As the sun sets over the Yokohama skyline, a line of cars from the Mid Night Club are parked just a few green highway signs from the infamous Wangan Bayshore route. On the other side of the crowd, I spot Top Secret’s Kazuhiko “Smoky” Nagata and VeilSide’s Hironao Yokomaku on the main stage, looking back on Japan’s golden age of performance tuning. It’s a scene that feels slightly surreal, but in the best possible way.
Welcome to the first Wangan Base Yokohama – Option Street Night Festival.
Hosted by Web option, the online home of Japan’s famous Option magazine, it is the first car show on Yamashita Piera working shipping hub built on reclaimed land in the 1950s. Tonight’s festivities centre around Shed 4 on the pier’s Western Jetty, offering panoramic views of Yokohama city.
Arriving at 4pm, I grabbed my media number and walked through the main entrance to see the event was already bustling with people. Although it started at 2pm, Wangan Base Yokohama was an all-night festival that ended at 10pm, so the large early crowd surprised me considering the heat. It could only get bigger from here.
At an event of this size, it is hard not to draw comparisons with the Tokyo Auto Salon. The pier around Shed 4 is roughly the same size as the exhibition halls of the Makuhari Messe on the other side of Tokyo Bay.
While TAS takes place in the dead of winter – often amid snow – Wangan Base Yokohama was hotter than an engine room in the height of the Japanese summer. Relief came as day turned to night, though I hope next year’s event will be rescheduled for the fall.
Yes, don’t worry if you missed it this time; the 2025 event has already been confirmed.
Imagine Tokyo Auto Salon focused solely on tuner cars, with no manufacturers, and held outdoors on an abandoned commercial shipping pier. Add an airplane hangar and food trucks and you have Wangan Base Yokohama – Option Street Night.
There were too many notable cars to detail, but this RA65 Toyota Celica convertible with 2JZ replacement was a highlight.
Another treat was the line of 20 Mid Night Club floats lining the gangway to the pier. When Mid Night greets you at the door, you know something special is about to happen.
I was happy to see a few Mid Night cars in real life for the first time. If I had to pick a favorite, I’d happily take the keys to this blue FD3S Mazda RX-7. It’s not the original Mid Night car from the mid 90’sbut a second version owned by the same gentleman.
Another first time I saw it, though long admired, was the Revolfe SA-built Z32 Nissan Fairlady. It’s styled as the iconic Air Breathing Research (ABR) Hosoki S130Z Fairladyof course with the owner’s permission.
As the sun disappeared, the golden hour turned to blue and then pitch-black night. For about 10 minutes, the crowd murmured anxiously: “Isn’t it too dark?” “I can’t see anything at all.” I thought along with them until the work lights and large industrial installations were turned on to illuminate the location.
Inside Shed 4, it felt more like a typical car show, without the commercial flair of Tokyo Auto Salon. Tuner stands from brands like Tomei, Top Secret and Endless filled the space with products and demo cars.
I would say that 99% of the cars on display are built to drive, not just look – another potential first. Big events often focus on cars that look good but have never actually been in action.
Liberty Walk played their greatest hits; I think Kato-san earned the right to just a little bit glossy.
I’m not sure if Wangan Base Yokohama symbolizes the rebirth of tuner culture in Japan – it never really went away – but the event is great news for the local scene. Web option putting a lot of effort into it and plan to continue hosting shows of this caliber in the future as long as venues allow it. This particular venue is one of the best in the area.
At the end of the evening, the parade was at least as impressive as the show itself: cars drove across the pier and were waved goodbye by the audience.
If you’re planning to visit Japan for the cars, consider bringing sunscreen instead of a hat and gloves. Wangan Base Yokohama – Option Street Night Festival offers a fresh and exciting look at authentic Japanese performance car culture, and the first event was just epic.
Toby Thyer
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tobythyer.co.uk