Kabul taxi drivers favor used Japanese cars

Asian Economic News, Dec 10, 2001

KABUL, Dec. 4 Kyodo

Used Japanese cars, mostly old company vehicles, get a second lease on life as taxis on the dusty streets of the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Many taxi operators choose to keep the Japanese company logos and phone numbers written in Japanese on the car's body as ''proof that it is made in Japan,'' said Asef, a Kabul car dealer, referring to the known reliability of Japanese cars.

In an interview last week, Asef, 37, said the cars are transported from Japan via Dubai and Iran where they are traded. The vehicles are then remodeled into taxi cabs painted in yellow and white.

His most popular Japanese car is the 1992 Toyota Corolla van with a price of about $3,000 and a mileage of 100,000 kilometers, the car dealer said.

When told that in Japan, no one would buy a car with a 100,000 mileage, Asef said, looking puzzled, ''Here in Kabul we treat this car as if it were brand new. This car would have a good 10 years before it becomes really dilapidated.''