Hello, so I am currently residing in Nago, Okinawa and needed a car for transportation (It’s a little troublesome here commuting specially there are no trains except in Naha, and most of the times bus are delayed.)
So as the title suggests, right now, when searching in sites like goo-net, used cars has been expensive this year. Its very difficult to find atleast 2014 year model kei car with max 60,000 km for its ODO.
Then I came across this car for 450,000 yen
Maker – 2015 Daihatsu X Limited SA
ODO – 5.9万km
Repair History – None
Shaken – Included 2 years
It also says that it comes with a warranty from the shop 24 months or 15000km which come firsts.
Also, is it a good idea about the optional insurance, if I also added insurance for my own car? Or is it not worth it?
Are there any cheaper options? I’m a beginner about cars so I don’t know if getting this car or other cars within the same rage is a good idea, or is it worth, or maybe it would be a tragedy that after a year or before renewing the shaken, it will break and will cost a lot for maintenance.
Also I tried to find some cars in Mainland that has good condition used cars and at very cheap price but the logistic is so expensive, like they said 100,000 yen for transporting the car. Or if someone knows a shop, would be greatly much appreciated.
Thank you!
5 comments
For starters, I’d be surprised if you are getting a 15,000km warranty on a 8 year old car at that price. Typically shops only offer the 1month/1000km guarantee on used cars.
I would advise against buying a used kei car at that age, the small engines just don’t hold up over time if driven hard and you will have no idea about the previous owner.
A good option if you are in Okinawa is to drop by the used car shops outside the military bases. Join the base Facebook groups too, they post used cars and might snag a good deal.
I bought an old 2013 Nissan Moco in Nov ‘18, except I paid more (around 60man). I’ve driven it hard as fuck the past five years. I’m talking like 120+ on the expressway on all day road trips several times a month hard. Bought it with 60k on the odometer, now it’s got almost 130k. Still runs as smooth as the day I bought her. Never had any maintenance problems or issue of any kind whatsoever. Shaken is always like 4man. If the Kei car looks in good shape and has no problematic repair or accident history, I’d say pull the trigger.
I will offer some advice, although it comes with the caveat that Okinawa seems a bit unique in the car market. Not that it matters, but I am a long term Japan resident (20+ years), retired, but active in the car market (personally, not as a business, and also not Kei cars).
The first point I would make, is that seems like a terrible deal for a car of that age and mileage. Basically any low end/Kei car over 7 years old (so after three shaken of 3/2/2 = 7 years) is literally worthless. In fact, you will often have to pay a shop to take a car that old with over say 50,000km. Once again, I realise that Okinawa is a bit of a special case, but it still seems way out of whack. If you do not believe me, just ask around at a used car dealer, and tell them you are trying to sell the car you are interested in buying, and see how much they are willing to pay. I am 99% certain it will be ZERO.
As a start, I would suggest you have a look at this shop (just to be 100% clear, I have no affiliation, have never purchased anything from them, just had a look, and chatted with the people working there, and it seems like a very reputable, good shop, unlike BIG (Trouble) Motors. The shop is called K-Cafe, and they are based in Kyushu/Fukuoka, so pretty much as close as you could get to Okinawa. Here is a link to the website:
[https://www.k-cafe.com/](https://www.k-cafe.com/)
You can have a look around yourself, but they have a few Daihatsu Mirai in stock that are effectively new cars (I see 5 listed on their weekly specials that have between 15km up to 2,300km and model years 2021-2022) for between 70万円~80万円. I might guess that they would work with you to a) finance the car at very good rates (JACCS is currently around 2.5% for used cars) and b) get it shipped to you at a reasonable cost.
Although this may be a bit beyond your budget (you did not mention an exact budget in your original post), if you can finance it, in the end you will be MUCH better off. You will have a late model, as new car, save your capital instead of paying cash, drive around worry free and in a car that should not cause any problems, and last but not least, when you eventually go to sell the car, if the used car market is expensive as the used prices would lead us to believe, then you should be able to get a pretty decent amount back, so that your net outlay is significantly lower than buying an old, high mileage car from a dealer which will literally be worth nothing when you want to get rid of it.
Like most things, it really comes down to how much effort you are willing to put in to find a good deal, and make it happen. Although it might sound like a lot of time and effort (and it can be annoying) if you have the time, are not in a tremendous hurry, and want to or need to save money, then it makes a lot of sense.
Overall, as a buyer, the used car market and used car dealers in Japan are very cheap, efficient, and trustworthy. The flip side of that coin, is that as a seller, they have you over a barrel, as there is effectively no way/market in Japan for individual sellers to sell their own car.
Beyond what I have written above, if you want to keep it simple and get something locally, I would strongly suggest trying to work with an authorised Daihatsu/Suzuki dealer. You will pay more, but you will also get more and they can often get you financing without any problems. As I have written above, it all comes down to your personal tolerance for ease and simplicity vs. saving money and getting a better car at a lower net price.
Just my 0.02 pence. I am happy to answer any other questions you might have.
Kind regards
Nissan is generally really competitive with their used car prices. Try stopping by one of their used dealerships. My first car in Japan was a 2009 Nisan note with 40,000 km. Hot it for 390,000 yen I bought it in 2017.
Personally, if you want to use the car for anything other than shopping or errand running avoid kei cars. They are not great above 60kph on highways, wind pushes them everywhere and sound like the engines are about to explode.
I forgot one important point in my post below, and it is extremely important so I wanted to make it it’s own post.
You may not be aware, but in Japan, before you can buy and own a car, you will need to show proof that you have a parking space (within 2km of your listed residence). Without proof of a parking space, you will not be allowed to purchase a car. The procedure is not that complicated, but you do need to have an official record of your space if it is connected with where you live, or if you are renting a space on a monthly basis. You will need to photograph and draw a map of the space, showing the exact dimensions. You will need to bring all of this to the local police station, at which point they will make an appointment to come visit you and double check the information provided. One this is done, you will receive the official shako shoumei ( 車庫証明) which you will need to give to the dealer you purchase the car from.
Regards