automotive passion in millions. Since 1968 was the debut year for Hot Wheels and the US-market Datsun 510, we wanted to commemorate … Continue reading

Posted in Holidays | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

50 YEAR CLUB: Hot Wheels celebrates half a century of toy cars

Fifty years ago today, the world was introduced to what just might be the most influential cars ever made. The automotive world was forever changed on May 18, 1968 when Mattel introduced the Hot Wheels brand of toy cars to … Continue reading

Posted in 50 Year Club, Hot Wheels, minicars | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

VINTAGE RACING JOURNAL: The Mitty, Part 03 — Race Day

“Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting.” Steve McQueen could not have summed it up any better. All the stresses of a day job, outstanding bills, hardships of life, are easily remedied by the smell of race … Continue reading

Posted in Vintage Racing Journal | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

VINTAGE RACING JOURNAL: The Mitty, Part 01 — Test Day

There’s nothing like the early morning start to a race weekend. Your mind becomes clear. Any lingering stress from your day job is replaced with the smell of a coffee and race gas mixture. Nothing else comes close. An early rise to … Continue reading

Posted in Vintage Racing Journal | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

MOTORSPORT: Historic racing Datsuns are headed to The Mitty

It is a landmark year for Nissan. Its classic models are growing in value, and its long history of racing achievements are finally being recognized. Not only is Nissan the first Japanese marque to be featured at the Rolex Motorsports Reunion during … Continue reading

Posted in motorsport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

VIDEO: GrassRoots Garage comes to California for Datsun Heaven

The online space for car videos is pretty crowded, but a favorite among the JNC staff right now is Australia’s Grassroots Garage. The editing is straightforward , their videos aren’t crammed with fancy drone tracking shots, and the host has a great accent. … Continue reading

Posted in Video | Tagged , , | 26 Comments

MOTORSPORT: Australia’s Improved Production Racing is absolutely riveting

Even to car guys, a lot of modern racing is boring because there simply isn’t a lot of differentiation in the actual cars. Sanctioning bodies have made the rules so strict that in many cases the cars are basically identical. … Continue reading

Posted in motorsport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

EVENTS: 2018 New Year Meeting, Part 02 — Sixties Sedans

In Part 01 of our New Year Meeting coverage we concentrated on sports cars and coupes from the 1960s. However, there were many fine four-doors from that era as well, and as the two-doors rise in price the once neglected sedans are gaining … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

EVENTS: 2018 New Year Meeting, Part 01 — Sixties Specials

The New Year Meeting is the oldest classic car event in Japan, held annually at the end of January, closer to the lunar new year than the Gregorian one. Having started in 1977, this year marked the 42nd time it was held. This … Continue reading

Posted in events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Tokyo Auto Salon: Banzai Sports SSS-face Sunny Truck

If there is one thing people will seemingly never get tired of it’s putting other Nissan noses on a Sunny Truck. The latest example, shown at the Tokyo Auto Salon recently, was by Banzai Sports and features a Bluebird SSS face on the evergreen … Continue reading

Posted in Tokyo Auto Salon | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments