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While the world was busy building big, gas-guzzling sports cars, Japan was achieving the same results with lighter and more reliable vehicles.
Japanese sports cars have always had the tendency to rewrite the rulebook. Instead of building some big, V8-powered sports car, the Japanese designed a beautiful and efficient coupe which could keep up with the V8 cars, all while costing less to purchase and maintain. The car in question – the Nissan 240Z.
Other examples of the Japanese building better cars than everyone else and changing the segment include the Honda NSX, which not only beat the equivalent Ferrari in driving experience but was commonly mistaken for a product of the Prancing Horse. While most of Japan’s sports cars are within the normal range of GTs and coupes, some of them even influenced the Kei car community and showed the other Japanese manufacturers that small, economical vehicles do not need to be slow and boring.
So, while the rest of the world were busy building big, heavy and powerful sports cars using truckloads of fuel and take up a lot of space, Japan achieved the same results with smaller, lighter and immeasurably more reliable vehicles. With that, here are ten JDMsports cars that changed the segment forever.
The Nissan 240Z was launched just before the energy crisis in the US took off, leading to its immense popularity and success. Here was a small 6-cylinder coupe with enough space for two and their luggage, able to keep up with the muscle cars of the time, all while being economical and making a rather nice sound.
The 240Z was the start of the Nissan Z-cars and is now an icon within the automotive industry. The Z-cars are among the best of the Japanese sports cars and thanks to the new Z, will remain a feature within the motor industry for some time to come.
The original Honda NSX showed the world that fast, great handling mid-engine sports cars do not necessarily have to have a Prancing Horse or a Raging Bull on the front – or cost a fortune to buy and maintain. When the NSX debuted in 1990, it was a fantastic example of Japanese ingenuity and design – a car that changed the segment.
The NSX initially featured a non-V-TEC V6, producing just 270 hp – later upgraded to 290 hp. It was thanks to the NSX’s relatively lightweight and exceptional driving dynamics that put it on par with the equivalent Ferrari in the experience department. Even today, the older NSX is still a fantastic vehicle to throw around a track.
The Toyota 2000GT was the automotive giant’s first proper go at building a world-class sports car. It was so exceptionally well-built and designed that it eventually became none other than James Bond’s runabout in the film, You Only Live Twice – albeit a modified version to look like a roadster.
The 2000GT featured a 2.0-liter inline-6 producing just 148 hp in its production form. Luckily, the car only weighs in at less than 2,500 lbs, so performance was relatively good for the time of production. The 2000GT was the start of the Toyota sports car, eventually leading to the Supra we have today.
Related: The Iconic Toyota 2000GT Returns As The Ultimate Grand Touring Sports Car
The Autozam AZ-1 is not as well-known as a Chevrolet Camaro or Ford Mustang, but it is still an important vehicle. The AZ-1 was produced by Mazda and also rebadged as the Suzuki Cara. The AZ-1 was part of the Japanese car industry known as Kei cars – vehicles that need to follow strict length, width, height, power, and engine size restrictions.
The AZ-1 received a sportier version called the Mazdaspeed, which added many mechanical improvements such as a limited-slip differential, noisier exhaust, lighter wheels, better suspension, and a new aero body kit. It showed the domestic Japanese manufacturers that slow cars do not need to be boring.
The Mazda Cosmo was a pretty standard sports car for the 1960s. It had a nice interior, a larger trunk, and a beautifully designed exterior. Under the skin, however, was a new propulsion method in the form of the Wankel rotary engine.
The Cosmo was one of the first production cars to feature a rotary engine and the tiny displacement gave the Japanese buyers a financial advantage in the country’s road tax laws – all without sacrificing performance. The Cosmo produced around 110 hp and cost less to purchase than the Toyota 2000GT.
The Mazda RX-7 continued the trend set by the Cosmo and the third generation introduced twin-turbocharging to the world of the rotary engine. The RX-7’s tiny 1.3-liter twin-rotor engine still negated the expensive road tax laws but produced a healthy 250 hp. The engine was later uprated to produce the same 276 hp as all other Japanese sports cars as per the gentleman’s agreement.
The RX-7 was the more interesting alternative to the likes of the Toyota Supra, Mitsubishi 3000GT, and Nissan Skyline GT-R. Since its introduction, the vehicle has gained a cult following within not only the street-racing community but also with fans of the Fast & Furious franchise.
Related: Here's What We Love About The Mazda RX-7 FD
The Nissan Skyline GT-R’s R32, R33 and R34 generations of cars were all more or less the same, mechanically, and did what very few other sports cars of the class did – power all four wheels. The GT-R’s RB26DETT straight-6 is a magnificent piece of engineering which is almost as coveted as the Toyota 2JZ-GTE and features the same amount of ridiculous aftermarket potential.
The Skyline GT-R is no more, but in its place is the GT-R – a more focused version of the famous sports car, now more of a supercar. The Skyline is and will forever be one of the greatest Japanese sports cars, one which even the European manufacturers have started following with their all-wheel-drive systems.
The Toyota Supra shares much of the Nissan Skyline GT-R’s and Mazda RX-7’s spotlight, not only because they were the top three sports cars sold in Japan, but simply because they featured in the same movie franchise. The Supra is arguably the more popular of the three and had a larger enthusiast following, much like the Ford Mustang does in the US over the Chevy Camaro and Dodge Challenger.
The Supra is just an awesome car with an almost bullet-proof engine that can withstand a ridiculous number of modifications thanks to the precise design and engineering which went into it. The Supra – specifically modified ones – showed the world that sports car engines can be reliable and won’t necessarily pull a rod when the boost is upped.
While the Lexus LFA didn’t necessarily change the segment, it needed to be mentioned because of its overbearingly meticulous attention to detail. Normal automakers build their various models and share many parts across segments as it is a cost-cutting strategy. Lexus on the other hand, designed the LFA from the ground up, not sharing any parts with other Lexus models.
The engine is undoubtedly the highlight of the vehicle, singing to the occupants at lower revs and screaming its metaphorical lungs out near the redline. Not only is the engine a piece of automotive art, but the rest of the car should also feature in the Guggenheim Museum. The only slight negative point is the automated manual gearbox, but it still has a satisfactory audible mechanical ‘click’ when a new gear is engaged. The LFA is definitely within the top five best vehicles ever made.
The Mazda MX-5 is one important sports car. Not only did it save the small roadster from extinction, but it redefined the sports car segment. The original MX-5 was a relatively small two-seat roadster that had a modest engine in the front, drive to the rear, and a manual gearbox in the middle. The result was one of the most enjoyable experiences anyone could have in an automobile.
Now, four generations on, the MX-5 still follows this trend. Granted, it has more modern technology such as satellite navigation, anti-lock brakes, and traction control – but none of the modern stuff interferes with the driving experience. The MX-5 still keeps to its roots and holds a piece of classic motoring alive in this rapidly changing automotive world, making it one of the most important cars on the market and definitely one which forever changed the segment. It is probably the last true sports car left.
Michael De Kock is passionate about cars and everything from avocados to particle accelerators. He has studied psychology and knows a little bit about fixing cars (old Land Rovers mostly). He also blogs and has a book, 125 Creative Writing Prompts for Petrolheads, available on Amazon. His philosophy in life: Stop the hate - Adopt a V8.