Category: Family Album Treasures (Page 1 of 15)

This Levin AE86 got one up to 87 in 88! – Family Album Treasures

November 28, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

What is the most comfortable place of your Levin AE86? What’s the best intake on your Levin AE86? Flat out in your engine bay of course!

Sorry for these bad puns, but I just had to make them!

License plate

This nearly brand new kouki (facelift) AE86 from Osaka is one up with its 87 license plate in February 1988! Now the big mystery is whether it’s a 1987 car or that the 87 license plate is a coincidence. Next to the license plate, it has got a double set of fog lights: über rare OEM GT Apex fog lights in the grill and two Cibié 35 / Airport.

Madness on the Honda City: Hondahondahondahonda!

Baggy Trousers with my Honda Civic – Family Album Treasures

November 21, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

The owner of this second-generation Honda Civic strikes such a strange pose that I immediately had to think of the wacky Madness Japanese TV ads for the Honda City! It’s like he’s doing that strange Madness-walking dance!

Honda Civic owner doing the Madness walking-dance

If you are unfamiliar with what that dance looks like, this is the album art of the Madness Honda City LP that was released in Japan:

My stonks are soaring baby! – Family Album Treasures

November 14, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

At the height of the Japanese bubble economy, everything was booming: stocks, assets and land value. You name it, it was almost doubling year-over-year (well, that’s a bit exaggerated), so once you had become Mr. Big, you had to show it. Buying a Soarer Z20 would definitely show you were big in Japan!

I can’t really tell whether this photo above is actually shot during the bubble era or it’s an homage to this era. The suit is the late 1980s/early 1990s, the mobile phone as well and so is the Toyota Soarer Z20. However, these rims actually feel more like the late 1990s and the camber as well. The photo is clearly shot with film, so if it were a homage, kudos to the photographer!

Via eg_power.jp

Hearty swapped Carina GT-TR with lots of love – Carina Sightings

November 6, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

Hearts and love surround this Toyota Carina GT-TR TA63. Let me explain to you why! I was split between posting this in Carina Sightings and Family Album Treasures, so I’ll post it in both.

First heart: the girlfriend

In this first photo, you can see a girl posing next to the Carina GT-TR. Her name is Kobayashi Koto (小林古都) and according to the ex-owner of this Carina in the 1990s she used to be a model in the 1980s. She was most famous for being the model featured on the 1987 Bridgestone calendar. We can only assume she used to be his girlfriend as she has her arm wrapped around him. Or at least, as much as we can see of him in that photo. She is clinging to him so much that she must have loved him very much. Unless he was in her friendzone…

Soaring Toyota Soarer GZ10 Baby – Family Album Treasures

November 5, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

These two family album treasures prove a car doesn’t necessarily have to be the highest trim level to be cool! Seriously, I would have loved to have a cool dad with a Toyota Soarer like this baby!

According to the Minkara user, his dad bought this Soarer new before he was born. The Soarer is an early VR trim level, which means it is powered by the Toyota 1G-EU engine. There is absolutely no shame in that as the only other engine choices of the early Soarer were the 2.8 litre 5M-GEU and the turbocharged 2.0 litre M-TEU.

A Celica XX 2000G MA45 for the whole family?

The family Celica XX 2000G MA45 [Family Album Treasures]

September 27, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

A Celica XX, also better known as the Celica Supra in the USA, is the first attempt by Toyota to create a Gran Tourer out of the Celica. The Celica XX 2000G isn’t particularly a car with a lot of room in the back. So how could this be a Family Album Treaure?

I found this photo on Flickr and the caption was “Akita Japan – 1979”. What caught my interest in this photo was the size of the family. I wondered how five adults can fit in a second generation Celica? Well they simply don’t!