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Feat. @AbroadinJapan
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00:00 Pete’s New Toy
7:13 Pranked by the Elderly
12:45 Japan’s Car Industry is Losing to China
23:44 The Fax Machine
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18 Comments
The CCP and all it's businesses would most definitely like you to think Japan is losing out to China's spontaneously combusting cars.
People really like hating on Miyazaki nowadays huh.
Didn't realise Pete lives in Leigh 😄 Probably walked past you in the Peterboat without realising.
Japan is very domestic-oriented. People laud its convenience store – the top 3. But they all also exist in Indonesia (except 7eleven) – however they are just as disappointing as Japanese cars here. Easily because we don't credit local Japanese suppliers enough. Those konbinis are exciting because of the merchandises. FamilyMart and Lawson in Indonesia are just as disappointing as our local Minimarts – since they sell the same exact inferior local stuffs. It is just infuriating, since local manufacturers do export their products, and the exports are actually good stuffs. Anyway, there is just no defeating Japanese cars inside Japan, let alone Japanese local brands, although I see growing trends of people owning European cars in Japan. I have seen a lot of posters inside shinkansen station in remote areas of Hokuriku region – promoting "Hydrogen economy" for the future – probably very fitting for advanced nation like Japan – but globally very challenging – transporting such a very volatile and finicky substance. Not to mention its extremely energy intensive synthesis process. When discussing such thing, Japan often forgets that their wealth mostly comes from them dominating parts of the world – and their deflation represents their losing grip of the once Japanese electronic dominance of 70s and 80s, Japanese banks gigantic asset size in 90s and 2000s, then Japanese auto maker absolute superiority back in 2000s and 2010s. They are embarking upon very expensive de-nuclearisation for their future energy security, but the big story is also their super expensive Chuo Shinkansen with Maglev technology – the world's first application for long distance travel (Tokyo to Nagoya). They want a 1964 repeat when series 0 blasted through the new Tokaido trunk line – but back then, Japan didn't attach and become dependent to global market as they were before 1970s. It is no longer Hiroshi or Asuka paying their taxes with domestic consumption – but also taxable profit from Toyota selling new cars to Mr. Smith or Jamal or Bandai selling Gunplas to Bambang or Pandit.
In 2000s, NTT DoCoMo was the world most sophisticated mobile phone – but they never shared it with anyone else. However, it helped to create the superiority aura for many Japanese electronics, from Sharp to SONY, from Panasonic to Fujitsu to NEC to Toshiba. The world's largest bank and company in the world was Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, 3 out of top 5 Fortune 500 companies were Japanese banks. Sony and Nintendo plus Sega remains unchallenged in console market. The world's top 3 camera are all Japanese (Nikon, Canon, Olympus). Galapagos syndrome or not, Japan basically Wakanda-ed itself until Wakanda is overtaken by the world in terms of technological advancement.
A sign of decay is not only on how Japan conduct its business overseas. But the product itself as well: Japanese cars sold locally in Indonesia is just as bad: localised, yet still as overpriced. From 2000s to early 2020s, our local Toyota/Honda don't get the proper car infotainment device that can control your DRL, turning signal, door locks options, and other functionalities – they are just basically inferior OEM radio tape with oversized screen. Only Mazda and Subaru sell fully-featured proper "global car" standard. Yet, they are still sold at slight premium for that "Japanese" brand. When Hyundai started selling fully featured car at similar pricing – that's when Toyota/Honda started to hastily offer their standard global car. Nissan is basically kicked out, Suzuki & Daihatsu are playing on even lower market segment than the Korean and Chinese, only Mitsubishi clings on – with Indonesia being their largest global market (they won it through the same Korean strategy by offering slightly better hard product). But it only happens after Hyundai has eaten quite a significant share of the market. Now the Chinese has arrived – selling at even more ridiculous price with even more stuffs. It is not like Japan can continue to cling on their "reliability" myth anymore, since there are plenty of 10 year old Hyundais still running everywhere here.
As pathetic as it sounds – like Japanese tourism resorting to promote "Cool Japan" using JAV stars and cringey anime franchise – Japanese industry also desperately resorted to its last resort: extensive nationwide dealership / maintenance workshop network – which they have been cultivating for 50 years. They are no longer the cool kid, but irrelevant kid. Unlike the US that can re-invent itself with Apple when Motorolla dies, Tesla when GM and Ford fades, Xbox when Atari and those 80s game companies deflated… Japan just dies, albeit very slowly.
I think they understood that Japan no longer leads in technology, reliability, value, service, after-sales, and many other aspects of vehicle ownership. So "ease of ownership" it is – the only definitive clear advantage of owning Japanese branded cars. The product itself, the car is nothing special really – it is just like owning Japanese mobile phone these days. People will ask, why not Korean or Apple phone? As a weeb and fan of Japan – it is frustrating to see, since most of these outcome are self-inflicted. Yes, that is regardless American chicken tax and Plaza Accord thing.
Even if China was to run them by with brands and sales, few brands in the world is as safe as Japanese cars. We all know "made in Japan" stands for the highest quality.
I will continue to buy Japans cars and especially non EV.
Unfortunately the film by Myazakaki's son, Tales From Earthsea, isn't of the same calibre as other Ghibli works (outside of the animation, which is typically beautiful). Even the writer of the source material, Ursula K. Le Guin, didn't like movie.
I feel like Chris would be horrified to know that I wake up at around 5:45 AM during the work week. 😂
Japan is Tiny with zero natural resources… whole video explained.
Yup you definitely can’t export a car from Japan to the US until it’s at least 25 years old.
What will kill the Chinese cars is the poor quality control.
I love it when Chris does a Sharla accent impersonation, cracks me up…i wonder what Sharla thinks abourrit !
Great Vid Chris! so Chinese Car industry is only technically winning. No normal people buy or will buy Cheap Chinese rubbish imitation cars and electric cars they are extremely poorly built, have zero safety included, China has a massive population as does India. They are selling more cars than anyone else because they sell them for twenty bucks to peoples who can't afford a car nor can they afford a real car made properly that won't get them killed and has no safety so China scores by taking advantage of poor people with their shite cars and cheap fake tech. Japan should not worry about that no one in the real world cares about a three dollar car that will get them killed. Most of China and India still can't even afford a cell phone so the fact that China is able to heavily over sell in Asia Major and Minor is pretty common sense due to the 1 third of the entire human race living there and buying twenty dollar cars and scooters.
I still like Japanese quality. Sonly Xperia 1 V and Denon X4800h purchased this year but they are expensive and niche products. Japan lagging behind Korean manufacturers.
If you watch videos from The China Show you'll see just how badly China is lying about its auto industry, not going to spoil it for you.
China hasn’t innovated in centuries. They’ve just copied everything.
こんばんは carburettor Chris and piston Pete, with the car show coming up, have you heard any cultural stereotypes around different sorts of cars in Japan? Here we have stereotypes around my s’y MPVs, small cars for the elderly, white van man, and Audi drivers. Have you heard of any sort of similar cultural motoring stereotypes there? Ta for keeping me company on my (grey van woman) drives around Blighty.
I would love a Subaru EV, they're great cars for winter where I live