Articles

  • Kei Car Weekend Edition: Suzuki Cappuccino

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    Would it have been a terrible oversight not to include the Suzuki Cappuccino this weekend? Together with the Honda Beat and the AZ-1, the trio is what one thinks of when eccentric Kei cars are discussed. And the Cappuccino was even imported to Europe new, which is rare regarding this class of cars.

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  • Kei Car Weekend Edition: Mitsubishi Pajero Mini

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    The Mitsubishi Pajero nameplate was also affixed on a tiny little SUV, endearingly called the Pajero Mini. The design language matched the bigger versions, so sensibly it appeared to be created as a scaled-down version of a full-size Pajero. And as befits the tiny car class, the drivetrain was also 660cc, with a choice of…

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  • Kei Car Weekend Edition: Daihatsu Leeza Spider Turbo

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    Continuing with the Kei Car Weekend Edition, we move back into convertible weirdness, best served Daihatsu badged. The Leeza was a largely unremarkable hatchback built from 1986 to 1993, but it had a convertible version called the Spider, and that injected it with a dash of careless cool. The 730kg droptop had a 660cc engine…

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  • Kei Car Weekend Edition: Mazda/Autozam AZ-1

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    One of the most interest-generating vehicles in the Kei car class is the Autozam AZ-1. It’s a weird amalgam of Mazda design, Suzuki build and bespoke branding, as it was developed at the time when the Japanese bubble economy hadn’t yet burst and Mazda had a ton of different brands under which to do trade.…

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  • Kei Car Weekend Edition – Honda Beat

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    What do you think is the most loveable Kei car of all? Perhaps it’s the mid-engined rollerskate that is the Honda Beat, as it’s the smallest canvas on which you could slap ’90s Honda styling cues. The Beat is a pretty little thing, but it was brisk, with 64 hp out of the 656cc engine,…

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  • Kei Car Weekend Edition – Suzuki Alto CA71/CC72 Works

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    Hello! This is your timely reminder that kei cars are awesome. Just in case you’ve forgotten how awesome they are, this weekend you will be able to enjoy an assortment of the smallest and the coolest kei cars made. Weird ads, weird stickers, small displacement, turbos – you got it all. The first car to…

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  • Wagon Wednesday: 2004 Mercedes-Benz W203 C180 Kompressor

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    One of the more difficult things as a writer is assessing the dynamic characteristics of your father’s car. Or, to be precise: at a time when he’s sitting in the passenger seat. My formative years as a driver, brought up on car magazines with evocative tales of road trips were spent driving the family trucksters…

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  • Not Honda CRX Weekend Edition: Nissan 100 NX Coupe

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    What, then, of the Nissan 100NX? The rounded, Sunny/Sentra-related extremely 1990s car ditched the pointed designs of previous FWD coupe Nissans, the EXA included, and only relied on a T-Bar roof option to appear quirky. The round shape is perhaps too much for many, as it takes an enthusiast of all things computer mouse shaped…

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  • Not Honda CRX Weekend Edition: Hyundai Scoupe

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    For some, the swoopy Hyundai Coupe from the mid-1990s was the first interesting Korean car. For some, the Genesis was, and then there are people who still wait for one to appear. But I find even the 1988-unveiled Scoupe, or S Coupe interesting, as the design simply works for me. The Scoupe wasn’t anything to…

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  • Not Honda CRX Weekend Edition: Toyota Cynos/Paseo

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    It’s time for a weekend edition round these parts, and after recent Regular Car Reviews pieces about Honda CRX:s, one did wonder if those small hatchback coupes were the best things in their class. Sure, from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, plenty of Japanese-originating small front-wheel-drive coupes were available, but it’s possible no other…

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