I’m from Australia and I had over ever heard of Kei Cars. They don’t exist in Australia and you can’t import them either. (Well you can but only about 3 different types). Apparently they are too dangerous or something. But I went from a few Subaru Liberty’s and Impreza’s and Mitsubishi Lancers and Nissan Pathfinders to Suzuki Alto Works Turbo and Suzuki Hustler.
There are pros and cons for each of them but what has your experience been going from your home country’s cars to Japanese cars?
5 comments
the wheel was on the other side
I’m not sure if this is a Japan thing or a “I’ve been in Japan so long I didn’t realize they were doing this in my home country too now” thing, but I’ve noticed that almost all cars and mini vans in Japan have tinted windows for the back seat passengers.
My wife and I bought our first car here a couple of years ago second hand and pretty much all the options we looked at had tinted back windows so we didn’t really have any choice but to get a car with them. Its incredibly annoying. Our kids sit in the back seat and unless the windows are open they can barely see outside. And it limits your view when doing a shoulder check.
I have no idea why they all have this stupid feature but I really hate it.
I drove a Forester in the US, I drive a Forester in Japan.
For some reason my turn signal in Japan turns on my windshield wipers
As a fellow Australian we might be one of the more similar markets to Japan, since we drive on the left side of the road and use km/h.
Personally my car history isn’t that amazing cos I came here at 22 and didn’t get a car here until 34. I drove a Peugeot 307 before and a BMW 320i now. Both cars are pretty much the same in each country. Differences I’ve noticed in general are:
– Almost no Korean cars here while they’re huge in Australia.
– Australia likely has more 4WDs due to necessity but I haven’t found SUVs exactly rare here.
– Japan does have those huge people mover vans like Alphards and Serenas that are rare in aus, where we’d prefer SUVs
– Mazdas and Mitsubishis are more popular in Australia than they are here. Oh and did you know Isuzu makes passenger cars these days? They don’t exist in japan but it appears Isuzu manufactures cars in Thailand to export across Asia-Pacific.
– Cars have a beep while reversing here
– more proper utes in Australia, obviously I guess. Most tradies in japan use kei trucks. The Hiluxes I have seen here appear to be more as a vanity car than for true working use, though some people probably put outdoor equipment in the back.
– I’ve seen grey imports on multiple occasions from Japan to Australia but rarely the other way around. But I think I’ve seen one: There was a hearse driving around where I used to work that I’m 99% sure was a Holden Commodore wagon.
I use to buy new cars in America since used cars in America are super hit or miss (wtf are highway miles btw). In japan I just get a lightly used 2-3 year old used car and save 10-20% and never has a problem