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A look at Japan's car culture: Meets, tuners, drifting festivals & more

18th November 2023, 11:04 by Dev Shah

First car meets were usually attended by street racers and would often be interrupted by the police.

BHPian JDMBOI recently shared this with other enthusiasts

I love Japan, JDM cars, Japanese culture and Japanese people, so join me on this thread to find out about Japan's car culture and what it's really like in "The Land Of Rising Sun".

Shaken (Vehicle Inspection)

Famous car meet locations

Daikoku PA
Tatsumi PA
Umihotaru PA

Car groups

Bosozoku
Kaido Racers
Morohoshi LED Lambo crew
RAUH-Welt BEGRIFF/RWB
Decotora
Itasha
Stance cars
VIP Cars

Different Cars Day

7's Day
8's Day
32 Day, 33 Day, 34 Day and R's meeting.
86 Day

Legendary Tuner and parts companies

NISMO
Mine's
HKS
Spoon
Top Secret
Midori Seibi
GReddy
BLITZ
Mugen Motorsports
Garage Active
Tommykaira
Seeker
Yashio Factory
Advance
Apexi
Endless
Tec-Art

Car Parts

UP Garage

Drift Festival

Touge Drifting

Vending Machines and Convenience Store

Shaken (Vehicle Inspection):

Shaken is the name of the vehicle inspection program in Japan for motor vehicles over 250 cc in engine displacement. The inspection system is in place to ensure that vehicles on Japanese roads are properly maintained and are safe to be on the road. Vehicles that cannot pass inspection are not permitted on public roads. As vehicles get older, maintaining them to the required standards can become expensive and stringent shaken rules (to name few, Vehicle should have the specified ground clearance, both headlight level should be equal, stock exhaust, vehicle tyres shouldn't protrude) that makes it hard to pass the test that's why Japanese get rid of their car faster rather than using the same for a long time. Another reason is to determine if a vehicle has been illegally modified. The vehicle has to be in OEM specification to pass the test but there is a loophole, after getting shaken enthusiasts again modify their car and when inspection time comes near, they have to undo all the mods they have done to their vehicle just to pass the test. Different inspection time period is specified for different vehicle.

Famous car meet locations:

Daikoku PA (Parking Area) - Most famous of them is Daikoku PA. If you love JDM cars you obviously know about this PA.

Daikoku Parking Area is a rest area located on the Daikoku Route of the Shuto Expressway in Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. As the name suggests it is for the drivers who are driving on the highways for long time to stop and take a rest and it is also used to park cars which are to be exported/ imported from the country but The history of Daikoku is closely tied to the infamous Wangan loop that was a popular venue for street racing, which was especially rampant in Japan during the '90s. All those racers needed a place to meet up or rest after their runs and Daikoku was the perfect spot. First meets were usually attended by street racers and would often be interrupted by the police. Times have since changed, and the bad boys of Japanese streets were mostly tamed, but Daikoku PA remained a popular meeting place for all kinds of petrolheads. Due to the large parking space, it is often used as a meeting place for private cars, and on holidays there are cases where the parking lot is full even though there are few people in the facility. For this reason, a banner is displayed in the area to call for refraining from parking for a long time, which is not the original purpose of resting. The atmosphere these days is a lot more casual than before as the parking area has become a place for car enthusiasts from all over Japan to calmly park and show off their vehicles. It's lively at Daikoku almost every day, but it's most crowded on the weekends when the entire parking lot is jam-packed with cars.

Tatsumi Parking Area There are two Tatsumi PA

Tatsumi Ist PA

The Tatsumi No. 1 Parking Area is a rest area that is located on the Fukagawa Route of the Shuto Expressway in Tatsumi, Kōtō, Tokyo.It is a place where car enthusiasts gather because it is a large parking area for the Shuto Expressway in the 23 wards, and the night view of skyscrapers and the pictures of their cars "shine" but due to complaints (noise coming from cars running on the highway and from car meets) by people nearby authorities have installed fences which somewhat declined the popularity of this PA but still car meets take place here.

Before:

Now:

Tatsumi 2nd PA

The Tatsumi No. 2 Parking Area is a rest area that is located on the Fukagawa Route of the Shuto Expressway in Tatsumi, Kōtō, Tokyo. This PA is similar to first PA and has same skyline views.

Umihotaru PA

Umihotaru PA's name means sea firefly. This huge structure has five floors of observation decks, restaurants, and shops. Umihotaru PA is the world's only toll road rest area located on the sea. It is part of the Tokyo Wan Aqua-Line Expressway, a highway toll road that runs underneath Tokyo Bay from Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture to Kawasaki in Kanagawa Prefecture.It is getting popular due to its views and enthusiasts go there when Police kicks them out from Daikoku PA.

View from the PA

Car Groups:

Bosozoku

Bosozoku ( 'running-out-of-control (as of a vehicle) tribe') is a Japanese youth subculture associated with customized motorcycles. The first appearance of these types of biker gangs was in the 1950s. Bosozoku members are known for taking a Japanese road bike and adding modifications such as over-sized fairings, lifted handlebars shifted inwards, large seat backs, extravagant paint jobs, and modified mufflers.

Trumpet horns

Bosozoku cars

Kaido Racers

Kaido is an older Japanese term for road or street, so a Kaido Racer is literally a street racer, although not in the Fast & Furious sense. The origins come from young Japanese enthusiasts modifying their street cars to resemble the touring car racing they were watching at Fuji Speedway and the like. For the most part, kaido racer style takes its inspiration from the Super Silhouette racers of the late 1970s and early 1980s.