High gasoline prices are pushing up the expense of owning private cars in Japan, but prices of electric bicycle have fallen in Japan by nearly half in five years They are now lighter and more efficient. They are highly popular among senior citizens of Japan, according to a survey report printed in The Japan Times on 17th of August. 300,000 electric bicycles have been sold in Japan in the past 12 months, and buying one means never again paying for gas or parking tickets and no more vehicle-inspection tests which are expensive in Japan. About 100,000 electric bikes are sold in America each year, and they sell in small numbers in Europe where they called ladies’ bike. But they have gained a good market share in China and India, the biggest market around the world for bicycles. There are sales of over 10 million electrical bicycles a year, some selling for as little as $300. Riding an electric bike is simple: The turn of a pedal or press of a button activates the motor and you’re away. It’s much like riding a regular bicycle, only easier. Yamaha, Panasonic and Bridgestone are the major developer of electric bicycles in Japan.

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Japanese Used Cars, Electric Bicycles

Thailand will provide tax privileges to auto makers capable of using E85 – fuel with up to 85% ethanol, according to recent media reports from Bangkok.

The government has decided to offer tax breaks for imported E85-compatible vehicles despite a request from Japanese auto manufacturers to delay the plan by two years. Several American and European auto manufacturers already produce E85-compatible models for the export market only after two years. The Thai automobile market is dominated by Japanese manufacturers, nearly all of whom have set up assembly and manufacturing plants in Thailand to avoid high import taxes on completely built – up vehicles. If you are looking for importers of used cars, please click here: Used Cars Importers

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Vehicles, Automobiles

HIROSHIMA, Japan—Mazda Motor Corporation has announced that it will hold a summer event comprising two special exhibitions, ‘Hydrogen Rotary Engine Vehicles’ and ‘Nagare Concept Cars,’ at the Mazda Museum located within Mazda’s global headquarters facility in Hiroshima, Japan. The special exhibitions will run concurrently from July 26 to August 29, 2008.

The ‘Hydrogen Rotary Engine Vehicles’ exhibition will promote the merits of Mazda’s hydrogen rotary engine that is being developed under the company’s long-term vision for technology development, Sustainable Zoom-Zoom. The engine is powered by hydrogen, which Mazda expects will replace oil products as the dominant fuel in the future. The exhibition is intended to provide visitors with a deeper insight into Mazda’s efforts to bring the technology to market.

The exhibition will feature the Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE that became the world’s first commercially available hydrogen rotary vehicle in February 2006. Eight RX-8 Hydrogen RE vehicles have been delivered to date and 30 more will be supplied to Norway’s national HyNor (Hydrogen Road of Norway) project from summer 2008. Alongside it will be the Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid, which gained approval from Japan’s Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport (MLIT) to begin testing on public roads in June 2008, and is scheduled to start commercial leasing by March 2009. Other vehicles on display will be the Mazda HR-X, the first ever hydrogen rotary engine vehicle that debuted at the 1991 Tokyo Motor Show, and the Mazda HR-X2, which was built in 1993.

The ‘Nagare Concept Cars’ exhibition will be held concurrently in the entrance hall of the Mazda Museum. It will feature the four concept cars of the Nagare series – Nagare, Ryuga, Hakaze and Taiki – that were displayed at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show.

The Nagare (Japanese for ‘flow’) design series has resulted from Mazda’s efforts to express a clear visual brand identity and further evolve its sporty and athletic car design using nature as its inspiration. Nagare design denotes one possible direction for the next generation of Mazda design.

Mazda announced its Sustainable Zoom-Zoom plan in March 2007. It describes the technologies Mazda is developing in response to the issues facing the automotive industry and the drive for design that will captivate customers. One of the targets of the plan is to improve the average fuel economy of Mazda vehicles sold worldwide 30 percent by 2015. Through the special summer events at the Mazda Museum, the company will present its approach to car building that aims to harmonize driving pleasure with environmental and safety performance.

The Mazda Museum is the only automotive industry museum in the Chugoku and Shikoku region of Japan and welcomes an average of 70,000 visitors per year. Permanent attractions include a technical exhibition of the rotary engine, which is mass produced by no other company in the world, and many of the famous cars that have spurred Mazda’s growth. Visitors can also enjoy an up-close look at a working assembly line in an adjoining plant. As a popular destination for elementary and junior high school social studies fieldtrips, as well as the general public, the museum makes a valuable social contribution to the community.

Source: Mazda Motor Corporation

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Hydrogen Rotary Engine Vehicles, Japanese Automotive

400 members of Uganda used Automobile and Spare Parts Association have urged the Japanese embassy in Kampala to issue quickly business visa to Japan, according to recent media reports on the Internet.

The association is an umbrella organization for importers of used Japanese vehicles and spare Japanese vehicles and spare parts in Uganda.

“We appeal to the Japanese embassy to ease the issuing of visa because the process is long and we are given only three month visa,” James Kanaabi, the association’s secretary, said. He said that only 10 traders get visa to Japan out of 40 traders who apply for visa.

He also complained that spare parts importers are required to deposit between $10,000 and $20,000 with their Japanese business associates before documents for the imported goods are processed.

Kanaabi said visa delay is causing losses to members of his association.

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Used Car Importers, Japanese Vehicles

According to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, 218,418 passenger vehicles were exported from India in 2007-08, which is nearly 15 percent of the industry’s total domestic sales in India. To encourage and manufacturing and export of small cars, government reduced the excise duty to 12 percent in new budget of 2008.

Hyundai, for example, exported 126,748 units out of its total sales of 327,160 units in 2007 in India and plans to export nearly 50 percent of its production of 530,000 units in 2008.

Likewise, Maruti Suzuki shipped 53,024 units last fiscal and is planning to export 200,000 units in three years’ time.

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Automobiles, Small Car Exporters