Taking a trip to the Toyota Automobile Museum has been on my list of things to do while in Japan for most of my stay. Just before heading back to Washington for a break, I decided to make a trip to check out all of pristine Japanese classics. After 2 transfers and 30 minute walk, I arrived at the Toyota Automobile Museum in Yokomichi, Nagakute-city, Aichi Prefecture.
Right as I entered the museum, I was welcomed by a pristine 70’s Toyota Celica TA22. Just beyond that was another classic, the Toyota Model A.
The TAM is broken up into 3 main areas. On the second floor are vehicles from the “Pioneering Age” which is basically the period from the 1800’s to the 1930’s. In this section they had cars like the Duesenberg, the first proto-type bug, the Benz Motorwagen, along with many more (too many to list). There were a few Japanese classics in this section, most notably the Honda S500 to the first Nissan Fairlady.
On the third floor is Toyota's full range of cars. This section starts in the 1930’s and goes until present time and it started with the Model AA and ended with the 1st prototype LFA. The last section is the ANEX building that has privately owned vehicles from the pre and post war era.
If you’re ever in Japan and you’re a car nut, the Toyota Automobile Museum is definitely a place you should visit. It’s interesting to see how Japanese automobiles have evolved over time from influences from other countries. It’s also very clear how much the Japanese auto market changed after World War II, especially in design and functionality.
One car that I fell completely in love with was the 2000GT, which is a true "Unicorn" in my book. They had awesome displays like the AE86 with the new FT86, but something about the 2000GT's presence made an impression. Another personal favorite of mine was the Honda S500 which is the grandfather to the S2000.
