The parking lots around the Tokyo Auto Salon are a whole 'nother car show. I ended up leaving the the Tokyo Auto Salon a little early, really before the sun went down so I could experience a small portion of what the TAS parking to had to offer.
Its funny and only in Japan where you'll find a owner who'll just leave their car in a parking lot with the hood open. The s13 was rocking a huge Trust turbo and two-tone paint.
TAS was so busy that there was an overflow of cars in the adjacent parking lots also. I ended up parking a few blocks away in one of the parking structures, parking was actually pretty crazy as I had to cruise through a couple lots before I was able to find a space and the line to get into the main parking lot for TAS was backed up for blocks and blocks.
It was good though, while walking towards TAS I was distracted multiple times by the random cars I would find along the way. The rally bugeye hatch was a perfect example of the rest of the vehicles I would see as I was touring the parking lots.
I always been fascinated by the van scene. I not sure why in the US these aren't as popular as they are here in Japan. The Toyota Hiace was just mint, even if the van thing isn't your thing you still have to appreciate the amount of time and work they put into their vehicles.
The American cars look out of place in a parking lot of vehicles, but there is something in seeing them in Japan that makes them cooler. I shouldn't have been but I was surprised everytime I came across some American muscle car.
It's hard to do but when you attend TAS you really have to set aside time to get away from the main show and just walk around the parking lots and enjoy all the cars. In many cases the cars in the parking lots are just as good as those inside the show. For me it was during lunch and about an hour before the show ended on Sunday that I walked around.
Everything Else. Enjoy!!
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