Abe Takuro's Shop: A Haven for Dodge Van Enthusiasts

Abe Takuro's shop is owned by a man who has a deep passion for Dodge vans, and his love for these vehicles is evident in every aspect of his business. The shop has ventured into modifying Astro vans as well, which is a testament to Abe's creativity and dedication to his craft. As I browsed through the shop, I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and admiration for the work that had gone into each vehicle. It was clear that Abe's passion for Dodge vans was unmatched, and his shop was a reflection of that.

The Rise of Jeep in Japan

Jeeps are some of the most common American cars found in Japan, and their popularity can be attributed to several factors. One reason is that Jeep has actively catered to the Japanese market, offering a nav system with Japanese installed on all models, as well as right-hand drive configuration. This made it easier for Japanese drivers to navigate the roads without having to worry about driving on the left side of the road. Additionally, Jeep was the first American company to qualify for Japan's green car tax incentive, which is a significant bonus for environmentally conscious buyers.

The Wrangler's Appeal in Japan

One model that stands out among Jeep's lineup is the Wrangler. Its compact size and small turning radius make it an ideal vehicle for navigating Japan's narrow city streets. The fact that they offer specialized folding mirrors to aid in parking on tight spaces is a testament to their understanding of Japanese driving culture. Moreover, Jeeps have become iconic symbols of American ruggedness, which resonates with many Japanese drivers who admire the unique lifestyle and values associated with this brand.

Jeep Enthusiasts Unite

Jeep groups regularly meet up around Japan, showcasing their JKs, YJs, CJs, and TJs. These gatherings are a testament to the strong sense of community among Jeep enthusiasts in Japan. Additionally, there are several off-road testing areas scattered across the country where enthusiasts can put their vehicles through its paces.

Lowriders in Japan: A Unique Culture

The lowrider scene has gained immense popularity in Japan, particularly in the 1980s and '90s. American cars like the Impala and Mercury were imported to Japan, which sparked a passion for these iconic vehicles among car enthusiasts. Junichi Shimodaira, the owner of Paradise Road, is credited with bringing lowrider culture to Japan. He traveled to the West Coast in the early '80s to learn about the lowrider scene firsthand and returned with valuable knowledge that helped him establish Pharaohs, one of Japan's first lowrider clubs.

Lowriders in Japanese Hip-Hop Music Videos

The 1990s saw a surge in popularity among Japanese fans of American hip-hop music. To emulate their favorite rappers, some enthusiasts started adopting the lowrider style, dressing in stereotypical Mexican gangster fashion and naming their cars like gangster pimp. This phenomenon showcased the influence of lowriders on Japanese car culture.

A Shared Passion Across Cultures

As a fan of American cars, I found it fascinating to see how Japanese car enthusiasts share similar passions and interests. The customization of these vehicles in unique Japanese ways is truly captivating. It's heartening to know that our love for American cars transcends borders and cultures. Whether it's through Dodge vans or Jeeps, lowriders or classic American muscle cars, we all appreciate the thrill and excitement that comes with driving.

Scooters: A Bosozoku-Inspired Take

We recently featured a bumper-to-bumper review of some Bosozoku-inspired scooters, which were an absolute blast to watch. If you're interested in checking it out, be sure to follow us on our newest show. And don't forget to check us out on social media – I'm @nolanjsykes on Instagram and @donutmedia on Twitter.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en(upbeat music)- Americans love JDM cars,I'd even go so far to say thatmy generation is obsessed with them.So it was pretty eyeopening when I found outthat there's a community oflowrider enthusiasts in Japanthat drop and customize bigAmerican Sedans with hydraulicsand candy paint.They're inspired by America'sWest Coast lowrider scene.Look, it's not just a few people,it's a legitimate communityand it's not just lowriders either,turns out that japan isobsessed with other oddlyspecific American cars thesame way we are with JDM carshere in America.Where did this all start?And how are their lowridersdifferent than ours?In this video, we're gonnalook at four different typeof American market cars thatfound a new home in japanand how the Japanesehave made them their own.Let's start with one type of carthat looks huge inJapan's tiny city streets.It was movies like theFast and the Furiousthat really instilled a lovefor JDM cars when I was young.Who can forget those blackCivics driving under semi trucks.If you haven't seen thewheelhouse where I rankedall of the cars drivenin the Fast and Furious,I've put a link right hereand in this description.Well, turns out the samething was happening in Japanbut with American muscle cars.There's a small yetobsessively passionate groupof young drivers that takeAmerican cars like Challengers,Camaros, and Mustangsand customized them ina uniquely Japanese way.It's an unlikely cultural exchange,considering that American carshave a reputation in Japanfor being inefficient, unreliableand unnecessarily expensive.The cars most likely tofall within that descriptionare muscle cars.It costs a ton to own these cars in Japanbecause the higher thedisplacement your engine is,the more taxes you end up paying.And I don't know if you knowanything about muscle cars,but these engines are hugecompared to the average Japanese car.The annual road tax, as it's called,is about 34,500 Yen or about $310for engines between oneand one and a half liters.The tax goes up for everyhalf liter on top of that.That means if you own a Camaro SSwith a six point two liter V8,you're gonna be paying a pretty Yennyevery year just to drive it.I would not want to have abig-block Mopar over there.So as a result, the musclecars you see in Japanare pristine and perfectly maintained.These muscle cars are very rare to spotand stick out like a sore thumb,but a part of the car communityover there nonetheless.The Daikanyama Morning Cruise in Tokyois a bi-monthly car meetupthat has gained notorietyfor how diverse their parking lots get.They've had over 76different themed meetups,but one of the mostpopular events they heldwas for pre-1975 American Muscle cars.And something you mightnot have known aboutbig classic American cars in Japan,they used to be associatedwith the Yakuza.Although they're not muscle cars,Japanese organized crimepreferred huge American carslike Cadillacs and Lincolnsalways painted black.The land boats symbolized powerand they were sometimesseen blocking off streets,so the rest of them can cruise slowlyin a show of dominance.That would be prettyscary I'm not gonna lie.It was so well known thatthese cars specificallycouldn't Park in certain parking lots.The perceived association with the Yakuzaand American cars is slowlyfading over there though,as a new wave of American Car enthusiastsis helping to change thatimage, that's very cool.But let's be honest,if you see a blacked-outLincoln Continental anywhere,I'm gonna assume that anyonewho drives it is gangster as(bleep)That's a mean, evil lookingcar, and i want one.We've talked about these cars beforeand I'll talk about themagain and again until I die.I love Dajibans.This is a fun communityof racing enthusiaststhat take old, short-wheelbaseDodge vans, Dajibansand turn them intoabsolute track monsters.These are sick!They lower them, swapthe engine for a big V8,oftentimes a 318 Magnum, great choice.They tune them and then throwon some wide ass race tires,RS watanabes, and Ferrari brakes.I love these things.It all started with agroup of motorcycle racers.They would haul their bikes to the trackin the back of their Dodge vansand then one day, theywere messing around,just chilling, and someonedid a hot lap in the van.After Surprising finishand a bunch of laughs,they started modifying theirvans instead their bikes,and eventually theystarted racing each other.The race, which would look out a placeat any other Japanese raceway,found a home at Ebisu,a collection of around10 different coursesin the Fukushima Prefecture.This is where a group ofDajiban owners regularly gatherto race their highly modified vans.They are definitely awareof how ridiculous it isand the mood is lighthearted.But that doesn't stop themfrom racing their (beep) off.Drivers spend crazymoney to make this vansas fast as possible for the trackand it's one of the coolestthings that I can think of.There's one shop in particularthat specializes in convertingthese Dodge ram vanscalled Abe Chuuko Kamotsu,or Abe Secondhand Cargo Van in Japanese,located in the epicenterof Dajiban racing,a suburb of Tokyo called Komae.The shop is owned by adude named Abe Takuro,a guy who loves Dodge vansmore than anyone else.His shop has ventured intomodifying Astro vans as well,which is sick and it honestlylooks like so much fun,I would love to build a Dajiban someday.Maybe I should get onesoon. No. stop (beep).Jeeps are some of the mostcommon American cars in Japan.Wranglers and Renegades arebecoming more popular every yearfor a number of reasons.The main one being,Jeep is actively cateringto the Japanese market(foreign language)They offer nav systemswith Japanese installed.All their models comewith right hand drive,and jeep is the first American companyto qualify for Japan's greencar tax incentive, very cool.It's things like this thathelp the Jeep Cherokee,to become the first American car companyto make the ten bestlist in Japan in 2014.I would've never guessedthat that would happen.If you think about it,the Wrangler makes alot of sense in Japan.It's the most compact Jeep model,it's got a small turningradius, relatively speaking,and they make specialized folding mirrorsbecause Jeep understandshow important that isfor parking on tight city streets.Jeeps are also iconic cars.Japanese drivers love thembecause they're uniquely American(eagle screeching)and they symbolize therugged outdoor lifestylethat many city dwellers romanticize about,same thing is true for LA,there really isn't nothingbetter than drivinga Jeep around LA, it's lovely.Jeep groups regularly meet up around Japanand show off their JKs, YJs, CJs and TJs.There are a few placesyou can test your Jeepsoff-road capabilitiesscattered across Japan as well.There are tons of videos of people drivingon skinny mountain roadson the side of cliffsand through claustrophobic tunnels,just big enough for a Wrangler, no thanks.Feeling claustrophobic as it,whatever, having this screen(beep).(upbeat music)By now you probably allseen that vice documentaryabout lowriders in japan.Big American lowriders have gaineda huge following over thereand continues to grow in popularity.Lowriders started inLos Angeles in the 1940sas a form of rebellion.White car enthusiasts at the timewere making their cars fasterand beefing up suspension.But Latinos cut theirsprings, lowered their carsand drove slower as a sort of F you.The 1980s, lowrider culturehad blossomed in the US.Across the pacific, Japan'seconomy around the same timewas at a all time highand importers started shippingover classic American carslike the Impala and Ford's Mercury.It became the dream to own these Low,candy painted customs for car enthusiastslike Junichi Shimodaira,the owner of ParadiseRoad, a shop that importsand customizes Americanlowriders for use in Japan.Junichi traveled to theWest Coast of the USin the early '80s to see thelowrider scene for himself.He met with the lowrider ownerand got to know them and their carsand the knowledgeand experiences he brought back helped himwhen he started Pharaohs,one of Japan's first lowrider clubs.While they'll customize any American car,they specialized in Bombs,American cars from the'30s, '40s and '50s.In the 1990s, lowriders started popping upin the mainstream Hip-hopmusic videos in the US.Hip-hop fans in Japan wanted to emulatetheir favorite American rappers.Some lowrider fans in Japandressed in stereotypicalMexican gangster fashionand name their cars like gangster pimp,hell yeah.(laughing)Look, we go cuckoo overJDM cars in America.Up until a few years ago,it seemed like a one-sided love affair.But it's really cool to knowthat car enthusiast over in Japanlove the same American cars we love.It's also really cool to seehow they customize these carsin such a uniquely Japanese way,stuff that we would never see in the US.It makes me go,yeah, I guess Camarocan look like a JDM car.That's what it's all about man.We all love the same things.We live in different placesbut we all appreciate the vroom vroom.I love it and I think it's beautiful.Speaking of scooters,we did a bumper to bumper on some Bosozokuinspired scooters.Check that out right hereand check out this episode ofour newest show right here,it's really great.Follow me on instagram @nolanjsykes,and on twitter, follow Donut @donutmedia.Be nice, be kind, I'll see you next time.