Growing JDM Fleet!
JDM Fleet!
I've currently accumulated an overabundance of cars. I've still got the Pajero, and the Legacy came to meet it. It's interesting, my cars have never met before. I'm not sure what to think.
More pictures of the landed leggy to come, in time.
Pronunciation of Japanese car names
Super awesome, via Mighty Car Mods
Even better is how Americans said Subaru when Subarus first hit our shores!
Weird JDM Cars, Part 4
Mitsuoka Galue
Mitsuoka is a great company. No original ideas. Look! It's a Rolls Royce.
Nope... that's a 4 cylinder Japanese car! Epic. James May drove one in Series 11, Episode 6... and that's worth a watch. He's pretty fair about it, and it's... umm.. 'inspiration'.
Toyota Urban Supporter
This one is truly weird. It doesn't even have a wiki page. In my mind, that means it doesn't exist at all. This one deserves front and back shots.
I just love how it's intensely practical. I'll bet the visibility out of that thing is INCREDIBLE. Big fan.
I don't really know a lot about this one. Hope you enjoy! Throw in a comment if you know anything about this thing!
Great ‘Why do we drive on x side’ video
It's a good one. Quick and to-the-point.
I love that Samoa banned alcohol during the switch-over. Didn't know that bit!
Pajero vs Hilux CHALLENGE!
Hey all. Long time no post. My apologies. But, this is almost worth the wait! The previous post is Ben from Fraser Valley Imports reviewing my truck. Admittedly, it was broken at the time, but he called it slow. So, knowing that me and Ben have approximately the same sense of humour (and that if we didn't live half way across a very large country we'd probably high-five on a semi-frequent basis), I decided to make a 'rebuttal' video. This is me trying to be as cocky and jerky as possible. For those who don't understand sarcasm and internet humour, stop now.
To which Ben replied with an AMAZING video. I seriously laughed out loud (that's lol for you internet folk following along) at the textovers. Wow.
Ben is seriously a good sport. If you need someone awesome in the Vancouver area to help you out importing... seriously contact him. He cares more about this stuff than I do... and that's saying a lot.
I'm yet to record the response to this. Unlike Ben who has a super awesome Go-Pro, I have a Canon point-and-shoot that I tape to the window. Super classy.
On the nerd/technical side... I've moved servers again. The servers I've rented are 1/12th of what I was paying... and I think it might be worth less than that. Sorry it's so slow. I might go back to hosting at home.
Jay Leno’s Garage – Mazda Cosmo
If you like the look of Japanese vehicles, this car should really hit the spot... it's the original Cosmo rotary. I've seen the 90s Cosmo, and it fails to really stir any emotions (though the 3 rotor engine gets my inner engineer's attention), but the original is a masterpiece. I'll let Jay say the rest:
Right hand drive drive prank
Just for Laughs, a Canadian-run show/festival/whatever has a gags show... and this is one of the gags. They borrowed a RHD mail truck, and put a fake steering wheel on the left side, then asked someone to look after it. Hilarity ensues!
No longer without
Not going to lie to you... I'm not the most patient person. I sold my Subaru months ago now, and have been looking for 'the dream' for quite a while now.
In fact, I was almost giving up, and was prepared to get an automatic transmission instead of a manual... shocking.
But, then Mark @ Brave Auto came through for me!
Here's the new addition to my family! Carlos 'El Burrito' Pajero!
Carlos!
So, it's a 4BB, super clean, manual and I got it for under budget! I think that it was improperly labelled in the auction site, because I had trouble finding it, even after Mark said it was there! I'll be getting some high resolution photos from Mark some time this week, and I'll share with ya'll, but I couldn't wait to tell you about it!
I'm dreaming of having this for xmas, but that's probably not going to happen. But, a boy can dream.
Pajero in Minnesota
The Pajero was only sold as the Pajero in Asia... so this is quite a funny find. This 'Pajero' was found in Minnesota, near Minneapolis (not totally sure where, photo courtesy of my brother-in-law)
Pajero Go-Kart
A quick history lesson. The truck was badged as Pajero in Asia, where it was supposed to be named after the greek name for some mountain cat. But, 'Pajero' is slang for 'wanker' (that is... masturbator, jerkoff, etc.) in Spanish. Unlike Ford with the Ford Pinto (small wang, in Spanish) Mitsubishi was smart enough to rebrand the Pajero as Montero in North America, and Shogun in the UK.
Funny stuff. I want to drive my future Pajero to Mexico... for the lulz.
MPI Mailer about JIS lights
Via HBeat (Barry with the Beat). I'm still trying to find an original or a scan, contact me if you have one. Update! scan is here: http://righthanddrive.ca/attachments/jisInManitoba.jpg
The mailer:
The vehicle Inspection Handbook is currently being reviewed to determine changes that may be required to address newer vehicle technologies and to provide even greater clarity of inspection standards and rejection criteria.
As part of this review, we have identified several issues related to lamps. Specifically, we have found that some vehicles that were originaly manufactured for markets outside of North America will be equipped with lamps that do not have either “DOT” or “SAE” codes. They may however, have either “JIS” or “E” codes, evidencing compliance with either Japanese or European standards.
HEADLAMPS-Transport Canada has approved the use of certain “E” coded headlamps in Canada. In situations where a vehicle is equipped with headlamps with an “E” code and:
1) An arrow symbol showing in both directions () – do not reject these headlamps simply because they do not have a “DOT/SAE?” marking; or
2) No arrow, do not reject simply because they do not have a “DOT/SAE” marking; or
3) An arrow symbol facing to the right (–>) REJECT as these lamps are not intended for right hand traffic roadways.
Lamps that do not display any “DOT/SAE” or “E” code must still be rejected.
LAMPS OTHER THAN HEADLAMPS – If you encounter any vehicle that has any lamp, other than a headlamp, that displays either “JIS” or “E” code and does not display a “DOT/SAE” code, please contact Vehicle Standards and Inspections (In Winnipeg at 985-0920 or toll free at 1-866-0542) to determine if the lamps will be rejected. Lamps that do not display any “DOT/SAE”, “E”, or “JIS” code must still be rejected. It is also important to be especially careful when inspecting vehicles with “E” or “JIS” codes as these lamp assemblies will sometimes not have all the required lamps that are normally found on vehicles built for the North American market e.g. tail lamp assemblies might not include side marker lamps/reflex reflectors.
Regardless of the coding(s) on any lamp or lamp assembly, if there are required lamps that are either missing or non-functional, they remain a cause for failure during an inspection.