RE: Turning Japanese: PH Blog
Discussion
Andy616 said:
SaqibCTR said:
The original Gran Turismo game played a huge part in developing my love for '90s Jap cars. The first time I ever heard about the likes of Type-R Hondas was in this game. So many other cars I had no clue existed and ended up learning about. Did anyone else religiously read the info tabs on the model pages?
Yeah, I used to love reading about the cars too, fond memories! Definitely a golden age for Japanese cars.
Never fails to raise a smile when I open the garage door.
It's a keeper!
I'll have a go:
Realistic Jap dreams fulfilled
This was my shed from many, many moons ago when I was 18 year old. It was a 1990/H (cheap private plate in the pic) limited edtition 2.5 twin turbo Supra, which had the engine from the Lexus Soarer coupe plonked into it. Had so much fun in this car, gave it lots of abuse and it was still 110% reliable. Probably been recycled and turned into a Toyota Yaris now :-(
Always wanted a first gen NSX though
m1das said:
This was my shed from many, many moons ago when I was 18 year old. It was a 1990/H (cheap private plate in the pic) limited edtition 2.5 twin turbo Supra, which had the engine from the Lexus Soarer coupe plonked into it. Had so much fun in this car, gave it lots of abuse and it was still 110% reliable. Probably been recycled and turned into a Toyota Yaris now :-(
Always wanted a first gen NSX though
That's an awesome car in my eyes The majority of these cars were way ahead of their time. I mean just look at the Nissan Pulsar, a hot hatch in 1990 with a 4 cylinder turbo charged engine producing 227bhp with 4wd and a 5 second 0-60 time..
European manufacturers are only starting to catch up now, 20 odd years later.
European manufacturers are only starting to catch up now, 20 odd years later.
There's often a criticism aimed at japanese cars that they have no 'soul' or 'character'. While this does ring true for their run of the mill hatches, it's not those that define the Japanese car. Once you look beyond that to things like the 'Proper' Type Rs, the NSXs, the rotary powered Mazdas, the MX5s, the MR2s etc, you start to find so many really endearing qualities, and so many nice little touches that are a product of both obsessive engineering, and a love for the detail.
The tuning culture is also a key part - like in America, the tuning support is huge, and there are so many JDM cars that are produced with this in mind - why else would there be a JDM only FT86 with steel wheels, unpainted bumpers etc?
There are some utterly brilliant stock OEM cars (our DC2 never felt like it needed any modding at all - I got the feeling that doing so would compromise some of it's abilities too much) but others just come alive - the S14 200sx, for instance, transforms from executive cruiser to old school turbo beast with jsut a few breathing mods.
The tuning culture is also a key part - like in America, the tuning support is huge, and there are so many JDM cars that are produced with this in mind - why else would there be a JDM only FT86 with steel wheels, unpainted bumpers etc?
There are some utterly brilliant stock OEM cars (our DC2 never felt like it needed any modding at all - I got the feeling that doing so would compromise some of it's abilities too much) but others just come alive - the S14 200sx, for instance, transforms from executive cruiser to old school turbo beast with jsut a few breathing mods.
As previously mentioned, Jap performance cars don't seem to attract the "posers" or "badge snobs" which is good. Very rarely do such cars act as status symbols.
And if someone asks what you're driving, you won't feel ever feel like a cock when you reply Nissan, Toyota, Mazda etc. - if that makes sense?
And if someone asks what you're driving, you won't feel ever feel like a cock when you reply Nissan, Toyota, Mazda etc. - if that makes sense?
crispyshark said:
britsportscars said:
Interesting take on Japanese cars. I think the Japanese badges are never going to attract the kind of people that buy AMG/M cars or Porsches just to impress the neighbours and have no interest in cars or motorsport.
Dream Japanese 90's garage would be something like:
Evo 6 TME
Honda S2000 (My current steed)
Honda NSX Type R
Honda EK9 Type R
Nissan R32 GTR
Nissan S13 200SX
Subaru Impreza 22b
Later cars are still interesting:
Honda FD2 Type R
Toyoburu BRZ/GT86
Nissan R35 GTR
Noting your current steed.....try an Impreza.....I know it's turbo charged but it just feels like VTEC lower down the rev range! Dream Japanese 90's garage would be something like:
Evo 6 TME
Honda S2000 (My current steed)
Honda NSX Type R
Honda EK9 Type R
Nissan R32 GTR
Nissan S13 200SX
Subaru Impreza 22b
Later cars are still interesting:
Honda FD2 Type R
Toyoburu BRZ/GT86
Nissan R35 GTR
The other cool thing about Japanese performance cars from the 90's is that there are so many. I forgot to add plenty of other cars to my list, like Toyota Soarer, Toyota Mr2 and Mazda RX7s. The other cool thing is the rare JDM imports with cool extra spec.
I need a big load of cash, and I'd go out and buy a full JDM garage!
I need a big load of cash, and I'd go out and buy a full JDM garage!
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