Over 230 vintage cars participated over two days
The Classic Car Fest 2024 in Wakayama Marina City was held on 27-28 April 2024 as one of TV Wakayama’s 50th anniversary thanksgiving events. Despite unfavourable weather conditions on the first day, some 80 classic cars gathered, and on the second day, thanks to favourable weather conditions, more than 150 classic cars and gems from Japan and abroad produced in the Kansai region up to 1985 were gathered. There was even a 1913 Model Ford T Touring from as far back as 111 years ago and a 1926 Alvis, creating a scene that resembled a car museum for a limited time only.
Many vehicles on display in memory of the genius Marcello Gandini
The venue for this year’s Classic Car Fest was Wakayama Marina City, a man-made island built in Wakaura, Wakayama Prefecture. As the name suggests, there is a harbour where yachts and pleasure boats can be moored, a facility called Porto Europe, which is a theme park reminiscent of Europe (with attractions and events for children), a tourist market called Kuroshio Ichiba, which combines a seafood restaurant and market, and a superb view of the sea spread out before your eyes. The event was held in the parking lot of the resort island complex, which includes the Kishu Kuroshio Onsen spa facility, which offers a spectacular view of the sea, and the Wakayama Marina City Hotel, where visitors can enjoy the resort atmosphere to the fullest.
The highlight of the event was the large number of cars on display featuring Marcello Gandini, a legendary figure in the world of car design who passed away on 13 March 2024 at the age of 85. The works on display included the Lamborghini Miura, Countach, Lancia Stratos, Alfa Romeo Montreal, Fiat 850 Spyder and X1/9, which are said to be representative of the late Mr. Gandini’s work, and which strongly appealed to visitors with their design assertiveness.
One thing that stood out at the event was a replica machine of the “Shiden 77”, a GC (Fuji Grand Champion Series) car of yesteryear. The Shiden 77, which tragically burned up during the 1978 Fuji GC race, has been successfully brought back to life as a replica today by the creators of its cowl, Mr. Takuya Yura and his team. Mooncraft, led by Mr. Yura, who was the creator of the cowl, has successfully revived the machine as a replica.
The cowl was remade from a miraculously surviving mould of the time, and the chassis was made from a VIVACE-7 made by West Racing Cars, a racing constructor located near the Suzuka Circuit, while the frame and other parts were rebuilt to match the cowl. The machine has been modified to fit the cowl.
At the venue, the exhibits were divided by country of production, such as the UK, Germany, France, Italy, the US and Japan, creating an environment that was easy to understand, and one could sense the chic care taken by the organizers. Of course, the owners of the cars on display also had a great spirit of service, and could be seen here and there politely explaining their cars to visitors to the venue, creating an at-home event atmosphere with very close proximity to the cars.
translated by DeepL
