Utah Japanese Classic Car Spring Fling
Words and photos by Michael Chandler
Spring is in the air and we, as gear heads, need to take to the streets and enjoy this. On Sunday the Utah Japanese Classic Car group got together at Sugarhouse Park to ring in the season with what they called the Spring Fling Pot Luck. If you’re in to classic J-tin then this group is for you, and if you were able to make it out to the park you got to see some treats.
There were a pair of classic Celica GTs in attendance. Both coupes were 5 speed models, and were rather bright. You can see some American muscle influence in the noses of these vehicles, very reminiscent of early Camaros and Challengers; however, while the Americans were spry for being as massive as they were the Celicas were just spry.
This beautiful, Datsun wagon made its way out. More impressive than the wagon, and its cloth sunroof? The fact that it made it out of the park. That exit is gnarly!
Who doesn’t need more RX7s in their life? Everyone does, and there were examples of all three generations out, but this FB really caught my eye. It’s not a concourse car, but it isn’t a wreck that that’s rotting away. It’s a simple driver that’s hopefully spreading the good word of Reagan era rotaries to the masses.
FC RX7s have been on the rise for a while, and for good reason. Like all 80’s import FR coupes, they look amazing. A few simple exterior modifications can transform a mundane runabout into a jaw dropper, and there were plenty of turbo models produced. Nary a man alive can resist the Siren’s song that is a turbo 13B.
This was, arguably, the most gorgeous car at the meet and is in the running for most gorgeous car to ever be produced. The FD RX7 didn’t look like its contemporaries when it was new, and nothing has come along since to rival it. This one is a bit different than the ones you see running around. There isn’t a Mazda badge on the exterior, but it does have an “efini” badge on it. This is because Mazda, like Toyota and Nissan, opened up a luxury division. Their’s was called efini, but only operated from 1991-1997. And unlike the Lexus and Infiniti brands, efini existed only in Japan. That fact explains the most obvious feature of the car: it’s a right hand drive model. You’re not going to be finding efini RX7s littering your supermarket parking lot, so seeing one in person is like finding a unicorn.
Second generation MR2s were out in force. These mid-engine runabouts have been turned into Ferrari F355 lookalikes by some idiots overly enthusiastic people, but thankfully the ones at the meet were clean examples that weren’t sporting prancing horse badges.
IT”S A SUZUKI CARRY! WE’VE HIT PEAK JDM!!! This is as good a place as any to end this post. There’s a gallery below, but I won’t blame you for spending your day basking in the glory that is the Suzuki Carry.
