Just got an email from my auction agent

[Kamikaze_Pigeon]

Originally Posted by A Place of Light

There's literally nowhere to go, lol.
A collection of narrow islands+some of the worst traffic problems in the world+one of, if not THE, best public transport system in the world=low mileage cars.
Also the Japanese tend to consider something pre-owned as soiled or less than desireable. It's not a 100% blanket opinion, but the majority of the public look at used cars the way you or I would look at pre-owned socks. If things still work the way they did when I was there then the Shaken makes owning an older car less financial sense.....and the dealers operate a 100% buy back so lots of their lovely used cars can come here

Yeah, the Shaken is a huge pain in the arse, has to be done every 2 years (older cars had to do them annually, but they changed that rule a few years ago) and can cost a lot if you pay a garage or dealer to do it for you (basically add an extra 60,000 yen on the bill for them to do it....I'm going to go the user shaken route for mine, it'll take a couple of hours and is full of form filling, but I'll save heaps) but the Shaken isn't just a super MOT, it also involves some tax and also the compulsory 3rd party insurance needed to drive on the road over here.

Just finished organizing the parking space (which you have to have before you can legally get a car over here) that also is a huge pain in the arse, I had to get 3 different forms from the police station to complete:

1. The actual application form for a proof of parking certificate.
2. A form where I have to draw 2 maps, 1 to show the location of my parking space and the 2nd a detailed map of the actual parking space (including dimensions)
3. A form that I have to ask my landlord to complete proving that I am renting the parking space form him.

And this is just the start......a lot of paperwork!!!!!!