It is very expensive to own a car in Japan. Gasoline, Highway tolls, Labor, cost of repairs & insurance cost up to 4 times more than US. One needs parking permit before they purchase a car, average parking in a commercial area is over $500 per month. Japanese vehicles have less miles in comparison to the vehicles in United States. A 10 year old car in Japan might have 50,000 miles on the engine compared to 150,000 on US engine. There are no after-market parts, very few body shops and no Salvage yards like in the U.S. It is not uncommon to spend $150/day to use a car. Most people use their cars on weekends & take shin-kansen (bullet train) or subway to work. It only makes sense because one can travel from Osaka to Tokyo for just $100 by bullet train with no hassle of parking and expense on fuel. Moreover all Japanese cars go through a stringent bi-annual inspection called SHAKEN. The cost of complying with these tests can run as much as 30% of the vehicle value. Cars with minor body damage are considered unsafe. There are few cars over 6 years old in service. Cars are recycled early. Compound these costs with propensity of Japanese consumers to drive only the latest models. The result is vehicles with tremendously low mileage are recycled. Vehicles in Japan suffer quick depreciation as cost of repairs is extremely high. In fact, this is the very reason why car owners in cities like California, Alabama, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Idaho, Washington, Washington DC, Seattle, New Mexico, Miami, Florida, Texas, Rhode Island, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Nevada, Las Vegas, Maryland, Colorado, New York, Colorado Springs, Oregon, North Dakota, Virginia, Arizona, Virginia Beach, Jacksonville, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Montana, Illinois, Chicago, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Arkansas, Kansas, Iowa, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia, Marietta, Georgia, Indiana, Portland, Oregan, Nebraska, Minnesota and Los Angeles are increasingly opting for Japanese engines as these JDM motors are considered to be very reliable.

 

People around the world call them JDM ENGINES, where JDM stands for "Japanese Domestic Market".

 

Reasons why JDM import engines are better than the ones from Salvage Yards in United States ?

 

- Shanken law ensures only newer vehicles on road. This makes it possible for vehicles older than three years with low miles to be sold as a used car for export or to be dismantled for auto parts. Shanken law is the main reason why engines imported from Japan have extremely low mileage.

 

- Japanese vehicles have less wear & tear compared to the vehicles in United States. Public transport in Japan is convenient and cost effective. Most people take public transport to work and drive only on weekends. This is another factor why vehicles in Japan have low mileage and are very well-maintained.

 

- Japanese people are meticulous. This is the reason why most cars end up at dealers for regular preventive maintenance as there are no after-market parts or repair shops other than actual dealerships.

 

Therefore importing engines from Japan into United States seems like a  viable option as they serve as a better option compared to high mileage American engines available at a salvage yard.