What would you do if you found yourself with a few billion dollars burning a hole in your pocket? Superyachts, hypercars, private jets, all of the above? Well how about cutting a mountain in half and building one of the world’s most exclusive race tracks.
That’s what Cornes & Co did here in Japan, and with that, we’re left with The Magarigawa Club.
The Magarigawa Club is not hot off the press news, it’s actually been open for a little over 18 months now, but since it’s doors have opened, I had yet to have the chance to visit and see what the fuss was all about.
That was until RennCurator invited me out for a few days of car guys paradise. The main reason for my trip out to Magarigawa was to cover his newly delivered Prodrive P25, I covered that experience here. But Prodrive aside, there was a lot more going on at the circuit that deserves its own look.
For the unfamiliar, Magarigawa is an ultra-luxurious club nestled in the hills of Chiba, just over an hour out of central Tokyo. The club comprises of all sorts of amenities, including a bar, cigar lounge, infinity edge pool, restaurant, sim room, spa, gym and 10 villas to accommodate those lucky enough to stay. All these amenities are some of the nicest rooms you’ll ever step into, with the experience easily comparable to a 7-star hotel. I actually shot these pans from the bedroom balcony of the club’s main villas…
But there is one stark difference between The Magarigawa Club and a 7-star hotel, and that’s the 3.5km world class, Hermann Tilke designed track surrounding it.
Just upon entering the grounds, you have a seven-minute drive from the front gate to the clubhouse. The sheer engineering feats of building a circuit into the mountain is obvious with retaining walls taller than apartment blocks and elevation changes enough to make your ears pop.
But enough about the venue, and more about some of the cars that RennCurator and his friends had brought out for the week. Starting with RennCurator’s very own Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport 25.
Mark did a full write up on the nitty gritty of the CS25 previously, so I wont ramble on the specifics, but I can confirm this Manthey beast is worth every bit of hype it gets.
Paired with a venue like Magarigawa, it’s almost impossible to take a bad photo of the the CS25, and the on track performance was there to match its good looks.
The CS25 was almost always the fastest car on track each day at Magarigawa, and whilst I can’t divulge what its lap time competition was, I can say there was some very worthy opponents.
Alongside RennCurator’s CS25 and previously covered P25, his HKS GR86 was in attendance. This is actually the exact car we all saw make its debut at the 2024 Tokyo Auto Salon, HKS’s first iteration of their full package street and circuit builds. Since this car’s first debut, I’ve also had the chance to cover HKS’s second complete GR86 and its Tsukuba circuit shakedown.
RennCurator’s friends didn’t come empty handed, brining some more JDMs to the typically super and hypercar exclusive pits, in the likes of a GRMN Yaris, TOM’s GR86 and NA2 NSX Type S.
But there was one other NSX that had all of my attention.
As far as tuned NSX’s go, this would have to be one of the best I’ve come across in Japan. Based on a NA1 Type R, the car had undergone a front NA2 conversion as well as had a complete ITB setup bolted on.
Inside the car followed suit with all the instrumentation reminiscent of peak mid 2000’s NSX tuning. This car deserves it’s own deep dive however so I’ll save the specifics for its own feature.
The Magarigawa Club is one of the most breathtaking places I have ever been in my life, wrapped amongst a world class circuit and being driven by some of the world’s best cars makes this an experience any car guy should add to their bucket list, right under the $200,000+ membership fee…
Alec Pender
Instagram: noplansco
RennCurator – Car Owner
Instagram: renncurator
