Although the market for passenger vehicles in Japan was small in 1910 Zaibatsu produced and sold cars to the Japanese by partnering with a European brand to produce and sell them under license or by making their own trucks. Some of the major players in the Japanese car manufacturing market were Nissan, Toyota and Hino Motors. But from its beginnings nearly all of the Japanese vehicle manufacturers were associated with zaibatsu keiretsu.

The method of marketing cars to Japan changed in 1935 as increasingly restrictive import duties for foreign vehicles helped protect new Japanese vehicle manufacturers establish themselves. This was particularly the case on the build up to World War II when there was a huge increase in the demand for trucks.

After the war because the automakers had close ties with the government they were urged to merge all the small car manufacturers into creating large brands so that they could compete on the international car market. Amongst some of the famous companies that came out of these mergers are Nissan Motor Co., Ltd and Mitsubishi Motors but not all companies complied with this directive. Honda, a well known, well trusted car manufacturer started small and never experienced a major take-over or merger unlike Prince Motor Company which was taken over by Nissan.

Manufacturing motorbikes and scooters The Honda Motor Co. officially began in 1948. It started to develop small cars, aimed at the Japanese market, with engines a mere 360cc to 600cc, in the early Sixties. This allowed the average Japanese person to be able to afford a car. This boosted domestic sales dramatically and jumpstarted the auto industry into the giant it has become today.

The first domestic Japanese car was launched in 1958 by Subaru. It was the Subaru 360, otherwise known as the ‘Lady Beetle’. Other domestic cars that appeared on the market at this time were the Mitsubishi 500, Mazda Carol, and the Honda N360.

For over 40 years the Toyota Corolla has been so reliable. That it was one of the first cars to require a sixth number on its odometer. After its debut in the USA in 1968 it made the number one selling import in just two years and became the world’s best-selling car from 1974 to 1977.