AFTER TWO MILES of tunnel, Hiroshima Expressway 4 fires a little red Mazda out across the heavily forested hillside. One moment, it’s dimly lit concrete overhead; the next, an elevated bridge deck overlooking the entire western flank of the city. It’s a knowable city—big enough to contain nuance but small enough to comprehend. It’s like seeing an old friend again after years apart.
Hiroshima isn’t in the top-10 Japanese cities by population. Tokyo is New York, Osaka is Chicago, and Hiroshima is Portland, Oregon, with kei cars. Tourists who travel four hours by bullet train from Tokyo to see the atomic-bomb memorial dome and walk through Peace Memorial Park are often surprised by the city’s small size and slow pace.
To drive in and around the city—as I am doing in that little red Mazda MX-5—is to understand Hiroshima’s soul. To the south, the Seto Inland Sea is a dumpling soup of islands, but on the other side, Hiroshima is contained by mountains. In that way, it’s similar to Santa Barbara, California, which shares its latitude. Roads cover the hills like a fishing net. They bound through the canyons or wriggle up the slopes in knotted switchbacks—tarmac bliss through the wilderness, mere minutes from the city’s heart.
When I arrive on Sunday morning, a crowd has already gathered at Tomohiro Aono’s garage. Tucked away in a valley near the slow-flowing Ōta River, the garage holds six cars and other mementos of Aono’s travels. The name on the mailbox reads “Car Maniac TA.”
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Denne historien er fra June - July 2023-utgaven av Road & Track.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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MR. CALIFORNIA
MEET THE MAN WHO PUT THE STATE ON THE MAP AS THE LEADER IN THE FIGHT AGAINST VEHICLE EMISSIONS.
RESIDENT ALIEN
THE CZINGER 21C LOOKS LIKE IT ARRIVED FROM A DISTANT PLANET. INSTEAD, IT COMES FROM CALIFORNIA, WHICH IS KIND OF THE SAME THING.
FUNNY FACE
THE CURIOUS CASE OF CALIFORNIA-DIAL WATCHES.
THE PROBLEM WITH ROBERT WILLIAMS
TOWARD THE END of our third interview, Robert Williams gives me some advice about overcoming creative blocks. “Phrase it as a problem,” he says. “
Quiet Riot
In the Ioniq 5 N, Hyundai makes the case that an EV can tamp down racetrack noise without sacrificing capability.
The Sound and the Fury
A legal feud over booming decibels put California's most historic roadracing circuit in jeopardy.
HOLLYWOOD'S GREATEST STUNT DRIVER
CAREY LOFTIN WAS THE KING OF THE SCIENTIFIC WILD-ASS GUESS
OFFLINE
THIS BURBANK BOOKSTORE IS A REPOSITORY FOR THE WORLD OF AUTOMOTIVE INFORMATION NOT ON YOUR PHONE.
THE COURSE OF HISTORY
The West Coast tracks where modern racing was born.
TANK WARFARE
WHAT IF THE WHOLE CAR WERE A GAS TANK?