Car of the year

This is an award given to the best car for the year. It started in the US in 1950 and we copied it and the “Japan Car of the Year” started in 1980. This year’s winner should be announced in about a week time.

The cars they assess are Japanese passenger vehicles. By selecting the best car for the year and praising its developer and manufacturer, it will promote more effort in making better quality, better performance and safe cars as well as to contribute in the development of the global automotive industry, protection of global environment and transport safety.

They have 2 different stages of selection. In the first stage, 10 cars will be chosen and in the second stage, a 60 member-panel has to test-drive each car to decide the winner.

In the final voting, each member is given 25 points and they have to give 10 points to one of the 10 cars, then spread the rest of 15 points between 4 more cars freely. In theory, the top points should be 10×60=600 and the car with the highest points gets the car of the year award.

Last year, it went to Honda Fit with 374 points. The reason was as follows: “Keeping the last generation’s high performance in basic functions, it enhanced its capabilities in everything from its utility features, ride quality, steering to environmental capability which is required for modern cars. This car has a quality and attractiveness recognised anywhere in the world”.

Here is a list of the cars which have won the award:

27th (2006-2007) Toyota Lexus LS460
26th (2005-2006) Mazda Roadstar
25th (2004-2005) Honda Legend
24th (2003-2004) Subaru Legacy
23rd (2002-2003) Honda Accord / Accord Wagon
22nd (2001-2002) Honda Fit
21st (2000-2001) Honda Civic Ferio / Stream
20th (1999-2000) Toyota Vitz / Platz / Funcargo
19th (1998-1999) Toyota Altezza
18th (1997-1998) Toyota Prius

They are all good cars but some might not be so well-known. There is a jinx that once the car is chosen for the “Car of the Year” they will not sell but there are exceptions like Prius, Fit, Legacy, etc.

This year 41 Japanese & imported cars are nominated and I personally think that Toyota Crown/Crown Hybrid, Nissan GT-R, Honda Odyssey, Honda Freed, Daihatsu Tanto and BMW 1 Series should win. They are the ones I like and have had inquiries for by many customers.

The winner is…?


★ Japanese used car stock : http://jpctrade.com/stock/index.html
★ JPCTRADE Home page : http://jpctrade.com/
★ JPCTRADE Blog : http://jpctrade.blogspot.com/

(Editor)
JPC TRADE CO.,LTD.
Kato building 4F, 1-1-2 Furuishiba, Koto-ku, Tokyo
Japan Used Motor Vehicle Exporters Association (JUMVEA)
TEL : +81-3-5245-7731
FAX : +81-3-3643-4955

Colours of cars

What colour car would you choose?

Most of you might choose your favourite colour, but if you spend a bit of time thinking about what happens after you buy a car, you might have a different view about it.

Let’s think about the resale value of a car. In Japan, depending on the colour of a car, some get a high price and some do not. The reasons are as follows. When you buy a new car, you can choose the colour you want. However, when you want to buy a used car, they are already painted and the colours are already decided, you will have to find a particular one in the colour you want. Among all the population of driving age, about half buy used cars and the most popular colour is black or several other colours in their mind. On the other hand, it will be 10 – 20% at most who choose black when they buy them new. (
I am only guessing. ) So within all the used cars on the market, only 1 in 5 are black and half of the people who want used cars want the cars of that colour, it means with the balance of supply and demand, black cars will get a higher price than the same model cars in different colours. Not as much as black, white is also a sought-after colour in the used car market and white cars tend to sell at higher price.

What about other colours? Lately silver is firmly in the top place. When people buy new cars, most of them chose silver; because so many are around, there is no scarcity value. You will not have trouble finding one in this colour which is why there is not much increase in price because of the colour. How about blue, red, yellow, green and purple? Unless the manufacturers set one of these colours as the standard colour for their cars, such as red for Alfa Romeo and blue for Subaru Impreza, these colours are less popular. These colours are not something many people are after and bring the car prices down in most cases. Green is the colour which can bring the car price dramatically down. (I personally like the colour…)

It also depends on the combination of the colour & car model. Cars like Mercedes Benz, BMW and Lexus, when you compare the one in black and other colours, the difference in the price is more significant than normal Japanese cars. I think black adds charm to these expensive cars and other colours just do not have the same effect.

However, I can only say this about Japan. People with different cultural background have a different image towards colours. In our neighbouring country Korea, according to a dealer who trades with us, the most popular colour is black then silver. A Kazakhstan dealer said the most popular colour is also black but white (the second most popular colour in Japan) is the taboo colour general public are not allowed to use because of their religion (Islam), unless they are for special occasions such as weddings. What is it like in your country?

Lastly, not from a used car resale perspective but let me talk about the colours from a standpoint of maintenance after purchase. Black has the disadvantage of showing dirt & scratches easily. It costs time & money to keep a black car clean all the time. White cars can show dirt but cover scratches and because the white paint dries harder it will not get scratches easily. The colour which least shows dirt & scratches is silver and is popular for people who do not have a chance to wash their cars very often.

How was it? Was this useful information? So next time, think what colour is the most popular in your country before you buy a new car.


★ Japanese used car stock : http://jpctrade.com/stock/index.html
★ JPCTRADE Home page : http://jpctrade.com/
★ JPCTRADE Blog : http://jpctrade.blogspot.com/

(Editor)
JPC TRADE CO.,LTD.
Kato building 4F, 1-1-2 Furuishiba, Koto-ku, Tokyo
Japan Used Motor Vehicle Exporters Association (JUMVEA)
TEL : +81-3-5245-7731
FAX : +81-3-3643-4955