Best Motoring and Hot Version: The VHS Magazines That Taught Japan to Tune

Before YouTube, before automotive podcasts, before Internet forums — in the golden age of Japanese tuning (1987-2008) — two VHS video magazines dominated how Japanese car enthusiasts learned about performance driving and tuning. They were Best Motoring (ベストモータリング) and its sister publication Hot Version (ホットバージョン). Together, they taught an entire generation of Japanese tuners how to drive, what to buy, and which shops mattered.

Best Motoring (1987-2011)

Best Motoring launched in 1987 as a monthly VHS video magazine from Kodansha Publishing. Each issue contained roughly 90-120 minutes of professional motorsport journalism focused on Japanese performance cars. The format combined:

1. Track tests of new JDM performance cars — time laps at Fuji, Tsukuba, or Suzuka
2. Touge comparison tests — drivers like Keiichi Tsuchiya running mountain passes
3. Head-to-head battles — Skyline vs Supra, Evo vs STI, etc.
4. Tuner car showcases — featuring work from HKS, Nismo, Mine's, Amemiya, and others
5. Factory interviews with engineers from Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Mazda
6. Professional commentary from racing drivers and motoring journalists

A new Best Motoring video was released every month for approximately ¥3,500 ($35 USD). Enthusiasts subscribed via auto parts stores, book shops, or directly from Kodansha.

The Drivers

Best Motoring's drivers were the elite of Japanese racing and tuning journalism:

• Keiichi Tsuchiya — "The Drift King" — featured in virtually every issue, providing touge analysis and demonstrating drifting techniques
• Manabu Orido — Super GT racing driver, Tsukuba time attack expert
• Nobuteru Taniguchi — D1 Grand Prix champion drifter
• Naoki Hattori — Japanese touring car and sports car racing driver
• Kazuyoshi Hoshino — "Kazuyan" — former F1 driver and JGTC champion
• Satoshi Motoyama — JGTC/Super GT champion

These drivers brought racing credibility to Best Motoring's content. When Tsuchiya said a modified Supra handled better than a stock version, enthusiasts believed him.

Hot Version (1993-2011)

Hot Version launched in 1993 as Best Motoring's sister publication, focused specifically on tuned and modified cars. While Best Motoring covered stock and lightly-modified factory cars, Hot Version was dedicated to the serious tuning scene — shops, modifications, and custom builds.

Hot Version's typical issue structure:

1. Shop car showcases — visiting tuning shops to film their latest builds
2. Tsukuba time attacks — shop-prepared cars running lap times
3. Drag racing — quarter-mile runs at Japanese drag strips
4. Tuner interviews — talking to shop owners like HKS, Mine's, Top Secret
5. Technology features — explaining how ECUs, turbochargers, suspension work
6. Drift and touge battles — extended on-location filming at Japanese mountain passes

Hot Version was more niche than Best Motoring — targeted at hardcore tuning enthusiasts rather than casual car fans. But it became the definitive source for Japanese tuning scene coverage.

The Tsukuba Time Attack Era

From roughly 1995-2005, Best Motoring and Hot Version hosted official time attack events at Tsukuba Circuit. These events would feature:

• Factory Japanese tuners (HKS, Mine's, Top Secret, Nismo, Amemiya)
• Private teams and shop cars
• Time trial format (best of 3 lap times)
• Professional commentary
• Comparison to previous year's best times

The Tsukuba time attacks established a unified metric for comparing Japanese tuner shops. When HKS set a new lap record, every tuning shop in Japan knew about it within days. When Mine's reclaimed the record, same. This created competitive pressure that drove continuous tuning innovation through the 1990s and 2000s.

Iconic Episodes

Several Best Motoring and Hot Version episodes became legendary:

Best Motoring "R32 GT-R vs Porsche 911 Turbo" (1990)

A head-to-head between the new R32 GT-R and the Porsche 911 Turbo — the reference European high-performance car. The R32 GT-R beat the Porsche at Fuji Speedway, demonstrating to Japanese buyers that domestic performance cars could compete with European exotics.

Hot Version "Supra MK4 vs Skyline R34" (1998)

Tsuchiya driving both cars on touge and at Tsukuba to compare them directly. His conclusion: the R34 GT-R is faster on a track, but the Supra is more fun on a touge. This video is referenced in countless subsequent reviews.

Best Motoring "Tommi Mäkinen at Suzuka" (1997)

World Rally champion Tommi Mäkinen was brought to Japan to test Japanese tuner-built cars. His commentary on how Japanese tuners approached chassis setup became reference material for the Japanese tuning community.

Hot Version "Drift Special" series

Multi-part series on drifting techniques, featuring Tsuchiya's detailed explanations of weight transfer, throttle control, and line selection. These episodes were essentially free drifting education for an entire generation of Japanese drivers.

Educational Value

Best Motoring and Hot Version weren't just entertainment — they were automotive education. Every episode explained:

• How specific modifications affected car behavior (not just marketing claims)
• Why certain driving techniques worked (physics and car control)
• How to evaluate tuner shop reputations (comparing build quality)
• What maintenance was realistic for tuned cars
• Which modifications were worth the money (cost vs benefit analysis)

Before these video magazines, Japanese tuning knowledge was held in small, insular shops and transferred only through personal relationships. Best Motoring and Hot Version democratized access to expert knowledge. A teenager in rural Japan could learn the same tuning techniques as a Tokyo shop apprentice by subscribing to the VHS mailing list.

The Decline (2005-2011)

By the mid-2000s, Best Motoring and Hot Version faced declining subscriptions due to:

1. YouTube arrival — free automotive content became widely available
2. Economic downturn — Japanese youth had less disposable income
3. Declining interest in cars — younger Japanese were less car-obsessed than their Gen X parents
4. Aging core audience — long-time subscribers were getting older

Best Motoring ended its regular publication schedule in 2011, though sporadic special editions continued for several years. Hot Version followed approximately the same timeline. By 2015, both publications had effectively ceased production.

Lasting Legacy

Best Motoring and Hot Version's influence extends far beyond Japan:

Digitized Episodes

Many classic Best Motoring and Hot Version episodes have been digitized and uploaded to YouTube by fans worldwide. Channels like "BestMOTORing" and various individual uploads host hundreds of episodes, reaching millions of viewers globally. The content remains relevant because the driving analysis and tuning education are timeless.

Influence on Modern Automotive Media

Modern automotive YouTube channels like Mighty Car Mods, Hoonigan, Engineering Explained, and Doug DeMuro all owe stylistic and journalistic debt to Best Motoring. The format of "professional driver analyzes a car at a real track" became the gold standard for automotive video content.

Keiichi Tsuchiya as Cultural Icon

Best Motoring made Tsuchiya internationally famous. His calm, professional commentary and exceptional driving skills established him as the global face of Japanese car culture. He went on to appear in the Fast & Furious films, voice act in Initial D, and host numerous Japanese TV programs — all building on the platform Best Motoring provided.

Preservation of Japanese Tuning History

Through thousands of hours of professionally-produced video, Best Motoring and Hot Version preserved a documentary record of Japanese tuning from 1987-2011. Many of the tuner shops they featured (Mine's R32 GT-R, Top Secret Gold Supra, etc.) have been documented in ways that textual magazines could never achieve.

Conclusion

Best Motoring and Hot Version were the Japanese tuning scene's essential educational and cultural institution. For 24 years, they taught Japan how to drive fast, how to tune cars, and how to think about automotive performance. Their absence from the contemporary media landscape is a loss — modern automotive YouTube, for all its scale and accessibility, lacks the professional credibility and focused expertise that these Japanese video magazines provided.

When you watch a YouTube channel test a modified Supra at a track, you're watching the inheritance of Best Motoring's format. When a Japanese tuner shop obsesses over Tsukuba lap times, they're continuing a tradition that Best Motoring established. And when Keiichi Tsuchiya appears in any modern automotive content, he brings the credibility that Best Motoring gave him over decades of professional broadcasting. These VHS magazines shaped Japanese tuning culture in ways we're still feeling today.