Mitsubishi Motors Corp. in Japan announced their new car, Mitsubishi Delica D:5, launched on 31st Jan 2007, got off a good start in February.

Starting with its style as truck at first, Delica has 40 years its history and Mitsubishi Delica D:5 is five-generation model after an interval of 13 years.
This car contains everything what consumer need for minivan, above all, off-road drive is the act worthy of its ability because this D:5 is designed based on outlander.

Some plans have already been released about minivans renewal, for example, Toyota Noah and Toyota Voxy in this June.  Those renewal cars may be going to change recent compact car boom in Japan.

Technorati Tags: Mitsubishi, Delica, Toyota, Japan

Hybrid and economy-class vehicles by Japanese car makers Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. dominate the federal US government’s top-10 fuel-economy list for 2007 vehicles.

The hybrid-electric Toyota Prius ranked the first, with 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 mpg on the highway, while the Honda Civic Hybrid was second, with 49 mpg in the city and 51 mpg on the highway.

Toyota and Honda made seven of the 12 vehicles listed in the top 10. The new Toyota Camry Hybrid made its debut in the yearly rankings at No. 3, with 40 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway. This is a very good news for Japanese automakers.

Six gasoline only vehicles were included in the top 10: manual and automatic versions of the Toyota Yaris, the manual version of the Honda Fit, the manual Toyota Corolla, and manual versions of the Hyundai Accent and Kia Rio.

Automakers said more fuel-efficient vehicles are available than ever before, driven by consumer demand, as prices of fuel are rising day by day.

Technorati Tags: Hybrid, Japanese car, Honda, Toyota, hybrid-electric, Toyota Camry, automakers

Toyota just launched a remodeled version of its best-selling Corolla Car in Japan. The Corolla name has been in use for 40 years, and this is the 10th generation of that model.

The new version uses an all-new 1800cc engine and is aimed to attract younger buyers in a stagnant domestic car market. Price for this new model in Japan start at $11,760.

Are Japanese used cars not welcomed in the world countries? Yes, for government authorities, but for many people, the demands of Japanese cars is high. This is because Japanese used cars usually have low mileage and are in good condition, in spite of old models. Although Japanese used cars are recognized in the world, local factories do not produce such old models that are requested by users. Regulation of each country varies on its conditions : Some countries categorize Japanese used cars as “hobby,” when they admit importing old vehicles. On the contrary, countries without factory allow importing used cars only late model. There are more vehicles with left-handled than right-handled in world wide, thus many counties limit importing right-handled for safety purposes.
In developing countries, short of transportation facilities in addition to lacks foreign currency restrict importing foreign vehicles. Consequently, the price of vehicles becomes more expensive by the time they reach the market. While large enterprises seek market where they sell numbers of vehicles, small companies use different selling strategies. It is fun to talk about these strategies with entrepreneurs because some of them export vehicles to wild countries.

Exporting car parts is easier because it has less restriction. Usually exporters send them in a container. It is profitable, but packing up all those parts is hassle. For this reason some exporters send vehicle and parts in a same container.

Technorati Tags: Japanese, used cars, Japanese cars, vehicles, importing, exporters

After 13 previous appearances on a Formula One podium, British driver Jenson Button in his Honda Formula one machine finally came as the winner by claiming his first victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Button’s victory also gave the Honda team its first win as a Formula One constructor since 1967. Honda Motor Co. President Takeo Fukui was at the event to receive the trophy given to the winning manufacturer.

It is an historic day for Honda to have reached this important milestone after a period of 39 years. Honda’s first victory came at the 1965 Mexican Grand Prix, supplied by American Richie Ginther. It was his sole triumph in a 52-race career. Surtees’ win at Monza two years later was, like that of Button, a long-awaited joy, if not a deliverance.

In 1967, however, Honda were a more streamlined and modest outfit than the vast concern now built around the former British American Racing (BAR) team. Soichiro Honda, the founder member had passion to enter the formula one racing world. Honda has proved to the world that the performance of its racing cars is world class.

Our hats off to Honda and Jenson Button !!

Technorati Tags: Formula One, Jenson Button, Honda, Grand Prix, racing cars

Nissan announced new GTR today. A prototype model was displayed at the recent Tokyo Motor Show.

The car will be launched in Japan and will go on sale soon afterward in Europe and North America.  However, the car reviewers say that it is not a RB engine.

Nissan is considering a twin-turbocharged, 3.7-liter V6 that produces about 450 horsepower and drives all four wheels through a seven-speed sequential gearbox. The production version of the GT-R is expected to debut at the 2007 Tokyo show.

Technorati Tags: Nissan, GTR, Tokyo Motor Show, Japan, GT-R

Recently, the USS auction hall opened even in Kobe.  The auction of Kobe was opened on last Sunday.  So now every day there is car auction somewhere in Japan. Japanese people love working. (I am not that typeactually, but I have to) Working for 15 hours every day, and even on holidays is normal for Japanese.

Technorati Tags: USS auction, Kobe, car auction, Japan, Japanese

I went to Mitsuoka Jidosya Co.,Ltd today. This company is making many individual cars and my favorite car maker.

Especially a small-size mini car is about the same size as that of a motorbike. It is suitable for cities like Tokyo which are crowded.

It is recommended for people living in a  big city as welll as small island country side; and a must for every vehicle lover.

http://www.mitsuoka-motor.com/

Here are some pictures of mini cars from Mitsuoka.

Technorati Tags: Mitsuoka, mini car, Tokyo