Skip to main content

Watch a BMW Z4 GT3, Ford GT40, and Nissan GT-Rs take on the Hakone Mountain Hill Climb

Let’s face it: some people have a better commute to work than the rest of us. This is particularly true if you’re Ara Seiji taking your BMW Z4 GT3 to Hakone Mountain to do a hill climb with other race cars on Japan’s famously twisty Mazda Turnpike.

The gentleman racers at the Japan-based Motorhead magazine hosted a hill climb sponsored by Recaro, where they closed off eight kilometers (about five miles) of the public highway to challenge a variety of race cars against the course’s fast straights and sweeping bends.

Screen Shot 2014-12-29 at 10.48.14 AM
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Kicking off the video is a run by the aforementioned BMW Z4 GT3, which is a modern, legit racing car that comes from BMW with a 4.4-liter V8 engine that can produce around 500 horsepower. It’s built to racing specifications, and would be the best way to tackle the climb with a degree of extreme precision.

Recommended Videos

The classic GT40, however, while still a fast endurance car that bested Ferrari at Le Mans in its heyday, doesn’t have any of the modern trappings to keep it pointed in the right direction. It’s a raw, heavy steel machine, and watching how this legendary car takes a hill climb is a particular treat.

Okay, forget the best technical vehicle to attack the turnpike. If Japanese drivers are known for anything, it’s taking mountain roads sideways and making it look as easy as a run to the supermarket. This discipline of racing certainly wasn’t neglected as Kawabata Masato takes a Greddy-tuned Nissan GT-R downhill, carving a spectacular smokey swath the entire way.

A few other cars get into the mix as well, but watching the seven-minute video is the perfect way to shake off a bad Monday morning commute.

Alexander Kalogianni
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Alex K is an automotive writer based in New York. When not at his keyboard or behind the wheel of a car, Alex spends a lot of…
Volvo’s much-anticipated EX30 EV to reach U.S. before year end
Front three quarter view of the 2025 Volvo EX30.

Volvo is switching gears again, this time to accelerate deliveries of its much-anticipated EX30 subcompact electric SUV so that it reaches the U.S. before the end of 2024.

The Swedish automaker last summer had postponed the U.S. launch of the EX30 to 2025, citing “changes in the global automotive landscape." The move followed the Biden administration’s 100% import tariff on electric vehicles made in China.

Read more
Rivian R2 EV’s new LG battery boosts storage capacity sixfold
Rivian R2

The Rivian R2, the EV maker’s much-anticipated affordable electric SUV, will be powered by U.S.-made batteries promising to store six times as much energy as those currently used.

South Korea’s LG Energy Solutions announced it will be supplying LG’s 4695 cylindrical batteries to Rivian as part of a five-year agreement.

Read more
Scout Terra vs. Tesla Cybertruck: retro and futuristic, head to head
Scout Motors Terra driving front

Scout Motors is back. The classic brand has been reinvigorated under Volkswagen Group, and not only that, but it has already announced two new vehicles that it plans to launch in the next few years. Of the two, the Scout Terra is the electric truck, and it's built to offer a modern design with an excellent range and fast performance.

But how does the Scout Terra compare with another popular electric truck, the Tesla Cybertruck? While the Scout Terra is set to be much cheaper than the Cybertruck is now, it's entirely possible that by the time the Terra is released, it could have a higher price tag than expected, while Tesla lowers the price tag of the Cybertruck. Is one of these trucks objectively better? We put the two head-to-head to find out.
Design
The Scout Terra and the Tesla Cybertruck arguably couldn't be further apart in terms of design. Of course, variation is a good thing, at least as long as both options are solid under the hood too.

Read more