Slender forms, chrome grille: emblematic cars imported from the United States sold by the Yosuke Fukuda dealer breathe the Californian cool, but on Japanese roads, American brands, shunned by the local audience, are extremely rare-to the Dam of Donald Trump which makes it a case of war with Tokyo.
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The Japanese Toyota is number two of automotive sales in the United States, where it sold 2.3 million vehicles last year. In contrast, the American leader in the General Motors sector sold only 587 Chevrolet and 449 Cadillac in Japan, from which Ford retired almost ten years ago …
It is not a general aversion of Japanese buyers for foreign brands: in 2024, the Germans Mercedes-Benz and BMW each sold some 52,000 vehicles in the country.
“They don’t take our cars, but we take millions of their own!”, Drive of President Donald Trump in April. Anxious to relaunch the American industry, Washington requires a customs surcharge of 25% on imported vehicles, a blow for Japan.
But the prospect of a revival of American sales in the archipelago remains uncertain: many Japanese admire ancient American cars, but when it comes to buying a new vehicle, they trust the national brands, told AFP Yosuke Fukuda.
In his garage in the middle of the rice fields north of Tokyo, where he resonates Californian hip-hop, he offers around twenty ancient American models at different catering stages: Chevrolet Nova from 1970, Buick Roadmaster of 1954 …
Mr. Fukuda leads a modern SUV, a GM Yukon two meters wide – complicated to park in the narrow streets of Tokyo.
“To be honest, I think the problem lies in the size of the Japanese roads”, he sighs, also evoking the “probably unfounded” impression that American cars fall more often.
Although some new American models are smaller sedans, these brands remain a niche choice, because “there are practically no places to sell, repair them,” he insists.
“Bowling ball”
However, beyond local tastes, Donald Trump estimates that Japan excludes American cars through “cheating” passing in particular by its technical safety standards.
Trump recently castigated on his Truth Social network “The bowling ball test” charged to the Japanese.
“They raise a bowling ball at a height of 6 meters and drop it on the hood of the car. And if the hood is bumpy, the car is deemed non-compliant, “he said in 2018.
An official of the Japanese Ministry of Transport, responsible for safety standards, however told AFP that no bowling ball was used to gauge the qualities of a vehicle.
Donald Trump “perhaps confused with the principle of a test where a hemispherical human head model is struck on the hood”, which must work to absorb the impact, he added.
However, anxious to offer wages in its commercial negotiations with Washington, Tokyo could soften its regulations framing imported cars, in particular by widening access to a simplified control process.
Fuels
It remains to overcome anchored prejudices: “My Toyota is not particular, but at least it does not fail,” smiles Hisashi Uchida, an employee of a 56 -year -old construction company.
“Many American cars cannot be parked in floors, and their efficiency in terms of fuel consumption is insufficient,” he adds.
Distinguishing itself, the Jeep (Stellantis group) brand resists better, with around 9,600 vehicles sold last year in Japan.
But overall, “I doubt that the American manufacturers attach real importance to the Japanese market, much smaller than their national market,” said Masamitsu Misawa, editor -in -chief of Japanese magazine, because Top.
In contrast, German brands have been able to prosper with an extended range and models “corresponding better to the tastes of the Japanese,” he told AFP.
Up to essential details: while in Japan, we drive on the left (as in the United Kingdom), the German cars sold there are well equipped with a steering wheel placed on the right.
A modification that their American rivals do not care. But that could change: the new GM Chevrolet Corvette offered in Japan is equipped with a steering wheel for the first time, a sign of a renewed effort to break into this market.
