kuruma no menkyo : Questions and Advice

[tonikoro]

I wasn't sure where to stick this thread, but I guess this is good as any.




I've been considering getting a Drivers License here for some time now, so besides what I've hear, I'd like to consult some facts from what may not be so.

Is there a way to take the test:

A. -In english (which I'd rather do).

B. take a drivers School (also in English, although japanese would not be so bad)

and C. ways of avoiding paying Sanjyu-SanjyuGoMan all together?

International Driver's license is not really an option, so I was wondering (to those FG that drive) How'd you do it? -And, things to take concern to.

[Taro Toporific]

Is there a way to take the test:
A. -In english (which I'd rather do).
B. take a drivers School (also in English, although japanese would not be so bad)
and C. ways of avoiding paying Sanjyu-SanjyuGoMan all together?.

Courses are available in Japanese for as little as 190,00yen but in English, bend over ....


http://www.japandriverslicense.com/arch_content/services/driving_lessons

[tonikoro]

Thanks Taro.

Actually I think I've come across that site before.
But one detail that makes me wonder is the fack that my Lic from back home has expired since I've been here. -Also, when you say "Bend over" does that mean costly or just "nonexistent"? If the instruction classes are in Japanese, and the written test in English, I doubt I'd have much trouble. *Demo, Nihongoban no tesuto-tte 'sagi' no bubun mo aru to kiiteta. -In which I've heard there are trick questions in the test.

[Robato]

[omae mona]

As for me, I will renew my international license every year

Careful, my friend. The law changed. That license is no longer worth the paper it's written on if you've been in Japan for a year or more. You can always hope for a dumb cop, but as of June 2002:

http://www.relojapan.com/images/xpat/TrafficActArticle107-2.htm

Article 107-2
A person who holds a driver's license under Section 1 of Article 24 of the Convention on Road Traffic [blah, blah, blah] (hereinafter referred to as an "International Driver's License" in this Article) [blah, blah, blah] may [blah, blah, blah] drive a motor vehicle etc. [blah, blah, blah] for the period of one year starting from the date of landing in Japan [blah, blah, blah..]

See also http://www.japandriverslicense.com/arch_content/lawchange


I am betting that at least 1 person replies to this message with two words: "oh shit"

[Caustic Saint]

Just curious. How much of this applies to motorcycles as well? I've gotten used to having a bike again and would like to pick one up once I move to Japan if it's not going to be a huge hassle.

Anybody got any experience with this side of things?

[Nagged]

If you don't already have a license, then I think you will end up paying big money trying to get it here.

For what it's worth, I already had my home country's license and I went to the local testing centre to investigate what kind of poo I would be in for in getting a Japanese license. I just had an eye test before I got led off to a room where my photo was taken and I was handed a license a few minutes after.

I can't remember how much I paid or even what I paid last time for renewal, but I don't think it cost very much.

I'm not really sure, but if you already have your license and it's from certain recognized countries, it seems that it's not that hard to get a license here based on the credentials that your license represents. I also think that if you are from a country where you drive on the left side of the road, that is going to work for your advantage.

[Taro Toporific]

But one detail that makes me wonder is the fack that my Lic from back home has expired since I've been here.

No sweat, IF YOU CAN DRIVE CONFIDENTLY. Just take the test at Samesu Tokyo where they have one or two English speaking examiners. If you PUSH them, they will read the read for you and explain the Japanese questions in the same way they do for the Japanese handicapped. And yes, there are several trick (bogus) questions. My 50 year old Brit friend had an 20+ year expired license and they funked him twice EVEN though he was a truck driver.

[Taro Toporific]

Just curious. How much of this applies to motorcycles as well? I've gotten used to having a bike again and would like to pick one up once I move to Japan if it's not going to be a huge hassle.
Anybody got any experience with this side of things?

Over 250cc bikes have a REAL tricky road test. No hard, just tricky. If you buy a 1,000+cc bike expect to be TORTURED. They are English guides on how to pass the test on the Internet and even an English video on how to "beat" the test.

Dilemma: Under 250cc the test is easy but to carry a passenger on the expressways the bike must be more than 250cc.

(DISCLAIMER: I haven't checked the law in the past 2 years since I failed the motorbike test because I can't pick up even a 250cc off the ground as required by the test.)

[tonikoro]

[Taro Toporific]

Basic info for all FGs
http://www.clair.or.jp/tagengo/general/en-top.html


Driver's license
http://www.clair.or.jp/tagengo/general/en/en12-05.html


JAF (Japan Automobile Federation)
http://www.clair.or.jp/tagengo/general/en/en12-06.html

[Robato]

Careful, my friend. The law changed. That license is no longer worth the paper it's written on if you've been in Japan for a year or more. You can always hope for a dumb cop, but as of June 2002:

yeah I read it....this sucks. I wonder when they are going to change the law that spouse visas and resident cards dont mean crap too....then the politicians can have their wish of an all 100% pure blood Japanese nation with no intruders. LOL (its a joke people...I dont believe this....well maybe just a little)

[kamenr]

I am betting that at least 1 person replies to this message with two words: "oh shit"

Yes, I have just been through the new license process the hard way.

If you have been here longer than a year, then the only way you can convert a license is by going back to your home country, getting a new license, staying there for three months, then coming back to Japan and converting.

Otherwise you are a truly fucked gaijin. Like me. I actually even had a Japanese license that expired years ago. No go.

The easiest way to get a new license is just to smile and pay your money and go to school in English. Looking back, that is what I would have done. Even 500K would be cheap compared to what I have been through.

Most Japanese-only schools will allow you to take the instruction in Japanese and take the written tests on your own in English at the Test Center, since they will not have the translated tests available. In this case you willl need to struggle through the text and practice tests in Japanese with the aid of some kind and patient Japanese person. You cannot get study materials in English AFAIK, and it is impossible to pass the 40 question or 100 question tests without studying. A whole nother beast from the 10 point test.

But they at thr Test Center will be quick to point out that Driving School is unnecessary...

The third way, if you are a cheapass fucked gaijin like me, is skip driving school, and just go to the Test Center and gut it out. Resist the temptation to do this, it's a false economy.

You will have to repeat each of the four steps of the process numerous times, each time necessitating several thousands in fees plus half a day off from work. Twenty to thirty trips to the Center in all and you're done. Heck, some people take the skills test alone twenty times. My total cost in fees, carfare, food, private coaching, texts, etc, has probably been close
to 200K, even without driving school, and the total process has ruined several months. Total fucking nightmare.


[code][/code]

[tonikoro]

Man.. F@ck that..

Damn do I ever miss the DMV, less than 20 bucks and on the road.. DOne. If ever there was a country that DIDN'T want people to drive. -Let alone having FG's driving around being all independant, and Un-FG'd like..

[Caustic Saint]

Man.. F@ck that..

Damn do I ever miss the DMV, less than 20 bucks and on the road.. DOne. If ever there was a country that DIDN'T want people to drive. -Let alone having FG's driving around being all independant, and Un-FG'd like..

Really. I'll have to say this is another area where Korea's got Japan beat by leaps and bounds (in addition to cheap food, bootleg movies, cheap subways and trains and cheap rent).

As I recently blathered on about on my site, I picked up a motorcycle in Korea. Buy it, ride it - no fuss, no muss. I've yet to get my license or even register the bike at the district office. (Just haven't gotten around to it.) Last Friday I got pulled over by a cop for running a red light. I showed him my alien card and US license. All he did was tell me to get a Korean license (helpfully telling me which office I needed to go to) and not to use my US one. No ticket, no lecture about "the wa" - no anything really. He didn't even tell me not to run red lights anymore. Though from the fact he pulled me over, I gathered he didn't approve.

I'd love to have a bike once I get to Japan, but it sounds like an absolute buttscrew of a hassle.

[Robato]

Man.. F@ck that..

Damn do I ever miss the DMV, less than 20 bucks and on the road.. DOne. If ever there was a country that DIDN'T want people to drive. -Let alone having FG's driving around being all independant, and Un-FG'd like..

yeah whats funny is the US has 1/5th of the accident rate of Japan!!! (which is strange because you can get a license at 16 AND EVERYONE OWNS A CAR AND DRIVES....nobody takes public transportation in the US)
Then again, I guess the reason why Japan doesnt want people to drive is because the high accident status japan has.

[kamenr]

Man.. F@ck that..

Damn do I ever miss the DMV, less than 20 bucks and on the road.. DOne. If ever there was a country that DIDN'T want people to drive. -Let alone having FG's driving around being all independant, and Un-FG'd like..

yeah whats funny is the US has 1/5th of the accident rate of Japan!!! (which is strange because you can get a license at 16 AND EVERYONE OWNS A CAR AND DRIVES....nobody takes public transportation in the US)
Then again, I guess the reason why Japan doesnt want people to drive is because the high accident status japan has.

Dunno where you get your numbers, but AFAIK Japan's fatality rate is roughly half that of the US, which has about the worst rate in the heavily mechanized countries. I think this is probably related to the number of highway miles driven. Japanese don't drive many highway miles, and that is where people are most likely to die.

http://www.general.monash.edu.au/muarc/fatals/fatals.htm

OTOH in Japan and other Asian countries the proportion of fatalities accounted for by two wheelers and pedestrians is higher. 500 children die every year in Japan walking alongside the roads.

Accordingly, Japan driver training spends a lot of time on defensive driving with regard to bikes. The skills test focusses on crowding two wheelers out of corners, for instance, quite a different style of driving from what they do in the US.

Also, a good number of questions on the 100 point written test involve knowledge about bikes and how to avoid them. And how to ride 50cc bikes.

One other reason is that if you have a regular license you can also drive a 50 cc bike. These are lousy for touring but great for the city. I used to ride a big bike everywhere, but it wore me out in traffic. I switched over to a small bore trials bike--up and over those cars!

[Watcher]

OK.... here's the scoop. I was just plain stupid and couldn't have given more of a ratz azz about the OPP that lurk along the 401 back home and seeing as how I drove about 20,000km each year they certainly had plenty of opportunuty to bust me for speeding. They sent me the warning letters. They stalked me. They got me time and again. And, despite never having had an accident, they took away my license.
So here I am in Japan getting my Menkyo. Why here? Cause there's a 2 year probation period back in Canada (Ontario and BC, at least) and I'm not putting up with that. BTW I do have an extra copy of my old license but it's expired back about 5 years.
How do you get your license here? Here's what I'm doing.
If you know how to drive, had a license that is now expired, can't get one from your home country... then

1) Call the local license center (In Osaka it's Kadoma).
- book a kari-menkyo written test and pay 3500Y.
- write the test, 50 Qs and you need 90% to pass. It's available in English.
- pass the test and book a course test... buy a map of the course and memorise it.

2) Pass your course driving test... or keep rebooking till you do. This is not in English but you really don't need to speak as the course is set and as long as you do the course right (it's like a real life video game... except you only have one life) You will pass. I, however, failed it 4 times (too far from the curb on my left turn, rubbing the curb in the 90 degree crank, stopping 3 inches of bumper over the stop line, and waiting for him to tell me where to go.... so memorise the course). It cost me about 5000Y each time (test and car rental fee). They are really strict and there are many differences (small ones) that will get you on course but not in JAF's book. Then after passing you get a kari-menkyo which allows you to practice on roads for 6 months.

3) Book a final written test of 100Qs and a 90% to pass.

4) Book a final on road exam. Good luck.

I'm currently at stage 2 having passed the course (only 3 out of 30 people passed in my morning session) and will do my final written and on-road test in January. This has been a humbling experience and I will never dis the 5-0 again.

[Watcher]

Double post... sorry

[Robato]

yeah whats funny is the US has 1/5th of the accident rate of Japan!!! (which is strange because you can get a license at 16 AND EVERYONE OWNS A CAR AND DRIVES....nobody takes public transportation in the US)
Then again, I guess the reason why Japan doesnt want people to drive is because the high accident status japan has.

Dunno where you get your numbers, but AFAIK Japan's fatality rate is roughly half that of the US, which has about the worst rate in the heavily mechanized countries. I think this is probably related to the number of highway miles driven. Japanese don't drive many highway miles, and that is where people are most likely to die.

It was hear say (so I didnt have any evidence to back up what I said)....but since you pointed out that link.....I checked out the link it says it gets its info from
http://www.bast.de/htdocs/fachthemen/irtad/english/we2.html

which states that there are there are 3 times as many accidents injuries than the US.(per vehicle) Although both sites state there are more fatalities in the US.....
So I was off on my figures about the US have 1/5 the accidents, when it should have been 1/3rd.....but I guess out of that 1/3 most end up dying in the US (rather than just getting injured like the Japanese).....maybe US cars dont have the safty specs of a Japanese car?

[kamenr]

So I was off on my figures about the US have 1/5 the accidents, when it should have been 1/3rd.....but I guess out of that 1/3 most end up dying in the US (rather than just getting injured like the Japanese).....maybe US cars dont have the safty specs of a Japanese car?

I doubt that the US fleet is inferior in safety specs. For one thing, there are no kei cars in the US. And Japanese domestic models are notorious for being under spec in safety.

Anyway, official Japan statistics in any area are always suspect.

[Robato]

I doubt that the US fleet is inferior in safety specs. For one thing, there are no kei cars in the US. And Japanese domestic models are notorious for being under spec in safety.

Anyway, official Japan statistics in any area are always suspect.

well it could be due to speed limits as well....you drive a lot slower here. Maybe a lot of deaths are due to running off the road going 70mph on the highway in the US.....where as someone scraping up against the wall (cause the road is too narrow) going 30 kilometers an hour would most definitely live.

I just found another page (although I dont have the link) that showed that Japan has only a little more accidents than the US. Seems none of these sites agree on statistics. Either way, they all seem to show, more accidents in Japan and more fatalities in the US. (This shows me that I would rather drive in Japan as far as safety though)

[kamenr]

[kamenr]

I doubt that the US fleet is inferior in safety specs. For one thing, there are no kei cars in the US. And Japanese domestic models are notorious for being under spec in safety.

Anyway, official Japan statistics in any area are always suspect.

well it could be due to speed limits as well....you drive a lot slower here. Maybe a lot of deaths are due to running off the road going 70mph on the highway in the US.....where as someone scraping up against the wall (cause the road is too narrow) going 30 kilometers an hour would most definitely live.

I just found another page (although I dont have the link) that showed that Japan has only a little more accidents than the US. Seems none of these sites agree on statistics. Either way, they all seem to show, more accidents in Japan and more fatalities in the US. (This shows me that I would rather drive in Japan as far as safety though)

Average driving speed must be less than half that of the US. Interesting that the one place in Japan that has US like road speeds, Hokkaido, also has the highest fatality rates.

As for fatality stats, I seem to recall that Japan has a funny way of reporting DOAs. Isn't it the case that DOAs are officially counted as hospital and not road fatalities (making the police look a lot better than they are)? If you are alive when your ambulance leaves the scene then it counts as an injury.

I think I would rather be driving a big American SUV in Japan and be a pedestrian in the US, with its wide sidewalks and high curbs. Of course, if you go out walking around in the US you might just get arrested, but that is another thread...

[tonikoro]

-I have to say, after reading through the post on license experiences in this thread, I've also pondered on how F'ed Up people here drive.

Not only that, but the lack of traffic enforcement, and from eye accounts of people doing things while driving that back home might get one busted. It's sort of like, go through the pain and expense of getting a license, then drive however the hell you want to as long as you don't kill someone.

[Big Booger]

Came over in 2001, with the 1 year international license, law changed in 2002.. June or therebouts.. Didn't know about the change until October 2002.. Had already gotten a new international license...

Went to get legit,
Took written test, vision test, etc.. passed. Took drivers test, Automatic because they have a separate test for manual shift LOL,

Then got license. Was rough, took all day, was dog ass tired.. but I passed all the farking tests, and wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Make sure all your paper work is 100% in order and all information matches.. if not you will be sent home packing your ass!

3 years I can keep the menkyo.. then it is time for renewal. Dec 2002 went to the states, renewed my drivers license, spent $14, 10 minutes and was out the door.

Hopefully the renewal process is that simple... in Japan.

[kami gaijin]

I can't really see the need for a vehicle other than pure conveinence. For long trips; mass transit. And in the city bikes are quicker than sitting in traffic. Right now I drive a government vehicle on a SOFA license(gotta love the loopholes!), but in a few years I'll be a non-government employee again and I don't plan on going through the hassle(or paying *ssloads of money) of getting a J-license. If I really need a ride, I'll make friends who own cars.
I'm a leech, I know.

[Nagged]