Tag Archives: kei

EVENTS: 2012 Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 09: Editors’ Choice

Posted on October 23, 2012 by Ben Hsu

It should be no surprise by now that the Japanese Classic Car Show continues to grow each year, but we still weren’t quite prepared for just how much bigger and better it was for 2012. Let’s recap some of the highlights … Continue reading →

Posted in events, honda, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, subaru, toyota | Tagged 2012, 240z, 260z, 280z, 510, a20, a60, acura, ae86, bluebird, celica, challenger, corolla, datsun, dodge, fairlady z, fb, galant, hachiroku, honda, hot wheels, japanese classic car show, jccs, jdm legends, jun imai, kei, lambda, legend, levin, liftback, ma61, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, ra29, rx-7, s30, sa22, savanna, sprinter, subaru, subaru 360, supra, ta22, te27, toyota, trueno, wagon | 12 Comments

Grand Touring: The Kii Peninsula via the newly opened Shin-Tomei Expressway

Posted on September 19, 2012 by Skorj

Earlier this year the first section of the Shin-Tomei Expressway opened for traffic, marking a new era for Japan’s highway system. Naturally we went exploring, taking this newest road to one of the oldest inhabited regions of Japan, the Kii Peninsula.

Posted in Grand Touring, honda, mitsubishi, nissan, subaru, toyota | Tagged accord, ae86, beat, brz, c10, corolla, cr-v, debonair, hachiroku, Hakosuka, honda, impreza, kei, kii peninsula, levin, mitsubishi, shin-tomei, skyline, sprinter, sti, subaru, subaru 360, tokaido, tomei, toyota, trueno, vino, wrx, yamaha, yamano magic | 9 Comments

QotW: What’s the coolest kei car?

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Kevin San

Seeing some excellent examples of kei jidosha on the way back from Nagano last week got our brains churning. These uniquely Japanese micro machines are what put the island nation on the road and have been around for over 50 … Continue reading →

Posted in kei, Question of the Week | Tagged cherry, datsun, dome, honda, kei, minicars, nissan, QotW, Question of the Week, vamos, Zero | 29 Comments

Grand Touring: A Weekend in Nagano Prefecture

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Skorj

Eight-and-a-half feet of reliable snowfall blankets the mountains of Nagano Prefecture each winter, transforming quaint and quiet towns into temporary getaways for Tokyo-ites. When the snows disappear so do the downhill skiers and onsen soakers, but local FJ40 Land Cruisers stay to witness the spring thaw. … Continue reading →

Posted in Grand Touring, honda, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, subaru, toyota | Tagged Bessho, bus, Chikuma, chuo expressway, cr-v, daihatsu, fd, fj40, fuji heavy industries, fuso, hijet, hino, honda, j3, jeep, Kakeyu, kei, land cruiser, mazda, mitsubishi, Nagano, onsen, r3, rx-7, subaru, subaru 360, Summer Wars, toyota, Ueda, vitz, yaris | 9 Comments

Early Japanese classics among top emerging collectibles says Hagerty

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Ben Hsu

With all the automotive madness whipped up by the Arizona auctions week, let’s take a look at how it affects the nostalgic car scene. First, collector car insurance company Hagerty issued a press release identifying three “segments represent[ing] a group … Continue reading →

Posted in honda, kei, nissan, subaru, toyota, wagons | Tagged 240z, 260z, 280z, 280zx, 510, barikan, bluebird, corona, cr-x, crx, datsun, fairlady z, fj40, honda, kei, land cruiser, n600, nissan, rt40, s130, s30, s500, s600, s800, shovelnose, subaru, subaru 360, t40, wagon | 18 Comments

Friday Video: Suzuki Jimny SuperTrials

Posted on September 2, 2011 by Ben Hsu

It always amazes us how unbelievably varied Japan’s automotive culture is. Here is an entire event, televised no less, dedicated to kei-class Suzuki Jimnys. In the Jimny Supertrials, these 660cc, oft-turbocharged little four-wheelers run a time attack in the snow. It … Continue reading →

Posted in kei, motorsports, suzuki | Tagged jimny, kei, samurai, sj10, sj20, snow time attack, supertrials, suzuki, time attack | 5 Comments

Suzuki Fronte 550

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Ben Hsu

This here rare brown bird is a Suzuki Fronte 7-S 550. That’s 550cc’s of rear-engined, rear-wheel drive kei car sweetness. It’s difficult to eyeball the scale of this car until you get a look at the fender mirrors, which protrude … Continue reading →

Posted in kei, suzuki | Tagged 550, fronte, kei, suzuki | 5 Comments

EVENTS: New Year Meeting 2011 Part 04: Kei Jidosha

Posted on February 8, 2011 by Dan Hsu

If a flux capacitor equipped kei car from 1960 traveled to the present, it’d be totally jealous of the “massive” 660cc displacement its modern counterparts enjoy. Back then, maximum allowable engine size was a scant 360cc. But as the Mazda … Continue reading →

Posted in events, honda, kei, mazda, mitsubishi, subaru, suzuki | Tagged carol, carol 360, cervo, co10t, daihatsu, fronte, fuji heavy industries, fuji rabbit, honda, jidosha, jimny, kei, lj10, mazda, midget, minica, mitsubishi, MkII, n360, n600, r2, r360, skipper, ssr, subaru, subaru 360, suzuki, z-act, z360, z600 | 12 Comments

Unloved Cars of Tochigi

Posted on June 24, 2010 by Skorj

Location scouting North of Tokyo, we were surprised to pass a yard not filled with the usual rural kei cars — or farming implements — but one filled with an enormous range of nostalgics.

Posted in datsun, honda, kei, nissan, subaru, toyota | Tagged 240z, 430, 510, a30, b110, bluebird, butaketsu, c10, c130, datsun, datsun 1200, fairlady z, gloria, Hakosuka, honda, kei, kgc10, kpgc10, laurel, life, nissan, s30, skyline, sprinter trueno, step van, subaru, subaru 360, subaru r2, sunny, super 6, super six, te27, tochigi, toyota | 15 Comments

EVENTS: Nos2Days 2010

Posted on April 7, 2010 by Ben Hsu

We’re getting all sorts of goodies from Nippon this week. Our Japanese operative, known only as “Turbo,” snapped these photos last weekend at Nos2Days, the two-day car show put on by Japan’s OG classic car mag, Nostalgic Hero. Onto the … Continue reading →

Posted in datsun, events, mazda, mitsubishi, nissan, prince, toyota | Tagged 240z, 252i, 510, bluebird, c10, c230, cressida, cresta, crown, crown pickup, datsun, dr30, fairlady z, gx61, gx71, Hakosuka, kei, laurel, le mans, mark II, mazda, mitsubishi, mitsubishi 360, mitsubishi 360 van, mooneyes, mx73, nissan, nos2days, nos2days 2010, police car, prince, rs watanabe, rx-7, s30, skyline, skyway, sports 800, toyota, utilitas, wagon, watanabe | 13 Comments

Posted on March 16, 2010 by Ben Hsu

Suzuki Mario Bros.: Those Koopa Troopas don’t stand a chance when Mario and Luigi are behind the wheel of Suzuki Carry. The kei truck feasts on turtle soup tonight. [Reddit via Jalopnik]

Posted in kei, suzuki, trucks | Tagged carry, kei, mario, super mario bros., suzuki, trucks | 3 Comments