Japanese Nostalgic Car

Well, gas prices are stupid right now and I’m stuck daily driving a 1997 Toyota Land Cruiser in Los Angeles, where fuel prices are averaging in the mid $6 per gallon range for regular. The J80 gets about 8.25 mpg, but you already know you’re in trouble if you’re looking at decimal places. It’d be nice to have a less thirsty car. If I spend $2500 to buy a car that gets 35 mpg, I could break even in under 4200 miles. It probably doesn’t make financial sense as it’s completely unpredictable how long oil prices will remain high, but it’s a fun hypothetical.

What fuel saving car should I drive to offset the 8 mpg of my Land Cruiser?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Which JNC looks most proper in green?“. Continue reading →

Today is Greenery Day in Japan, a national holiday that honors nature. Established in 1989, many parks, zoos and aquariums open free of charge today, encouraging visitors to appreciate the wonders of the natural world. Because of the Greenery Day’s significance, other green-adjacent holidays have also since popped up for May 4th: Botanical Garden Day, Itogawa Jade Day, as well as Usui Pea Day. And if Shinshu “Green Mark” Ham Day can piggyback off of Greenery Day, then so can we.

There are many JNCs that look good in green, but we’re seeking answers for which ones look their best in a factory green. For example, the DC Acura Integra often comes in dark green, but is it the best possible color for it? Well, that would probably be Championship White for the Type R or Supersonic Blue for the GS-R. On the other hand, we can’t imagine the original Mazda RX-7 in anything better than Mach Green. We asked a similar question about red last year, but now green’s time has come.

Which JNC looks most proper in green?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Which Japanese car had the best font?“. Continue reading →

Today, April 27, is World Design Day, formerly known as World Graphics Day. It celebrates graphic design, the art of making text and images look cool. The world would be pretty boring if every piece of text was in Times New Roman, and luckily automotive fonts have not disappointed. The typefaces used in badges, decals, and brochures are among the most evocative ever created. The very best can generate emotion just by looking at the word.

Which Japanese car had the best font?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “If you could be a car designer, which company would you work for and what would you do?“. Continue reading →

Car design is an incredibly difficult job. You have to fit everything inside a package that seats enough people, carries enough stuff, meets the engineering requirements, and passes safety regulations, all while evoking emotion. Yet, we wouldn’t be car enthusiasts if we didn’t have a mountain of opinions about what makes a good looking car, which ones are ugly, and what should be changed.

If you could be a car designer, which company would you work for and what would you do?

The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “Have you ever bought a car (or not) because of the color?“. Continue reading →