Japanese retro vehicle homeowners revel in modern-day classics [photos]
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![a man standing on a sidewalk next to a car](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"67","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drPqG.img?h=666&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=622&y=105","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"52","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drPqG.img?h=520&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=622&y=105","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"52","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drPqG.img?h=520&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=622&y=105")


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Quickly and furious they aren’t, but for a group of Japanese retro automobile lovers the sleek traces and significant glow of their old-school designs keep a significantly far more exclusive attraction.
A free club of lovers rolls up most weekends in central Tokyo to show off their Cadillacs, Chevrolets and other fashionable vintage automobiles from the mid to late 20th century.



![a car parked in a parking lot: This picture taken on 31 January 2021 shows cars lined up during a gathering by auto enthusiasts in Urayasu, an eastern suburb of Tokyo. Image: Philip FONG / AFP](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpK.img?h=533&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpK.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpK.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f")

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This picture taken on 31 January 2021 demonstrates autos lined up in the course of a gathering by car lovers in Urayasu, an jap suburb of Tokyo. Graphic: Philip FONG / AFP


KITT vehicle: ‘I communicate to my car or truck when I drive’
“Each time I generate it, I still get a thrill. There aren’t a lot of cars that give you that experience,” Masamune Isogai stated of his Knight Rider duplicate — a Pontiac Trans Am, the vehicle produced famed by the hit 1980s Television set drama.
Sliding into the driver’s seat — which he calls the cockpit — he is surrounded by futuristic shows, illuminated buttons and a wheel that seems like an oversized gaming controller.
These sci-fi touches had been mounted to give the journey the glimpse and really feel of the show’s AI-run speaking motor vehicle called Knight Industries Two Thousand, or KITT.
“I converse to the automobile when I drive,” laughed the 46-yr-old, who has owned the streamlined black automobile — finish with audio effects and a “KITT scanner” mild on the front — for all over a decade.



![a man driving a car: This picture taken on January 31, 2021 shows Car enthusiast Masamune Isogai, who works for a logistics company in sales, drives a 1991 Trans Am Knight Rider in Urayasu, an eastern suburb of Tokyo, on 31 January 2021. Image: Philip Fong / AFP](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drSa1.img?h=532&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drSa1.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drSa1.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f")

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This image taken on January 31, 2021 demonstrates Auto fanatic Masamune Isogai, who operates for a logistics corporation in revenue, drives a 1991 Trans Am Knight Rider in Urayasu, an japanese suburb of Tokyo, on 31 January 2021. Picture: Philip Fong / AFP


Crowd favourite
These times Japan is recognised for its functional cars that economise on gas and area, and seldom break down — a entire world away from the group’s painstakingly maintained wheels.
The informal society has around 10 members and the oldest automobiles they own are a 1941 Cadillac and a restored 1929 Ford Product-A.



![a blue car parked in front of a building: Real estate manager Masashi Aiba poses for a photo on 16 January 2021 in front of a 1956 Ford F100 Pumpkin during a gathering of auto enthusiasts in Tokyo. Image: Philip Fong / AFP](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drXDh.img?h=532&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=882&y=301","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drXDh.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=882&y=301","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drXDh.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=882&y=301")

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Authentic estate manager Masashi Aiba poses for a picture on 16 January 2021 in entrance of a 1956 Ford F100 Pumpkin in the course of a accumulating of automobile fanatics in Tokyo. Image: Philip Fong / AFP


Folks cheer and choose snaps as the cars go by, from the 1956 Ford F100 Pumpkin to the 1961 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia.
Stetsons and Cadillacs
“The shape of old cars is incredibly charming, unachievable with today’s mass manufacturing,” reported Hiroyuki Wada, 49, up coming to his pink 1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville.



![a car parked on the side of a building: Hiroyuki Wada, who runs a vintage car service company, sits in a 1959 Cadillac Coupe DeVille after a gathering of auto enthusiasts in Tokyo on 16 January 2021. Image: Philip Fong / AFP](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1ds19q.img?h=533&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1ds19q.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1ds19q.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f")

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Hiroyuki Wada, who runs a classic car or truck assistance firm, sits in a 1959 Cadillac Coupe DeVille after a gathering of car fanatics in Tokyo on 16 January 2021. Picture: Philip Fong / AFP


“When you get more mature, you are additional probably to appreciate a motor vehicle that calls for tons of care,” Wada explained.
“Old engines often have to have 10 minutes or so to warm up before you can push them. That is what’s seriously charming about them.”
Wada, who runs a car or truck valet business enterprise in the vicinity of Tokyo, will commit 3 to four times on each old-fashioned experience to give it a shiny new glimpse.
He states his heart belongs to American automobiles, like previous law enforcement automobiles, which he rents out for movie and pictures shoots.



![a car parked in a parking lot: Hiroyuki Wada shows off his a 1959 Cadillac Coupe DeVille. Image: Philip Fong / AFP](https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/tokyo-drift-japanese-retro-car-owners-revel-in-modern-classics-5bphotos-5d/"default":"load":"default","w":"80","h":"53","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpQ.img?h=533&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size3column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpQ.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f","size2column":"load":"default","w":"62","h":"42","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1drUpQ.img?h=416&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f")

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Hiroyuki Wada demonstrates off his a 1959 Cadillac Coupe DeVille. Picture: Philip Fong / AFP


“Someday I want to valet aged fireplace engines in the United States. That is my aspiration,” he stated.
— By © Agence France-Presse