Road to Rotary: Japan to France in an RX7

[randomshenans]

Little updates as they come.

HKS seem to have gone absolutely silent so might have fallen through on that one, but I'm not massively fussed tbf. I have coilovers on there anyway, I'm going to fit the new radiator when it arrives and the car has a couple of weeks in france for paperwork, and I'll probably fit a new intercooler at the same time all for cooling. If I can't get anything through them, I'll sort my own stuff out for ECU and tuning for fuel. It would have been a real nice to have, but it's honestly no stress.

On the plus side, I spoke to the head of PR for Mazda UK today who is a great guy. He's going to arrange for me to have support from Mazda tech in Russia all along my route. He's also going to reach out to Mazda EU, Mazda Worldwide and Mazda Japan to see how they can get involved and help out too, as he thinks this would be a great story for them and their PR. Which is nice.

He also asked if I had contacted any magazines about covering it yet... I was like mate, no. Who would listen to me? He asked if he could do it on my behalf? Ha, yep. Of course! Again, I went into the conversation expecting nothing but chatting about the trip, so a real nice bonus and see where it goes.

Looking forward to my trip to Japan in 23 days. I'm meeting Alex from Top Rank EU there and we're going to do some cool car stuff together and he'll introduce me to some other people, which will be super fun.

Won't give up on HKS just yet, but it's all good either way! I have so much time to talk to companies, but shipping wise we need to have the car on a boat in Sept in order to get it turned around and back in Japan when I need it!

Now is silly season for traveling, too, so I'm going to be all over the place.

More updates as they come

 

[randomshenans]

Actually just picked up the phone this morning and called my man in HKS, they're still down! Just been busy on work trips, which I get. Told him about Mazda too, which I think always helps haha going to meet up with him in person when I'm in Japan next month. I think that'll be a nice way to build relationships more.

Trying to get a tyre and wheel company on board now really. I think that'll be the biggest thing to get sorted, because I do think punctures will be something we experience a fair bit. I spoke to Yokohama UK before but think I need to up it to EU/Global for their reach, so trying to talk to them at the moment.

 

[randomshenans]

Apologies, I've been logged out for ages. It's been an absolutely mad summer to be fair.

toyo might be worth a shout, a little smaller afaik so more likely to help out?

Yea, good shout. I am still talking to Yokohama, will see what comes of that one but no harm in reaching out to toyo as well. Will add it to my list.

Falken would be the other JDM brand to try.

Awesome. Thanks man, another good one.



UPDATE:

I went to Japan to see my cars! Did that in July. Was mad. Met with HKS, they sounded me out to see if I'm suitable to risk their brand on or not they then traveled an hour to see my car, which was surreal of a moment.
The RX7 needed a new ECU but HKS said that an Apexi would be more suited to my needs and fuel switching etc. than theirs.
They're providing me a full exhaust and coilovers.
All maintenance has now been done on the RX7 inc ecu - it'll be on a boat next week and back in France for registration and then back to Japan.

I need to get the plates sorted but also the carnet de passage, which is annoyingly going to take me too long to do to be able to get it back to Japan for Auto Salon in January, which I wanted to take my car to, and drive to all the meets etc. in, but still.

I am working with Mazda, but they got some flack for me saying that (thanks internet you *****) but even still, they're going to provide support through their connections/ service centres in russia, but it's through personal connections of the PR head, because the corporate ********. Stil, he's also opening some doors.
IN Jan I should be going to Mazda in Hiroshima to see their RX7 museum and hopefully get to drive their test rx7s they have at their test track.
I had also been invited to drive around fuji speedway in January but now won't have a car, so I'm going to tap up some contacts I made in July and see what can I can wangle to borrow from someone while I'm over there lol
I have also got a meeting with Mazda EU and their social media team, as they want to do stuff with me. That's this friday. Will see what they want but also good exposure!

Slowly been growing my tiktok as well. Still not big enough to make any coin from anything you don't want to know the running total to pull this stunt off, lets put it that way... hahaha

I just dropped a YouTube video of me going to Japan, seeing my cars and everything, so if you're interested I'm sure you can find it if you search for:

GOING TO JAPAN TO SEE MY RX7 & KEI TRUCK FOR THE FIRST TIME
​

Maybe... just maybe!?

Will try and be more consistent with YouTube tbf but most of my efforts seem to go on short form content for insta / tiktok at the moment. Will try and increase that, but I'm juggling all the logistics of this trip, my arctic trip, all preparations as well as working with people to try and launch 5 products at the moment lol

Will keep you all updated as always.

 

[randomshenans]

Here are a very small selection of pics from the trip. I drove to Fuji shotgun in an AE86 following Top Rank's S207 Impreza, doing the mountain passes in that, followed by the rest of things was absolutely insane.

 

[randomshenans]

I got as far as all those R34's at the start of the video and feel I might have to have a lay down for a while

mate, there were so many of them... like, more than the eye can see!

 

[randomshenans]

Well apart from the car with nets

How dare you bad talk the Century! hahaha 5.0 V12 VIP experience

 

[randomshenans]

Perhaps I missed this somewhere amongst the thread developing but you're shipping the car to France, registering it, then shipping it back to Japan, so you can drive it back to France?

That is correct, yes.

That's even more bonkers than what I thought was the plan - buy the car in Japan, get it fixed up, drive it back on temporary registration - has anyone (thinking your corporate contacts) asked you about the carbon footprint of shipping a car from Japan to France to Japan and then driving to France?

Yea, it makes no logical sense, but as much as I have always wanted the car, it's about the adventure more than the car at the end of the day.
You cannot get a temp registration. You can't sell a car to a foreigner in Japan, it has to be exported. Trust me, the only proper way to do it is this way. I have had all the eventualities and options hashed out.

 

[randomshenans]

That's a bit disappointing I suppose, especially after someone telling you that you could is part of what spurred you on originally.

The bonus is that I will be able to now explore more. I will spend a week driving around japan and then a week driving round south korea, before the big journey back. At least I'll have all full documentation in my name and fully legal, so no reason why there could possibly be any documentation issues going through all the countries I am. I just don't want to have any potential for any officials to pick holes in my paperwork. Best not to give any excuse for it.

If I wasn't publicizing it so much and wasn't taking my son, I would no doubt just windmill in and not worry about any of it, but when you have your kid with you, it's most important to avoid anything that could add complications.

 

[randomshenans]

I think I would be more then a little bit concerned about driving through Russia. But it looks like you have to drive through either Russia or Iran and I don't know which is worse! Both countries have a habit of arresting westerners on spurious grounds to use as political capital.

Sometimes you just have to turn the TV off and go experience the world for yourself.
I'd do both countries to be fair.
I just followed a couple from Durham who drove the other way to me, from the UK to Vladivostok in their marketplace Mercedes ML. We obviously got chatting a fair bit over insta DM. They made it to vladivostok and said the Russian part was one of them best they experienced. I do follow a lot of people who have/are traveling in russia etc. and their experiences have not been what all the people who haven't done it but read about it somewhere from the media have been, so you know. I'm happy to go experience the world myself and have my own perspective rather than be scared to do anything. Not a dig, just saying that's how I prefer to live.

 

[randomshenans]

There is a difference between not being scared and being naive and reckless. No one from the UK should be travelling through Iran or Russia without a good reason with the current situations. Especially with how the Russian government are framing the Kursk invasion as being directed by the UK "one of the main curators".

Sure you might have a good time, but a not insignificant chance of things going very badly wrong.

Turn off the news dude. you'll be far happier in life.

It is a shame about the double shipping thing. It takes a crazy "why not?" idea of travelling half way across the world to pickup a car and drive it back home to more of a simple "why?".

Yea, totally. The why is pretty simple though. I get to spend a week driving around Japan, a week driving around south korea and then 6 weeks crossing the world in an adventure with my son that is worth more than any car in the world and an experience like no other.

That said I'm still looking forward to seeing what you get up to. Don't get me wrong, I'm kind of hoping that you find yourself in all sorts of scrapes and 'what the hell do I do now?!' moments but I get the impression that you do to As long as you make it back safe that's all that will matter.

Haha thank you! It will be what it'll be, it'll all be good. Just have to roll with it. A solution for everything really if you let go of how it should be.

 

[randomshenans]

What passports do you have or have access to? If I went to Russia, I would probably travel on my Irish passport rather than British, as I think it would be percieved as more politically neutral.

Based on what level of experience in traveling to russia with a UK passport? Wondering if this comes from a personal experience of yours?

If there is one thing I don't do it is spend time watching the news.

Too much time in GD then

 

[randomshenans]

I hope you are mostly trolling as this is really poor decision making against the backdrop of deteriorating diplomatic situation, increasing use of foreigners as bargaining chips albeit it has mostly been people with dual Russian/other citizenship so far and the instability of the overall situation with potential for significant and rapid changes. No one from Western nations should be travelling Russia at the moment just for a jolly. This isn't just things being blown out of proportion by the news or inexperience of travel.

I literally follow many people that have just been through, or are in Russia, right now. With UK passports... traveling through.

Just stay out of this thread if it's that triggering for you.

 

[randomshenans]

Oh, absolutely. I'm probably trying to apply too much logic to the idea but as the car would already be in France I'd have thought doing the trip the other way, ie. taking the car to its home would make more sense and give the series a real end point. Back to where it all began if you like. Whereas sending it straight back on the boat will leave the end point as 'back at randomshenans house' which I'm sure is very nice but maybe not so much of a climax.

I mean, that's not a stupid idea... and then ship it back at the end...

 

[randomshenans]

He could have driven/sold his black London taxi (worldwide icon) to Japan and driven back with rx-7

I would love to do a long old trip in the taxi. I think it would be fun. Awful in so many ways but also fun...

 

[randomshenans]

A trip finishing at the Mazda factory/museum in Hiroshima would feel like a great 'finish point'.

Yea... this is actually given me a lot of food for thought...

Thanks guys I really do appreciate this.

 

[randomshenans]

If he gets shot, bombed or arrested it will surely mean more views though? Think of the publicity! Could even live stream?

For me, it's not about clickbaity ******** but sharing an authentic experience and showing people what's possible. As much as that may not be something you believe, I'm fine with that. I just don't believe it will happen that way, so it's not something that worries me like that. Having all the paperwork in order would make a lot of sense, so people can't pick holes in paperwork etc.

I'm not here to make you believe anything, just sharing my experience. If you guys wouldn't do it, that's totally fine. You live your life, it's no problem to me

 

[randomshenans]

Actually, that would be quite a nice touch if you could swing it with them "Here she is again boys, #### miles and # countries later" would make a great bit of footage in my opinion.

I was just talking to the guys at top rank about this, too.

I need to check with mazda and HKS, because HKS will need to ship the parts here for me to fit, rather than in Japan, but hopefully that won't be a problem.

I'll also chuck it out on the internet and see what people think, but could be a nice mix up to the series

 

[randomshenans]

good video! but please, grab a muffle or something for your mic, the wind noise was blowing my drums

Yea, I didn't actually have my Rode mic with me, which was a rookie mistake. I smashed my vlog camera right before the trip like a spaz, so it was all done on my iPhone. Rookie ****!

 

[randomshenans]

I've been to and up both of them...even in person, Eiffel Tower seems taller but in reality, Tokyo Tower is actually the taller between the 2.

Fewer Africans selling things under the Tokyo one and no bulletproof glass

 

[randomshenans]

Sounds awesome but I lost interest at TikTok

...ok great post.

Want to know what i'd do?

Not really, because that's it. You wouldn't do it.
At all.
Everyone loves to talk a good game about what they would do but no one actually does... anything they say.

Literally all it takes for you to be on the news as the next russian political priosner they're taking in to use for prisoner swaps is for you to have had your camera running as you drive by russian military minding your own business driving down the road blogging, and the next thing you know you're in front of a judge in a russian court on military surveillance charges.

I think you need to put the juice down for a moment and go touch some grass dude

pretty sure you can't get travel insurance for traveling against government advise can you?

I'd love to check the Ts&Cs on my travel insurance for half the **** I do, tbf.
But to obtain a visa to enter Russia as well you have to have medical insurance as well as it covering civil liability insurance. You can find these specifics online though.

When you enter Russia you have to pay to take out insurance, general insurance, for while you're in the country.

I also need a carnet ATA for the car, to show it's not being imported but temporarily in each country.