Although there were no plans to drive, she held up her driver’s license
On 17 February 2022, Nara Toyota officially announced that it would purchase Minister Takaichi’s Supra and restore it as the ’80th Anniversary Project ST Supra 80 Restoration Project’, where ST is of course the initials of Sanae Takaichi and 80 is not the model of the car, but the 80th anniversary of Nara Toyota.
Minister Takaichi sent a video message to the inauguration ceremony and visited Nara Toyota in June for an interim debriefing to see the former car being restored. She politely greeted President Kikuchi and each of the mechanics involved in the work and expressed her gratitude, which left a lasting impression.
Minister Takaichi took time out from her official duties to attend the Supra completion ceremony, which was held in conjunction with a ceremony to mark the completion of Nara Toyota’s new Tawaramoto headquarters. She shared the joy of the completed restoration with President Kikuchi, mechanics, and many Nara Toyota staff.
Throughout the ceremony, Minister Takaichi was always smiling. In her speech before the unveiling ceremony, she was excited from the start, sitting up and raising her license in high spirits the moment President Kikuchi spoke about the parade. In her speech, she thanked President Kikuchi and the mechanics and said: “I was really looking forward to seeing the car move and run today. I was told all I had to do was to start the engine, but I brought my driver’s license and glasses just in case. I am looking forward to starting the engine”.
Fun performance by Nara Toyota staff
At the unveiling ceremony, the car was unveiled with her own hands. When the Supra, revitalized like a new car, came into view, she clapped her hands loudly and her eyes lit up like a child’s. Everyone at the ceremony smiled. She then took the wheel herself and drove all along the parade. Although the enthusiasm for driving was palpable at the ceremony, no one would have expected the incumbent minister to drive herself.
Minister Takaichi is a Kansai native with a good-humored, friendly spirit and the power to attract people.
There was also a funny performance. After the unveiling ceremony, the members of the restoration project sent a plastic model of Sanae Supra’s specifications. In addition, a ‘B’z’ CD, which the minister used to listen to when she was younger, was set in the Supra’s deck so that ‘ALONE’, a song she particularly loved, would be played during the parade. President Kikuchi, who rode with the Minister, said: “I’m glad she enjoyed the ride, humming the songs.
The museum collection is “to remember the origins of the car”
Mis Takaichi’s trip was to the Nara History, Art, and Culture Village, about 10 km from the Tawaramoto headquarters. However, she hugged the car and said, “I don’t want to go home, I want to take it with me”, and even after a commemorative photo, she started the engine and said, “I’m going to drive one more time”. As a minister, this will likely be her first and last drive, but it must have been like a dream come true.
At the start of the restoration project, President Kikuchi said that she would be happy if the car could be a reminder of Sanae’s origins when she returned to Nara. The decision to house the restoration in the museum was exactly as he said. Sanae Takaichi is a minister who understands the feelings of car enthusiasts and can be close to them. We want Japan to become a country that respects car culture.
