Classic Japanese cars are known for their simplicity and engineering brilliance, the ease with which they can be modified, and of course, their reliability. But even with all these things going for them, not all Japanese classics are attractive to collectors, for the same reasons that European or American classic cars often fail to attract buyers. In fact, many of these cars were never popular, to begin with. These were the cars everyone tended to overlook even when they were new, so they don’t turn into super-hit classics.
Some other classic Japanese cars may have created waves in the beginning but when automakers shut shop and leave, their cars began to lose value. This is the reason many classic Japanese cars lie collecting dust, instead of themselves being collected by eager buyers.
Here are 10 classic JDM cars that take forever to sell, and even if they do, the price remains bordering on the cheap.
10 1983-1988 Suzuki Mighty Boy
You could call this the smallest and coolest pickup truck, ever, and you'd probably be right. This was a Japanese Kei car, or should we say pickup, with a 3-cylinder engine that made a grand total of 30 hp. The nameplate, Might Boy, was the most radical misnomer ever because this was anything but mighty.
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It may have worked in Japan, in traffic-congested cities for people who needed a cheap car/truck but in the US, it’s likely to be laughed at. Who wants an underpowered JDM that would go belly up if anyone dared to try and tune it?
9 1988-1990 Toyota MR-2 Supercharged
A mid-engine wedge-shaped car, the Toyota MR-2 tried its best with a 1.6-liter inline-4 engine, enough for 112 horses. Being a convertible, it came with all the appeal of any wind-in-your-hair car, and over time, size and power increased as well.
But the MR-2 was a little too European looking, like a poor man’s Ferrari, and did not achieve its targets in Japan or the US. As a classic car, it lays unwanted, and frankly, not many remember it all that well.
8 1990-91 Mitsubishi Galant AMG Type I & VR-4
Look familiar? Think of the second-gen Dodge Challenger, which was, at heart, a Mitsubishi Galant Lambda coupe. Despite being a good car, never got its just rewards in the US because very simply, it did not look even an iota like the first Charger.
The Galant AMG came later but was cut from the same mold and again, did not receive much love. While Type 1 made 170 horses from its inline-4 mill, the VR-4 used a 2.0-liter turbocharged and intercooled 4-cylinder, jetting 197 horses.
7 1990-96 Toyota Sera
The Toyota Sera did not look like a normal Toyota coupe, even though at heart, it was just that. It carried the same Toyota inline-4 of the time, and all parts were interchangeable with Toyota coupes. But the looks of the Sera were very different.
Not only did it have the glass canopy, which may have needed a very stout AC to keep the insides cool, but it also had doors hinged on the A-pillar, just like in a McLaren F1. Only, the latter showed up two after the Sera. The Sera never received love then and is largely forgotten today.
6 1970-1978 Mazda RX-2 and RX-3
At the time, in the ‘70s, rotary power led the Japanese classic car movement, and the RX-2 and the RX-3 came with impeccable build quality. Since they also came in various body styles of a coupe, sedan, and station wagon and were also affordable, they sold like hotcakes.
That said, there are way too many of them in classic car mart than there is demand. The very fact that they are available in hordes turns the collectors off, so these rotary beauties languish without buyers, even if they are amazing classic Japanese cars.
5 1992-1998 Subaru Vivio T-Top
If you are surprised that someone like Subaru, who makes the very successful BRZ today, made something like this in the ‘90s, just think of the Brat. The Vivio was actually a name derived from Roman numerals and zero, VI, VI, O. Since this was a Kei car, the numbers referred to the 660-cc displacement.
The Vivio T-Top was a Targa roof, meaning it came off and turned into a teensy convertible. Rather strange was the little luggage carrier on the trunk. The car was a tiny little wonder, but a bit too strange for any collector to truly want it.
4 1979-1981 Toyota Celica Supra
At first, there was the Toyota Celica. The Supra was its next avatar and was initially introduced as a trim on the Celica. At the time, the Supra was not as powerful as it became when its fourth generation, the MK IV, did not get the same attention as the later models.
The Celica Supra did come tough and dependable but had a rather dumpy design, with a 2.6-liter inline-6 that made 110 horses. While that was okay for the time, today, Celica Supras are mostly thought of as boring and given a pass.
3 1986-1989 Mitsubishi Starion ESI-R/Chrysler Conquest TSi
The Mitsubishi Starion is a cool classic Japanese car lauded in the ‘80s. Only, since the industry was still limping back from the malaise era, and rebadging was the name of the game, Chrysler sold it as the Conquest.
The car was rather fast for the time, performing a 0-to-60 MPH run in 7 seconds using all the 176-188 horses of its turbocharged and intercooled 2.6-liter inline-four mill. But since there were a lot of these around, common cars don’t make for collector’s classics.
2 1989-1992 Nissan 240SX
The Nissan 240SX was sold in Japan as the Silvia and looks a little like the Datsun 240Z. The 2.4-liter inline-four under the hood made 140 horses, despite carrying two cylinders less than the inline-six of the 240X.
Yet, it was always the Z car, be it labeled Datsun or Nissan that truly held the collector’s interest. The 240SX was a great car, matching the prowess of the 240Z and yet it has always been overlooked, whether new or as a classic Japanese car today.
1 1989-1994 Nissan Maxima SE
The Nissan Maxima is another car that receives no love from the collector’s market, even though it boasted a 190-horsepower twin-cam V6 and was a rather cool street racer. The Maxima also had direct ignition and a variable timing belt, but perhaps its four-door sports car body turned people off.
Today, collectors do not much care for this classic Japanese car even though it came reliable and with a very robust engine. It's one of many classic Japanese cars that slipped under the radar.