Toyota is the largest manufacturer in the Japanese domestic market by volume, which means it also produces the widest range of JDM-only vehicles that the UK never officially received. The UK gets the Yaris, Corolla, RAV4, and Land Cruiser. Japan gets those, plus an MPV lineup that ranges from the compact Sienta to the flagship … Read more
Japan was building hybrid family cars a decade before Europe took the technology seriously. Toyota had the Prius in 1997; by the mid-2000s, the hybrid powertrain had spread across Toyota and Honda’s MPV, saloon, and estate ranges. The result, in 2026, is a deep pool of well-proven hybrid imports that deliver 40-60mpg, seat five to … Read more
The UK’s default response to winter is to buy an SUV. This is not wrong, but it is not the only answer, and it is rarely the most enjoyable one. Japan built a generation of turbocharged, all-wheel-drive estate cars that handle wet, cold, and occasionally snowy British roads with more composure than most crossovers, while … Read more
The GT-R gets the press. The S2000 gets the YouTube channels. The Supra gets the memes. Meanwhile, a handful of genuinely excellent Japanese cars sit in the £3,000-8,000 bracket almost entirely ignored; importing for sensible money, going unnoticed at every meet, and quietly being very good. These five are not compromises. They are cars that … Read more
The Japanese MPV market has been feeding UK families remarkable transport for about fifteen years, and in 2026 it is better value than it has ever been. A used Toyota Alphard with captain’s chairs, twin sliding doors, and 60,000km on the clock costs less than a new Ford Galaxy base trim. That is the market … Read more
Europe thinks it invented the hot hatchback. Japan perfected it. While VW was putting a turbo four-cylinder in a Golf and calling it a day, Honda was building naturally aspirated four-cylinders that revved to 8,600rpm, Mitsubishi was fitting rally-derived turbo engines to family hatchbacks, Toyota’s racing division was turbocharged a Yaris before anyone thought to … Read more
The UK family-car market in 2026 is essentially a choice between SUVs that pretend to be 4x4s and 4x4s that pretend to be family cars. Meanwhile, Japan has spent twenty-five years quietly perfecting a different kind of vehicle entirely: the family MPV. Sliding doors, three rows, hybrid power, captain’s chairs, and proportions that fit a … Read more