Tag Archives: land cruiser

ART CORNER: Beautiful dioramas of model cars from Japan

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

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VIDEO: Hankook Tires shows why FJ40s are awesome

With the popularity of the FJ40 at auction, it makes you wonder if people who buy them will actually use them how they were intended. Sometimes it’s not cool when companies try to spice up their brand with an old Land Cruiser. This … Continue reading

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MARKETWATCH: 2016 Scottsdale auction roundup

If the 2016 Scottsdale collector car auctions are any indication, it may be time to declare that Japanese classic cars have gone fully mainstream. All five of the major Scottsdale auctions (Barrett-Jackson, RM Sotheby’s, Bonhams, Gooding & Co. and Russo … Continue reading

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VIDEO: Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the super-rare 1983 North American FJ40

Jonathan Ward is the head honcho at ICON, a company known for its restomods of classic trucks. Ward started out restoring FJ40s and possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of them. He says the North American market 1983 FJ40 is the best FJ40, of all … Continue reading

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EVENTS: 2016 Tokyo Auto Salon, Part 02 – Callbacks

One of our favorite types of customization is when a new car references something old, whether its Japanese motorsports history, an ancestor in its lineage, or just a general obsession with nostalgia. Here’s all the cars that are rolling inside … Continue reading

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EVENTS: Hachimaru Meeting at Fuji Speedway

If it wasn’t for its glorious motorsports history, Fuji Speedway would be just about the worst place to hold a car show. It rains seemingly half the time there, and while that makes for cool photography, it can’t be pleasant for the … Continue reading

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EVENTS: 2015 Mooneyes All Odds Nationals

If you’re looking for high-powered GT-Rs and the like, Mooneyes shows are probably not for you. The cars you find at a typical Mooneyes event celebrate the art of customization, whether it’s on kei cars or commercial trucks. The vehicles here less about racing than … Continue reading

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NIHON LIFE: How to park your car in Japan, Part 01

Finding public or street parking in Japan’s major cities is sometimes chotto muzukashii — a Japanese saying for “a little difficult,” said through clenched teeth with a trailing “iiiii…” it essentially means, with typical Japanese subtlety, impossible. So there is naturally … Continue reading

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Tokyo Motor Show: The wild and wonderful Big Sights

Though the exciting debuts of the Tokyo Motor Show have been covered, you didn’t think we’d go all the way to Tokyo and and not show you around, did you? Here’s what it’s like to attend the press days of the maddest Motor … Continue reading

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SEMA 2015, Day 02: Old School Japan wins Best of Show

In Day 01 of our 2015 SEMA coverage, we noticed a marked increase in JNCs on the show floor. Unlike past years, these weren’t just museum cars trotted out by the automakers but builds that prove our little niche is moving into the … Continue reading

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EVENTS: 2015 Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 04 — Workhorses

This year’s JCCS had a higher turnout, truck-wise, than any other in recent memory. Former workhorses that managed to survive — or evade — decades of hard labor showed up en masse on Queen Mary lawn to enjoy their new status as classics. 

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EVENTS: Japanese Classic Car Show, Part 01 – It’s JDM, yo

As it embarks on its second decade, the 2015 Japanese Classic Car Show has become a must-attend event, not just for J-tin owners or readers of this fine site, but car enthusiasts everywhere. Nowhere in America will you see a wider array of cars … Continue reading

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MINICARS: Should Lego make an official Land Cruiser kit?

Do you want to see a Lego Land Cruiser set? There’s a 40-series up for evaluation right now, and if it gets enough votes it could become an official Lego kit.

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EVENTS: 2015 All-Toyotafest, Part 03

In the final installment of our 2015 Toyotafest coverage, we take a look at two types of vehicles Toyota is known for — its compact, rear-wheel-drive sport coupes and its famously indestructible workhorse trucks. The former once dominated the company’s lineup and the latter still … Continue reading

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EVENTS: 2015 Mooneyes Street Car Nationals

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. 

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ART CORNER: Lego Toyota Land Cruiser and Hilux

Sorry to disappoint right off the bat, but this is not an official Lego set. It’s the creation of Russian brick enthusiast who goes by RM8, but it’s something Lego should seriously consider offering. In addition to realistic proportions, the Lego Cruiser features doors that lock … Continue reading

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VIDEO: My Classic Car visits Amaro Family Toyota Collection

The Amaro Family of Puerto Rico has one of the finest collections of privately-owned classic Toyotas in the world. In the latest episode of My Classic Car, mustachioed host Dennis Gage takes a break from tailfins and flatheads to take a … Continue reading

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Chicago Auto Show: 1967 Toyota 2000GT

For those of you in the midwest dying to see an honest-to-god 1967 Toyota 2000GT in real life, get thee down to the Chicago Auto Show, going on until February 22. Toyota is taking three of its classics on tour, displaying … Continue reading

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JNC RADIO: Sing along to the The Auto Show Song

Originally released in 1964, “The Auto Show Song” was composed by famed Japanese songwriter Tetsuro Hoshino and performed by action movie star/singer Akira Kobayashi (there are a lot of crossover entertainers in Japan). It was an old standard of the Showa Era, and sounded … Continue reading

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VIDEO: Land Cruisers and an ancient trade

A generations-old way of life is about to go extinct. The Daghwah fishermen on the shores of the Persian Gulf haul tons of fish to shore by casting massive nets each morning. Dragging them to shore and carrying them to … Continue reading

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