Tag Archives: kei

Honda T880, an adorable retro kei truck concept

Posted on January 27, 2017 by Ben Hsu

One of the coolest and most unexpected concepts to emerge from the Tokyo Auto Salon this year was the Honda T880. Based on the Honda Acty, it takes the unmistakable look of Japan’s ubiquitous kei trucks and creates a design that is … Continue reading →

Posted in Next Version | Tagged honda, kei, T880 | 13 Comments

TUNE UP: Remember George Michael with this supercharged Subaru kei car ad

Posted on December 26, 2016 by Ben Hsu

The Subaru Rex Combi VX Supercharger was introduced in March 1988, and along with it came a snazzy new ad campaign. The addition of a supercharger to the 550cc kei hatchback boosted output from 36 to 54 horsepower, which doesn’t sound like … Continue reading →

Posted in Tune Up | Tagged kei, rex, subaru | 6 Comments

EVENTS: 2016 Kiryu Classic Car Festival, Part 01

Posted on December 9, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

The Kiryu Classic Car Festival holds a special place in the history of JNC. Back in 2006, long before any other English-language sites were interested in kyusha, it was the first show we covered in Japan. That also happened to be the first time … Continue reading →

Posted in events | Tagged 117, 1600gt, 2000gt, 410/411, 510, bluebird, c10, c110, c210, cedric, Citroen, contessa, corolla, corolla levin, cosmo sport, crown pickup, csp311, daihatsu, datsun, Dino, e30, Fairlady Z432, fto, gloria, Hakosuka, hijet, hino, honda, honda z, isuzu, kei, kenmeri, Kiryu Classic Car Festival, lancer celeste, Lancia, life, mazda, midget, nissan, prince, publica, repu, s30 z, s40, s50, S500/S600/S800, silvia, skyline, Snow Crawler, sports 800, subaru, subaru 1000, subaru 360, te27, tn360, toyota, wagons | 18 Comments

GRAND TOURING: Chubu and Kinki, Part 02

Posted on September 23, 2016 by Skorj

Part 01 of our grand tour through central Japan took us to Toyoma, a city that revealed not only castles but a trove of classic Toyotas. After prying ourselves away, we headed inland.

Posted in Grand Touring | Tagged cr-v, fairlady z, fc3s, Grand Touring, honda, kei, mark II, mazda, minica, mitsubishi, nissan, rx-7, s30 z, suzuki, swift, toyota, toyota 86, trucks, x70 | 10 Comments

EVENTS: Nostalgic2Days 2016, Part 03 — The Fast & the Fastidious

Posted on May 26, 2016 by Ricky Silverio

In this installment, we take a look at two very different types of cars: original barn finds and restorations whose every last nut is factory correct, and those that were treated like instruments of war. In other words, all the stuff that’s prized by predictably … Continue reading →

Posted in events | Tagged 610, a20, all-trac, bluebird, bosozoku, capella, Cedric Royal, celica, cherry, csp311, daihatsu, datsun, e10, Fellow Buggy, gt-four, kawasaki, kei, luce, mazda, Motorcycle, nissan, Nos2Days 2016, Nostalgic 2 Days, r130, ra28, rotary engine, rx-2, silvia, soarer, st185, Tein, toyota, wrc, y31, yojiro terada, z10, Z400FX | 9 Comments

NEWS: Mitsubishi admits to falsifying fuel economy data

Posted on April 20, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Mitsubishi Motors admitted publicly this morning that its employees falsified fuel economy test data for over 600,000 vehicles. Production of these vehicles has halted and an independent investigation will be conducted.

Posted in News | Tagged Dayz, Dayz Roox, eK Space, eK Wagon, kei, mitsubishi, nissan | 1 Comment

GRAND TOURING: Driving across Japan in a JNC, Day 08

Posted on April 17, 2016 by David Lovett

In the previous installment of our cross-Japan trip, we began the northeasterly journey back home, but on a different route that would hug the southern coast of Japan. As such, we’d voyage from Kyushu to Shikoku, two of the four islands that … Continue reading →

Posted in Grand Touring | Tagged 117, 280zx, all-trac, b120, celica, Celica GT-Four, corona, daihatsu, datsun, fairlady z, Fellow, ferry, Grand Touring, isuzu, kei, mitsubishi, Mitsubishi Jeep, mr2, nissan, r30, s130, s30, sanitora, skyline, st165, sunny truck, sw20, T120, toyota | 6 Comments

GRAND TOURING: Driving across Japan in a JNC, Day 04

Posted on March 19, 2016 by David Lovett

By the end of Day 03 we’d arrived at Shimonoseki, the southernmost point of Honshu, Japan’s main landmass. As the island on which most of the nation’s major cities — Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Hiroshima — are located, Honshu contains about 60 percent of … Continue reading →

Posted in Grand Touring | Tagged 117, ae86, corolla levin, figaro, Flying Pug, Grand Touring, gx71, isuzu, kei, kp61, Kyushu, mark II, mitsubishi, nissan, Pajero Jr, PX-33, starlet, toyota, x70 | 16 Comments

GRAND TOURING: Tohoku, Part 02

Posted on March 11, 2016 by Skorj

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the twin disasters — a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and devastating tsunami — that struck Japan off the coast of Tohoku in 2011. In remembrance, we are re-running a series of stories that relate to the event’s aftermath. This … Continue reading →

Posted in Grand Touring, honda, isuzu, kei, mitsubishi, nissan, toyota | Tagged 117, 280zx, 300zx, 520, 521, aomori, b120, barikan, cedric, corona, cr-v, datsun, debonair, fairlady z, fukushima, gloria, Grand Touring, honda, isuzu, iwate, jeep, kei, life, mitsubishi, Mutsu Bay, nissan, rt40, s130, sanitora, sunny, t40, tohoku, truck, y30, z31 | 17 Comments

ART CORNER: Beautiful dioramas of model cars from Japan

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Ben Hsu

Takuji is a Japanese artist who places 1:43 and 1:64 scale minicars into beautifully constructed dioramas. From AE86s on touge roads to Mitsubishis tearing through a rally stage to mechanics tuning Skylines in a garage, each scene is a slice of … Continue reading →

Posted in Art Corner, minicars | Tagged 200sx, 323 GTX, 510, a70, ae82, ae86, alto, Art Corner, aw11, az-1, b110, beat, bluebird, c110, carol, carry, colt, corolla fx, fairlady z, familia, fj60, fronte, fto, Galant VR-4, Hakosuka, honda, Honda N-Series, jimny, K10, kei, kenmeri, lancer celeste, land cruiser, march, mazda, miata, minicars, mirage, mitsubishi, mr2, mx-5, nissan, rally, rx-3, s12, s30 z, safari rally, silvia, skyline c10, sprinter trueno, starion, starlet kp61, stepvan, subaru, subaru 360, sunny, supra, suzuki, toyota, violet, Vivio | 14 Comments

EVENTS: 2016 Tokyo Auto Salon, Part 01 — A Preview

Posted on January 15, 2016 by Ben Hsu

The Tokyo Auto Salon kicks off this weekend, and that means it’s time for the craziest builds the Japanese aftermarket has to offer. While gold-plated GT-Rs and VIP vans are still very much a part of it, looking past the glitz this year … Continue reading →

Posted in events | Tagged 180sx, ambulance, bluebird, Bluebird 810, bosozoku, caravan, copen, d1gp, daihatsu, kei, mark II, NATS, nissan, shooting brake, sienna, Spirit Rei, SuperGT, TAS2016, tokyo auto salon, toyota, X100, x70 | 20 Comments

NIHON LIFE: How to park your car in Japan, Part 03

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Skorj

Welcome to the final installment in our multi-part treatise on short-term automobile storage in Japanese society. In Part 01 of the investigation we studied what was within and without the bounds of the law, as well as the ubiquitous steel-bar-rising-up-out-of-the-ground parking lots. In … Continue reading →

Posted in Nihon Life | Tagged 240z, century, city, datsun, honda, isuzu, kei, Nihon Life, nissan, Parking, president, s30 z, toyota, VehiCROSS, yakuza | 32 Comments

ART CORNER: The illustrations of U井T吾

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Ricky Silverio

For this installment of JNC‘s Art Corner, we feature another artist from Japan. U井T吾, 27, is a Kyoto-based artist whose day job is in character design for board games and social gaming. Fortunately for us, he’s also an enthusiast of old Japanese … Continue reading →

Posted in Art Corner | Tagged a10, Art Corner, cherry cab, datsun, honda, honda z, jimny, kawasaki, kei, Kyosho, life, mitsubishi, Motara, motorcycles, nissan, pajero mini, stanza, subaru r-2, SuperCub, suzuki, U井T吾, violet | 9 Comments

EVENTS: Showa Car Preservation Meeting

Posted on May 22, 2015 by Ken Lee

The Old Car Club of Tokyo recently held it’s 3rd annual Showa no Kurma wo Mamoru Tsudoi or “Preserving cars made in the Showa Era” meeting. This is a gathering for cars made during the Showa Era, which ended in 1989 according to the … Continue reading →

Posted in events | Tagged 2000gt, a20, ae86, Austin A50, bellett, bosozoku, c10, c30, carina, carol, celica, civic, contessa, corolla, cosmo sport, crown, csp311, daihatsu, datsun, datsun 210, e20, fairlady roadster, fronte, gloria, Hakosuka, hino, honda, Honda N-Series, isuzu, kei, laurel, mazda, Mazda K360, midget, ms51, nissan, prince, s54, s600, Showa Car Preservation Meeting, silvia, skyline, skyline sport, soarer, subaru 360, suzuki, t2000 | 14 Comments

EVENTS: 2015 Mooneyes Street Car Nationals

Posted on May 12, 2015 by Ben Hsu

Take a dollop American car kulture, filter it through the distance of 5,500 miles and 12 time zones, sprinkle in a dash of home grown Japanese cars, and you get the Mooneyes Street Car Nationals.

Posted in events | Tagged 810, ae86, atenza, b210, bluebird, Cedric/Gloria 330, civic, Civic EF, corolla, corolla levin, cressida, crown, datsun, Deliboy, demio, e100, e70, fj60, hiace, honda, impreza, kei, kujira, land cruiser, m10, mark II, mazda, Mazda2, Mazda6, Mighty Max, mitsubishi, Mooneyes Street Car Nationals, nissan, odaiba, pickup, Pistachio, prairie, prelude, s130, s50, s60, sprinter trueno, subaru, sunny, toyota, W-pick, wagon, x30 | 7 Comments

NIHON LIFE: A kei car Sunday

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Skorj

For a number of years we’ve passed a lone Subaru 360 perched atop a rack built from scaffold over a similar-age Sambar truck. I kept thinking, “I must stop and photograph it before it disappears.” Like a Honda S500 no … Continue reading →

Posted in Nihon Life | Tagged jimny, kei, sambar, subaru, subaru 360, suzuki | 7 Comments

NEWS: Honda reveals another retro kei car

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Ben Hsu

Look on the back of Honda‘s latest JDM-only kei jidosha and you’ll see “N/” — the letter N and a forward slash. Apparently the way to pronounce that is N-Box Slash. This is the fifth offering in Honda’s revived N-Series and the second retro-styled car in … Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged honda, kei, N-Box Slash | 6 Comments

EVENTS: Showa Kinen Park Car Show

Posted on November 28, 2014 by Chris Nicholson

Today’s guest writer is Chris Nicholson, who keeps the cars running at the Lane Motor Museum. Chris recently attended a classic car show in Showa Kinen Park. Every trip to Japan is full of wonder, and every trip to Japan is too … Continue reading →

Posted in events | Tagged 117, 510, a30, amg, bluebird, c30, carol, cedric, chantez, civic, corolla, daihatsu, debonair, e10, familia coupe, fronte, gloria, honda, honda 1300, isuzu, kei, laurel, mazda, minica, mitsubishi, nissan, prince, publica, sb1, Showa Kinen Park, skyline, subaru, subaru 360, subaru r-2, suzuki, toyota | 6 Comments

EVENTS: 2014 Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 06 — Trucks, Vans, and Wagons

Posted on October 17, 2014 by Ben Hsu

The latest installment of our massive 2014 Japanese Classic Car Show coverage takes a look at the haulers of the J-tin world, whether they be carrying cargo, kids, or chicken tax exemptions. It’s the trucks, vans and wagons of JCCS.

Posted in events | Tagged 510, 610, brat, corolla, corona, datsun 1200, Datsun 222, datsun 320, Datsun 520, datsun 521, datsun 620, e30, Econoline, ford, honda, japanese classic car show, jccs, jimny, kei, mazda, nissan, nl320, patrol, repu, sambar, sr5, subaru, suzuki, toyota, toyota truck, Toyota Van, wagons | 24 Comments

Japanese car displays from the Post War Miracle Years

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Matt De Mangos

Auto displays are like a magical time travel device. Not only do you get to see cars of the era, but also its prevailing fashion, colors and architecture. Like the old Tokyo street scenes we showed you a few months ago, here … Continue reading →

Posted in Auto Shows | Tagged 240zg, cedric, cony, corolla, e10, fairlady z, Flying Feather, kei, nissan, s30, sports 800, toyota | 6 Comments