Episode 03: The Car That Changed Everything — The AE86

Episode 03: The Car That Changed Everything — The AE86

Encountering Initial D

My very first encounter with the AE86 happened when I was still a high school student. It began the moment I opened the pages of Initial D, serialized in Weekly Young Magazine.

An old AE86 carving its way through the mountain passes. The protagonist, Takumi Fujiwara, using the driving skills he developed from delivering tofu for his father’s shop, racing his TOYOTA SPRINTER TRUENO AE86 against countless rivals.

To me back then, that manga was far more than just a “car comic.” In those early-morning mountain scenes, where only the sound of the engine and screeching tires echoed, I felt a world where you could escape your narrow everyday life—a world of freedom, a place where you truly belonged.

“Someday, I want to drive an AE86 myself.”
That feeling stayed quietly in my heart for years.

Skipping School for Driving Lessons

In Japan, you can get a driver’s license at eighteen. From the moment I learned that, my personal countdown began toward my 18th birthday.

I wanted to hold the steering wheel as soon as possible, so I started attending driving school even before my birthday arrived. There were days when I skipped high school classes just to go to the training center.

Looking back now, it certainly wasn’t something my teachers or parents would have praised. But at the time, nothing mattered more to me than the desire to “be able to drive even one day sooner.”

When I finally held my driver’s license in my hand, that thin plastic card looked like a ticket to a much wider world.

My First Partner: My Mother’s Suzuki Alto

Of course, getting a license didn’t mean I could immediately buy my own car. Fresh out of high school, I had no money for that.

For a while, I borrowed my mother’s Suzuki Alto (4-speed manual).

A small engine and a lightweight body. Every time I shifted gears, the car responded directly to my input. It wasn’t powerful, but it taught me something important—that driving itself could be pure joy.

It wasn’t an AE86, but looking back, I probably saw the silhouette of a future AE86 through the windscreen of that little Alto.

Why I Worked Two Jobs: Newspaper Delivery & Convenience Store

I wanted an AE86 no matter what. The only way was to earn the money myself.

So I took two jobs.

Early mornings were for newspaper delivery—riding a small scooter through dark streets, tossing papers into mailboxes. Days were for school. Nights were for working at a convenience store, standing behind the register half-asleep, heating boxed meals, and stocking shelves.

I hardly had any time to hang out with friends. Still, the goal of “buying my own AE86” was stronger than any exhaustion or sleepiness.

Eventually, the balance in my bank account started to grow. When it finally reached 600,000 yen, I realized I now had enough to seriously start looking.

The Day I Found It: TRUENO AE86 (Late Model) GT-APEX Black & White Two-Tone / 3-Door Hatchback

I spent my days browsing used-car magazines and stock lists from small dealerships. That was my routine every single weekend.

And then one day, I found it:

• TOYOTA TRUENO AE86
• Late model (kouki)
• GT-APEX
• Black & white panda two-tone
• 3-door hatchback
• 80,000 km on the odometer

By today’s market standards, it might seem like a “normal used AE86.” But to me back then, it shone brighter than any brand-new car in a showroom.

The price was 600,000 yen—not cheap at all, even at that time. Yet today, a similar AE86 could easily cost five million yen or more.

Thinking about that now, those 600,000 yen weren’t just a “used car price.” They were the entry fee to the life I would eventually build.

I Drove It Every Day, and I Polished It Every Night

I still remember the moment I received the keys on delivery day. The sound of the 4A-G engine starting. The feeling of the car moving forward for the first time under my control.

From that day on, the AE86 became the center of my life.

After school or work, I washed it, waxed it, and checked the fluids. I did as much maintenance as I could with my own hands. While wiping the body, I often whispered in my heart, “Thanks for driving with me again today.”

Before I knew it, the AE86 became more than transportation—it became my family, my best friend, and eventually, an extension of myself.

The AE86 Shaped the Person I Am Today

Looking back calmly now, I’m certain that my life would be completely different if that AE86 had never come into my world.

The inspiration from Initial D. Skipping school to get my license sooner. The 600,000 yen earned from endless part-time work. The encounter with that black-and-white GT-APEX.

Every piece of that story connects directly to the work I do today, and to the path I’ve carved sharing Japanese car culture with the world.

Driving, dreaming, and chasing something with all my heart—
that’s what the AE86 taught me.