Inside Larry Chen’s Car Collection: A Living Resume of Automotive Photography

Renowned automotive photographer Larry Chen has long been recognized for documenting the world’s most significant car cultures, but a recent look at his personal garage reveals a collection that serves as a functional resume of his career. Moving beyond a simple assembly of rare vehicles, Chen’s fleet highlights a shift toward purpose-built machines that serve as both professional tools and markers of shifting automotive manufacturing trends.

A centerpiece of the collection is a Bayside Blue Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R, a vehicle that represents a significant financial and technical investment. The car underwent an exhaustive 12 million yen restoration at Garage Yoshida in Nara, Japan, a project that spanned four months to return the iconic chassis to a factory-plus standard. The timing of the vehicle’s prominence in Chen’s fleet coincides with many R34 models surpassing the 25-year U.S. import rule, which has simplified the legal registration of these vehicles for American collectors.

Technical restorations, such as those performed at Garage Yoshida, form the backbone of the collection.

Professional Utility and the GR Supra

While many collectors focus on aesthetic preservation, Chen’s 2026 Toyota GR Supra is configured as a specialized high-speed chase vehicle. Tuned to produce over 500 horsepower while running on E60 fuel, the car is specifically engineered to keep pace with performance vehicles during high-stakes photography sessions. Its most notable modification is a set of steering-wheel-operated camera controls, allowing Chen to manage camera rigs while driving at speed—a technical necessity for the high-end automotive cinematography he produces.

The collection also includes a 2026 Toyota GR Corolla that marks a significant pivot in Toyota’s production history. Unlike previous iterations of the GR Corolla, which were famously assembled at the Motomachi plant in Japan, Chen’s car was built at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK plant in Burnaston. This shift represents the first time GR production has moved outside of its original Japanese facility, a milestone that has drawn interest from enthusiasts tracking the globalization of Toyota’s performance division.

Design Influences and Maintenance

Chen’s collection frequently blends professional history with specific racing aesthetics. His 1984 BMW E30 Spec Race car features a distinctive 7-Eleven livery designed by Livery Magic. The design is an intentional nod to 1980s DTM racing aesthetics, showcasing the intersection of personal nostalgia and the period-correct styling that defines much of Chen’s photographic work. According to Hagerty Media, the attention to detail in these projects often involves specialized shops across the globe, reflecting the international nature of modern car culture.

Each vehicle in the collection appears to fulfill a specific role, from the Skyline’s role as a restored JDM icon to the Supra’s function as a precision tool. This “living resume” approach differentiates the collection from static displays, emphasizing that for a chronicler of car culture, the vehicles themselves must be as capable as the equipment used to photograph them.

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