A Longtime Dream: The SL, One of the World’s Three Great Sports Cars I recently bought a late-model R231 Mercedes-Benz SL400, and I’d like to share why I chose an SL. For me, the world’s three great sports cars are the Porsche 911, the BMW M3 (M4), and the Mercedes-Benz SL. Of the three, the SL has always held a special place in my heart—an aspirational car I’d dreamed of owning for years. When the...
A Legendary Engine That Still Impresses After 150,000 Kilometers It’s been a while since our last tuned-car review, but today we’re getting behind the wheel of a BMW M3 E46—and this turned out to be an exceptionally well-sorted custom build. Back in August 2024, we reviewed the M3 CSL, a rare model with only around 150 examples imported to Japan. The CSL was a special edition developed to reduce weight and sharpen performance, and we...
What Is the 991.1 Black Edition? The Black Edition arrived as the final model of the early 991.1 Porsche 911 Carrera. Positioned as a special edition ahead of the transition to the 991.2, it was a fitting tribute to the end of the model run. Under the hood is a 3.4-liter flat-six producing 350 PS and 390 Nm of torque. Buyers could choose between a seven-speed manual and seven-speed PDK, with the PDK-equipped car reaching...
I’ve recently been driving a Porsche Cayenne GTS Coupe. It’s an early 9YA-generation Cayenne, from before the current model switched to a fully digital instrument cluster. The tachometer is the only analog gauge. Finished in Crayon, it has sport seats upholstered in a mix of Alcantara and leather from the GTS Interior Package. The coupe’s flowing profile is undeniably sporty and beautiful. But get behind the wheel, and this GTS reveals a few surprises. Here’s...
The Taycan Turbo GT Weissach Package is a car I absolutely love. But just how capable is it, really? Am I simply getting carried away? To find out, I asked Tatsuya Sugawara for his candid impressions. Sugawara is a former member of Japan’s Gran Turismo national team, with extensive experience racing real-world cars as well. His achievements include third place with Team Porsche in the 2021 FIA Gran Turismo Championships Manufacturer Series and a win...
A superbly equipped 911 with nearly $50,000 in options The 992-generation 911 Turbo I drove was, in every sense, loaded with options. It had nearly $50,000 worth of extras, with a sophisticated interior and exterior pairing of Crayon and Slate Grey. The highlights included a sunroof, sports exhaust, 21-inch 911 Turbo Exclusive Design wheels, black Matrix LED headlights, and Exclusive Design taillights—a specification that looked every bit as premium as it felt. Inside, it was...
A Longtime Dream, Finally Realized with the RZ34 I recently made the difficult decision to sell my Fairlady Z NISMO after just five months. Delivered in early February 2025, the car was the fulfillment of a dream I’d had for years. That dream goes back to the days of the Z32. As a child, I fell in love with its flowing lines and kept telling myself that one day I’d own a Fairlady Z. By...
After putting 1,500 km on my 718 Spyder RS to break it in, I got back behind the wheel of my beloved 981 Boxster GTS for the first time in a while. The Spyder RS is so easy to live with that I’d started wondering, “Do I really need the 981 anymore?” But driving the two back to back quickly showed me they have completely different personalities. I was honestly surprised by just how different...
Impressions on the Highway: Underwhelming in the Slow Lane, True Potential Unleashed in the Fast Lane Taking advantage of a business trip to Nagoya, I embarked on a break-in tour with my freshly delivered 718 Spider RS, covering the mountain roads from Kiso to Shinshu. Although the Shinkansen was an option, I chose to travel in the Spider RS to fully experience the car. In total, I covered about 800 km and successfully completed the...
The Spyder RS Is Enjoyable and Stress-Free Around Town After driving my Spyder RS for about 600 kilometers, I’ve made one major discovery. No matter where I drive, I can fully enjoy the engine. Whether I’m on city streets, mountain roads, or the highway, I never feel frustrated by being unable to enjoy the GT3 engine. In my previous 911 GT3 Touring, pressing the accelerator around town to enjoy its performance and engine note could...
