JDM enthusiasts the world over will now be left in famine as their staple diet of Best Motoring and Hot Version videos have reached the end of the route and will completely cease production next month after 24 years on the run.
This is according to Adam at 7Tune, who was lucky enough to have a chat with the manager of the Media Development Division at 2&4 Motoring, a subsidiary of publishing giant Kodansha and the corporation responsible for the videos, Yasuhiko Tanabe.
These videos served as the unofficial foundation and stepping stone for many a petrol head into the deep end of JDM machinery and culture. Almost all the people in the motorsports scene locally will have, at one time or another, watched these videos or even been influenced by them.
While the news will undoubtedly leave many of us reeling in frustration and sadness, the single positive aspect that can be taken out of it is that the coverage of Keiichi Tsuchiya’s newly formed Drift Muscle Championship will carry on, although the scale of that operations hasn’t been disclosed as of yet.
Certain parties have mentioned that only the Best Motoring videos will be yanked off life support but according to Tanabe-san, the entire 2&4 Motoring side of things will be shut down, Hot Version included.
From Adam said, Hot Version episode 110 and Best Motoring April 2011 will be the final issues of the series. Of course, the whispers are already painting pictures of a revival of sorts or under another name but for now, all we can do is enjoy reruns of the series on YouTube.
Source: 7Tune
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