10 hot Japanese classics you can buy next week

Japanese classics up for grabs

A dozen iconic Japanese performance cars will cross the auction block at Classic Car Auctions’ August sale in Warwickshire.

The incredible selection includes two Tommi Mäkinen Edition Mitsubishi Evos, a Subaru Impreza P1 and an R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R.

We’ve selected 10 of the best of these Gran Turismo greats, but if you’d rather see them in your garage than on-screen, the sale takes place on 3 August.

1. 1997 Honda Civic Type R

Estimate: £8-10,000

With a few notable exceptions like Peugeot’s 106 and 306 Rallyes, European hot hatches had mellowed by the late 1990s. Want proof? How about VW’s weedy Mk3 and Mk4 Golf GTis that struggled to break 10 secs to 60mph in standard form.

But over in Japan, cars like the original Civic Type R showed that the likes of Honda hadn’t forgotten how to put the heat into hot hatches.

1. 1997 Honda Civic Type R (continued)

Built from 1997 to 2000 the EK9-generation Civic Type R was never officially sold in the UK. What did we miss? How about a 1595cc ‘four’ equipped with Honda’s VTEC variable valve timing that pumped out just 118lb ft, but a staggering 182bhp at 8200rpm.

The only thing more searing than the 6.7 secs to 60mph acceleration was the shocking red of the crackle-finish cam cover and grippy Recaro seats.

2. 2000 Nissan Skyline GT-R V Spec

Estimate: £30-40,000

The first Skyline GT-R appeared way back in 1969, but it was the 1989 R32-generation car that defined the GT-R as we know it today.

It featured four-wheel drive, four-wheel steering and a turbocharged RB26 straight-six engine that helped it dominate Australian touring car racing so comprehensively it was actually banned to give Holden and Ford a fighting chance.

2. 2000 Nissan Skyline GT-R V Spec (continued)

R34-generation cars like the Bayside Blue one pictured here went on sale in 1999 and were the last Skylines to get the GT-R treatment. Later cars were built from a new platform and called simply GT-R.

Power was still rated at the same 276bhp, though in reality the straight-six made over 300 in standard form, and V Spec versions like this got lower suspension and a more sophisticated four-wheel drive system.

3. 1997 Toyota Supra

Estimate: £30-35,000

The Supra started life in the late 1970s as an offshoot of the Toyota Celica, but with a longer body to fit two extra cylinders under the bonnet.

The mid 1980s brought the option of a turbocharged version in addition to the standard car, and by the time the A80 fourth-generation car pictured here was released, the now-twin-turbocharged Supra was pumping out over 300bhp in European tune.

3. 1997 Toyota Supra (continued)

But as Supra fans know, the legendary 2JZ straight-six engine is actually good for 1000bhp when modified – providing you’re prepared to put up with lag so bad you could nip out to make a cuppa between asking for the power and actually taking delivery.

4. 2001 Subaru Impreza P1

Estimate: £16-20,000

The only two-door Impreza fully type-approved for Europe, the Prodrive-developed P1 was built to celebrate Subaru’s rally efforts – and deflect attention from the high-powered Japanese-market WRX and STi Imprezas you couldn’t buy from your local Subaru dealer, but which were flooding into the UK as grey imports.

4. 2001 Subaru Impreza P1 (continued)

Featuring a bodykit from the drawing board of McLaren F1 designer Peter Stevens, Eibach suspension, an adjustable centre differential, a 276bhp boxer ‘four’ and shorter gearing to make it feel like more, all 1000 units were quickly snapped up.

5. 2000 Honda Integra Type R

Estimate: £8-10,000

As raw as blue steak, the DC2 Honda Integra Type R is an absolute blast on a B-road thanks to its stiff, seam-welded structure, relatively slight 1100kg kerbweight and standard limited-slip differential.

Brit cars had four circular lights but this machine has the twin rectangular units that mark it out as a Japanese market car, and the larger 16in, five-lug wheels fitted to all models from 1998-on.

5. 2000 Honda Integra Type R (continued)

Enthusiasts rave about the way the Integra goes round corners, but the VTEC motor that pushed the Type R between them is still the best thing about the car.

The legendary B18 engine develops 197bhp at a sky-high 8000rpm in Japanese trim, making it around 10bhp more powerful than UK cars.

6. 1997 Mitsubishi 3000GT

Estimate: £8-10,000

Crammed with more tech than an entire season of Tomorrow’s World, the 3000GT, or GTO as it was known in some markets, was Mitsubishi’s answer to the Toyota Supra and Nissan 300ZX.

Under the bonnet of UK cars like this one was a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 that delivered 282bhp to all four wheels through a manual transmission.

6. 1997 Mitsubishi 3000GT (continued)

The 3000GT was fairly quick – 0-60mph in around six seconds – and gadgets like the switchable exhaust sound and electrically adjustable spoilers were advanced for the time, though they added weight, dulling the handling.

Given this genuine UK-market car has covered just 23k miles in the hands of only two owners, it looks like great value at its estimate of £8-10,000 if you fancy a Japanese underdog.

7. 2000 Honda NSX

Estimate: £40-50,000

Honda’s original NSX wasn’t the fastest, the most powerful or even the best-looking mid-engined sports car, and it didn’t sell in huge numbers.

But its impact was as huge as Honda’s CB750 superbike’s had been 20 years earlier, the NSX’s build quality and usability forcing Europe’s supercar establishment to seriously up its game.

7. 2000 Honda NSX (continued)

In addition to being a rare and more desirable (read: more expensive) manual transmission, UK-market car, this one benefits from the extra 200cc and additional gearbox ratio that arrived in 1997.

The colour might not be your first choice but the right spec and low (33k) mileage make this NSX particularly tempting at around half the price of a contemporary Ferrari 355.

8. 2003 Mazda RX-7

Estimate: £30-35,000

Mazda stuck with rotary engines long after the rest of the world’s manufacturers had abandoned the technology, and by the time this late-model RX-7 was built the 13B engine was pumping out 276bhp with the help of two sequential turbochargers – a small one to fill in the lower part of the torque curve and a bigger to hurl you to the horizon.

8. 2003 Mazda RX-7 (continued)

This rather special Spirit R example is one of the most desirable of all RX-7s.

Just 1500 Spirit R models were built shortly before Mazda called time on the RX-7, each loaded with goodies like Recaro seats, Bilstein suspension, aggressive spoilers and uprated brakes.

9. 1990 Honda CR-X

Estimate: £8-10,000

When Honda’s second-generation CR-X appeared in 1988 the most obvious changes were the new, curvier bodywork and a vertical glass pane in the Kamm tail to help visibility.

But the real change was beneath the skin because the CR-X had switched to all-round double-wishbone suspension.

9. 1990 Honda CR-X (continued)

The next big news arrived a year later: a 1.6-litre engine topped with Honda’s new VTEC variable valve timing system.

For UK cars that meant a jump in power from 128 to 148bhp and a redline now set at 8000rpm, but Japanese models like this SiR got a further 10bhp on top of that.

10. 2000 Mitsubishi Evo Tommi Mäkinen Edition

Estimate: £15-20,000

Built to commemorate Finnish rally legend Tommi Mäkinen’s four world championship wins, the Evo Tommi Mäkinen Edition is one of the most instantly recognisable of all Japanese cars.

The modest mechanical changes included a faster steering rack and a modified turbo for better engine response, but really it was all about the iconic red paint and stripes combo.

10. 2000 Mitsubishi Evo TME (continued)

But did you know that only around 500 of the 2500 TMEs built were painted red, or that the stripes were actually optional?

For us, it’s got to be a red one with the graphics, but if you fancy saving a few grand on a TME there’s a white, stripe-free car in the same sale for £5k less.