And it’s funny you know, I remember being at a local car meet, and there was a total mix of cars – mostly European, but some American and JDM vehicles too. For some, it’s a way of life, for others it’s just a way to do something on the weekend. JDM is not just a term for us in the car community, it is something more. Here you can read more about some of the most underrated JDM cars! Conclusion – JDM Meaning & Why It Matters On behalf of myself and hopefully everyone else in this community I urge you to give us a try, we’re nice guys and gals! So, while the JDM culture is based on JDM cars, and I do love JDM cars, one of the reasons I keep it so close is because of the people within the community. I don’t want to talk down on other car cultures, but I’ve gotten a sense of jealousy and dislike, something which I’ve never experienced within the JDM community. If we’re talking car culture in general, I’ve never felt as welcome as I have been in the JDM community. JDM Culture is similar to other cultures in the sense that it brings comradery, friendship, and a touch of appreciation. JDM Culture is the thing I base this entire blog upon. If you want to know more about why JDM is so popular, continue reading here. In November of 2019, the trend changed direction and is now headed for an upward trend, indicating an increased interest in JDM-related search queries. Ever since it has been on a downward trend but gained some large interest around 2011-2012 probably thanks to the release of the Fast and Furious Five movie. If the amount of Google searches for ‘JDM’ would be an indication of the popularity then if we were to look at an 18-year period popularity peaked in March 2004. The term gathered traction in the 90s and exploded in the 00s thanks to movies and video games. Because these vehicles were hard to come by, and since only a minority knew about them, they had to give these types of vehicles a term, hence the term JDM.

In the eyes of foreigners, these vehicles got to be considered ‘unique’ and ‘quirky’. This recipe continued to be used throughout Japan’s automobile industry. The call for smaller, cheaper, and more fuel-efficient vehicles were in demand. After WW2, Japan’s economy was not in great shape. The same can’t be said for the Japanese car market.īack in Japan, there was a completely different demand for cars. and Europe, they are more similar than different. Why is there even a term? Why is there not a term for American or European cars? While there are some differences between regulations between the U.S. I know not everyone shares my view, but I rather take a second look at the Delica Starwagon than at a Toyota Supra, almost everyone knows what the Supra is, the same can’t be said for the Delica Starwagon – and there are many other cool JDM cars that are not sports cars, like the Toyota Century, Nissan President, Honda Beat, and Suzuki Mighty Boy. It has some really cool quirks and features, and I think it looks absolutely amazing. One of my favorite JDM cars is the Mitsubishi Delica Starwagon, which basically is an offroad, cab-over van. In my opinion, some of the coolest JDM cars are not considered sports cars. But as you now have some understanding of what JDM means, you could probably guess that a car doesn’t necessarily have to be a sports car in order to be considered JDM. Cars like the Skyline GT-R, Toyota Supra’s, Mazda RX-7 might show up when you search for the term on Google or Youtube.

Most people will more often than now think about sports cars when the term JDM is mentioned. But where it really took off, and probably where most fans got into JDM was the Fast and Furious franchise, as well as video games like Need for Speed, Gran Turismo, Midnight Club, Forza Motorsport, and so on…The term also gained even more traction when the 25-year import jurisdiction passed for the Nissan R32 Skyline GT-R, which for many is the ‘Ultimate JDM Car’. It is near impossible to tell who created the term ‘JDM’ and exactly when it occurred – but it is fair to say that the term started gaining traction in the late 80s and continued growth throughout the 90s.

Thus if you want to own a “true” JDM vehicle, you’ll have to import it. These Supra’s would be considered JDM since they were manufactured for, and with the intent to only be used for the Japanese market. However, there was also the Toyota Supra manufactured for the Japanese market, following Japanese regulation, and with the intent to be used for Japanese roads. regulations, these would not be considered JDM, rather would be considered United States Domestic Market ( USDM). Another exception would be an example in the case of the Toyota Supra.

Jdm meaning