Sometimes you run into the coolest things by pure accident. In this case, I was searching for the latest and greatest feature way out in the boonies, and when I arrived I heard the faint sound of motors screaming under load in the distance. After checking the map, I realized that I was in the city of Motegi.

It hit me like a ton of bricks. Oh, crap! I must be really close to the Twin Ring Motegi circuit! Without hesitation I took a chance and went to check out what was going on at the track.

Once I arrived at the gate, I was informed that today was Super GT testing and it was open to the public. That was all I needed to hear. I plopped down my Yen, busted out my camera equipment and ventured into Honda’s auto wonderland. Since it was midweek, a Wednesday, there weren’t too many spectators and we managed to get some photo stands.

In the traditional test and tune, the routine for most teams was to send out the car to lay down some hot laps and then bring it in for adjustment. I noticed techs tweaking everything from the ECUs to alignment changes and corner weighting the cars. Top secret stuff was also going on behind closed doors.

Tires are a huge part of testing, which is why tire manufactures send out engineers to get feedback from the teams and check the track conditions for themselves.

While the race teams were taking a break, Super GT kept the track busy with street cars. For a fee, daily drivables were allowed to run on the same circuit as the GT cars, plus they were given lap times for comparison.

This was interesting – sightseeing buses were giving tours of the track while the Super GT cars were buzzing by at full speed. Can you imagine being on a tour bus going into the first turn with a Super GT car coming up on you at over 150mph?

Since it was testing, the cars were pushing like it was a normal race. Unlike Formula 1 trials, during Super GT tests the actual race-day driver is behind the wheel, so spectators were taking advantage of the photo and autograph opportunities.

Test results
Twin Ring Motegi
GT500