It is a common misconception that US car regulations are laxer than in other parts of the world, such as Europe. In reality, there are many hoops you have to jump through if you want to import a car to the US.
The only way to import models that do not meet the US car regulations is for them to be 25 years or older. If you’re into older cars, especially unusual ones from other markets, this is great news for you. Here are three interesting JDM cars that have been made for the Japanese market specifically but can finally be enjoyed even in the US.
Toyota Chaser — One of the Best Sedans Among JDM Cars
A recent addition to the JDM cars that are now clear for import is the Toyota Chaser. Production ran already from 1977 but perhaps the most interesting models came with the 6th generation JZX100. With production starting in 1996, the 6th generation Chasers can be imported since September 2021. The JZX100 version was the last Chaser ever made, with production ending in 2001.
When looking for this Japanese four-door sedan, you will find two trim models — Tourer and Avante. Of course, neither will surprise you with heaps of equipment by today’s standards but back then, they were quite well-equipped. That said, the Avante is the more luxurious of the two, while the Tourer is more of a sporty model. In later years, two other models were added: the XL and Raffine. However, these are the slightly less desirable Chasers. Standard equipment includes power windows, air conditioning, power steering, and even a keyless entry.
With regards to engines, the lineup was made up of a variety of gasoline engines, starting with a 2.0L I4 codenamed 1G-FE, moving up to famous engines such as the 2.5L 1JZ and 3.0L 2JZ. The 6th generation Chaser was also the first one to offer an all-wheel drive system, which was available on the special Avante Four G trim as standard. Most models, however, send power only to the rear wheels, which is one of the best aspects of this car. There were two options for transmissions, you could either get a 4-speed automatic or a 5-speed manual. All Avante models feature the more comfort-focused automatic. Nowadays, a lot of Chasers are manual swaps from the more usual automatic.
Talking about engine power is somewhat difficult with performance JDM cars from the 80s and 90s. See, in the 1980s, Japan was concerned with the growing number of car accidents and resulting injuries. This gave way to a “gentleman’s agreement” among manufacturers that their cars would not exceed 276 hp and maximum speeds were to be limited to 112 mph.
However, anything can be put on paper, although it does not have to correspond with reality. While the specs of the JZX100 equipped with one of the 2.5L engines will tell you that it peaks at the “mythical” 276 horses, the real figure is somewhere around 300 hp. Even the top speed is quite a lot higher, and the Chaser has no issues chasing cars at speeds exceeding 155 mph. Maximum torque is 275 lb.-ft and is available from as low as 1,400 RPMs.
What also contributed to the popularity of the JZX100 Chaser was its presence in motorsports. It not only took part in the Japanese Touring Car Championship but was also one of the best-performing cars in drift competitions. Even today, Chasers are used as alternatives to BMW E46/E36s or Mazda Miatas for drifting. Thanks to the rear-wheel drive, and front engine setup, it has the perfect basis for being a drift monster. Also, the engines have immense room for tuning.
The design is also an important aspect of any car, and the Toyota Chaser excels in this area. In fact, it will make you feel nostalgic from the moment you get in. The interior has the typical sturdy, yet luxurious feel of the 90s. It is even fairly practical and can seat 5 people while still having quite a lot of space in the trunk. The exterior is almost iconic by now, and especially when lowered and put on performance wheels, it is a true head turner.
Toyota Century – An S-Class Competitor from Toyota?
While the Toyota Chaser was a sedan with a performance akin to a Supra, the Century is nothing like that. Instead, it tries to be as comfortable and sublime as possible, and it surely delivers. In fact, the Toyota century is comparable to a Mercedes-Benz S-Class and even surpasses it in some aspects. The second generation of the most luxurious JDM car ever was released in 1997, and so it just became legal for import.
With production dating back to 1997, one would expect that the car would be long out of production but that could not be further from the truth. Perhaps the most interesting fact about the Century is that it was made until February 2017.
An important factor of any luxury limousine is the engine. The Century is a car made for those sitting in the back, so quietness and the absence of any vibrations are extremely important. For this reason, engineers at Toyota equipped the G50 generation Century with a 5.0L V12 codenamed 1GZ-FE. At 276 hp and 340 lb.-ft of torque, this engine is no overpowered monster but that was not the intention.
If you were to put a coin on its edge on the V12 engine, it would hold there just fine even when revving the engine. This is how good the twelve-cylinder is at maintaining comfort. Further contributing to the perfect cabin comfort is the smooth shifting automatic gearbox with 4 speeds. Also, this is not an all-wheel drive car as you would expect with a luxury limousine, which makes it the only V12 rear-wheel drive of all JDM cars ever produced.
The suspension is another work of art. With the Century, saying that it drives like on a cloud would be no overstatement. This is seconded by extremely soft seats which are not upholstered in leather but wool. In the U.S., it would be unthinkable not to have leather seats in something like the Cadillac CT6. Here, “fabric” seats would be an insult but designers at Toyota knew what they were doing. The interior of the Century is truly the place to be. Every interior was built by hand and only a few of the best workers at Toyota were selected to assemble them.
By the way, something similar goes for the painters of the Toyota Century. Unlike most other cars, the Century is painted manually and only four people were qualified for this task. The paint job has seven layers, which makes it shine more than any other paint job. One could talk for hours about how Toyota made sure that the Century would truly be the best of the best. In some aspects, it is on par with Rolls Royce, yet, the price of this Toyota when new was around $100,000, which was only a few thousand dollars over the noticeably less premium Lexus LS.
Mitsubishi FTO – A Cute Little Sports Car with a V6
The Mitsubishi FTO is one of the less known cars on this list, yet it is extremely interesting. Essentially, it is a smaller sibling of the Mitsubishi GTO. Its production began at the end of 1994, which means that it has been legal for import for almost three years now. However, available only for a short period of time have been the facelift models, which started in February 1997, and with production ending in the middle of 2,000.
This small 2-door coupe is a front-wheel drive sports car, which could have been equipped with an inline four-cylinder but also a transversely mounted V6, which might even seem like an overkill for a car that weighs around 2,500 lbs. To be more specific, the base engine was a 1.8-liter I4 producing 123 hp. This engine was not all that powerful, and as such, it was only available on the base GS trim.
Positioned above that was a 2.0-liter 24 valve V6 offered in two power variants. The less powerful was available in the GR trims, where it produced 168 hp at 7,000 RPM. The most powerful engine was then reserved for the GPX and GP models and topped out at 197 hp at 7,500 RPM. The power output is quite moderate for a V6 but at the same time, the FTO is not a particularly big car.
Seconding the engines were both manual and automatic transmissions. The sole manual option was a 5-speed gearbox. Automatics were a bit more diverse; at the start of the production, Mitsubishi offered a 4-speed automatic called INVECS-II, which was later replaced by a 5-speed on most facelifted models. The INVECS-II was a huge technological step forward, as it was similar in technology to transmissions used by Porsche at the time and the unit even monitored driving and “learned” the style of its driver.
For the year 1994, the FTO was a well-equipped car. As standard, you had automatic climate controls, a driver’s airbag, heated mirrors, and electric windows. Passenger airbags, ABS, and traction control were available as options. While the base GS model came with only 14” wheels and more reserved looks, the GP and GR models came with 15” or 16” alloys, a rear spoiler, and side air dams.
Particularly interesting and collectible is the FTO GPX Limited Edition from 1995. In order to celebrate the car’s win at the Car of the Year Japan awards, Mitsubishi came up with a yellow-painted FTO equipped with a number of performance upgrades including a limited-slip differential. If you can get your hands on one of these, you will be quite lucky. The FTO “COTY” was produced in just 207 units, and only 20 of them were equipped with a manual transmission. A bit more common, although still limited was the GR Limited Edition, which was marketed in the same year. It was offered thanks to the huge demand for the GPX Limited Edition. This time, the FTO was available in red, silver, and black, instead of the bright yellow color on the former limited edition.
There is still one other option if you want to get a more special FTO. Between 1994 and 1997, a dealer-installed performance package was available. It was called Nakaya-Tune and provided the FTO with upgraded brakes, stiffer suspension and shock absorbers by Öhlins, a sports exhaust, and a carbon fiber front lip spoiler. It made the already great sports car even better.
JDM Cars Have So Much to Offer
90s cars from the Japanese market are often real gems and every year, the selection of JDM cars that are legal to import to the US grows, making the JDM scene even more diverse than it already is. There is always something new to look out for. For example, the Nissan Silvia Spec-R Aero. Being made in 1999, it will very soon pass the 25-year mark, making US petrolheads finally able to get their hands on this legendary rear-wheel drive coupe which came with a mighty turbocharged 2.0-liter I4 out of the factory.
