And the thing is that the auto companies see these changes as a problem that needs to be solved.

But ultimately people will race virtually anything that moves. I saw something on TV once where they have belt sander racing. My recollection is that you pick it up, lock the trigger, let it spin up to full speed, and then drop it on a long board that serves as the track. When the thing gets to the end of the track, I guess the power is cut because it pulls out it's own power cord. I was telling a friend that that was one type of racing that was in my budget :-).

But despite having read this a couple of years ago, I still don't have a belt sander.

Last July there was an article in the German FAZ, written by a person with japanese name

Here are some details of this article:

(1) The author, Yoshihiro Kimura, finds within 300 m of his flat an ATM, a post office and 3 convenience stores open 365 days a year.

(2)Using the freeway in Tokyo or Osaka costs 4 Euro, whether it's for 1 or for 20 kms. Speed limit is 50 km/h.

(3)If you have a GPS system in your car and want to find a way around a traffic jam the GPS buttons are disabled as long as the car is moving - for insurance reasons.

(4)Car parks cost also 4 Euro per hr. and metered parking along the road 300 Yen per hr. If you exceed 1 hr parking a red alarm light goes off attracting the immediate attention of a ranger who'll book you.

That doesn't look like having fun when using a car in Japanese cities.