Welcome to Japan

In September 2024, I took a break and spent two weeks in Japan. It was my first time, and I had been preparing for it for months. Aside from the usual tourist activities planned, most of my trip was focused on one thing here: cars.

Taming Godzilla

Godzilla is the nickname given to the Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R. According to various sources the car earned this reputation because of its performance in the Australian Touring Car Championship in the early 90's.

It is 9 AM. I barely slept last night due to my over-excitement but I don't care. Today I'm driving a beast. The appointment to pick up the car is set at 10 AM at MR.HIRO Car Studio. This place is a great way to take photos and drink something cool at the bar. The studio also offers high-tech driving simulators where you can practice on Assetto Corsa.

When arriving there (while being late), a staff member guides me through the different steps. You have to read and sign a waiver that stipulates you're the most respectful driver that ever existed. There is also one line that mentions "No Initial D driving". While I could not stop smiling when I first saw this, I can understand the need to put a lot of responsibility on the driver. I am about to drive a well-maintained famous JDM car and I can confirm they do care about it: the car is stored in a dedicated space and is fitted with two dashcams (interior/exterior) and even one Apple AirTag.

In Japan, rental cars are marked with a わ kana on their license plate. On this particular model, the license plate was わ--32.

Another staff member guided me about how to use the car and what to do in case of any issues. I take place in the driver's seat. This is it. After turning on the ignition, I take off under the supervision of the staff. I'm officially driving a GT-R R32 by myself.

Everything feels, sounds, or even looks great. This car is loved and in perfect condition. My first stop before lunch is at the Glion Museum, a collection of vintage and iconic cars. On my way to the museum, I cannot resist putting my foot down to hear the beautiful sound of the turbocharged inline 6 cylinders. The turbo wastegate sounds like music to me.

The museum itself is a very calm and interesting place. I had the opportunity to take a bunch of pictures while sipping my drink:

The rest of the afternoon was me going in truly random streets and after a while, I got back to the hotel to prepare for the night.

Around 9 PM I got back on the road for some crispy adventures. I've quickly realized that in Japan you don't want to drive on smaller roads than avenues. Why? Because it leads to even more narrow roads. Fun fact: streetlights are not outside the way but within the road. Let me demonstrate this with a picture.

Those kinds of streets are typical of what I call rabbit hole roads. If you are constantly going to random streets, you can easily end up in a place like this and wonder where the hell you are. Even worse, sometimes you don't even know how a car is supposed to go through without being damaged. The picture portrays a road that I would consider wide in this case.

Driving in the city at night is a completely different mood. A question quickly arises in my mind: Where is everyone? I've spotted some cool cars including some with neon green license plates.

After getting lost in a sleepy suburb with not-so-good roads, I arrive at a red light. I stop close to the rear end of the car ahead with a neon green plate. In front of us is a very long 2-lane empty road. It's green. A completely normal start from the car in front of me hides the wildness that will follow. After only a couple of seconds, his car takes off as the engine revs like crazy. He is absolutely flooring it. I try to keep up while remembering to not exceed 6,000rpm from what I've heard in the morning. The speed addict continues his way at full speed in a chicane under a bridge we're passing. Uncomfortable, I stop throttling and pass it smoothly. He's far from me by now. We split ways at the end of this road like nothing happened.

Later that night I found the car in the city centre parked in front of a building. It could have been great to exchange some words with this guy, but he would not come out again. Good night. After a few more hours of driving, I was heading back to the hotel.

A rotary experience

On the next sunny day, I go back to the same car studio as my second car is waiting for me. Of course, I arrived late and it's already been 2 times I forgot my international driving license at the hotel. Bollocks.

When I booked for the second time, I had a really hard choice to make. I could either choose a Silvia S15 or a RX-7 FD. I've decided to drive the Dorito-powered car for its uniqueness. Going through the booking process was even smoother than the day before and this time, I've had the privilege to drive the car outside the studio when I took off.

"Bring back the car for 6 PM!" said the receptionist multiple times, more worried than ever.

Today is a very good day because first of all, I'm going to a cat cafe in Nara but most of all, I am driving outside the city which means mountain roads. Usually, you would take the highway to get to Nara: you get out of the city easily and you continue straight until you get there. I drove on the highway multiple times but made a big mistake back then: I did not rent an ETC card. That means you have to bring cash and pay around 2,000¥ each time you pass a toll.

As I'm gently stopping at the cash-only toll booth, two men greet me. One of them pointed me to the price that matches my vehicle type "Regular" which is 1,950¥. Totally clueless about the situation I give him the first bill I have, already excited to take off. He showed me the price again: I just gave him a 1,000¥ bill. I take a quick look at the center console and realize I've run out of cash. Clueless again, I kindly hand him my credit card. The man makes me understand it's impossible to pay by card. Another car just stopped behind me but I am literally trapped. Cash is no more and credit cards are an unknown technology here. In a desperate moment, they give me a toll ticket and tell me to hurry while I try to apologize as much as I can. I am finally able to enter the Hanshin Expressway.

After a while, I take an exit and make a small detour to the Prefectural Road 8. This is basically a nice spot to have a first feeling of mountain roads featuring two lanes.

By the time I was about to enter the first turn, I noticed in my mirror two cars approaching at high speed. One of them is a Mazda RX-8. They pass me in the interior lane and they are sending it from now. I downshift and see if I can catch up with them. The two cannonballs are barely visible now as they continue to go full throttle in those blind curves. It is clearly not the first time they come here, they are used to this road. I struggle to drive the FD as it seems slippy on the rear tires in case you ask for too much power in turns. I think I am scared of this car. When I arrived at the top the two cars were gone but it made me smile.

After a great afternoon in Nara and before I drive off back to Osaka, I take the time to look at this magnificent car again.

I believe the receptionist was relieved when she saw me very early at the studio to give the car back.

Just drive

I did my research and found out there is a rental company that offers pretty cool models. I've decided to give it a try and booked two cars at Omoshiro rent-a-car. I had to take a train since the most interesting models were at the Wakayama-shi (capital city of Wakayama prefecture) office. That day I picked up a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 7.

Upon arrival, I can see a small gravel parking area with a prefab office. The man inside is very welcoming and starts to process my papers. Next to his office is a giant poster of a crashed blue Mazda RX-7. The front end is totaled and we can guess from the damage the driver spun and lost control. Thank god I didn't do something similar. At this time I've remembered the disclaimer for all RX-7s they rent on their website:

Please drive safely. On rainy days, the car will spin easily even in a straight line if you just accelerate too hard. Three RX7s have already been scrapped due to accidents, and they are very prone to accidents such as spins.

Just before he finishes, I ask him a simple question that I've seen on every car rental ever: What's the maximum driving distance?

He smiles at me and kindly answers this legendary quote:

No, just drive

This is really good news. I can drive all night without having to worry if the extra hour I took driving the car would cost me an arm. Before I take place in the driver's seat he tells me a small fun fact about this car.

Good and powerful engine, but brakes not very good!

That is a bit surprising to me as it would make sense to be able to properly stop in case you're driving something fast. I show the gentleman I've understood and drive away from the small parking area. Wakayama-shi is a not-so-exciting place but at least I have some long avenues to verify what I've been told earlier. When traffic around me is low I take my first chance with a red light: I accelerate a bit and go hard on the brakes. He did not lie to me. I have to think ahead and set some margin to stay safe.

My phone battery died but I realized the car is equipped with a navigation system. It's fully in Japanese, of course. I desperately try to set the destination point to Osaka with the Kanji I saw earlier on the road signs, but my broken Japanese cannot keep up. My only option now is to charge my phone via USB.

After a short stop at the closest konbini, I was truly enjoying driving this car. This is the first time I would love to daily the car I'm driving, unlike Godzilla or the spin mobile. This looks like a great sedan to me: a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine with a manual 5-gear transmission and all-wheel drive. All of this fitted into a five-seat chassis.

Taking the wheel back at night only confirms my opinion. During a random encounter with an Isuzu truck at a red light, the driver seems truly happy to see me next to him. He's acting like he is so proud of me for driving this Lancer Evolution and gives me a big thumbs up while smiling with excitement. If there is a world where I made this guy's day better, he surely made mine too.

I am glad I had the chance to drive this spicy sedan. There is no doubt this model is more exciting than most production cars Mitsubishi produces nowadays. Period.

Turbo addiction

The last car I managed to book is a classic. I could not get back home before driving it. Finally, I am able to get my hands on an Impreza WRX.

The first thing I've noticed is that the shifter return spring is really worn out (or broken). That made me not so confident about having to drive with a floppy stick. The car is overall a bit worn but still working perfectly after all those years.

Despite having similar specifications compared to the Mitsubishi, this one handled differently. It's like the car was made for driving dynamically. The turbocharger is more aggressive, making driving even more fun. If this version is a standard WRX, I was wondering how the tuning is on the STI models. The WRX is a car anyone could daily. The suspensions are more soft than top-of-the-line performance versions and you (also) have a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine fitted into a 5-seater sedan.

The turbo is really addictive since it has a better response at lower revs. The Mitsubishi does not feel slower but rather smoother and precise on the road. This fact made me play with the engine, especially at night when traffic is low. Several pulls on the streets of Osaka gave me the fun and excitement I was expecting from this car.

Another great experience that got me fully satisfied with my journey. I hope to have the time to get back here again in the future.