Some photos from my recent visit to Japan

[Namerow]

I recently had the pleasure of spending a few weeks in Japan on vacation.  It was my first trip back there since the late 1980's, when I used to visit frequently on behalf of an employer that was in the business of providing design/build services for R&D-type automotive test facilities.  On this long-awaited return visit, I stayed in the Osaka - Kyoto - Nagoya area ('Kansai' district), well to the west of Tokyo.  I thought I'd post a few of the photos I took during my stay, since it was partly a 'car guy' itinerary and I got to visit and experience a few things that will probably be of interest to many of the CZCC members.

I'll start with a few pix I took in the magazine section of a big bookstore at Osaka's Kansai International airport.  Sharp-eyed viewers will note that Japanese magazines are bound on the right side of the page and read from back to front...

 

[Namerow]

Next installment:  Here's an initial group of some photos I took in the Toyota Motor Museum.  The museum's collection is surprisingly egalitarian when it comes to the inclusion of examples of Japanese marques other than just Toyota.  I'll post some photos of the Datsuns on display later in the week.  The pix below will give you a sense of what the museum looks like. 

Some background details as a lead-in:

The museum is located on the eastern outskirts of Nagoya (a major city, situated on the south coast of Honshu island, about midway between Yokohama and Osaka).  It's about a 30-minute trip from the central Nagoya rail station and can be accessed by the Nagoya subway/metro, followed by a 10-minute ride on the 'LiniMo' magnetic-levitation (seriously, I'm not making this up) urban train. 

As you'll see from the lead photo, the museum building is big and ultra-modern.  Inside, there's a three-storey main building and a single-storey satellite building.  The main building includes a very nice restaurant where you can order a sit-down meal (fixed menu with daily specials) with table service. Includes a beer-and-wine selection.

The museum collection is split up according to six 'themes'.  For example:  Early Pioneers, Sportscars, Classic Era, and Modern. The satellite building focuses on 'automotive culture' in Japan.  Museum staff carry out daily running demonstrations of two or three vehicles on the property.

It become quickly obvious to me that Toyota has spent a lot of money to assemble and display this collection.  Building interior finishings, lighting, and display materials are all first-class.  The vehicles are in immaculate condition and the choices -- of both which vehicles to include and then, which particular vehicles to buy -- look like they were made by some people who really knew what they were doing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Patcon]

I love that split window beetle!

Also you have to love the low barrier between the cars and the patrons. One of the beautiful things about the Japanese culture. In the US, people today lack the etiquette to respect that low barrier. Kids would be inside those banging on the horn...

Thanks for posting

[Marty Rogan]

Looks like a really awesome museum.  Did you go to the new Nissan Museum?  I bet that was a fun trip!

I am looking forward to seeing more of your pictures.

[Namerow]

On 10/22/2019 at 10:17 AM, Patcon said:

I love that split window beetle!

If you liked that one, then I expect you'll really like this one.  IIRC from the display placard, this is one of the early production KdFwagen's -- built before the start of WW2.  Online write-ups indicate that the production facilities were up and running in the late 1930's, but only a handful of cars were made before the war broke out.  At that point, the facilities (and the actual vehicle design) were re-purposed for military applications.

[Namerow]

On 10/22/2019 at 1:17 PM, Marty Rogan said:

Did you go to the new Nissan Museum?  I bet that was a fun trip!

Frankly, I didn't even know that Nissan had a museum.  Maybe next time.  I see that it's located in Zama, which is on the western outskirts of Yokohama.  My visit (which I limited to two weeks -- a mistake, in hindsight) was confined to the Kyoto-Osaka-Hiroshima-Nagoya area.  I had mapped out beforehand a full slate of things to do and Typhoon Hagibis -- which arrived during the last part of my stay -- meant that I didn't even manage to get to all of the places I'd planned to.  The Nissan museum would have required a full day.  I'm planning to retire next year and hope to go back to Japan for a longer period so that I can experience more of the country and its people.  I would certainly try to fit in a visit to the see the Nissan collection.

For anyone interested in learning more about the Nissan 'Heritage Collection', go here:  https://www.nissan-global.com/EN/HERITAGE/index2.html

It doesn't look to be as elegant as the Toyota museum (more like a big warehouse stuffed with cars and memorabilia), but there's probably no question that it's the definitive Nissan collection.

[Namerow]

And now, some pix of the Datsuns that are on display at the Toyota museum... 

 

This one's a Nissan, not a Datsun,  The original Silvia was one of my favourite (Italian-inspired) Japanese designs from the 1960's.  Just as for the 240Z, our old friend, Mr. Goertz, claimed to have a hand in the styling of the Silvia too.  The car enjoyed a limited-production status, with many of the body panel reported to have been hand-crafted.  Apparently only 550 were made.  It's elegant... but tiny.

[RIP260Z]

8 minutes ago, Namerow said:

This one's a Nissan, not a Datsun,  The original Silvia was one of my favourite (Italian-inspired) Japanese designs from the 1960's.  Just as for the 240Z, our old friend, Mr. Goertz, claimed to have a hand in the styling of the Silvia too.  The car enjoyed a limited-production status, with many of the body panel reported to have been hand-crafted.  Apparently only 550 were made.  It's elegant... but tiny.

 

Thanks for the pictures. Always interested in seeing first generation Silvia's, as I own one.

Mr Kimura who did the exterior design/styling not solely looked at Italy for inspiration. Only the prototypes had handcrafted body panels, the production cars had stamped panels, but very much hand assembled on a jig.