S2 Ep11: The Golden Era of JDM: The Last Great JDM Halo Cars

S2 Ep11: The Golden Era of JDM: The Last Great JDM Halo Cars

From Past Gas by Donut Media

June 9, 2026 · 53 min · Season 2 · Episode 11

About this episode

This episode explores the dramatic conclusion of Japan's greatest automotive era, focusing on the last great JDM halo cars and their impact on the automotive industry.

By the late 2000s, shrinking markets, tightening emissions, and a younger generation losing interest in vehicles signaled the end of the legendary JDM era. But a few rebellious engineers refused to go quietly, choosing instead to make their last cars arguably their greatest. In this second-to-last episode of Past Gas: The Golden Era of JDM, we explore the dramatic conclusion of Japan's greatest automotive era. Discover how Nissan built the R35 GT-R from scratch to successfully crush Porsche at the Nurburgring, why Toyota intentionally lost money on every screaming V10 LFA they built to educate their next generation of engineers, the heartbreaking cancellation of Honda's highly anticipated V10 NSX, and how Mazda kept the pure driving spirit alive despite the death of the rotary engine. This episode is brought to you by Lumi Gummies! Go to https://www.LumiGummies.com and use code PASTGAS for 30% off your order!

People in this episode

Host: Donut Media

Topics covered

  • JDM era
  • automotive history
  • Japanese cars
  • engineering
  • performance cars
  • Nurburgring
  • market trends

Keywords

  • JDM
  • Nissan
  • Toyota
  • Honda
  • Mazda
  • performance
  • automotive engineering
  • V10
  • GT-R
  • NSX

Sponsors

Lumi Gummies

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Nissan, Porsche, Toyota, Honda, Mazda

Products: V10 LFA, R35 GT-R, V10 NSX, rotary engine, Lumi Gummies

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