Category: down on the street (Page 1 of 13)

Mazda Miata NA hogging the EV charging spots!

EV charging spot hogging 1990 Mazda Miata – Down on the Street

March 17, 2024 / banpei / 0 Comments

I already found this electrifying Mazda Miata a few years ago. Back then, the parking garage where I also found the Estima and some other cars converted 8 parking spots on the first floor for electric charging.

The first time I spotted this Mazda Miata NA hogging an EV charging spot

Almost every other weekend I would spot this Miata hogging one of those spots. It’s quite interesting because I could see the benefits of an electrically powered Miata: lightweight, good balance and high torque would be awesome. However, as this car was never connected to the charging port I reckoned it wasn’t converted. So what was the reason for this person to park his/her Miata in those charging spots? I can think of a few.

The first reason: a wider parking space

Petrol station encounter leads to finding the Prairie hideout!

Doubling down on the Nissan Prairie – Down on the Street

February 17, 2024 / banpei / 0 Comments

Ten years ago I posted a set of blue Nissan Prairie twins I encountered in my hometown in Down on the Street. I happened to see one of the pair occasionally, the latest encounter happened three years ago in 2021 at a petrol station. As I wrote a few months ago, I bring my daughter to school in a neighbouring town and I tend to explore the area to find quicker routes or to avoid traffic. On one such route, I was able to find the Prairie hideout!

Blue 1985 Nissan Prairie - encounter at a petrol station — Blue 1985 Nissan Prairie – encounter at a petrol station

Nissan Prairie and Stanza Wagon

Globetrotting Toyota GR86 – Down on the Street

February 11, 2024 / banpei / 0 Comments

Earlier this week I posted a photo of a German AE86 and Toyota GR86. Only a few days prior to that I already encountered my first GR86 in the wild!

Toyota GR86, I see you through the grate!

Hunting a Micra, finding a Toyota GR86!

I actually went hunting for a strange polka-dotted Nissan Micra I saw earlier in the parking garage. It unfortunately already departed by the time I returned. But as I made a small detour through the parking garage my eye caught a familiar tail light through the grate above me. So naturally I drove up one floor to take some photos.

Three Celebrity Nissan Figaros – Down on the Street

January 16, 2024 / banpei / 0 Comments

There is an unusual amount of Nissan Figaros driving in my home country the Netherlands. An even more unusual amount of Nissan Figaros is driving in my hometown. Why is that? That’s because the Nissan Figaro has a Celebrity status in the Netherlands!

Pikes cars: the Figaro

The Nissan Figaro started out as one of the Nissan Pikes cars. It is a retro-inspired car and the last and final of the Be-1, Pao, S-Cargo and Figaro quartet based on the March K10 platform. I know the Rasheen is missing, but I simply discard it for simplicity. With around 30,000 Figaros built, it’s hardly a rare car to come by in Japan. Especially with its retro styling, it will stand out against the crowd.

Is the owner of this Toyota GT86 a disabled driver? – Down on the Street

December 30, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

We all have a stereotypical view of disabled drivers and this Toyota GT86 doesn’t fit in that view! I had the same thing about 13 years ago with a Subaru Impreza GT Turbo, which turned out to be a genuine disabled person. I have met a fellow AE86 owner who also genuinely drives around with a disabled driver’s permit. So why don’t people with sportscars fit this view we have about disabled drivers?

I personally think it has to do with the prejudice we have on disabled people: they have difficulty getting in and out of cars and have difficulty walking at all. However, this view is wrong. Very wrong! Some disabled drivers actually don’t have the issue of getting in- and out of the car and walk perfectly straight, but have difficulty managing distance. Hence they do need the disabled driver’s permit. So what about this Toyota GT86? I spotted it driving towards the disabled parking area near the local city centre. Naturally, I followed it and watched the driver exit the GT86 and walk towards the city centre. I quickly took one photo from where it parked:

Toyota GT86 parked in the disabled parking area

A funny detail: the Toyota Estima I featured three weeks ago was parked on the third floor in the parking garage above the store in front of the GT86. But I digress…

I crossed the street to take another photo from the other side. After crossing the street, I wasn’t able to take another photo as pedestrians were flocking the sidewalk and I had to wait about 15 to 20 seconds for them to pass. Then, even before I could take a photo, these two walked up to the car:

Iron Tail 1991 Honda CRX – Down on the Street

December 23, 2023 / banpei / 0 Comments

A second-generation Honda CRX was a common sight for a long time. I used to see one zipping by once or twice a day. However, over a very short period of time they have all disappeared! Well, all of them except this one! I encountered this one during a grocery run during the summer of last year. I quickly took two photos and forgot about it until I scrolled through my photo timeline a few days ago.

Specs

This second-generation Honda CRX was registered in late 1991, making it one of the final CRX-es to be sold and registered in the Netherlands. In 1992, Honda replaced the second generation with the newer CRX Del Sol. It appears to be well-used and worn down in every aspect. Even though it’s showing its age, the current owner seems to be using it well!