Welcome to Odaiba, a former defensive outpost in Tokyo bay. The artificial island now plays host to “Megaweb” (An automotive theme park run by Toyota), a 24 hour video arcade, an 18 meter tall ‘Gundam’ statue, a nostalgic golden era market place, a pet friendly boutique mall, “Daikanrasha” a 115 metre tall Ferris wheel, a replica of the Statue of Liberty, and a great harbour-side boardwalk for stunning views of Tokyo.
Anyone who knows me personally would have already guessed that my sights were set firmly on the Toyota auto theme park. In fact, I was especially focused on ‘History Garage’, an automotive museum run by Toyota paying homage to the greatest car icons throughout history.
Our first stop was a golden era boardwalk market located inside a shopping mall. 1940’s music played through antique radios hidden within the overcrowded storefronts. Lanterns hanging from the roof cast warm light over the old-school arcade machines, and the smell of freshly cooked ramen found its way into every store. This place was oozing with atmosphere.
This period correct Daihatsu Midget looked so perfect in its suroundings, it almost went completely unnoticed. This thing was tiny!
We then found ourselves at the gate to Pallette Town, the friendly name given to the southern part of the island. We quickly stopped into the Toyota Exhibition Hall to grab some maps, but were suprisingly greeted with a number of interesting cars on show. We were lucky enough to see the Toyota I-Road in action!
After walking through another shopping mall, and past a monkey – man busking duo, we had reached History Garage.
The first thing we were greeted with was probably one of the most unusual cars on show: BMW Isetta 300. A 298cc single cylinder 10kW motor pushed the bubble car to a top speed of 85km/h.
This section of History Garage had some beautifully preserved Japanese classics.
This Fairlady Z was the limited 432 edition which borrowed the S20 Skyline GTR motor. Around 420 of the 432 (4 valves per cylinder, 3 carburetors, 2 cams) models were built, with some used by the Japanese police. The Z is definitely a car which suits the Japanese Police trim (seriously, google it).
Parked along side the Fairlady was the futuristic Mazda Cosmo, an under-appreciated ‘kyusha’ beauty in my opinion.
To my sadness, the Celica Double X was not represented in life size, however what awaited in the next room eased any ill feelings.
The Toyota 2000GT needs no introduction, backdrops or fancy lighting.
Downstairs, the History Garage shop was kitted out with plenty of Initial D merchandise (gutted that I had missed the Initial D Festival three weeks prior!).
On the wall was a large window, looking into the “Garage” aspect of History Garage. Here, retired workers from the big Japanese car companies volunteer their weekends to care for the large collection of auto-history. On this day a Messerschmitt was having some maintenance work performed, with a full scale restoration of an early Chevy Bel-air resting in the corner.
Outside, a few more machines were parked including a Ferrari Dino and a handful of Japanese classics including a neat Subaru 360.
History Garage is an overwhelming experience. There are so many rarities that it is impossible to engage with each one fully, which Is exactly what you want from a good car museum.
Next time I visit Japan I will definitely be stopping by “History Garage” … Even if they haven’t changed a single thing!