Japan has a reputation for well-kept cars. Some of it is earned, some of it is myth. This is what actually makes the difference, and why we still inspect every car.
Shaken is Japan’s compulsory roadworthiness inspection. New cars take their first after three years, and most cars every two years after that.
The inspection is thorough and the cost of keeping a car through it rises with age, so owners tend to maintain cars properly or sell them on. That is one reason so many younger, well-kept cars leave the Japanese market.
In Japan’s big cities, excellent public transport and short daily journeys mean many cars cover modest distances. Road salt is absent from much of the country, which helps underbodies.
But not all regions are the same. Snowy northern areas do use salt, and a car can be driven hard anywhere. Use patterns are a tendency, not a guarantee.
Most used cars in Japan are sold through large auction houses. Each car is inspected by the auction’s own inspector, who grades it and records every mark on a sheet.
Because the inspector does not sell the car, the sheet is one of the most useful documents a remote buyer can have. We translate it in full.
| 6 / S | Virtually new |
|---|---|
| 5 | Excellent, very few marks |
| 4.5 | Very good, minor marks |
| 4 | Good, some light marks |
| 3.5 | Average, visible wear or marks to address |
| 3 | Below average, needs cosmetic work |
| R / RA | Repaired: has had structural or significant panel repair |
Interior grades run from A (excellent) to E (poor). Exact definitions vary slightly between auction houses.
Auction sheets record the odometer reading, and inspection and service records often add further readings over a car’s life.
We cross-check what we can before calling mileage verified. Where we cannot verify it, the listing says so.
A Japanese-market car is not automatically a good car. Some have hard lives, some have been repaired, some are graded generously. Revora’s value is in choosing carefully, inspecting honestly and showing you what we found.
See what we chose