Shaken

When I arrived in Japan, over 14 months ago now, I bought my car from my predecessor, who in turn had bought it from his predecessor, who had bought it second hand. So for the past 7 years the same car has been going to the same schools in Ouchi every day.

I own a 1995, 2 door Subaru Impreza coupe, 1.4 . Now the image that comes to your mind when you read the words Subaru Impreza is probably the rally car, at least that's what first came to my mind. It's far from what I own however! Now being over 13 years old, and having been involved in numerous accidents while in the ownership of my predecessors, it's starting to look tired!


Last week my motor-vehicle inspection test, or shaken (車検), was due. Shaken is the equivalent of NCT in Ireland. Its purpose is also to ensure that cars on the road are safe. There are however some fundamental differences. The main one being: cost.

The cost of the NCT in Ireland is €49 (¥7,600). But this is just the cost of the actual test and does not include the cost of service or repairs in order to pass the actual test. The NCT centres do not make any repairs, they simply carry out the test, and you either pass or fail. In Japan, when you get shaken both are done together. You can however take your car there before hand and get an estimate of how much it will cost, this estimate takes a day but is free of charge. The usually cost of shaken, however, is usually between ¥100,000 and ¥150,000 (€650 and €970), and usually takes 2 days.

The following is my translation of my receipt.

Vehicle inspection	¥	13,900
Cleaning and painting the under of the car	¥	16,000
* Discount because I requested no painting	¥	-7,413
Engine oil & change	¥	4,500
Oil filter & installation	¥	1,700
Preservation verification inspection	¥	9,000
Brake oil & change	¥	2,600
Brake cleaner	¥	1,500
unspecified part replacement	¥	1,000
Exhaust pipe repair	¥	20,000
New sparkplugs & installation	¥	3,280
Fan & A/C belt & installation	¥	3,300
Thermo unit	¥	500
3 second hand tyres & installation	¥	7,500
Disposal cost of old tyres	¥	900
Weight tax	¥	37,800
Compulsory Insurance	¥	22,470
Shaken sticker	¥	1,100
A representation fee	¥	5,000
Association costs for private use	¥	1,200
General excise tax	¥	3,913
Consumer tax	¥	250
	========
Grand total	¥	150,000

Oh but I did get given a box of laundry power and a pack of tissues after paying, so I guess that evens things out!