I've been a huge car enthusiast since I was a little kid.He became a Porsche and Ferrari owner in his 20s, founded the HOC (Heisei Owners Club), andCurrently also active as "Manager of the Yusaku Maezawa Supercar Project," YAMAKEN is particularly influential in the twitter community. It is surprising that he is only 27 years old.

We have been communicating with them on twitter and greeting them at events for some time, but now we have the rare opportunity to interview them individually.

(1) History of Porsche and Yamaken

What made you fall in love with cars?

My father is a car enthusiast, so I think the best way to describe it is that I have some of his DNA in me. My father was the kind of person who drove a Porsche 930 that was a few years old when he was in high school.

When I was in middle school, I was a "Initial (initial) Dand "Gulf Coast MidnightI became more and more fascinated with cars after reading car comics such as I especially admired the 964 I saw on "Wangan Midnight.

I'm like, "Cool! I'll definitely buy an air-cooled Porsche someday!"

I had always thought that I was a car enthusiast. My friends around me knew very well that I was a car enthusiast.At the time, I was called "Kuruma Otoko" instead of "Densha Otoko" (laughs).

A "car guy"...lol, so you've been a car guy from then until now?

No, I did not. When I was in high school, I was seriously playing soccer for my club, so I had no interest in cars at all at that time. It was truly a club life.

Later, when I was a college student, I went to a driving school to get my license."Driving is so interesting, even in a learner's car.I felt that "it was a good idea. After I got my license, I was driving a sporty model of my parents' BMW, but I felt that "Wow so funny!I'm getting more and more into cars...

When I started working, I began thinking about buying my first car in my life.

Buying a car when you're just starting out in the workforce is amazing! LOL!

Well... (laughs) There were several candidates for cars at the time, including a BMW Z4 and an AUDI TT, but Porsche was still a special brand in my mind, so I decided to go with "Porsche.I would drive a Porsche if I could.I thought, "I'm not going to be able to do that.

And I was looking at car sensors every day.There was a 986 Boxster S in very good condition.So I went to see it that day and bought it.

In terms of price, it was about 2.3 million yen, so not that expensive.I was very happy to be able to drive the Porsche of my dreams.It was the summer of my first year in the workforce.

What did you think of the Porsche you actually drove?

It was a lot of fun (laughs). It was my first manual car since my learner's car, so when I first bought it, it stalled a bit, but I got used to it quickly. When I actually drove it, I was like, "Oh my God!What an interesting car!I was very impressed.

I have had the opportunity to drive cars from other manufacturers, but Porsche is by far the most interesting.

Then, shortly after I bought my Boxster, a friend of mine took me to a Porsche event.The next thing I knew, I found myself surrounded by Porsches.

At meetings and events, you can see all kinds of Porsches, from water-cooled to air-cooled.

That's right. At the meetings I attended at the time, there was a particularly high percentage of air-cooled Porsches, and it was really cool to see air-cooled Porsches in person.

For a long time, I had a fascination with air-cooled Porsches after reading Gulf Coast Midnight.I definitely want to ride air-cooled someday!The feeling of "I'm not a good person" gradually became stronger and stronger.

But at the time, there was an air-cooling bubble, and the price of air-cooling was skyrocketing."I can't really afford it at this price.I was thinking, "I'm not sure I can do this. Then, to my surprise, I scrapped my beloved Boxster.

It was about two years after I bought it.

I didn't have car insurance at the time, so it was a total loss... only the loan remained.
I wondered whether I should let the car go or buy a cheaper car and drive it.I don't want to get into my next car thinking, "I really liked the 986..."I was thinking that a friend of mine knew a store that had a "How about a manual 911 (964C4) now that it's available? I can do it for cheap.contacted me and I immediately said, "I'll buy it!" I told him.

However, upon closer examination, we found that the condition was not so good, and we were told that it was better not to do this, so we gave up on air-cooling in tears.

Also from that store, "The budget will go up a bit, but a 964C2 in good condition will come in.He contacted me to say, "I'm sorry.

When I looked at the paperwork for that 964, I was surprised to see that the new car registration date was February 28, 1992. Actually, my birthday is February 25, 1992. I was surprised to see that the registration date was February 28, 1992.964 that have lived almost as many years as myself.I felt some kind of tremendous destiny in the place called...

I decided to purchase it.

And when I actually drove it, it was really interesting. I became more and more addicted to Porsche.

What made you switch from the 964, which you liked so much, to the Ferrari Modena?

When I was about three years into my 964, I decided to move to Tokyo.I'd like to see other cars.I started thinking, "I want to get a 930 turbo. I really wanted a 930 Turbo and was looking for one, but the price went up and I couldn't find a good one...

At the same time, the "I want to drive a Ferrari at least once while I'm young.So you also had the thought, "I'm not going to be able to do this.

."I know Porsche is good, but what about the others? What kind of car is the Ferrari that everyone yearns for so much?I was interested in the idea of

So I started looking for a Ferrari 355, but I could not find a good match, and then I came across a Modena in good condition. At first, Modena was not an option for me, but then I found a car that was in good condition called "This color is the coolest.I was so excited with the idea of buying this product that I decided to buy it.

What was it like to actually drive a Ferrari?

The sound is insanely good, and I can feel your eyes on the street, but...I enjoy the feeling of "being in a Ferrari," not the driving itself.I thought, "I'm not sure I can do that.

In his personal opinion, he said that it is not "fun to drive" like a Porsche. And.I was reminded once again that I still love Porsche.

I guess you could call it an external Ferrari and a Porsche that I enjoy driving myself...

Is that why you came back to Porsche (now 997GT3RS) again?

Well...I have decided that eventually I will go for a 964 Cup car or a model like the RS, so until then I wanted to drive various Porsches and other makes.

A water-cooled GT3 would be nice, or a Lamborghini or McLaren, at least once.I'd like to drive it again. And since I have only one Ferrari, I would like to drive it again, since I don't know it yet.

Certainly, there is a good thing about Porsche that you can understand because you drive a different manufacturer.

That's right. I used to, too.

"You've never driven anything but a Porsche, have you? You've only ever driven Porsche, and you say Porsche is the best."

I was once told that. When I was told that, I did indeed think that "I've driven a 986 Boxster and a 911 (964), but I've never owned anything else.And.

That's why I bought the Modena, because I thought it was important to dare to buy a car from another manufacturer, and this made it even morePorsche is an interesting car.I feel that I have become more persuasive in my own mind.

So I think I will continue to drive other cars in the future because I like Porsche.

Next＞＞＞To stop young people from leaving their cars, he established the Heisei Owners Club (HOC) with his friends...!