Key Takeaways
- Abandoned cars in Japan are a growing problem causing space and unpaid parking bills.
- Removing abandoned cars is legally complicated and can involve lengthy and costly legal processes.
- Not all cars in supposed “abandoned” supercar parking lots are actually abandoned, with most being in pristine condition.
It all starts roughly the same. A YouTuber walks around in an undisclosed parking lot in Tokyo, surrounded by supercars that seemingly look abandoned. Ranging from an old Alfa Romeo 147 to a Rolls-Royce Phantom, some of the cars featured in the videos are covered in a thick coat of black dust accumulated over the years. The paint is chipped and the tires deflated. Without a doubt, these cars have not been moved in years.
Japan is well known for its struggle with abandoned properties known as akiya, but it also faces problems of a similar nature with a growing number of abandoned vehicles across the country. Taking up space and raking up unpaid parking bills are some of the issues abandoned cars are causing, but this does not necessarily apply to every single dusty car you’ll come across. While it is easy to equate flat tires, chipped paint and rust to abandonment, there is more to these abandoned cars than what meets the eye.
Wanting to know more, we tracked down the underground parking lot said to host “millions of dollars worth of abandoned cars” in order to find out for ourselves what truly is happening with these supposedly abandoned supercars in Japan.
“That” Underground Parking Lot With Said Millions Worth Of Abandoned Cars
There is nothing like a video showing rare, abandoned cars in underground Tokyo to catch a viewer’s attention. It caught ours too. We made our way down to the underground parking lot through a dark and poorly illuminated staircase and the doors opened to a gigantic underground maze, and a rusty Aston Martin parked nearby confirmed that we had arrived at the right location. Walking further into the lot, each row revealed countless sports cars and supercars. Subarus were parked next to Ferraris, and you could even guess the shape of rare models underneath immaculate covers; a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, a Mercedes-AMG SLS and a Lamborghini Countach being some of the most notable ones.
It quickly became apparent that some of the vehicles had been parked there longer than others. Not too far from a carefully covered up Ferrari Testarossa, a red BMW parked in the corner had its driver’s side window left wide open. In another row, we found a couple of rusty and neglected Alfa Romeos. While most Subarus in the lot were kept in pristine condition, a couple of those had deflated tires and dust piling up on the windshield. As we walked further, we found a Rolls-Royce Phantom covered in dust, with cracked tires, broken suspensions, trash piled in the back seats, an empty soda can stuck under its side sill and various messages traced on the dusty bonnet including one saying “I will become more ‘RICH’ than you.”
The Legality Behind Abandoned Vehicles In Japan
Abandoned cars are a growing issue in Japan. According to the Japan Parking Business Association, the rate of abandoned vehicles is said to be increasing at a rate of 10% to 20% each passing year. Shopping malls, supermarkets, airports and other privately owned car parks all face the same situation: cars taking up space and accumulating unpaid bills for months or even years.
The irony in such situations is that, despite their abandoned state, getting rid of such vehicles can be an incredibly complicated process for business owners. As another person’s asset, removing it without the owner’s permission is prohibited by law and if removed without approval, the vehicle owner legally has a right to claim damages. In short, it’s a catch-22 situation where the victims (parking lot owners) can be turned into perpetrators.
Despite their abandoned state, getting rid of such vehicles can be an incredibly complicated process
Oftentimes, tracking down vehicle owners require legal procedures. In some cases, vehicle ownership can be difficult to trace, especially if the owner dies (not an uncommon occurrence in an aging society), if the car is sold to another party, or if the car is involved in criminal activities. Parking owners can report the car to the authorities, but little can be done as the police cannot interfere in civil matters and cannot remove abandoned vehicles on private property. As a result, you will most likely find a warning paper tucked under the windshield wiper of undesirable cars asking for a swift removal of the vehicle. Ultimately, businesses can get rid of abandoned cars on their properties, but they need to be prepared for lengthy and costly legal processes.
The Not-So Abandoned Supercars Of Tokyo
Back to our supercar parking lot. The more we walked the more it became obvious to us that not all of the cars were parked there with the same intent. We took a closer look at the leaflets taped on some of the windshields. Some leaflets simply notified car owners about upcoming, routine parking lot maintenance. However, other leaflets warned owners about their license plate-less cars and that legal action would be taken to remove such vehicles. It is also worth noting that measures were taken against some of the abandoned, no-plate cars, with yellow metallic barriers hastily drilled into the cement floor to prevent the vehicles from exiting.
As for the blue Aston Martin DB9 we stumbled upon our arrival, the car looked very different from when it appeared on another YouTube video filmed in the same parking lot. During our visit, the DB9 had no more number plates, was covered in dust and the Aston Martin badge on its bonnet was gone.
While it remains difficult to pinpoint what happened to the handful of seemingly abandoned cars, the truth is that the majority of the cars in the lot were in pristine condition. Despite YouTubers adamantly calling the location a secret spot for abandoned supercars, only the worthless Alfa Romeos and BMWs looked truly abandoned. Though you might find an occasional abandoned luxury car or supercar, such cases are rarer and most of the abandoned vehicles you’ll find in Japan’s car parks tend to be worthless kei cars and other clunkers.
As it goes for many parking lots in Tokyo, two types of services are available for car owners: Hourly payment and monthly payment. Larger parking lots, such as the one we visited, often offer monthly contracts or teiki keiyaku to car owners who wish to have a long-term parking spot for their cars. Reasons to do so can be varied: Some owners may not have enough space at home to park more than one car, or those living in apartments may be on a waitlist for parking spots in their apartment complex. It is also quite common for car dealerships to use such large parking lots to store their inventory, again due to the lack of space in the city. With permanent security staff and cameras around the clock, owners and businesses are guaranteed a safe place to park their vehicles.
According to a more recent video of the location, the decrepit, plate-less cars have all been removed. The Countach, the two identical Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAs, and other models that were there during our visit were now gone; the SLS and SLR had switched places; and the Subaru model with the 555 livery that we did not see during our outing was back, confirming that there was regular movement going on and that the supercars there were not all abandoned.
As for the sad and dusty Rolls-Royce, it was still there and had not moved an inch. Since this underground parking lot states that no car is allowed to use the premises on an hourly basis for over 48 hours, and that the Rolls-Royce had no parking warning whatsoever, it would not be surprising that, despite its sad and neglected state, its owner had not missed a single of his monthly parking payments.
It’s About Time We Leave The Neglected Cars Alone
People will voluntarily abandon vehicles in public parking spaces for various reasons, but when it comes to dusty cars on private properties such as homes or apartment complexes, things tend to be more black and white. Such cars are highly likely neglected and not abandoned, despite what some of the YouTubers claim in their videos.
In Japan, it isn’t uncommon to find cases of elderly people dying without any heirs to their name. For those that also leave without a will, “inheritance administrators” can be appointed to handle assets, meaning the chance of having a luxury car occupy a private land’s parking spot for years and decades, though not impossible, is quite unlikely.
This brings us to a yellow Honda NSX Type R parked in a Tokyo neighborhood and that has attracted quite a bit of attention on the internet. Just like the Rolls-Royce in our underground parking lot, the NSX’s dilapidated state indicates that the car has not been moved in years. You might wonder why would one pay for a parking spot only to keep such a rare and expensive car neglected? While reasons could be varied, sometimes it is simply emotional. According to a Japanese comment left on a video of the NSX, the car likely belongs to the wife of the car’s deceased owner, who keeps it as a memory of her late husband.
As the hundreds of thousands of viewers that stumble upon these abandoned cars videos show, words such as “abandoned supercars” and “hidden car park” sure make for some click-worthy material. But perhaps it’s about time YouTubers give these neglected-but-owned supercars the privacy that they deserve.
Pictures have been edited to respect the privacy of parking lot users.
