Jul 20, 2008

The second car came




On July 5th, the second car of my family came. Its name is "i"(a-i) made by the Mitsubishi Motors Company. It is classified as "軽自動車"(kei-jidousya), most people call it "軽"(kei) in short. (This Kanji character means light.)Its engine displacement volume is less than 660cc. It is smaller and more fuel-efficient car.

Cars with more than 660cc engine displacement are called "普通車"(futsuu-sha). "軽" owners pay less property-tax than "普通車". "軽" is popular for daily use such as going a market, going to a working place. Now, people have tendency to choose more fuel-efficient cars including "軽".


"i" looks a big egg. My wife loves this design, so decided to buy it. I like it too. It has a unique engine-layout called "Mid-ship". The engine is at backer part than normal "軽".


The Mitubishi Mortors Company announced that it will release an electricity car named "i-MiEV" that has same design of "I" next year. You might see it in some news programs, because it was offered at the Summit in Touya-ko, Hokkaido.


Our first car is the "Legacy" made by "富士重工"(Fuji-Jyukou). It is a four-wheel-drive car, so it is not fuel efficient.(In Japanese expression, "燃費が悪い") And, it has a very unique engine that other car makers cannot develop.

It is luxurious for one family to have two cars, I think. But, now my wife goes "Jazzercize" class more often and we act separately than past. So, we decided to buy "i". My wife mainly uses "i" for going for her office, and I use "Legacy" on Saturday and Sunday.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yuts, daw palagpat imo blog.

Anonymous said...

Hello Mr. Bikenglish. You sent me an e-mail about this blog to an ad I posted on japan-guide.com
I enjoy learning about everyday things in Japan. I find them very interesting. I sometimes wonder if I should write a Japanese blog about everyday things in America. I wonder if people would read it.
The "i" is an odd looking car, but I like it. Do you know what its gas mileage is? Before today I had never heard the name 富士重工(Fuji Juukou), but Subaru is a very popular car company in America, especially where I live because they are all four wheel drive.
Do you know if the new electric "i" will be entirely electric, or will it be a hybrid? I wonder if they will sell these in America? Here people are concerned more than ever with fuel efficient cars.
I will try to comment in Japanese some day when I have more time.

Anonymous said...

I wonder why in Spain these kind of efficient cars are not selled yet!! We only use "solar electric" cars on public city buses in my city.
The "i" design is beautiful. I like it too

bikenglish said...

[to michael san]
I recomment you to write blog in Japanese. Because using Japanese on blog makes your Japanese skill develop. My English is very slowlly developping by writing this blog, I think.

"i" runs with 12km/one liter gas in a city travel. There is more fuel-efficient car in Japan.

Yes, Subaru is the brand name of Fuji-Jyukou.

I have heard that Mitsubishi Motors Company will sell "i-MiEV" that run with only electricity. Unfotunately, I don't know that it will be in the USA.

I am looking forward to your comment in Japanese.

[to farooksh]
Saving oil and reducing carbon oxcide are interenational trends, so eletctric cars will appear in Spain in a few years, I think.

ジョン said...

It's a pretty cute car. Here in America, it's pretty normal for a family to have two cars, so I didn't really think twice about it. I'm sure it's nice having the extra freedom, huh?

BK.Mitchell said...

Nice car! But, don't give up the bike.

Anonymous said...

I got to agree with your wife bikenglish san it is a very nice looking model i have a question thou
Im planning in living in tokyo for a while or (permanently) for work and my love for japan and language,

Is it really efficient to buy a car in tokyo? Might be hard to get parking spaces, plus extra taxes.

I Hope im not being rude but roughly how much would a car cost? Ive heard around million yen but i don't know what kind of car he means.
Thank you

じゃあまた明日 (Ps is it alright to say that in Japanese culture in Spain we say see you tomorrow as as a goodbye even if we wont see each other)

bikenglish said...

[to Jon san, to brian san]
Thank you for comments.

[to felix san]
You don't have a car if you live in Tokyo because the city has a highly developped public transportaion system such as subway and bus, I think. And it costs at least one million yen to buy a car, and you you have to pay more than one million yen a month at parking cost in Tokyo. In special case, like having a little child, you may have to have a car, but it is not a good idea, I think.

goodbye's Japanese version;
[polite]
さようなら
失礼します(if you leave than other people at an organization)
[impolite, friendly]
また、今度(会いましょう)
ごぎげんよう
バイバイ
じゃまたね

Anonymous said...

Ah thank you very much that's a great help.