I live in Zushi City, just south of Yokohama. It takes about an hour or so by car (toll roads - Yoko-Yoko & Wangan) and an hour and an half by train (if you make the right connections).

Hi Miles,

Ah - now I understand. I was ( for some reason ) thinking that you lived part of the time on Okinawa ( maybe it was your 'Y' plate? ). Now that would be a long journey.........!

The reason I asked about Uchida san is that he seems to have a bit of a 'rep' for being difficult to deal with sometimes. I visited his shop around 12 years ago ( when he was still sharing his workshop space with an 'ordinary' garage business ) and he was - at first - particularly grumpy and abrupt. He soon warmed up a bit though. Car people are car people.

His business has grown a lot since that time, and I hear that he also plays in a band now ( ???! ).

BTW, the wife goes because she likes to get out of the normal routine and is amazed that the two of us can converse (his English - almost non-existent and my Japanese - marginal) and she can't understand a darned thing. But car-talk is car-talk right?

Ah yes, I can relate to that. My other half just leaves me to it whenever I want to go on a car-related visit in Japan. She goes out shopping or meets her friends for lunch, and doesn't expect me back until late. "What on earth do you find to talk about?" she says. Plenty!

Cheers,

Alan T.

Although the most interesting thread at the moment is the triple-hijacked tonyasap's thread

trust me, that mosh pit of datsun trivia is only marginally interesting to some of us

but your report is fascinating! thanks for sharing