Are you a “car enthusiast”? What do you drive?

15 comments

1. I wrenched on cars in my younger days in the states, and drove a fairly heavily modded S13. As much as I miss that car, I wouldn’t want one here–I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it on the roads like I did back home. I’m stuck with a minivan for now, but something nimble with a responsive (thinking NA with ITBs) rather than powerful engine would be my choice if I had the freedom. An old classic mini or an Abarth or something.

2. If you like design and want something a bit lower in price, MINIs are nice. Good size for Japanese roads, nice feel in terms of steering and acceleration. These days they are sold at the BMW dealerships, so you could potentially look at both the Series 3 and MINI.

3. I enjoy driving very much, and am currently driving a 2018 Suzuki Swift Sport with a 6MT.

   Very fun to drive in my opinion. Small, light, and can be driven with reasonable fuel economy when necessary.

4. I’m not a car enthusiast but I am enthusiastic about my 2008 Daihatsu Tanto. Think it’s the best car to ever be made.

5. After living in a part of the world where some brands weren’t available, I decided to go a bit exotic. Drive a new series Peugeot 308SW. Great car, great quality, bit expensive. Most Japanese brands don’t offer estate cars, so… had to go foreign.

   If you’re looking for something a bit more unique, the 208 compact is really nice. Not sure about the 3 series or A3. Both seem to be overpriced for what they are, considering you won’t be enjoying the country roads with them here.

   But I mean, any car is fun if you drive on the right roads so..

6. I drive a Nissan Silvia S15 Spec-R.

7. As a car person in Japan. I heavily advise against foreign cars for several reasons.
   1. You’re in Japan, home of some of the greatest vehicles of all time at an incredibly low cost
   2. Finding parts of foreign cars will cost wayyyyy more than a JDM.
   3. Not all mechanics want to deal with foreign cars, where as everyone knows how to fix JDM’s
   4. Tax. Big one on that, best research before going through with it.

   You can get something sport like a Toyota GT86 super cheap here, or a 350z, Miata, Evo series, RX if you enjoy those too.

8. I am. I drive rx-8

9. If you enjoy 峠,you don’t want a big engine car. Get a light weight and good handling car like 86 or s2000

10. You can enjoy most cars and trucks on Japanese roads, but if you get a foreign car you should either be loaded or know how to order parts, replace them, and do user shaken.

11. Used Alpha Romeo Giulia Quadrofolio. It drives better than a current 3 series and it costs less because alphas depreciate like a rock here. You can get a $100k new model for $50k used.

    Also if you getting a A3 just get the golf which is cheaper but basically same car without the Audi chrome

12. Don’t buy German unless you can afford it. Parts are stupid expensive. Tax is now based on weight at manufacture not engine size. The rate didn’t change for most cars.

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    I have a KV36 skyline, supercharged and a S14 drift missile. (four s14 rusty carcasses for parts)

13. Look into certified pre-owned options (CPO, 認定中古車) if you can especially if you’re buying foreign imports. Audi for instance gives you at a minimum 1 year unlimited kilometers of warranty, woth the option of purchasing a extended warranty. And for a car to be CPO, it has to have a clear title (修復歴なし), undergo inspection at an approved dealership, and more often than not has undergone some form of basic PPI by a third party (it’ll come with a 品質評価書).

14. ‘04 FairladyZ! 3.5 liter engine, so tax is about ¥67,000 a year. Tons of fun to drive, even being stuck in traffic is more fun in a manual because it at least keeps you engaged. And even if the speed limit most places is only 60, it’s more fun getting to 60 sooner! Although I was really torn between this car and a Jimny, which I also think are super cool. If only I had a second parking space at my house…

15. Used to drive G35, and 370z when I was young in the states. Now, I’m riding mama-chari…