McLaren midnight express

It's almost midnight in Tokyo. It’s still 32 degrees and and I’m cruising on the Shuto expressway in a canary yellow McLaren 570S at a leisurely 90km/h. Forgive me if I look a little smug…

A lot smug actually…

There's a glimmer in the rear view mirror, a powerful LED light, aftermarket no doubt. Probably a Toyota Soarer with nitrous injection. It slinks up behind the McLaren and flashes its high beams.

For those savvy in the ways of highway racing in Japan it means only one thing. Go time!

Teenage dream come true
Okay, so the illegal street racing part may have been a boyhood dream inspired by late nights playing JDM car racing video games, but the part about driving on the Shuto expressway is true.

A gap opens up, a tap of the left-hand steering wheel paddle shifter tells the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic to shift down and my right foot is already working in harmony, gently but firmly commanding the car to squirt more fuel into the 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8's combustion chambers.

My body is pressed flat against the form-fitting and absurdly luxuriant sports seats as a 600Nm wave of torque propels the car into the neon-lit night -- my eyes widening with euphoria. As the revs rise, 419kW is fully brought to bear as the revs pass 7500rpm. The Big Mac’s mid-mounted engine is emitting more of a banshee scream than your traditional V8 battle cry.

At this stage a strange thought pops into my head. Not "how fast am I going?" or "do I have another motoring-branded T-shirt for tomorrow's Gran Turismo Sport shoot".

Instead, I ponder how many of Tokyo's 14 million inhabitants can hear this yellow beast scorching through the night.

Crowded house
Tokyo is one of the most crowded, dense, wrapped-around-itself-like-a-confused-python kind of megacities on the planet.

It's an incredible place to explore in a car so exotic, and it gets plenty of attention when I cruise off the highway to take in the huge crowds and bright lights of Shibuya Crossing.

They say that up to 2500 pedestrians cross this busy intersection every time the lights change during rush hour. Even after midnight, it's still pretty busy!

The organic, almost alien design of the McLaren 570S seems to blend into the Tokyo cityscape, as I catch a glimpse of the cars reflection near Akihabara, Tokyo’s home of tech, anime and videogames.

With another busy day of filming and driving planned for the morning, I eventually decide to up stumps and drive the striking McLaren 570S back to the fancy hotel where I'm staying. It’s 2am but I’m wide awake and so too is Tokyo.

Popping the dihedral doors and tossing the keys to the friendly valet dude, I look back at the car with a sense of reverence and admiration.

Who said dreams can’t come true?