Toyota RAV4 vs Suzuki Escudo vs Mitsubishi Delica is the Best Race Ever

It is without a single doubt in my mind that this JDM 4×4 race between a first-gen two-door Toyota RAV4, a two-door hardtop Suzuki Escudo, and a long-wheelbase Mitsubishi Delica Space Gear is the best thing on YouTube. This may be racing at its finest. OK, well, maybe not its finest, but its most awesome.

The Competitors: RAV4, Escudo, and Delica

Having owned a Suzuki Sidekick (same as an Escudo), having driven the 1996–1998 two-door RAV4, and currently owning a Delica (albeit an earlier L300), this race must have been awfully slow. Regardless, it’s ridiculously entertaining, as much as it is just plain ridiculous. I love this video more than I can possibly express. The world needs more of this.

The Track and The Rules

The venue? The famous Tsukuba Circuit in Japan. The rules? The first JDM 4×4 racer across the finish line wins. Admittedly, they gave the Mitsubishi Delica Space Gear (L400, a gas model) a bit of a head start. One look at that YouTube cover photo and you’ll see why. In the video, I love how they also go over the cars; the Delica is the only one you’d want to camp in, I’ll say that.

The Winner of the Ultimate JDM Showdown

JDM 4×4 race spoiler alert: Neither the Suzuki or the Mitsubishi wins. In the end, and fairly unsurprisingly, the Toyota RAV4 wins. After all, it’s the most nimble, and the only one with a fully independent suspension. Despite the Delica’s V6 power, its heft and height made it the last-place finisher, with the Suzuki in mid-pack.

I still maintain this is the best race ever. Then again, maybe I just miss the wacky competitions the Japanese auto TV shows had in the 1990s.