Buying small appears to be the way to go in Japan– with the proportion of households in the country owning mini cars now rising to more than 50 per cent.
According to statistics from the Japan Mini Vehicles Association, the figure of 50.6 per cent was the highest since the survey began in 1986. It also takes into account working vehicles such as mini pick-up trucks and vans.
The report notes that the areas with both the highest and lowest numbers of the vehicles were rural. This may be a function of the fact that working vehicles were also included in the count, but appears to go against the assumption that these kind of small cars are only good in urban areas.
In fact,TottoriPrefecturehas the highest proportion – with 98 out of 100 households owning a mini vehicle. By contrast, Tokyo has the lowest number at 11.
The reports suggests there may be a number of reasons for the increase – with the most likely being the continued contraction of the Japanese economy and ever rising fuel costs, as well as the demise of the car as a status symbol.
