For November 1986, Car and Driver served up another round of new 1987 model year updates, this time focusing on Japanese brands. Note, they did not cover all the imported brands, like the Europeans and the newly emerging Hyundai. Nope, this was all about Japan: the inroads being made into the U.S. market from the Land of the Rising Sun were that significant in the 1980s. With good reason too; there was plenty of news, for this was a period when the Japanese brands were operating with aggressive product refresh timelines and ardently practicing continuous improvement across the range.
The point of Rich Ceppos’s introduction was spot on: due to exchange rate changes and the rapid rise in the value of the Yen, the automotive playing field was getting more level from a pricing standpoint, and for 1987 “neither side would have any excuses left.” The companies would earn their success based on merit and the ability to offer the right products at the right price to American buyers. Unfortunately for Detroit, “Japan Inc.” came loaded for bear, and barreled right across that level playing field and right into American driveways.
First up was Acura, Honda’s opening volley into the luxury category. Entering its second year in the U.S. market, Acura was an audacious move to take Honda buyers upmarket and attract new generations of premium buyers who weren’t interested in “traditional” luxury. Yes, the products were very Honda-like, but that was a virtue at the time, given Honda’s stellar reputation. After a busy 1986, 1987 was a relatively quiet year for Honda, with the biggest news being full-time 4-wheel-drive on the Civic Wagon.
Isuzu was a second-tier player from Japan, and its car were not typically found at the top of the rankings. But, they all featured contemporary styling, good build quality and aggressive pricing. Weak compared to the Japanese market leaders, but unquestionably one of the best products available in Chevrolet showrooms (as the Spectrum).
1987 was a fairly slow year for Mazda, with no big news. Even so, continuous improvement was evident, with a new 4-speed automatic for the compact 626 (hello, GM???), available ABS for the RX-7 and a new wagon body style for the 323.
Like Chevy dealers with Isuzu, Suzuki and Toyota models on sale, Chrysler/Plymouth and Dodge dealers continued to offer rebadged Mitsubishi products in a quest to grab import-oriented buyers. Mitsubishi also wanted to get those shoppers directly and were working aggressively to build out their dealer network in the 1980s. There wasn’t much news for 1987, but tweaks were made here and there to a very competent line-up of products.
There was quite a lot of news at Nissan for 1987. Fully redesigned Sentra, all-new Pulsar NX (with sleek designed-in-California styling and the innovative, though unloved, interchangeable hatch/wagon back) and fully redesigned Stanza. Facelifts for the 200SX (which also offered a newly optional 3.0L V6), Maxima and 300ZX. Plus a new-to-the-U.S. small van. All the redesigns and refreshes in one year were reminiscent of GM in the 1960s (sadly The General could no longer properly execute such a comprehensive makeover in one year during the 1980s).
Over at Subaru, a new minicar, the Justy, was sent stateside, along with engine enhancements and broader full time 4WD availability on the core DL/GL product line. Suzuki was offering a new turbo 3-cylinder for the Sprint. So even the smaller Japanese companies were busy…
Behemoth Toyota was on a tear for 1987. Newly redesigned models arrived to attract entry-level buyers (Tercel) and conquer the heart of the compact family sedan market (Camry). The new FX-16 “hot hatch” came to do battle with VW’s Rabbit/GTI, while Celica added a convertible to please sun seekers. A powerful Turbo took the Supra to another level, and even the nearly new MR2 got significant enhancements.
Remember the 1987 tech highlights for the domestics we just saw on Monday? Well, no one would blame you if you didn’t–there was absolutely nothing exciting to spark your synapses. In contrast, Japanese makes served up impressive turbos, more multi-valve engines, improved 4-wheel-drive systems, transmissions and wider availability of ABS. These cars–even the cheapest ones–offered a lot of very contemporary technology. Minor tweaks on carryover engines from the Sixties and Seventies like the U.S. makes? Fuggedaboudit!
The Camry juggernaut took on steam with the 1987 revamp. While not quite as edgy as the Honda Accord, the new Camry was a sweet car nonetheless. While Car and Driver blasts the styling as boring, I personally find it quite handsome. When these came out, I remember thinking the look was upscale and well done, a significant improvement from the slightly-dumpy first generation Camry. Plus, with Toyota being Toyota, the new Camry was better in every way compared to its predecessor, deservedly earning a spot as one of the best compact car choices for 1987.
Here was Nissan’s take on the Jeep Cherokee, Ford Bronco II and Chevrolet S10 Blazer. The Pathfinder was tough looking, but tuned to appeal to buyers seeking on-road refinement. However, unlike the many car categories (subcompact, compact–ultimately mid size and luxury) that Japan conquered easily due to weak U.S. offerings, the compact SUV field was filled with proven winners from domestic brands. Good as the Pathfinder was, it actually had to tackle a tougher path in the U.S. market than other cars Nissan made at the time.
Toyota was aggressive in keeping its product range fresh and full of up-to-date technology, and entry level cars were no exception. A new 3-valve OHC 1.5 Liter 4-cylinder, improved suspension and fresh aerodynamic styling were standard fare, as was Toyota’s stellar build quality. All for a starting price of $6,000 ($13,185 adjusted). Sure, a Chevette or a Yugo cost less, but you got what you pid for…
That value for the money was certainly key to the success of the Japanese brands in the U.S. for 1987. Yes, prices were up due to the exchange rates, but the product offerings were fresh and build quality was typically top notch. Little wonder that the Japanese brands continued to gain share in 1987.
Total car sales in the U.S. declined 11% from 1986, dropping from 11,404,239 to 10,191,877. Car sales of the combined Japanese brands, by contrast, rose 1% to 2,734,963 (27% of the U.S. car market), ahead of all of Chrysler Corporation, all of Ford Motor Company and the Chevrolet Division. Let’s take a look at how each of the brands performed (sadly, I am unable to find data that lists U.S. sales by model for the Japanese brands):
| Toyota | 630,052 | -1% |
| Honda | 628,907 | -2% |
| Nissan | 529,154 | -3% |
| Mazda | 331,206 | -13% |
| Subaru | 177,757 | -3% |
| Isuzu | 126,559 | -1% |
| Mitsubishi | 119,816 | 42% |
| Acura | 109,470 | 107% |
| Suzuki | 82,042 | 73% |
The Japanese “Big Three” were each down slightly, though they still outperformed the market. Mazda had the toughest time, though much of that was probably due to the fact that the 626 was in the last year of its design cycle and facing the newer Accord and all new Camry. Subaru did just fine in their niche, while Isuzu and Suzuki helped themselves and helped GM. Mitsubishi did quite well, as its dealer network expanded. But the real star of the Japanese show was the one-year-old Acura division, which saw sales climb an amazing 107%. Acura was a “hot” brand in 1987, and other key Japanese makes wouldn’t be far behind in reaching upmarket to attract more affluent Americans. Japan was proving that small cars could indeed be big business, even on a level playing field.
Wow, I did not realize that Honda (with Acura) had become the top Japanese brand. That had to have Toyota working overtime on Lexus.
With Acura rolled into the top group, the bottom dwellers on this list stayed in that position forever, and two are out of the game in the U.S. Not unlike the long shakeout of the U.S. industry to just a few players.
It’s not hard to see the appeal of that Pathfinder. Something brawny with some headroom and a six cylinder option. In a United states suddenly flooded with FWD four cylinder cars, this looks mighty tempting, and it turns out it was.
The opening comment in the Pathfinder article, “you don’t need this vehicle,” is spot on for just about any popular vehicle in the U.S. We didn’t NEED V-8 powered 1977 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme coupes, but we sure needed something to replace them!
I bet those sale figures exclude trucks like the Hilux, 4-Runner, Hardbody and Pathfinder. If you included those Toyota would have probably topped Honda even with Acura.
That Pathfinder was one smooth operator, literally. The coil spring rear suspension was way ahead of its time. In terms of layout (body on frame, 5-link solid axle) and size it wasn’t far removed from our beloved domestic models a few years earlier. Pathfinder kept getting better over its long run with 4-speed O/D replacing the 3-speed and MPI replacing SPI fairly quickly. Then came the 4-door. I believe GM was still working on the S-10 4-door.
Yep, the lack of a four-door is the Pathfinder’s one obvious weakness, though they rectified it soon IIRC. Why was everyone else so slow to follow the 1984 Cherokee’s lead and offer rear doors?
So many new Nissans! Redesigned Sentra, Stanza, and Pulsar, a new 200SX V6, plus a new compact SUV and minivan (the last one was a disaster, and Nissan is lucky hardly any Americans bought them).
> With Acura rolled into the top group, the bottom dwellers on this list stayed in that
> position forever, and two are out of the game in the U.S.
It was clear by this time that Toyota, Nissan, and Honda were becoming very big in America. I have to say, it was not at all apparent that Subaru would join that group rather than fall into a small niche like Mitsubishi. In 1987 I would have bet on Mazda having higher U.S. sales by now than Subaru
I have a 95 Pathfinder 5spd 4wd. They remained mostly unchanged from 87-95. Best overall vehicle I have ever owned. Even with 31″ A/T tires it still handles pretty darn decent on the road and in the dirt and rocks its just fantastic.
The truck is full of weird little quirks. The rear backrest reclines a few inches and the rear seat itself is elevated so the passengers can see the road over the people up front.
I hate sounding like one of those cranky old guys who’s always saying stuff like, “Things just aren’t like they used to be”, but…
Just reading through this I was thinking about the amazing range of choices available back then, from Turbo Sprints to Samurais, Starions to MR2’s, 300ZX and 200SX, etc, etc. When I was in the market for a new car in ’89 I remember it as a mind-boggling but really fun endeavor, with so many varied options in a given price range. Now, not so much.
Today’s automotive landscape seems so homogenized by comparison, or maybe I’ve finally gotten to that age where very little excites me anymore. I dunno.
One thing I agree with is new vehicles are blah, but to me its that most are CUV’s looking alike. RAV4, Highlander, Outlander, etc, etc. pod mobiles.
Still like to look over cars and some real trucks at Auto Show or on blogs, but sameness in the CUV field make me sleepy.
Wow. I had an 86 Integra and my dad had an 87 Camry with the V6. Both amazing cars in that they both performed flawlessly and because in comparison American cars of that era seemed (how to put this delicately?)
almostSoviet quality in materials and crudeness of assembly. Impression examples? – My Integra had a 7,000 rpm redline, and my assistant had the instrument pod fall off the dash of her new 89 Oldsmobile in the parking lot. Acura replaced my muffler at 20,000 miles without being asked because they noticed a rust spot during a routine service; a friend had to fight with the dealer to get a wheel bearing replaced on his Z-28 because he had 12,200 miles on the car when it failed and was out of warranty. (The dealer’s solution? They told him that they wrote down the mileage as 11,900 and lied to GM. Not confidence inspiring.A buddy of mine had a used ’89 Camry XL like above, but with a sun room and V6. Considering how little maintenance my buddy did, the car was indestructible, reliable, and super fast. Great car till it was rear ended by a hit and run driver. Insurance gave a pittance for write off.
Truly, one of the better sedans of the ’80’s.
Too bad it got wrecked. 89 Camrys with sunrooms are extremely rare. Auto Correct sucks.
I prefer the even less commonly seen screen porch option.
Funny, but the autocorrect is worse on my IPad than on my iMac. Go figure!!
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It really was a fun time for Japanese cars, and motorcycles too. Who can forget the Honda CX500 turbo, or the Yamaha 650 Seca turbo, anti-dive front forks, etc.. I wouldn’t mind a nice turbo Sprint to tool around town in.
The generation Camry above was one of my favorites. I had opportunities to ride in them, and found out they were quite roomy for a Japanese car as to rear seat leg room. In fact, the roominess of those was highlighted in their TV ads. At that time, rear seat leg room was an issue with Japanese cars – they were tight in general. The Mazda 626(?) was similar in size and style, but looked slightly out of proportion. The Camry nailed the design very well.
In reality, only 4 members of “Japan Inc” were hugely successful in long run: Toyota, Honda, Subaru and Nissan.
Isuzu and Suzuki are gone, and Mitsubishi is an also ran. Mazda is a ‘niche’ make, hanging on barely. Hyundai is successful, but Korean.
But also, in long run again, what got them more profitable was larger cars and trucks.
I would argue in the end only 2 were truly successful, Honda and Toyota. Nissan ended up having to be bailed out by Renault. Toyota took GM’s share in Subaru after GM was bailed out. Today Subaru occupies a “niche” market of mostly crossovers.
I always find it entertaining when people biased how successful Japanese car makers are, when using two companies ( Toyota and Nissan, maybe half of Nissan ) to represent the whole Japanese car industry. If going back to the ’90s, the prime example of Japanese car would be Mitsubishi Galant, as it looks, sounds and feels more Japanese but for some mysterious reasons it doesn’t survive. Dead companies can’t tell, it’s just another form of survivorship bias.
From what I see, the truly lost market share from Big Three are few divisions: Oldsmobile-Pontiac to Kia/Honda/Toyota, Plymouth/Mercury to Nissan/Honda/Toyota/Lexus, Chrysler to Lexus ( but Chrysler overtook the products from Plymouth and Jeep took the volume of Plymouth, explaining why Chrysler LLC has a static market share ) when the definition of mid-class dramatically changed through the years. At the same time, GMC is now positioned as a mainstream mid-class brand replacing Oldsmobile. I wonder what would happen if GM was broken up like AT&T Co.
I agree with statement that “some equate T/H/N to represent the whole Japanese car industry”. And some even equate them to rep all “imported makes”.
One reason Yugo made an initial splash was simply that it was “an import” and buyers assumed “anything imported has to be high quality”. LOL!
A used car dealer by my place is called “M & L Imports” using that same analogy, and half their inventory is domestics, many Big 3 SUV’s. I mean really?
I would assume the dealer just tries to make the best use of the biased views. If it’s the dealer in Elmhurst, their reviews don’t look too good.
http://www.dealerrater.com/dealer/M-L-Imports-review-37748/?__v15=1
Usually it’s the same with those companies trying to use the biased views on many other things too.
But regarding the products featured:
I’d put the ’87-’91 Camry as a “greatest hit” for Toyota. It was the first generation built in Kentucky, and get sales from many former US brand owners.
The Pathfinder did well, but now the current one is a ‘soft ute’ for suburban commuting.
Tercel is one of the few Japanese ‘Big 3’ models that got renamed; twice. To Echo and now Yaris.
“Isuzu was a second-tier player from Japan … But, they all featured contemporary styling, good build quality…”
I agree they were “2nd tier”, but “good quality”? Where can one buy a new one now? And hardly any ‘best Chevy product’ Spectrums lasted as long as the NUMMI Nova/Prism.
Same thing with Mitsubishi’s “competent line-up of products”. They were far from ‘lasting Japanese quality’ and as a result are now low credit score market 3rd tier, with one closed US plant.
No question that Isuzu and Mitsubishi were second tier. My point was that in the 1980s “bad” Japanese was still often better than the domestic product. The Toyota Nova in Chevy showrooms was definitely better than the Isuzu, but the Spectrum was definitely better than the Chevette. The Spectrum was also a newer design than other products on offer in Chevy showrooms. In Consumer Guide Auto Series, for example, both the Suzuki and Isuzu captive imports were called out for offering better quality plastics and more consistent build quality than the domestic Chevrolets.
As for Mitsubishi, the brand really got into trouble in the 1990s and 2000s with subprime buyers, etc. However, in the 1980s, they were still pretty credible, even though not the best on offer. I still think Chrysler was very glad to be aligned with Mitsubishi at that time, both for products and the supply of engines. Mitsubishi products also got decent to good reviews from Consumer Guide during the 1980s, including for their quality and reliability.
I actually owned a Mitsu made Plymouth Champ [Colt], and major components failed after 60 k miles nearly every other month. Alternator twice, wheel bearings 3 times, front end parts, clutch, master cylinder, carb, throttle cable, A/C died twice and didn’t bother the 2nd time. Parts were pricey, and had to go to dealers most of the time. Engine needed main seal by 95 k miles and I got fed up.
Granted, I got it at 4 years old, and drove it a lot, but still, it was known for making auto writers happy, not for long term reliability as with Japan’s Big 3.
Should have got another brand. So, this explains my axe to grind for the ‘2nd teir’ makes.
Another beef with Mitsu is they built a plant in IL, with tax breaks, in 1988. Now, closed and no plans to be reopen for auto assembly.
“Quality” my foot.
Those cars really were junk. I was at our local Dodge dealer one afternoon walking our dog about 30 years ago, and a guy had his year-old Dodge/Plymouth Colt in for a problem with his windshield wipers. When he found out how expensive it would be to fix, he said: “let’s discuss a trade-in”!
People look at the same thing at different time differently.
My ’00 Diamante has just short of 340,000km. Only one breakdown in all that time: the auto trans packed up two months back, but the rest of the car is as solid as new so it was worth replacing. Some Mitsubishis were reliable.
From what I see, I assume Mitsubishi is just as reliable as Toyota, it’s not more reliable not less. If Toyota withdrew from most markets just like Mitsubishi, people would suddenly come to discover how bad their reliability is after so many years.
Woo hoo I totally took advantage of that 3 hp power bump in my first new car, the 1987 Mitsubishi Mirage Turbo. I liked the new flush headlights but missed the funky ‘waterfall’ grill and side markers. Ahh to be 23 again…(and I LOVED that car)
It was around this time when Honda and Toyota dealers introduced “no haggle pricing”: You paid the full sticker price along with worthless dealer add-ons (paint, upholstery protectant), and the amount shamelessly titled “additional dealer markup”. Their reasoning was if you didn’t pay it someone else would later that day. They were right, though.
Ironically, this ‘no haggle’ policy is what kept lesser (but willing to deal) competition in business. A Cavalier might have been a steaming pile, but when it cost thousands less than a quality Japanese product, well, there were plenty of buyers for the Chevy, too.
Imagine if Toyota and Honda dealers hadn’t been so greedy how quickly it would have wiped-out the other manufacturers’ vehicles.
But then, the GM-branded NUMMI cars usually had the General’s typical cash on the hood so you could have your cake and eat it too.
They were supply constrained by voluntary import restraints and then plant capacity once the US factories were going. If the dealers had sold all the cars for MSRP with no ADM or mandatory dealer installed accessories, then there would have been a second hand market of people selling cars for more than they bought them. There just weren’t enough Hondas and Toyotas to go around. Toyota advertised all the model year Tercels whose Blue Book prices exceeded their original MSRPs. The reason was because you couldn’t buy a new one for close to MSRP, and no doubt the original owners of the used ones had paid considerably more when they were new than they were selling for used.
Wish I could buy that Camry now brand new with a V6
Maybe minus the hateful mouse belts!
This reminds me that there really was a lot on offer in Asian showrooms. I will agree now that the Camry was an excellent car, but at the time I found it insufferably dull in comparison with the 88 Accord that I married. I got one as a rental for a week after my 83 Colt got totalled, so I had a direct apples-to-apples comparison for the week.
The Toyota was so conservative in every way, where the Honda had taken chances and delivered delight in looks, driving and in the features it included for the price. The Toyota made me think of a Chevy every time I got into it (from the days when a Chevy was highly competent but not necessarily exciting).
Looking at how high the Japanese sales were in 1987 and how few Japanese models sold today are actually made in Japan. I wonder if the USA is importing fewer cars from Japan in 2017 than 1987. If so it points that quality and efficiency are not enough to save you if you actually pay your workers a decent wage. True for the USA, and now true for Japan.
That’s really a global trend in the motor vehicle industry towards local and regional manufacturing and tailoring models for certain markets. For example, the Camry is very North American-centric in terms of appeal, as it’s considered a very large car for most other markets.
Nissan, VW, GM and other makes have models that are also geared towards “emerging markets” such as India, China, Latin America. In fact, Nissan revived the Datsun name for models aimed at developing countries/markets, and will manufacture in such countries.
Renault Nissan uses the Dacia name for emerging markets. The Logan is probably their best known model.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dacia_Logan