The Perfect AE86 Shop - Car Factory AI - Juiceboxforyou

Car factory Ai is one of the most excellent ae86 shops in Japan. Its owned by a woman called Ai Koizumi hence the name, and they maintain and run the newer hot version Keichi Tsuchiya N2 Levin you might have seen from time to time.

They also have their pink N2 Race cars, which her brother drives in their N2 series. You might have seen it on various hot version N2 races; their cars also feature heavily in the other challenges on the Hot version series. She organizes 86 festival in Okayama too, and I was very keen to call in and say hello after the event.

Situated down a back street, Car factory Ai is a sight to behold. The place was jam-packed; I felt a little bad as it was early on a Wednesday morning, and they looked to be working, but she moved all the cars to take down the Tsuchiya machine for us to get a closer look; what a legend! The shop is tiny; it’s like a game of Tetris inside. Nonetheless, the workers shifted the cars out of the way to bring down the TRD N2 Keiichi machine.

It was like meeting a celebrity. As I mentioned in the video, I get more excited about meeting cars than people. Seeing this car in person was one of those moments.

Ai and her crew have been building AE86s for racing, restoring streetcars and servicing a lot of 86 chassis in the Hyogo /Osaka area for two decades!

Usually littered with a variety of 86’s, they focus primarily on circuit racing, with race machines traditionally set up for all sorts of 86 related circuit events. Seeing that many tough looking Corollas was something else, she let us have a nosy around and started chatting about the Irish AE86s scene.

Getting up close with the one and only.

Floor space is limited, but they really utilise the space.

Everything is a potential photo. Look how mean this Zenki faced N2 racer looks.

Only in Japan…

The shop does services, builds, sales, restoration work, and it has it all. This Red panda caught my eye.

Millimetres of space between some of the cars. An overload for any 86 enthusiast.

And then you poke your head down the back…

Epic examples everywhere; you have to see this place in person to see just how much stuff has been compacted into such a tiny area. It’s impressive.

Various bits of all sorts. You can spot one of their old Pink bonnets in the middle.

This gold Levin was ripping at 86 festival; the colour is pretty damn cool!

I got the chance to show her all the European colours on AE86s, and she was fascinated. I guess Japanese people might not know about all the original variations that we got on the other side of the world. We sat on the front of Tsuchiya N2 machine while she enjoyed looking at a rally 86’s on youtube in Ireland and all our funky colourways. That was a surreal experience.

They certainly make the most of the space.

A classic Japanese workshop!

I was allowed to have a nosey around the Tsuchiya machine.

The stuff of dreams!

What a bay! I love the super minimal look of 86 race cars. This was a heavy inspiration for my own build.

Ai Koizumi also races these open roof cars; check the space they have to work with!

I could have taken a hundred photos of this car if we stayed any longer, but we didn’t want to get in their way.

I’d love to see this ripping around a track someday. Unfortunately, Tsuchiya couldn’t make it to the 86 festival, which was a shame. This was good enough, though, to have a proper look at the car.

Big sticky tyres and N2 arches. What a combo.

The side of their premises was just as fascinating. This all-black Trueno was ticking the boxes with its Wise square back tails.

Bumper to bumper, making the most of limited space!

What a view,  a collection of insanely cool wheels on one side and a mix of quality cars on the other.

So good! Always nice to have a collection.

A good line bumper in stock.

An unexpected treat at the bottom of the lane. How cool is this purple two-door sitting on SSR Mesh?

A good 86 shop always has a supply; I couldn’t believe the amount of spare stock they had.

It’s pretty compact, but they really have the space sorted. This was a dream view!

I highly recommend checking this place out if you are in the Osaka area; it’s one of the most incredible 86 shops in Japan, complemented by a very humble crew!

We spotted this stunner on our way back to the van. The perfect Celica XX sitting on XR4’s. Ah, Japan!