D Car — November 2003

Are all-red taillights okay? I was stopped twice when I had all-red taillights. Even when I said, ‘They're U.S.-spec’ (which wasn't true), they told me they didn't know that and wrote me a ticket. I sometimes see all-red taillights in magazines. Are they actually allowed? Online, someone said that if you use a red lens with a yellow bulb, it will shine orange—is that really okay?

It really depends on the individual case. As you can see in the taillight diagram at the lower right of page 94 in the September issue's ‘Sport Compact Modification Guide,’ it is okay if the setup meets the standards. Some red lenses with yellow bulbs may appear orange when lit, but it's not safe to say that every all-red lens with a yellow bulb is automatically acceptable. Inspectors judge each car by appearance, and the color can look different from one vehicle to another depending on the reflector. So all we can say is: if the inspector sees it as orange, it passes.

It's a device generally called a ‘computer’ or tuning controller. Rather than simply using preset settings, it lets you enter adjustments manually to suit the conditions at the time. In The Fast and the Furious, it may have controlled things like the amount or mixture of nitrous injected. Plenty of cars in Japan are driven with computers installed, and tuning software is available too.

No. Kei cars aren't sold in America, so from an American perspective, the answer is no. Since the U.S. has no kei-car category in its vehicle standards, they aren't sold there, so there probably aren't sport-compact kei builds in the U.S. That said, we do see them in Japan now and then. Z thinks people should enjoy their own cars, but if we stick strictly to the ‘sport compact’ category, a kei car—even with sport-compact styling—is really only sport-compact-inspired customization. After all, it's not a sport compact. Z doesn't like making rigid categories, but that's the conclusion.

Sports Compact Custom Tuning

Sport Compact Z

It's a moment's embarrassment to ask, but a lifetime of regret not to. If there's something you know but feel awkward asking, don't just sit there worrying—write your question on a postcard and send it in! We'll answer it quickly!

T110-8578 Yamaguchi Building, 4-19-9 Taito, Taito-ku, Tokyo Naigai Publishing Co., Ltd. Dress-Up Car Magazine Editorial Department ‘Sport Compact 110’ Desk

Is customizing a kei car as a sport compact considered authentic in America? Personally, I'm not very fond of sport-compact styling on kei cars, but would it count as a sport compact in the U.S.? There seem to be very few sport-compact builds based on cars that aren't sold in America. What do you think?

(Yuma Kawaguchi, Miyazaki Prefecture)

(Yuya Chiba, Hokkaido)

Standards related to vehicle lighting

When lit, flashes orange at 6–100 times per minute

Turn signals

Red / Yellow

When lit, red

Taillights

(Position lamps, width lamps, rear fog lamps)

NOT APPROVED

Two lamps may be illuminated at the same time. Driving with only the fog lamps on is prohibited. Roof-mounted rally-style lamps are prohibited.

White when illuminated

Reverse lamps

Fog lamps

Reporting assistance: Regional Transport Bureau

ESSETE

In The Fast and the Furious, there was a laptop in the passenger seat of the Eclipse. What was it for? What did it control?

What was that laptop in the movie?

It's a computer.

(Shinya Yamabayashi, Kanagawa Prefecture)

...computer screen.

A laptop screen showing the tuning software as it is used to make adjustments

There are three types: a standalone computer that modifies the car's original ECU; a full-computer system that replaces the stock unit; and a piggyback computer that works alongside the stock ECU. The setup in The Fast and the Furious was probably a piggyback type...

AEAAANO

Was the Scepter wagon sold in North America? I'm thinking of buying one. I know the Scepter sedan was sold there as the Camry, but was the wagon sold in North America too? Please let me know!

Yes, it was sold there. The Scepter wagon? Yes, it was also sold in the U.S. The Scepter sedan, as you know, began sales in America as the Camry in April 1992. The Scepter wagon was sold there from April 1992 as the Camry Wagon. In Europe and Japan, sales began in June 1992. So yes, it was available in the U.S. Mystery solved!

(US Maniac, Hokkaido)

TOYOTA

SCEPTER WAGON

3DJE830

With research cooperation from Toyota Motor Corporation

D Car — November 2003

About this issue

Page 163 — English draft translation