JAPAN HAS NO NOSTRADAMUS-TYPE CHARACTER in its folklore but it does have kuda-kitsune, a spirit fox creature that lives in a bamboo tube and is capable of foretelling the future. Sadly I have no such spirit guide, but even without mischievous pipe-based woodland creatures, I reckon I'd have a good chance of guessing the first car you thought of when the term 'Japanese performance car' came up. There might be a few outliers, but most would surely settle on a handful of names: NSX, RX-7, GT-R, Supra.
If you're of a certain age - between maybe 25 and 45 I'd almost guarantee it, with these cars granted legendary status by the likes of Gran Turismo, and the earliest movies in the silver-screen steamroller that is the Fast & Furious franchise. The 1990s period, which birthed the ultimate incarnations of each model, is indisputably the golden era of Japanese performance, as makers flush from Japan's 1980s economic bubble ploughed the sort of money into R&D that even a 1970s Mercedes engineer would envy.
The '90s, though, was not where Japan's performance car story started. For that you have to go back a further three decades. Honda in 1963 isn't a bad place to start: the year the firm most knew as a maker of mopeds launched the $500. Not many brands can claim a pretty roadster as their first passenger vehicle, but Honda can, and it put its motorcycle expertise, born from its debut at the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy just four years earlier, to good use.
Previewed by an even smaller S360 that never reached production, the S500 used Honda's first four-cylinder engine, a water-cooled unit with dual overhead cams, a crank spinning in roller bearings, a Keihin carburettor feeding each cylinder, a motorcycle-style chain-driven final drive, and a 9500rpm red line. The 531cc, 44bhp S500 was to an A-series-powered MG Midget as the bullet train is to HS2.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 2024-Ausgabe von Evo UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 2024-Ausgabe von Evo UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
BMW M135 xDrive
The M135 has lost an and gained chassis revisions and a restyle. Is it enough to make it a benchmark hot hatch?
Audi S5
S5 by name, S4 by nature, is Audi's new mid-size petrol-powered saloon a step in the right direction?
Lamborghini Urus SE
Lambo's super-SUV gets a major mid-life overhaul, going hybrid in the process. Has it become any easier to like?
HALL evo OF FAME
The evo Hall of Fame was established to recognise the great and the good of our corner of the universe. Prepare to welcome this year's inductees
CIRCUIT DAY
After three days of assessing their behaviour on the road, it's time to head to the Circuito de Navarra to find out how our nine contenders respond when their handling limits are explored
EVO CAR OF THE YEAR 2024
Nine brilliant cars, from flyweight roadsters to bombastic supercars to a be-stickered estate(!), do battle on some of Europe's finest and most spectacular roads. Which will emerge victorious? Place your bets now.
Porsche Panamera GTS
It lacks the raw power of its hybrid rivals, but does the new GTS’s more traditional approach give it its USP?
Alpine A290 GTS
The new electric Renault 5 has won plenty of plaudits. Is the hotter Alpine version a car to win petrolheads' hearts too?
BEST BUYS BMW M CARS
THE PERFORMANCE CAR LANDSCAPE WOULD HAVE looked very different over the last five decades without BMW. Its M division, founded in 1972, has produced some of the best driver’s cars ever to hit the road, and in the process has provided a stream of benchmark models for its rivals to chase. In recent years, stricter emissions regulations, downsizing and electrification have seen some of those rival cars falter, yet by and large BMW’s M machines have remained strong. In fact, some rank among the greatest the department has made think of the eCoty-winning M2 CS and M5 CS while others are the only options worth recommending in their respective segments. Price tags have risen with performance, however, putting those latest offerings out of reach for many, but the marque’s popularity means there are numerous earlier M models available on the second-hand market for far more attainable figures. Here are four of our favourites.
TYRE 2024 TEST
Want to fit the very best tyres to your performance car? The annual evo Tyre Test identifies the cream of the current crop