Shibukawa City in Gunma Prefecture, Japan has sponsored taxis inspired by the prominent cars from the Initial D anime and manga series.
As part of the city’s tourism campaign, three cars be available to cater to passengers around the city until the end of March next year. The vehicles will be styled after Takumi Fujiwara’s Toyota AE86, Keisuke Takahashi’s Mazda RX-7 and a car featuring an illustration of the four main characters from the original series.
Shibukawa City, depicted as Takumi Fujiwara’s hometown in Initial D, proposed a program to revitalize its town in 2008, with the help of the Shibukawa Ikaho Onsen Tourism Association, JTB Corporation travel agency, and other organizations. Maintenance hole covers of Takumi Fujiwara and other characters can be found across seven different places in the city, including Shibukawa Station, the Ikaho hot spring resort area, and other locations.
Elsewhere, Maserati teased Project24 track-focused hypercar.