1993 Honda Crossroad

CRAZY JDM #14

This is the Honda Crossroad. It doesn't really do anything a Honda would typically do. Instead it is designed to be a big, rugged off roader. The key word is 'designed' as it will always refuse to start and instead leak gallons of fluids all over the owner's driveway, whoever was unfortunate enough to own it in the first place. Might be quite practical when it ever does start though. 7 Seats!


AN UNRELIABLE HONDA? WITCHCRAFT!
No, not witchcraft, rather 'Rover'. Rover was a British car company. Most people who have any idea about the company will know that 'Rover' stands for Rusty Oxidising Vehicles - Excessively Repulsive. Okay, they made a couple of cars that actually quite nice such as the SD1 & 75 etc but they were all made of compressed rust & assembled with toothpicks.
So what does Rover have to do with this whole agenda?
Most British people will know Rover was in a deal with Honda where they would work together. It could have gone so well - note how I just said 'could have' as the companies threw a great big 'that's what they would be expecting' at any positive innovation and instead made genericised Hondas with an added bonus - rust, and lots of Red Diesel too of course. The biggest loss from this was the Rover 800, a Honda Legend that got built by Rover. It was the first and only Rover sold in the US known there as the 'Sterling 827. Most Americans may have forgot it as it was in production for such a short time due to reliabilty issues. Also the Crossroad was, if you haven't figured out already, a rebadged 1st gen Land Rover Discovery with a Honda badge. It's still a JDM though as it was only sold in Japan. Thus I have an excuse to moan about it here. Hooray!

HOW FAST?
Specs for the only engine, the V8i.
182bhp
0-62 in 11.5 seconds - provided the engine doesn't blow.
Just under 106mph

MORE PHOTOS PLEASE!

Deliciously Purple Promotional Picture

Compare & contrast with the Land Rover equivalent

Read 'Pride of Breaking Down' for true accuracy

The fact that there's more promotional pics than live photographs proves that those who bought it were quite a lonely bunch.

Wait, it still exists in real life! Maybe they weren't so lonely after all. Let's wait for the grand reopening of the Honda Crossroad owner's club.

CAN I BUY ONE?

If you're from the USA then no, it's too new. If you're able to import one expect prices from err... I honestly don't know. This car is not up for sale in decent numbers anywhere so prices are mostly unknown. Buy a Land Rover Discovery instead if you're the sort of person up for this car as its almost exactly the same.

CRAZY JDM RATING!

Silly size & proportions? NO

Silly styling? NO

Silly engineering? NO (But if sillly = unreliable, then maybe)

Silly idea behind it? YES

●◦◦1/4 A mostly sober car with a couple of cool and different features.

1991 Nissan Cedric & 1991 Nissan Gloria

CRAZY JDM #8 & #9

This is the Nissan Cedric. It happens to be the same as the car pictured below, the Nissan Gloria. Succeeding the '87 Cedric that is still being used a taxi today & preceding the modified from the factory drift-missile, the '95 Gloria, these cars sit awkwardly in between like raisins at a sweet shop. And they have silly names too.



THESE CARS LOOK FAMILIAR, WHY?
Quite simple really. In the 1990s when Nissan had more 4 door cars than there are people living on the world right now, they just had to design something for that guy. You know that guy, the person who dreams of owning a big German luxury car but is forced to use boxes for furniture and has to seal his leaky house using noisy putty so he doesn't run out of money. Yeah, that guy. Nissan's answer to that guy's wishes was to create what is essentially a Nissan Cima in a fat suit and make it 'look' like a German luxury car. Nissan advertised the Cedric as the upmarket version & the Gloria as the sporty version? Don't give me those lies Nissan! It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the Cedric is aping Mercedes and that the Gloria is wearing a BMW mask. Just look at the image gallery.

HOW FAST?
From the top of the range V30 Twin Cam Gran Turismo Altima model...
251bhp
That's all the data I have sadly.
Imagine an old Cima that's a bit lighter and you're close.

MORE PICTURES PLEASE!

Well, you asked for more!

Just for reference, here is a 1991 Gloria

And here is a 1991 BMW 5 Series

And here's the rear of a 1991 S-Class, see the resemblance?

CAN I BUY ONE?

Nope, it's painfully rare in countries it's not sold in and too new to be imported to the US. It's not even sold as an Infiniti as far as I'm aware of. However if you encounter a slightly more common Y32 Cima, just put headlight covers/a fancy grille on it and it looks exactly like a Gloria/Cedric. Or just import one from £2,000 to £7,000.

CRAZY JDM RATING!

Silly styling? NO

Silly engineering? NO

Silly idea behind it? YES

●◦◦1/3 A mostly sober car with a couple of cool and different features.

1989 Mitsubishi Minica Dangan ZZ

CRAZY JDM #7

This is the Mitsubishi Minica Dangan ZZ. It is a kei car, a Japanese specification of car with limited size and power. No rules on turbos though, resulting in this 'fast' Minica. It is the first production car to have a 5 valve per cylinder engine if you're interested. This is one of many crazy versions of the 6th generation Minica, there was a tall one called the 'Toppo' and an asymmetrical one called the 'Lettuce'. At least 'Dangan' means bullet.


IS IT TOO POWERFUL TO BE A KEI CAR THEN?
It may look like it but no. It still has a tiny enough engine with a fair amount less than 100hp, but it's turbo,  4WD and accelerates like a bullet compared to other kei cars. So it's still an official kei car.

HOW FAST?
It's a kei car made before regulations got a bit more lax so it won't be too fast.
63bhp
0-62 mph in 8.9 seconds
93mph

MORE PICTURES PLEASE!

Asymmetric grille almost exclusively found on kei cars.

Rear view.

Next up, the Minica Toppo. They should've called it the Minica Topple.

The adorable Minica that replaced the 1989 model had a retro trim, looks like a London taxi.

Now that I'm running out of Dangan ZZ pictures here is another weird Minica, the lettuce. That's its actual name. No joke.

CAN I BUY ONE?

It all looks quite good. Is it cheap? Yes (£2,000 to £6,000)! Is an older model past the US import cap? Yes! Is it very rare and thus almost impossible to find spare parts for? ...yes.

CRAZY JDM RATING

Silly styling? NO

Silly engineering? YES

Silly idea behind it? YES

●●◦2/3 Although it's not the most bonkers JDM, it's close.

1991 Subaru Alcyone SVX

CRAZY JDM #6

This is the Subaru SVX. Aka the SVX Alcyone. Alcyone is the star in the Subaru logo and this car was the 'star' in Subaru's car range at the time. Replacing the oddballish and boxy XT this car is one of a kind. It looks ugly, then it looks pretty. It looks luxurious, then tacky. It was even styled by Giugiaro. And its windows were huge. It reminds me of the Renault Avantime but even cooler.


WHY DO I RECOGNISE IT'S SHAPE?
A certain article I found has an answer and it's simple; they could have stolen it. Although not proven, they may have 'magpied' some of the design cues off of a Ford concept (see photos for more). Despite all that, I can still appreciate the car for what it is. A pinnacle of Subaru's creativity. If it were something like a BMW I'd guarantee it would sell - but this factor combined with the economy's collapse made it owe the company a loss equating to about 75 million (Ouch). Regardless, I prefer its styling to the Ford concept. And remember, you can't drive the Ford concept though, but you can drive this.

HOW FAST?
Not a Ferrari, but not a slouch either. Compare & contrast with the Eunos Cosmo.
230bhp
0-60 in 7.1 seconds
154mph

MORE PICTURES PLEASE!

This is how they showcased aerodynamics in the 90s

A whole load of meaty camera shots

Looks like this picture is from a brochure

Its predecessor, the Alcyone XT. I might cover this car in the future.

The comparison from the article I mentioned earlier.

CAN I BUY ONE?

Why, yes. they were sold in the US. They also depreciate a lot too so you decide if that's good or bad. If you're in the UK then you're in luck (if you're reading this once that car is sold then I'm very sorry). But regardless of where you are remember that this car is very rare even if not that pricey (£2,000 to £7,000).

CRAZY JDM RATING

Silly styling? YES

Silly engineering? NO

Silly idea behind it? YES

●●◦2/3 Although it's not the most bonkers JDM, it's close.

1990 Mazda Eunos Cosmo

CRAZY JDM #5

This is the Eunos Cosmo. It may look ordinary, but this is a car with a very special engine. A Twin Turbo 3 Rotor engine. 'Rotary Power' may as well be Mazda's slogan and this certainly has masses of the aforementioned 'rotary power'. Released under Mazda's ill fated luxury brand 'Eunos', this attempt at a GT car is really something special.


ISN'T THERE THAT REALLY OLD MAZDA COSMO THING TOO?
Well, yeah. The original Mazda Cosmo was the first ever mass produced car with a rotary engine and later models such as this one continue the legacy. Also according to Wikipedia, this was Mazda's top of the line 'halo model' and contained many revolutionary electronic features for its time including; a colour touch screen controlling climate control, analog TV, GPS navigation, radio, CD, and an actual mobile phone. That's luxurious even for today's standards!

HOW FAST?
Yeah, it's pretty fast.
296bhp
0-60 in 7.5 seconds
155mph

MORE PICTURES PLEASE!

Rear view.

Comparison with Mazda's more famed rotary car, the RX-7.

What I'd call a 'sleeper car', you wouldn't expect it to be much faster than it looks but it's very quick.

A very interesting interior.

The original Cosmo, looks like an antique... In a good way.

CAN I BUY ONE?

Though only sold in Japan it is imported to fair range of places. Almost new enough to pass the USA import cap so wait a few months if you want one over there, prices vary a lot. I've seen these go from just £6,000 to the £20,000!

CRAZY JDM RATING!

Silly styling? NO

Silly engineering? YES

Silly idea behind it? YES (an ambitious idea at least)

●●◦2/3 Although it's not the most bonkers JDM, it's close.

1998 Nissan Sileighty

CRAZY JDM #2

This is the Nissan Sileighty. While Nissan is known for their legendary Skyline GTR & Z cars. They also made 2 coupes, the Silvia & the 180SX. These were popular with the youth; who were more likely to crash, especially if they were drifters. 180SXs With damaged front ends would use parts from the '89 Silvia as they fitted perfectly and were cheaper. Thus the Sil(Silvia)eighty(180SX) was born.


SO IT'S NOT AN OFFICIAL MODEL?
Wrong, the Sileighty fad grew so popular that Nissan even made a few models from their factories. Some tuners would even made an Onevia. The One(180SX)via(Silvia) was the same thing in reverse (a Silvia with a 180SX front end) but this was not as popular as the car and front end parts were more expensive.

HOW FAST?
Same stats as 180SX.
205bhp
0-62 in 7.1 seconds
145mph

MORE PHOTOS PLEASE!

Modified

180SX

1989 Silvia

Sileighty Front

Sileighty Rear

CAN I BUY ONE?

Well the Silvia and 240SX were both made in 1989 so an early one is past the US import cap. In other areas they are relatively hard to find but not that expensive. Alternatively you could just get a 180/200/240SX and crash it then replace the front though I wouldn't recommend that. :)

CRAZY JDM RATING!

Silly styling? NO

Silly engineering? NO

Silly idea behind it? YES

●◦◦1/3 A mostly sober car with a couple of cool and different features.

1992 Mazda Autozam AZ-1

CRAZY JDM #1

This is the Autozam AZ-1, It is a Kei Car, a Japanese car specification that has a limited size, engine capacity, horsepower and a special number plate  in exchange for cheaper tax and stuff. Luckily, there's no limit for 0-60 time so we get this, a Kei Car which tries to be sporty. It already looks cool and has all sorts of funky features like gullwing doors (pictured), plenty of standard aero parts and a two-tone scheme. So what else is so special about the AZ1?


WHAT IS AUTOZAM?
One of the many sub-brands of Mazda formed and later abandoned. This one, Autozam was a joint effort with Suzuki to produce a sub-brand specialising in Kei Cars. So most Autozams (including this one) were sold as Suzukis. And just like Autozam itself, this car was discontinued quickly despite its popularity.

HOW FAST?
Even though it may look sporty it's still a 660cc Kei Car so the stats are quite low.
63bhp
0-60 in... nobody knows but it's definitely under 10 seconds.
87mph

MORE PHOTOS PLEASE!

Mazdaspeed Model

Rear View

Side View Modified & Opened. Look at those sweet doors.

Size Comparison

Size Comparison 2... Now it looks like a RC car.

CAN I BUY ONE?

The 25 year import tax in the USA will prevent you from getting one if you live there. If you live somewhere else without the ban you can get one though it would be very difficult and quite pricey as these cars are very rare. If you do manage find one they can be from £6,000 to £16,000. Expensive for a kei car but cheap for gullwing doors. :)

CRAZY JDM RATING!

Silly styling? YES YES YES

Silly engineering? YES

Silly idea behind it? YES

●●●3/3 A very silly car that also manages to be something really cool and unique.