Japanese cars are some of the most famous in the world. Representatives of the Japanese car industry reliably hold a leading position all over the world. These include: Acura, Daihatsu, Hino, Honda, Infiniti, Isuzu, Lexus, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Mitsuoka, Nissan, Subaru, Suzuki.
Almost all Japanese car brands are known throughout the world, with the exception of Mitsuoka. It is the smallest Japanese car manufacturer specializing in vintage cars, including vintage minicars and one sports car. Mitsuoka products have good popularity in the domestic market in Japan, but are practically unknown outside the country.
Brands officially sold on the Russian market
Toyota is the undisputed leader in Japan, the Asia-Pacific region and one of the global leaders in the automotive industry. It is widely known for its passenger cars. The assortment is unusually wide and includes hundreds of models and modifications, many of which are specially produced for one specific market. Since 2007, it has its own car assembly plant in the territory of the Russian Federation.
Lexus is Toyota's premium car division. Initially, the products were targeted at the US market. In the 90s, cars began to be supplied to Europe, and since 1998 to Russia.
Hino is Toyota's bus and truck division. Recently, it has its own official dealers in Russia. Before that, only used trucks from Japan were imported to our country, surprising the Russians with their original designs and unusual engineering solutions.
Nissan is the second largest car company in Japan after Toyota. It is world famous for its passenger cars, and in Asian countries - also for trucks and buses. Since 1999, a controlling stake in Nissan was sold to Renault, after which both companies set a course for the unification of their cars. Since 2009, Nissan has opened its own car assembly plant in Russia.
Infinity - In the 1980s, Nissan, like Toyota, registered a separate brand to produce premium cars for the US market. Subsequently, Infinity cars were recognized in Europe and Russia. All sedans, coupes and crossovers produced are built on the same Nissan FM platform. SUVs and pickups also have a single platform, but are manufactured exclusively in the United States.
Honda is the third largest Japanese car and motorcycle manufacturer. Until 1960, it produced exclusively motorcycles. She took up cars against the interests of the Japanese government, and it was right. After the 1973 fuel and energy crisis, Honda's fuel-efficient cars quickly became the best sellers in the United States and then in Europe.
Isuzu is a well-known company in Russia in the 90s. Since the early 2000s, it gradually began to leave the passenger car market, focusing on the truck and diesel engine market. The oldest automobile corporation in Japan currently does not produce passenger cars, but occupies a leading position in the world in sales of trucks and diesel engines. In 2008, the assembly production of light trucks was launched in Russia.
Mazda is a popular passenger car brand in the world. It works closely with Ford, thanks to which many models of both firms are produced on a single platform. The only one in the world produces cars with rotary piston engines. Since 2012, it has its own assembly plant in our country.
Mitsubishi is a well-known Russian automobile company from the Land of the Rising Sun. Until the end of World War II, it produced exclusively aircraft, mainly military. After 1946, he has been involved in, in addition to manufacturing machines, mining, telecommunications, financial services, construction and insurance. In 2010, she launched the production of her trucks and crossovers in our country. The leader in sales of projection equipment in Russia.
Subaru is the original car manufacturer in Japan. In addition to the unusual design of its passenger cars, all of them are equipped with boxer engines. Apart from Subaru, only Porsche uses boxer engines in the world. Like Mitsubishi, it is widely recognized for its successes in motorsport, especially in auto rallies.
Suzuki is a Japanese manufacturer of "people's" cars. All Suzuki models are simple in design and affordable. Thanks to this, it has a large number of fans in Russia and other countries. Works closely with the Fiat and Chevrolet concerns. She is also widely known for her motorcycles.
Right-hand drive vehicles exported from Japan are extremely popular in the Far East. According to statistics, in this region of Russia the share of right-hand drive Japanese cars exceeds 57%.
Japanese brands not sold in Russia
Scion is a division of Toyota corporation that narrowly specializes in the production of cars for American youth. Products are manufactured and sold only in the United States and are unknown outside that country.
Daihatsu is another Toyota division focused on the domestic and European markets. It produces mainly subcompact and compact class cars and crossovers. They are not officially sold in Russia, but they are known to motorists thanks to unofficial "gray" dealers.
Acura is Honda's North American division focused on premium vehicles for the US territory and market. Has some popularity in Europe. They were imported to Russia exclusively by "gray" dealers, but from 2014 it is planned to open official representative offices.
Dome is a little-known Japanese sports car manufacturer. Until 2000 he took part in Formula 1 races. He is currently executing orders for the construction of racing cars for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Datsun is a Japanese automobile manufacturer that produced passenger cars from 1933 to 1986. In 1986, it was acquired by the Nissan Corporation and ceased to exist as a brand. Since 2012, it has been revived as a brand for the production of budget cars for developing countries. In the near future, it is planned to open sales in Russia. Moreover, the cost of cars will be comparable to the products of AvtoVAZ.
