So I hired an 86 and went to see Mt Fuji.

[86BRZ]

Very inspiring story, thanks!

[jello]

Inspiring. And there I was being a sucker taking public transport to the ski resorts. Next snowboarding trip, I think I'll rent one and drive there myself...

[sir_binkalot]

No worries guys - I'm humbled that I can be an inspiration. Japan - while not perfect - is an amazing country and I highly encourage those of you who haven't been there to check it sometime. In an 86, preferably 8)

Originally Posted by PERRIN_Chris

That is really cool, so was it 23,000 Yen for one day?

Yeah, 23,000 yen for 12 hours. For fuel, it was only another 3,000 yen or so - I was shocked! I think the car got ~10L/100km with three adults in it through a mix of stop-start traffic, highway cruising and blasting up mountain passes.

Originally Posted by xbladex0

Nice pictures! do those rims come with the 86 there or are they packaged?

They're the stock 16" wheels on the G spec car in Japan. While small, I think they look pretty good actually.

Originally Posted by Chef

Thank you for sharing! I hope to do this one day and eat at Jiro's restaurant with my cousins.

I can't deny that I was considering this too. However, I think renting the 86 for a day is measurably cheaper! :P

[Surfacer]

Originally Posted by Nambo

Thanks for sharing OP, you've inspired me to do something similar
I was originally thinking of renting an 86 whilst travelling New Zealand, but Japan would be great!

Do you think it would be very difficult for to navigate through Japanese streets only relying on GPS? I've never been to Japan before, and can't speak the language.

Not at all, its quite english friendly here and the roads are very nice.

[pascalbrax]

Originally Posted by hushypushy

GT: Interior is similar to the FR-S (aluminum and red trim/stitching), but it has auto climate control. The outside has the familiar HID/LED headlights and foglights.

And keyless entry with engine start button.

[sir_binkalot]

Originally Posted by Surfacer

Not at all, its quite english friendly here and the roads are very nice.

Yeah, I wish the roads in Australia were as good. In Japan they're wide, smooth, with rails and a dearth of speed cameras 8)

[nataku]

Awesome post and pictures thanks! I'm definitely making a trip to Japan at some point and somehow never considered the fact that I might be able to rent an 86 there...

[YukiHachiRoku]

Originally Posted by sir_binkalot

FT86CLUB Homepage Featured Story


I was in Japan earlier this year, and one of my goals for my time there was to drive an 86. I've been following the car since the first internet rumours, and since I can't afford to buy one just yet I really, really wanted to drive one.

I found a couple of websites offering one to drive for a pretty good price - 10,000 yen or so. However, after shooting them an email application it seemed that they required a Japanese licence or for an applicant to hold some company position in Japan. I was about to give up on my dream, when I thought I may as well check the Toyota rentacar website to see if they had one there.

There was nothing on the English website, but by sleuthing around on google I found this one page offering you to hire either an 86 or a Prius PHV. Hmm, tough choice...
So I called up their English rentacar hotline and they let me rent one! It was 23,000 yen or so, so not the cheapest but I didn't care.

I picked it up in Yokohama later that week (you can see my brother in the back seat!):



We wanted to head for Hakone, a hot spring resort town about two hours drive along the coast then up into the mountains. Sweet.
At a service area, we found a BRZ. The owner was quite amused to see us I'm sure.



Once we headed into the mountains, a large sign saying 'TOYO Turnpike' caught my attention and the GPS's instructions were ignored. All told, I rode the turnpike 3 times that day. It was an amazing road: wide, plenty of corners and pretty deserted! Being the cold day that it was however I was a little scared of frost so I didn't push the car hard at all.

Sorry I don't have any photos of the road - I was too busy enjoying it. Here's a photo of the rest area:



At the top of the mountain, it was really really cold. Well, cold for an Australian like me anyway. I'm glad the snow wasn't on the road.



We were pretty hungry so we drove along the lake to a curry place for lunch. While I was taking a photo, a super unusual car for Japan just happened to drive past:



I wasn't a big fan of the econobox exhausts, but looking at the car from this angle I did notice the numberplate they had on the car. Cool!



The coastal town of Odawara had a cool castle:


Anyway, after lunch, we headed up another pass (seriously, I was just chasing signs that said 峠 (touge)). Upon traversing a tunnel to the other side, we were greeted by an amazing view. At this point, any regrets of spending 23,000 yen hiring the car were banished from my mind:



Wallpaper version of the image here. I can't stop drooling over it.


In summary, it was an awesome day in an awesome car. I can't wait to get one for myself! Oh, and random fact: my 190cm brother said sitting in the back for a good 4 hours that day 'wasn't too bad'!


As a finisher, when I lived in Japan for a year a few years ago, I hired a car with a little more power as a goodbye present to myself:

hey man, besides all the people bitching about the backseat, MY FAVIORITE part about going to the grocery store is THIS: #1 I can set one gallon of milk in one seat, and one carton of eggs in the other, Then I can rip my way back home, and nothing with be broken or leaking on the floor.

Talk about the next gen of grocery go-getters, I'm sure your wife will approve.

[YukiHachiRoku]

I'm in Narita, and saw so many badass cars, including the 86, I walked by the dealership and there was a burnt orange one in the back with a plate ........86

and too many too in the PI with the same plate "86"

Good job guys, that is "Love".

I'm speechless

[DocCola]

Originally Posted by DylanFRS

Pretty sweet! Thanks for sharing!

Two Summers ago my fiance and I drove up Mt. Haruna (aka Mt. Akina) but it was in a Toyota Ractis, not nearly as cool as an 86. Oh well, slow driving allowed me to get pictures of the famous gutters.

Please post a thread with these pictures you speak up sir and link us to them.

To the OP, great story, great pictures! Totally worth it I would say!

[jstans84]

Great, now I really want to go back to Japan, thanks......


lol, seriously though awesome pics and I'm glad to hear you had fun out there with the 86.

[DylanFRS]

Originally Posted by DocCola

Please post a thread with these pictures you speak up sir and link us to them.

To the OP, great story, great pictures! Totally worth it I would say!

I didn't completely pass this over but I didn't want a whole thread for a trip I went on almost two years ago, but I added pictures to the Initial D thread that was made recently if you are still interested:

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...d=1#post947879