Of course, that won’t mean it’s impossible to get hold of a new Daihatsu. A Daihatsu could be purchased as a grey import and insured on UK roads with a Japanese import car insurance policy. The new vehicle will most likely have to take a SVA test, which if passed will confirm the car fits the legal requirements for use on UK roads (different countries have different standards to adhere to).

Daihatsu have stated that the growing strength of the Japanese Yen has made importing vehicles to the UK extremely costly and the uncompetitive pricing of their vehicles has led to a decline in sales. Existing Daihatsu dealerships will continue to offer various after-sales services after January 2013.

According to a report on carandvannews.co.uk, there’s a good chance that existing Daihatsu dealerships may take on Chinese car manufacturer Great Wall, which would also be bought into the country using Daihatsu importer, IM Group.

Demand for Japanese goods has dropped both at home and abroad and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) has stated that production has in fact dropped by 56.2 per cent.

The Times has written that JAMA predicts this year will provide the worst sales figures for 32 years. Many large manufacturers have cut staff, shifts and some have even ceased production.

Japanese car manufacturers are hoping that the Japanese government will continue to implement low-emission regulations to encourage people to purchase new vehicles. Perhaps leading to a rise in Grey Imports, as the the car owning public look to make money off their older vehicles.

One stimulus model that appears to be working in Germany, involves providing car owners with vehicles over 10 years old a reward for scrapping the vehicle in the form of money towards a new, or relatively new vehicle.

Perhaps this system will be put in place in Japan too?

The SVA test

All grey imports that are driven on UK roads need to pass an SVA test. The SVA test stands for the Single Vehicle Approval scheme and tests if a Japanese car is constructed to the modern safety and environmental standards that are necessary for use on British public roads.

The SVA test has a huge impact on grey import insurance costs as, if the car has passed the test, the insurance company will have a better idea and understanding of the vehicle in question, allowing for cheaper grey import insurance. These days, cars which do not pass an SVA test will no longer be imported.

However, there are plenty of grey imports in the UK that were imported before the SVA test came into force (2001) and so are most likely unfit for use on UK roads. If you are unsure about whether your car has passed the SVA test, here are some pointers that may help you decide:

Window thickness

Windscreen and window glass is typically thinner on Japanese produced cars. They must be replaced with UK regulation window glass to pass the SVA test.

Tyre compound

Tyres used on Japanese imports may be made of harder rubber than UK tyres.  Tyres must fulfil UK specification to pass the SVA test.

Speedometers

Speedometers in grey import cars display speed in km/h rather than mp/h. This is illegal in the UK, meaning the speedometer must be replaced in order to pass the SVA test.

Other factors

There are of course other factors that may not prevent your grey import passing the SVA test that you might want to address.  The radios fitted in grey imports are usually unable to pick up British stations. Whilst this is not a problem of importance, it will mean you will have to replace the radio if you would like to listen to UK stations.

Another issue that grey imports are notorious for is rusting. Japanese imports are often lacking in underseal which can lead to rusting in the UK climate. This can be remedied by applying underseal annually and regularly waxing your car.

Conclusion

If your Japanese car fits within the SVA standards your grey import insurance should be considerably lower than if it did not. However, it is worth noting that modified grey imports are considerably more costly to insure.

Grey import insurance is often more costly than insuring a UK specification car as they are usually more powerful (increasing risk of theft and accident), not to mention the fact that replacement parts are often harder to get hold off and hence more costly. However, being Japanese-built, it is rare for a grey import to experience mechanical failure.

Insurance Daily has reported that modification can increase the price of motor insurance by up to 139%!

Modifications often make cars more desirable to thieves, increasing the risk of theft and thus car insurance premiums.

However, it is not only the increased risk of theft that leads to a rise in the price of car insurance for modified cars. Many modifications are carried out by car owners themselves. Whilst this may not be a problem if the car owner is a mechanic, it  turns out that most modified cars are owned by young adults with little to no mechanical experience.