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736: Suzuki Swift Sport Suzuki’s bargain hatch proves big fun can come in small packages 732: Dualis & X-Trail Nissan introduces a new SUV while its marquee model continues to play tough 728: Toyota Vanguard Head off to the concrete jungle with a bit more vehicle than you need 724: Subaru Impreza S-GT Japan’s automotive loudmouth learns some manners 720: Tokyo Auto Salon 2008 Get ready for some modification mayhem at Makuhari Messe 716: Dodge These! Chrysler introduces three muscle-bound imports to Japan 712: Licensed to Drive We guide you through the bureaucratic jungle 708: Tokyo Concours D’Elegance Exotic autos from the past and present glide into Roppongi 704: Car Knows Best Automakers are introducing technology that will let your ride decide if you’ve had one too many 700: Range Rover & Land Rover We put three SUVs from the fabled British maker through their paces 696: Aston Martin V8 Vantage Channel 007 in this latest incarnation of the marquee automaker’s “baby” 692: BMW R1200GS Adventure The storied bike maker competes with itself to create a three-in-one masterpiece 688: Lexus LS460 The new sedan is big, fast, safe, classy—and unremarkable 684: Alfa Romeo Spider We unleash the Italian monster on a 1,200km road trip 680: Ford Mustang The American classic goes back to its roots 676: Citroën C6 The French automaker's latest eccentricity pushes its own boundaries 672: Nissan’s Pino and Otti Japan-friendly K-cars pack a big punch 668: Jaguar XK Forget James Bond—this is the UK’s sexiest export 664: Mazda’s Axela, RX-8 and Roadster Here’s the word on Japan’s resurgent automaker: buy, buy, buy! 660: Mazda’s Axela, RX-8 and Roadster Here’s the word on Japan’s resurgent automaker: buy, buy, buy! 656: Alfa Romeo Brera This gorgeous Italian coupe is both poised and sexy 652: Premium wheels Business is good for Rolls-Royce in Japan, with an eagerly awaited convertible due out next year 648: Citroen C3 Pluriel The quirky French automaker barrels into the 21st century 644: Jeep Commander& Grand Cherokee Off road and on, these 4×4s do their military heritage proud 640: BMW Z4 M Roadster Beemer’s monster convertible provides the most fun you can have sitting down 636: Name dropping What your car is called says something about you—and even more about automakers’ marketing departments 632: BMW Mini Cooper S All hail the mighty Mini! 628: Mazda Roadster Redesigned and retooled, this two-seater is now a car for enthusiasts 624: Hyundai Sonata A rev-happy South Korean import tries to find its niche in Japan 621: Lexus IS350 Toyota brings its upmarket brand to Japan—finally 616: Volvo XC90 V8 A bit sleeker and a lot more spacious, this SUV still puts a premium on safety 612: Chrysler 300C This black beauty recalls the golden age of motoring 608: The Big Ideas Tokyo Motor Show 2005 was a concept car bonanza 604: Tokyo Motor Show 2005 The automotive world’s big players zoom into Japan with some high concepts in tow 597: Three brothers We put a trio of Nissan sedans through their paces 593: Ducati 1000S DS Multistrada The boys from Bologna deliver an Italian masterpiece for your garage 589: Mazda Demio Sport A worthy cousin to the Atenza and RX8, this roomy sedan is happy around town and in the country 585: BMW K1200S The boys from bavaria clothe an iron fist in a velvet glove 581: Chrysler’s Cruisers The American auto manufacturer concentrates on the body beautiful 577: Suzuki Skywave 650LX If you thought scooters were just for kids, think again 573: Cadillac STS 4x4 America’s flagship automaker recaptures its former glory 569: Tour de Force Yamaha’s FJR1300A offers an unbeatable blend of poise, power and price 565: Alfa Romeo GT and 156 GTA With stunning looks and power to spare, these two Alfas are an enthusiast's dream 560: Driving the Future The talk of the auto industry in 2004 was hybrids, safe driving and intelligent vehicles 556: Deja vu Blast to the past on Harley-Davidson’s Road King Custom 552: Sports sensation Nissan's new SUV breaks out of its class 548: Lean machine Lighter, faster, stronger and sexier—a diet works wonders for BMW’s R1200GS 544: Kings for a day The Honda Elysion is master of all it surveys 539: Rules of the road New traffic laws are on the horizon. Turn off your cellphone, watch where you park and don’t ride in gangs, Chris Betros warns. 537: Open roadster William Bonds gets up-close with the elements courtesy of the Nissan Fairlady 350Z convertible. 535: Extreme makeover Volvo sheds its stodgy-but-safe image for sleek-and-sporty with the new S40 T5. William Bonds likes what he sees. 533: Sporting chance Mazda has brought the station wagon up to speed with its Atenza Sport Wagon 23Z. William Bonds takes one for a spin. 531: Street smarts Automakers are taking car safety to new levels with sophisticated warning systems that almost do the driving for you, reports Chris Betros. 529: Speed zone Just down the road from Ueno Zoo, a virtual hog heaven has everything for the motorcycling enthusiast. Steve Trautlein cruises on over. 527: Italian Stallion The Alfa Romeo 147 carries on its maker’s reputation for hot cars with unmatched sex appeal. William Bonds gets carried away. 525: Hot wheels A cross between a snowboard and a scooter, the Wheelman is a quirky Australian invention that's grabbing attention worldwide. Tim Colquhoun takes one for a ride. 523: Mean Machine William Bonds gets behind the wheel of the Nissan Skyline 350GT. 521: Show stealers Toyota stunned attendees at the recent Geneva and Melbourne auto shows with two concept cars that represent a powerful vision for the future of motoring. Tim Colquhoun reports. 519: Mighty mouse Subaru goes boldly against the tide with its new R2 minicar. Justin Gardiner admires this latest feat of audacity and engineering. 517: Trail blazer Nissan's top-selling 4x4 features cool touches for winter sports fans. Justin Gardiner drove the latest X-Trail to the slopes 515: Up to speed The Formula One circus is gaining momentum as the season opener in Australia draws near. Tim Colquhoun takes a look at the latest developments. 513: Good save Hybrid cars are the rage this year with Toyota, Honda and Subaru touting their gas-electric vehicles. Chris Betros looks at what they're offering. 512: The road ahead Despite the lack of a full-fledged Tokyo Motor Show in 2004, domestic manufacturers have a bevy of weird and wonderful offerings in store for this year. Justin Gardiner previews the lineup. 509/10: Top of the class Justin Gardiner finds his favorites from this year's Metropolis test drives. 507: Mom-mobiles Japanese mothers are trading in their once ubiquitous mama-chari bicycles for a new breed of K-car. Justin Gardiner tries a couple of the most popular mini-cars. 505: Cubic's rube Nissan has lengthened its highly successful Cube a few centimeters and added an extra row of seats. But, as Justin Gardiner finds out, the result is a bit puzzling. 503: Globe trotters Kerstin Gackle and Volker Aldinger left their native Germany on April 1 and pointed their Yamahas toward Australia. Eight months later Justin Gardiner caught up with the couple in Tokyo. 501: Back to the future Cutting-edge technology and futuristic vehicles highlight the 37th Tokyo Motor Show at Makuhari Messe through November 5. Justin Gardiner offers a guide. ISSUES 499- ISSUES 449- ISSUES 399- ISSUES 349- ISSUES 299-

Rules of the road

New traffic laws are on the horizon. Turn off your cellphone, watch where you park and don’t ride in gangs, Chris Betros warns.

If you drive a car or ride a motorbike in Japan, here’s some news for you: The nation’s driving laws are being toughened following the passage in the Diet last month of new legislation. Alarmed by the high number of traffic fatalities and driving misdemeanors, the police are set to crack down on driving and parking violations, hot-rodders, as well as impose stricter penalties on drivers who use their cellphones while at the wheel.

From January 1, 2005, anyone caught talking or messaging with their cellphones while driving will face fines of up to ¥50,000. Furthermore, motorcycle and car gangs will be fined for traveling in groups even if they do not cause trouble or harm anyone, according to the National Police Agency (NPA). A provision to conditionally allow two people to ride on the same motorcycle on highways will be introduced about a year later, and stricter rules on parking violations will be enforced two years later. The NPA also plans to tighten qualifications for getting a driver’s license by 2008.

Safety first
While the number of deaths resulting from traffic accidents in Japan dipped below 8,000 for the first time in 46 years in 2003, the number of road accidents hit a record-high of 947,993, which has prompted the new legislation, the government says in its annual white paper on road traffic safety. In Japan, a traffic fatality is defined as a death within 24 hours of an accident as a result of injuries sustained in the accident.

According to the white paper, 7,702 people died from road accidents last year, down 7.5 percent from 2002. Among those who died within 24 hours of an accident, the ratio of those over 65 years of age surpassed 40 percent for the first time, and at 40.4 percent the age group accounted for the largest portion of fatalities for the 11th straight year. In addition to the largest number of road traffic accidents so far, those who sustained injuries in such accidents also marked an all-time high of 1,181,431 in 2003, the document said.

It has only been two years since the last revision of the road safety law, which introduced stiffer penalties to curb drinking and driving. Campaigns were also carried out to get drivers to wear seatbelts. The catalyst for the revision of the law then was the widely-reported 1999 accident on the Tomei Expressway in which a drunken truck driver killed two young sisters.

Fines for drunken drivers who refuse to take breathalyzer tests have already been raised to a maximum of ¥300,000 from ¥50,000. Before that, drunken drivers faced at most a year in prison; now, in addition to the higher fines, a charge of drunken driving resulting in death carries a penalty of up to 15 years in prison.

Drivers try to avoid tickets with the help of www.kenmon.net

However, since the 2002 revisions and in anticipation of the new laws, many drivers have already worked out elaborate ways to beat the heat. Once upon a time, drivers used to warn oncoming cars that the police were lying in wait up ahead by flashing their headlights or via radio transmissions. Now in this IT age, drivers are using the Internet to evade the law. Japan’s tabloids and sports magazines have been full of stories this year on how to avoid getting caught. Shukan Post, for example, reports there are at least 20 websites that provide information to drivers via their cellphones and PCs on where the police are likely to be, and they are updated in real time.

On one site, K-net, you can see information on where the police were conducting checks in all parts of the country. On the top page, there is a map of Japan with all the prefectures. If you click on Tokyo, you get a message board that holds an array of information posted by users. Among them are warnings like “Checkpoints between Jiyugaoka and Kanpachi;” “Exercise caution on National Route 14 (Yasukuni street);” “Several patrol cars are cruising the Komatsu river area to Kudanshita,” and so on. If you register your cellphone email address and name of the city you are living in, the information relevant to that area is sent automatically into your cellphone when somebody posts a message.

Driving the web
How are these websites established and operated? Shukan Post asked a man who operates one such site. “I started with information exclusively in the Okinawa area three years ago,” he said. “There are no trains in Okinawa, so cars have been a way of life, and you get a lot of drunken drivers. Obviously, there was a big demand for such information. From the beginning of this year, I started a nationwide version and now there are over 5,000 registered users. A lot more people register during the year-end and New Year holidays.”

The man says he started the website after he himself had an accident due to driving while drunk. “I just wanted to caution other drivers. I didn’t start it to help people ‘avoid’ getting caught.” Nevertheless, his site is attracting a lot of readers, including some who found out about it too late. One of them told the magazine: “After work I had a glass of beer at a family restaurant, thinking it wouldn’t do any harm. I was driving with two colleagues from my office and we were pulled over. Under the new law, they were fined as well. We paid a total of ¥600,000.”

Another driver who got caught said: “When they pulled me over, I still had alcohol in my system from the night before. I thought I’d had enough sleep after drinking and I had no sense of being drunk, so I was surprised with the result.”

For the moment, the police can’t do much about the sites. A spokesman for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department said that exchanging information about police checkpoints is not illegal at present, and there is no plan to regulate such sites. However, if a person avoids a check because of emails and then is later involved in an accident, then the person who provided the information could be charged for abetting an offense.

Another big change in the new law concerns parking violations. The new bill requires car owners or those listed on registrations to pay for parking violations if the driver fails to report to authorities. A private-sector corporation will handle processing parking violations to reduce the burden on police, the officials said.

One area the NPA is aiming to tackle next is the question of child safety seats. Designed mainly for children aged 1 to 4, they became compulsory in Japan in April 2000 for all children under the age of 6. However, a survey of 12,865 families conducted throughout Japan by the NPA and the Japan Automobile Federation between April 20 and May 15 found that the percentage of children who are properly seated in child safety seats has dropped to 47.4 percent, down 4.3 percent from fiscal 2003. The survey found that only 28 percent of 5-year-old children were properly seated in child safety seats and 6.1 percent were not seated in them at all, even though vehicles were equipped with the special seats. An NPA official said that the agency plans to promote the use of child safety seats through campaigns at kindergartens and nurseries to warn people of the danger of not using safety seats.

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