Japanese Cars Myths and Realities

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It is not unusual to hear, or read about stuff that may or may not be true about certain people, places, and things. Sometimes people for opinions based on hearsay, and usually researchers and investigators take it upon themselves to find out what the truth of the matter is. If you are interested in purchasing cars for example, you may have heard about Japanese cars myths without knowing that’s what they are—myths. This article will make you aware of what these are and also show you the truth behind the myths.

Myth #1: Japanese vehicles cannot be trusted because they’re low-cost.
While some products may leave you doubtful of their reliability because of the low price tags, this isn’t true for vehicles made by Japanese brands, and this can be seen from documented consumer surveys and product performance tests. In fact, in a reliability survey conducted by Consumer Reports for 2013 model year vehicles, seven out of the top ten spots were taken by Japanese brands, headed by Scion and closely followed by Lexus and Toyota—all brands under the Toyota Motor Corp. Subaru, Honda, Mazda, and Acura made the remaining four spots. The evaluated cars are deemed to be the least likely to leave its passengers in a quandary due to breakdowns and other similar vehicular problems. These cars are truly tough and trustworthy, and they’re very affordable too—so the belief that they’re rickety because they’re cheap is just one of the Japanese cars myths. As a counterpoint, being expensive doesn’t also mean a car is reliable. Take a look at the Jaguar luxury brand, for example. It’s been deemed the least reliable!

Myth #2: Cars from Japan are not fuel-efficient enough for American and European standards.
Boo! Japanese automakers have perfected the art of making the lightest and most fuel-efficient vehicles, and these models have long been touted as the best when in comes to fuel economy, even beating their American and European counterparts in mileage rankings. In 2008, for example, the average level of passenger vehicle carbon dioxide emissions in Japan was only 141 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer, 8% lower than that of the Europe. And it keeps on decreasing, due to the development of hybrid technology in vehicles. The most fuel-efficient cars are the following: Toyota Prius (35.5 kilometers on a single liter of gasoline), Honda Civic Hybrid (31 km/l), and the Toyota Vitz (24.5 km/l). Obviously, “lacking in fuel economy” will never apply to vehicles by Japanese brands—it’s just one of those Japanese cars myths again.

Myth #3: Japanese vehicles simply aren’t valuable enough.
How do you define value anyway? In the automotive world, it means the ability of a vehicle to keep its worth even after years of ownership. A car’s value if affected by how it’s being taken care of, whether it’s always breaking down even after just a few months, and other aspects of durability. If it costs more to have it repaired, its long-term value isn’t that great. However, a Japanese car’s reliability is enough to make it keep its value for a longer period of time. According to Kelley Blue Book, the best brands with the highest resale values are Toyota and Lexus. This means that the cars made by these brands retain their value even after the first five years of ownership. Will you trust your money with anything less?

Those are the stories you may have heard of and even believed to a certain extent. We don’t blame you, and this is why we have laid out the truth behind these Japanese cars myths.

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Source by Kyoko Nitori