The Toyota Celsior is the full-size luxury sedan manufactured by the Lexus division of the Toyota. Outside of Japan, the Toyota Celsior is known as Lexus LS. The Celsior stayed in production from 1989 until 2006 before it was discontinued. The project started in 1983 and its costs were close to a 1 Billion US…
The Patrol is a full-sized SUV made by Nissan since the early 50’s. They are were offered in a three or five door configuration and were sold all over the world in pretty much every continent. North America has been getting Patrol based vehicles since 1969, the most notable being the Nissan Armada. Starting in…
Probably second on any Honda enthusiast’s wish list, trailing the legendary NSX, is the S2000. This affordable, high-revving, and fun to drive 4-cylinder coupe made a splash when it was first released in 1999. Its 2-liter, naturally aspirated engine (N/A) put out 237hp (247 in Japan). For the time, that was quite an accomplishment and…
Nissan introduced the Figaro design at the 1989 Tokyo Motor Show with a marketing tag of ‘’Back to the Future’’. The car finally broke cover to the world as a limited edition luxury car in the year 1991. Pre-sale demand for the retro-classic in Japan was so high it forced Nissan to sell the car…
The Mitsubishi FTO is a two-door compact sports car produced by the Japanese carmaker during the years 1994-2000. Styling on the FTO is very aggressive which will give you a belief that car will be very fast on the straights and go around the corners quickly. The car won the prestigious Japanese Car of the…
The Terrano was a compact SUV built by Nissan from 1993-2006. Only one generation of the Terrano was ever produced and it was mainly marketed to Europe, although Japan got a similar vehicle called the “Mistral”. Ford Europe also sold a Terrano based vehicle called the “Ford Maverick”. All vehicles were basically the same; the…
The Nissan Safari was a Japanese version of the world-famous Nissan Patrol. It started life in 1985 and was sold with a rather odd 24V electrical systems where most vehicles were built with a 12V system. Coincidentally, the same year that the Safari was released was the first year that the fourth generation Nissan Patrol…
The Pajero was Mitsubishi’s answer to the full-size SUV. It started its life in 1982 and is still in production to this very day in certain parts of the world. Depending where it was sold, the Pajero was also known as the Montero or Shogun. Its impressive 12 Dakar Rally championships brought the famous SUV…
The Honda Acty is perhaps one of the best known and most popular Kei microvans/trucks. They have been in production since 1977 and are still going strong to this day, but that will soon come to an end. In 2021, Honda will stop producing the might Acty as new regulations are making it very hard…
Have you ever wondered where the name “altezza taillights” came from? Believe it or not, it came from the name of the model that originally had them, the Toyota Altezza. That’s right, those clear lense taillights that were so popular in the late 90’s and early 00’s were first introduced on the Toyota Altezza or…
The Lancer Evo is Mitsubishi’s answer to the four-door sports sedan. In fact, it was made to compete with Subaru’s popular Impreza WRX of the time. It was in production from 1992-2016 and remains an icon to this day. In the 90’s and 00’s rally racing was really taking off and fans wanted to have…
The Mazda RX-7 was unlike any other sports car of its era due to its unique rotary Wankel engine. The rotary engine doesn’t have conventional pistons, but rather has one large reciprocating piston that resembles a triangle. The result is a compact, simple, and light motor that has a higher power-to-weight ratio when compared to…
The Toyota MR2 comes from a time when cars were a lot simpler. A time when cars were not just a big computer. Back then, cars were supposed to make you feel connected to the road, even scare you a bit when you pushed them to their limits, and the MR2 was one of the…
The Toyota Land Cruiser first hit the market in 1951 and holds the distinction of being the longest-running Toyota vehicle. Ten years prior to its release, the Imperial Japanese Army occupying the Philippines had found an abandoned American Willys MB army reconnaissance jeep and sent it home to Toyota. The military tasked the auto manufacturer…
The Toyota Chaser was in production for nearly a quarter century. Production went from 1977, all the way to 2001; and it underwent a total of six generational changes. It was Toyota’s answer to the mid-size four-door sedan, and it stood the test of time for many years. Based on the Mark II platform, this…
The Silvia has become every drifter’s wet dream. Nissan really hit the nail on the head with this two-door sport coupe. This is highlighted in the long production run the Silvia had. It was in production form 1964-1968 under the Datsun name, when it abruptly stopped for a few years. It then resurfaced in 1974…
The one. The legend. The Supra. Arguably the most famous Toyota, the Supra is up there with the most iconic Japanese cars ever made. Even if you’re not a car enthusiast, you’ve surely heard of the Supra. It was in production from 1978 to 2002 and spanned across four generations. In the last few years,…
When thinking of hot hatches, most people don’t even include Nissan’s version. The mighty Pulsar GTI-R was only produced for four years from 1990-1994. The sole purpose of the GTI-R was to meet homologation needs so that Nissan could enter the FIA Group A rally. This little compact car had all the markings of a…
With so many iconic cars to come from Toyota in the 90’s, it would be a sin if we didn’t mention the Aristo. It was the automaker’s response to the luxury four-door sedan market, and in recent years it has become a favorite amongst the VIP tuning community. Although being produced for only 14 years,…
We all know by now that Toyota has made several iconic cars over the years, and the Soarer is definitely one of them. It was in production for nearly a quarter century, from 1981-2005. While Toyota sold the Soarer exclusively in Japan, North America got the Lexus SC300/400 which were merely rebadged Toyota Soarer’s. Its…
It wouldn’t be worth mentioning kei cars without talking about the Honda Beat. The Beat was Honda’s answer to Japans love for small cars. So, what are kei cars? Well, from a far, kei cars look like a scaled down version of a regular vehicle. They come in all different body types, but by far…
The Suzuki Cappuccino meets all the quintessential requirements of a sports car, just on a smaller scale. It is a mid-engine, RWD, two-seater sports car that has a 50/50 weight distribution. Being a kei car however, the Cappuccino had to abide by some strict rules the Japanese government had set out. It had a 657cc,…
If you are looking for a high-quality vehicle that offers excellent durability, safety, and reliability, then you should probably consider buying the Subaru Impreza. The Impreza is a compact car that has been manufactured by Subaru since 1992 and is now in its fifth generation. This legendary Japanese model was introduced to replace the Leone,…
Even if you’re not a car enthusiast, you probably still recognize the Skyline name. First introduced by Prince Motor Company in 1957, the Skyline was somewhat of a prestigious model which featured a powerful engine, an elegant design, and above average performance. If you are a real car fan however, the Skyline is iconic as…
Some of the best Japanese cars from the 90’s are passing the 25-year mark and becoming available for import into the US. One of those examples is the Autozam AZ-1 kei car. This little car is a scaled down version of a mid-engine Italian supercar. Kei cars have been a popular type of vehicle in…
Ever since 1968, the Delica has been Mitsubishi’s answer to the van and pickup truck. Its huge success has seen models being exported all over the world. The name Delica came from the English phrase “Delivery car”. In other markets however, the Delica was offered under different names. For example, in Europe, Jamaica, and New…
The Honda NSX (New Sports “X as in solve for the unknown variable X”) can trace its roots back to the 1980’s Italian studios, which was tasked with designing a sports concept car. The concept car, dubbed the Honda Pininfarina Experimental (HP-X) never made it to the assembly line. Rather, it formed the basis by…
The Toyota Mark II, also known as the Toyota Cressida, is compact car that later became a mid-size sedan. It had nine generations with a production life spanning from 1968 to 2004. They were offered with a variety of engines, both gasoline and diesel, starting from a 1.5L and going all the way up to…
Toyota Motor Corporation launched the Hilux Surf in March 1984 and discontinued in August 2009. The name Hilux is simply the two words “high” and luxury” combined. It is also known as the Toyota 4Runner, a version of the Hilux Surf sold within North America and Australia and at one point in the UK. The…
Does size really matter? Yes it does! The proof is the Subaru Sambar. Smaller really IS better with this petite “kei car” vehicle. Available in two versions, a van and a pick-up truck, this little Subaru that could – and does – provides ample space for most needs. Virtual Tour Pros and Cons Pros: Cheap…
