More and more often we see wonderful cars from Japan pass us by. The emission requirements in Europe make them unsaleable in our regions. We list seven current, fierce cars that we would have liked to taste.
It is not new that there are cars driving around in Japan that make many enthusiasts’ mouths water in the Netherlands as well. The Japanese have often kept special versions to themselves; so-called JDM cars (Japanese Domestic Market) sometimes find their way through gray or private imports. But lately we see more and more that newcomers, for example, go to the US but do not make the crossing to the European mainland. This is due to the strict European emission requirements and targets, which often make the products unsaleable. Especially in the Netherlands, where high CO2 emissions are severely punished. This way we miss out on the necessary nice cars.
Nissan Z
The new Nissan Z is the successor to the 370Z. In its early years, that was a sports car that you sometimes saw. The new Z, without number, does it with a V6 biturbo of 400 hp. But unfortunately, in Europe we have to do without it: “A shrinking European sports car market and specific emissions regulations mean that we cannot build a business case for the introduction of the next generation Z in Europe,” said Nissan Europe.
Toyota Land Cruiser GR Sport
Fortunately, Toyota also supplies us with the insane GR Yaris, just like the GR Supra. The GT86 successor GR86 may also come to Europe. That does not apply to the new Land Cruiser, which also has a heavily dressed GR Sport version. They love it in the Middle East.
Subaru WRX
About twenty years ago, the Subaru Impreza GT Turbo was literally and figuratively a sales cannon. The times of the 555, the bare version that was offered for just under 50,000 guilders, are still clearly in our minds. Later fast Impreza’s with the addition WRX became more expensive and more expensive and it has been a while since they were in the price list. The latest WRX has 275 hp and a 350 Nm strong 2.4-liter blown four-cylinder.
Nissan Patrol Nismo
Nissan has a particularly brutal Patrol these days. We know the last version of the 4×4 available in the Netherlands as a diligent workhorse, pulling heavy trailers, market carts and whatnot. There is even a Nismo of the current Patrol, which is not available with us. And it not only looks thick, it is also full of luxury and has a 434 hp strong V8 in the huge nose. This makes it fun to play in the sandbox of the Middle East.
Mazda 3 2.5 turbo
The Mazda 3 is a car that radiates enthusiasm. On the other side of the Atlantic, they can exploit the potential of the 3 even better with a 2.5 turbo engine, a 230 hp version with four-wheel drive. It is paired with an automatic transmission. Our Mazda 3 has a maximum of 186 hp.
Lexus IS F500 Sport Performance
With us, the Lexus IS has been out of the market for a while, in the US there is a thoroughly revised version of the last one that you could get here. And so they just hung the 5.0 V8 in it, which we still have memories of when it was in the RC F. 479 hp and 536 Nm are BMW M or Mercedes AMG-like values.
Honda NSX Type S
The Honda NSX has been around for years in its current form, but the curtain will fall soon. To say goodbye to the hybrid sports car, Honda came up with the Type S. The power goes up to 607 hp (standard 581) and of the limited edition of 350 pieces, 300 will go to the US. A large market for Honda.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl