At first glance, you might mistake the Daihatsu Rocky for a Suzuki Samurai. But those chunky fender flares and that almost Dodge Ram-like face give away that this is something more unusual even before you…
Browsing Category Japanese Cars
Subaru Turbo RX: Before They Were Stars
It’s 25+ years since the world got to know the Subaru WRX thanks to the exploits of Carlos Sainz and the late, great Colin McRae, to say nothing of Gran Turismo and Sega Rally Championship….
Honda Civic Wagon Mk1: Van Or Wagovan
Is it a wagon, or a minivan, or a hatch? All three, maybe? One of Honda’s most important but least heralded 1980s moments came when the Mk3 Civic arrived in the fall of 1983. This…
Honda Accord Mk2: Marysville Made
The second-generation Honda Accord never gets as much attention as the first, and while it isn’t as significant a car on a global scale, it was the next step in Honda’s climb up the sales…
1987-89 Mercury Tracer: Hecho En Mexico
Sometimes a car is less significant for what it is than what it represents, and the original Mercury Tracer definitely falls into this category. Although it had a Ford sibling, the Asia-Pacific market Laser, both…
Subaru 360: First Star In The Constellation
If you see a Subaru 360 in the U.S., it’s probably a car that was imported here when they were new. The 360 and its bigger cousins, the Sambar truck and van, are some of…
Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid: Saving The Best For Last
We saw this Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid almost a decade ago and haven’t seen another one in the States since, but this little car is much more famous in other countries. Built from 1978 to 1982,…
Nissan Figaro: The Retroest Ride
People seeing a Nissan Figaro for the very first time are always charmed by those cute and happy looks. Few cars look so winsome and even fewer are capable of defying the forces of time,…
1988-92 Toyota Corolla All-Trac Wagon
Most Americans buy their cars off the lot, but in Japan built-to-order is the norm. Customers tailor what they want from a wide array of models and buy them from an equally wide array of…
Acura Integra Type R: JDM Hot Rods Come To America
Now that many are 25 years old, Americans can enjoy a large swath of amazing now-classic JDM cars, but in the Dot-Com era the very hottest JDM rides were often unobtanium due to the cost…
Honda Accord Aerodeck: The Shooting Brake Experiment
At the end of the eighties the Honda Accord became America’s best-selling car, the first foreign car to achieve that title, though this Accord Aerodeck wasn’t involved in that particular quest. It was 1989. Honda…
Isuzu I-Mark RS Twin-Cam: Party Like It’s 1989
This monochrome Isuzu is as red, and as rad, as they come, complete with fender badges advertising its “Lotus-tuned handling” and even larger stickers alerting passersby to its high-winding DOHC 16-VALVE engine, a big deal…