Daikouku PA & The Legendary AE86

*The R32 GT-R was a dominant force on Tokyo’s highways and this is one of the first videos I’ve seen that got me hooked*

Daikoku PA (Parking Area) is a location I’ve longed to visit. It is where street racers of the Tokyo area and beyond come to meet before merging into the traffic of the C1, Wangan Line, or other various roads in the area to claim title of the fastest driver, just like the above GIF of one of the first videos of Japanese street racing that made me fall in love with the culture. This is a place I’ve only read about when I was a pre-teen, watch when I was a teenager (even risking viruses by using Limewire, etc.), and finally get to visit as an adult. Here’s how my first time went:

A friend of mine who was previously a student at my local university moved back to Japan and I happened to be in Japan at the time. We met for a quick meal and caught up. He knew I was into cars and I shared some photos of my car from my phone and some of the other cars local to Tokyo that I admired. He said “there is a popular meeting spot for cars like this near Yokohama”.

“Daikoku PA?”, I asked.

He laughed “You are definitely a car otaku (nerd), huh? Let me take you”.

This was the start of a life turning event that I didn’t know I needed, but thankful that I had. Let me back up -

Previous to this trip to Tokyo, I was tired of my local car scene. It was extremely toxic and I really didn’t feel like I belonged. It just wasn’t fun with the internal politics. My friends weren’t really friends. They just wanted my car at meets, but probably didn’t care if I was present or not. My plan was to go to Japan and strip away the materialism and just come to terms with how people are. I had an RE Amemiya widebody kit in my garage, but didn’t have the motivation to install it. I just lost my passion for anything automotive at this point.

*The first time seeing Daikoku PA with my own eyes*

Ok, now back to the story: We get to Daikoku and I absolutely lose my mind! It wasn’t even a busy Saturday evening, but just seeing some of the cool 90’s cars that got me interested in cars were there. We got out of the the car and I immediately see it: Not one, but TWO FD RX-7s with the widebody kit that I had collecting dust in my garage waiting for me to be inspired enough to do something with it. Naturally, I gravitated to these pair of white beauties. I asked the owners if I had permission to take a few photos as I was tourist with the same car (you should always ask before taking photos…!). They happily obliged and started asking me a bit about my car. We had a great conversation and I had goosebumps the entire time.

Off in the distance, I saw a purple AE86. I snapped a photo of it as I did with any of the other cars that caught my attention this evening. One of the RX-7 drivers said “He’s a legendary driver. Everyone knows him. He is fast”. I looked at it like How could an AE86 be fast? Considering I am an Initial D fan, I should have known different, but this isn’t the mountain pass, this is the freeways of Japan! Speed wins.

*An AE86 with an Aura that caught my attention from afar*

After having some more dialogue with the owners, a blue Mazdaspeed RX-7 pulls up and we all introduce each other (how does this evening get better? Do RX-7s just pull up all the time?). We had a great chat and the owner of the blue Mazdaspeed RX-7 says he’s meeting a friend.. and that he’s currently pulling up. Behold: The Purple AE86.

Now, it’s becoming a large chat, and I notice people all around us are looking over and I realize we’ve become the center of attention. I know these are cool cars, but you’d think in Japan, they are considered “normal”. I didn’t get it, but I thought it was a cool experience to be in the “in crowd” so I played along. The owner of the AE86 pops his hood and as the gift box opens, you can see the majestic 4A-GE engine complete with Individual Throttle Bottles and so, sooo many other goodies being revealed. Keep in mind, I didn’t realize there was aero work on this car until it came up close, but this has a f@#$ing N1 kit on it with 11” rear wheels on the back. Okay, impressive, but I know a lot of slow local cars with wheels that are too big for them.

BUT THIS IS JAPAN.

The owner of the AE86 introduces himself as “Taro”. He explains to me that he used to have an R32 GT-R that was the fastest car, but he thought he could have a faster time on the C1 with a lighter chassis, so he chose the AE86. He says “You can find find my car on youtube - look!”. He loads a video from Youtube, and I shit you not - it’s the same video that I risked my computer getting viruses to see in high school. The same video of the first GIF of this article. Unbelievable.

If you want to hear unbelievable, wait for what’s next: “What are you doing tonight? Do you want to go for a ride?”.

I nervously said “F@#$ yeah!” which came out as a shy “Hai!” (‘yes’, in Japanese).

He replied with “Ok! Chotto Matte! (Ok! One moment!”), and he proceeds to go to his friend with the blue Mazdaspeed RX-7. His friend nods and Taro goes to the RX-7 and begins to take out the passenger seat. I hadn’t really noticed, but Taro didn’t have a passenger seat in his car due to his philosophy on power-to-weight performance. I was blown away by the hospitality here, and knew that this can’t be normal. Remember, I had left a country were I felt like I was nobody and then visiting a country where I was nobody, but treated like somebody. Once he put in the seat into his car, he tells me to hop in. He made sure I was comfortable and that the racing harnesses were safe. I’ve never shaken so much from excitement. He does his pre-flight checks and asks if I’m ready.

“Hai! ikimashouka? (Yeah, let’s go, shall we?”).

“Iki mashou~” (Let’s go) he responds happily.

As we were leaving to drive on the wangan, the crowds were staring at us. This driver I was with wasn’t a celebrity, but perhaps considered royalty in the underground scene. I had no idea how big this gentleman was until I had gotten back to Canada, but the ignorance at this moment just let me enjoy the ride. Once we got the clear, he gave the AE86 full throttle and easily glided by an R32 GT-R (how poetic). We took hard turns and fast straights, but I knew he was holding back to keep me safe - which wasn’t much because this was an extremey nimble and fast car! He asked me if I saw the speed camera up ahead. I nodded and as soon as we passed it, he gave it full throttle again and I couldn’t stop laughing. I haven’t had this much fun with cars in years.

When we got onto a long straight (it was a beautiful bridge section with a view of Yokohama’s skyline in view), we started talking. I mean.. talking. We talked about life, passions, goals, etc. It was a talk I didn’t know I needed until then. I found out a lot about Taro. He used to live in White Rock BC (a place I used to visit often when I had family living in the area). He used to drag race cars there at the time. He said the flowers in Canada are beautiful. He expressed that it was one of the reasons of his current occupation. He was a delivery driver for a floral shop based in Ueno, Tokyo. He told me he loved being a part of the moment where people wanted to connect with each other. It was the best - he got to drive his car and got to see first hand the loving expressions of someone who receives flowers.

*Forever, has Tokyo Tower glowing in the background of the Expressways symbolized Japanese Street Racing for me, along with other landmarks such as Rainbow Bridge*

He then said, “It’s not about the cars or the flashy lifestyle; it’s about the connections you have with the community. We need each other to be better versions of ourselves and that’s how we get the inspiration to achieve the impossible goals that we have”.

This is something I’ve never been able to shake since hearing it. It was a moment where time froze and I just couldn’t stop focusing on that. I think about this a lot and that’s why it’s become the turning point in my life. We had made plans to meet up again the year after. I had booked tickets, but two weeks before arriving in Japan, he had sadly passed away to an illness. It’s like we were destined to meet so he could pass on his words of wisdom one more time to someone who really needed it. During this next trip to Japan, I established my roots in Japan’s automotive community and befriended legends who I thought would only ever by my idols, but now I get to call friends.

This is all because a person reminded me on what makes life and cars so great. I only hope to continue his legacy. RIP Taro. Thank you for everything.