Deprecated: Function create_function() is deprecated in /www/wwwroot/japanbullet.com/plugins/system/sourcerer/helper.php on line 567
Displaying items by tag: auto - Page-61 | Japan Bullet

Toyota Gr Supra Gt4 Gets The Homologation Green Light

Toyota GR Supra GT4 gets the homologation green light

The Toyota GR Supra GT4 is finally ready to hit the track in an official series capacity. After extensive testing by European motorsport company Stéphane Ratel Organisation (SRO), the Supra completed the last stages of homologation and is now eligible for a variety of races across Europe. The first customer deliveries are expected to begin immediately. 

The new Supra GT4 debuted in concept form in March 2019 and showed its production-ready face a few months later. Technically, the GT4 has already raced, but that was for the Nürburgring 24 Hours.

Honda Civic Type R 2020 Btcc Race Car Unveiled

Honda Civic Type R 2020 BTCC race car unveiled

Honda's Civic Type R will again get the opportunity to prove its mettle on the track during the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). The factory-backed Halfords Yuasa Racing team unveiled the updated hatchback it will enter in the 2020 season of the series that starts in March.

The regular-production Civic Type R is not for motorists seeking to keep a low profile, yet the BTCC-spec model makes it look almost subtle. It wears a front spoiler, seriously flared fenders, and an even bigger wing on the hatch. Although we haven't seen the interior yet, peeking through the windshield reveals a full roll cage, a racing seat, and little else. It weighs approximately 2,820 pounds, which is the minimum allowed by regulations.

Toyota Implements New Airless Paint Atomizer At Japanese Plants

Toyota implements new airless paint atomizer at Japanese plants

Automotive manufacturers are in a constant state of searching for newer, better, faster, and overall more efficient ways to produce their cars, not only in regards to to time and money but also to pollution. Toyota's latest technology, an airless paint atomizer, addresses all three. 

Toyota claims to have the the first airless paint atomizer used to paint car bodies in the world. By using this technology, Toyota says it achieves more than 95% coating efficiency, meaning what actually sticks to the body, in comparison to 60 to 70% efficiency from a normal paint atomizer that does use air. In addition to painting cars more quickly and effectively, this technique could potentially reduce the Toyota Group's carbon dioxide emissions by about 7%. 

Junkyard Gem: 1986 Mazda 323 Dx Hatchback

Junkyard Gem: 1986 Mazda 323 DX Hatchback

Mazda built generation after generation of the Familia, starting with the Giugiaro-styled machines of the 1960s. The first Familia that sold well in North America was called the GLC (for "Great Little Car"), and it began life as a rear-wheel-drive cousin to the RX-7 before the Familia went to a front-wheel-drive platform for the 1981 model year. The GLC name stuck around these parts through 1985 — and I've documented a few discarded examples of these now-rare machines during my junkyard travels — before getting the 323 name starting in the 1986 model year. It's no sweat to find 1990s 323s in junkyards, but I've been scouring the car graveyards of the land for the elusive early 323 and, finally, found this moss-encrusted '86 in a San Francisco Bay Area yard.

Mazda Cx-30 Cargo Capacity Test | How Much Fits In The Trunk?

Mazda CX-30 Cargo Capacity Test | How much fits in the trunk?

The 2020 Mazda CX-30 is pretty much a lifted Mazda3 hatchback. Same platform, awfully similar dimensions, and the interior's a spitting image (if not identical). Ditto cargo capacity. On paper, the two have virtually the same amount of space behind their raised back seats, with the CX-30 at 20.2 cubic-feet and the 3 with just a teensy less at 20.1. 

Now, before I go any further, let's see how much that 20.1 cubic-feet relates to in the Mazda3. I wasn't yet doing this test format back then, hence the video. 

2020 Mazda Cx-30 Awarded Iihs Top Safety Pick

2020 Mazda CX-30 awarded IIHS Top Safety Pick

The 2020 Mazda CX-30 has come out of the gate swinging on the safety front, earning the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick award in its first year on the market. 

Mazda's new baby crossover earned a "Good" rating in all six of the Institute's crashworthiness categories (driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint) and its accident avoidance system was rated "Superior."

2020 Toyota Tacoma Review | Prices, Specs, Features And Photos

2020 Toyota Tacoma Review | Prices, specs, features and photos

The 2020 Toyota Tacoma has a long-standing reputation for mechanical reliability and its continued presence in the marketplace has made it a force to be reckoned with. New entries in this expanding segment pose a threat to the Taco's dominance, though, as evidenced by its fourth-place finish in our 2019 midsize truck comparison test. In particular, its driving experience and interior are a bit too rugged, and borderline antiquated, compared to rivals trucks.

Still, the Tacoma remains versatile, practical and characterful. With two cab sizes and two bed lengths, enthusiast-friendly TRD models and even a manual transmission option, there's a variant for just about any need and we can see why it's such a best-seller. Meanwhile, new safety and infotainment tech help round out an already compelling, though aging, package for 2020.

2020 Mazda Cx-30 Review | Price, Features, Specs, Photos

2020 Mazda CX-30 Review | Price, features, specs, photos

Is it a sporty crossover? Is it a tall hatchback? However you want to view it, the new 2020 Mazda CX-30 is a compelling new entry that delivers the sort of engaging driving experience and premium cabin environment you get in the company's 3 hatchback, but with the higher seating position of a crossover. Basically, if that Mazda3 had a child with the bigger CX-5, this is pretty much what you'd get, and we have to say it's a pretty good kid.  

In terms of size, the CX-30 fits into a niche of in-betweener SUVs that slots between compact models like the CX-5 (plus the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, etc.) and sub-compact ones like the Mazda CX-3 (plus the Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona, etc.). If you don't have small children, and the car seats and strollers that come with them, it's a size that should make sense. The price is compelling too, especially when you consider the CX-30's high-end cabin and just how terrific it is to drive. With its tautly tuned chassis, communicative steering and sharp throttle response, the best words to describe it are "budget Porsche."

Land Rover Defender Reportedly Will Spawn Smaller, Bigger Models

Land Rover Defender reportedly will spawn smaller, bigger models

Land Rover promoted the Defender nameplate to one of its brand pillars; the others are Discovery and Range Rover. It's planning to build a full line of models around the born-again off-roader, including smaller crossovers.

Australian website Which Car learned the British firm is in the early stages of designing an aluminum-intensive platform it will use to underpin smaller models. One will borrow styling cues from the second-generation Defender (pictured) to take on the Jeep Renegade, a move which would push Land Rover further downmarket than it's been in many years. Another will slot in the Range Rover family, below the Evoque, as an alternative to the Audi Q2 sold overseas and the Mercedes-Benz GLA. Sister company Jaguar might use the architecture, too.

2020 Toyota Rav4 Trd Off-road | Road Trip, Fuel Economy, Comfort

2020 Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road | Road trip, fuel economy, comfort

This 2020 Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road would spend more time on boats than off road. The Falken Wildpeak A/T Trail tires would be more noteworthy for their elevated road noise than their puncture resistant design or severe snow rating. My selection from the Multi-Terrain Select system among Mud & Sand, Rock & Trail and Snow was always "none of the above." Admittedly, then, driving from Portland, Ore., to Victoria and Vancouver, B.C. with a few ferry trips along the way is hardly a tall task for the RAV4's new, most-rugged trim level.

Part of me knows this is a bit lame (or a lot), but the rest knows that if you're really game for serious off-roading, no amount of upgrades to a RAV4 will make it a great choice. You'll find better approach/departure angles and a 4WD Low setting in a Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk, while a used 4Runner would be the obvious Toyota alternative for similar money. That said, the new-for-2020 RAV4 TRD Off-Road has plenty of appeal, especially for folks who like the idea of a rugged, off-road ready SUV but know that A) they're unlikely to take it off-road much and B) appreciate the RAV4's superior fuel economy and family-friendly space. Basically, folks like myself.