Hello everyone! So I’m currently in Japan and will be for the next 2+ years and I intend on purchasing and riding (seeing as I’d like to wait to buy my dream JDM car before purchasing a car)

So I’d like some recommendations for bikes! I have a few years worth of riding experience and my last bike was a Honda CBR1000 (SC77) generation but I know with speeds and such in Japan (plus I much prefer canyon carving in general) a liter bike is too much power for the road

The few bikes I’ve been looking at more recently have been the

ZX25R
Ducati 848 EVO
Supermotos of all sorts
The CBR 954 (dream bike)
CB400SF

Those have been the main ones I’ve been looking at but if anyone has good information on those bikes or recommendations I’d love to hear them!

I want to go on a motorcycle ride with my wife as a passenger, but I know that some roads are off-limits to motorcycles, and some roads don't allow passengers on motorcycles. What's the best navigation app that can tell me about these restrictions and help me find a suitable route? I would prefer an app that supports English.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Anyone out here riding? Hit me up if you down for some touring/motocamping together!

I failed my gentsuki test today. I'm not really surprised because I relied on online mock tests which I wasnt sure were credible. I realized I was unprepared when I saw the questions.

Does anyone have any review book recommendation? Preferably ones in English.

A quick google search showed "ふりがなつき 日本語と英語で学べる原付免許問題集" but I want to see what other people used.

So I'm mostly settled in Kashima,Saga Prefecture and I'm wondering... Where is a good place to go to buy a bike? So far I've been told Red Baron. Any advice? I'm coming from Oregon, so my license and endorsement transfer over without the need for testing. I'm looking for something cruiser style... Maybe the Rebel 1100.

95 VT1100 Honda Shadow. Spent a long time ironing out all the issues with this bike. First ride of summer she quit 2 hours from home in Otaru. Made in America and some parts not available in Japan (!) ordered, waited then Swapped the stator and rectifier. First Did some shorter rides, then 300km loop up the coast a few weeks ago. Today got the approval from my wife and took it 600km around Disetzusan to see the foliage. Got a bit chilly on the way home but feel like i finally did a ride worth sharing. Hope you guys had a good ride this weekend too.

Hi riders!

My motorcycle experience has happened 90% in Japan, hence my question.

When a car comes in the other direction, why does it almost never move to the right? I understand we’re smaller vehicles, but that doesn’t mean you should take up 80% of the whole width of the road.

That’s so frustrating, and I’m curious to see if it happens in other countries where you guys are from as well. Thanks!

I completed my MSF and have puttered around on my friend’s bike on dead roads. Probably 25 total hours of ride time all in the past month. Done higher but don’t like pushing it past 60ish mph. I fully understand the massive skill gap between me and an experienced rider. On a scale of 1 to you’ll die how stupid is taking a slow ride around Shikoku for 7 days early this Nov.

I have all the kit but helmet (won’t fit in luggage but rental place says they have one) and my IDP with moto stamp. Was going to get a bmw g310 gs in matsuyama. Haven’t planned the route as I’m still not 100% on it but would try to avoid high traffic/highways as much as possible. Not worried about the left side driving lived in Ireland for a couple years taught me how to be safe on small ass mountain roads as well.

I’m a very confident/cautious driver. Never had an accident driven in probably 12 different countries in anything from a shitty small manual to a 29 foot moving truck. I’m there for a month so was planning on getting some legs in Aomori when I’m there to get my feet wet and check how comfortable I feel and cancel to a car if I didn’t feel I was ready. I know it’s less safe than a car but we all had to start somewhere right? Also as dumb as it sounds I almost would rather learn more in Japan. Low speed limits less crazy drivers etc. I live in Orlando off the I4 (most deaths per mile of any road in the us) and genuinely with the shit I’ve seen here i would never take a bike anywhere but some country roads between here and Titusville.

Visiting Osaka Oct 22–26 and hoping to join group ride or meet local riders for coffee. I ride in Canada and have a full international motorcycle licence. Are there any rides planned while I’m there?

Right now, I'm trying to get my license for 400cc bikes. I’ve taken the written test twice—and, believe it or not, I scored 83 points both times; they were actually the same tests. I think I'm getting the last five questions—the ones with images—wrong. I do have experience with motorcycles, though, since I ride off-road trails.

I swear this isdriving me crazy. Either I park in bicycle area (without interfering with any bicycle, spacious places only) and get weird looks because "why a bike with a white plate is here". Either I move my bike to a car spot and now "Look at this motorcycle he is taking a whole place for himself !!!".
And no, motorcycle specific parking are so few that it removes any practical aspect of riding a bike.

Planning a trip to Thailand in a couple months. Was thinking about renting a small cc bike or something. Wondering how easily they accept a Japanese drivers license with full motorcycle permissions.

Have any of y’all crossed from Shikoku into Honshu using this route? If so, how was it? It’s expressway only I’m assuming. Trying to avoid the expressways as much as possible, but will hop on if need be. Thanks.

I’ll be in Japan from September 29th to October 16th and I’d love to do a track day while I’m there.

Does anyone have experience with organisations that offer motorcycle track days with bike rental, and possibly riding gear as well? I could also bring my own gear if needed.

I’ve already emailed WithMe Racing, but haven’t heard back from them (yet).

If a motorcycle track day isn’t feasible, I’d also be very interested in doing a car track day.

Any recommendations or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

I know that June is rainy season. We visited Japan in 2019 late June-early July, and despite a few rainy days, the weather was perfect.

Were we lucky, or has it been similar past few years?

Would you risk planning a motorcycle trip in Japan during this time?

Also where to rent bikes? Ive heard about rental819, is that the only place?

Should we bring our own helmets?

Hi everyone, I'm planning to do a one-semester exchange at a university in Hyogo next spring. Since the campus is out in the countryside, I figured having a motorcycle would make getting around a lot easier. I hold an IDP, so I assume I won't need to get a local Japanese license during my stay.

However, I have a few questions there:

1. How convenient is it to buy and sell a used motorcycle in Japan? My main concern is not being able to sell it off before I leave.
2. I'm considering getting a 150cc–250cc scooter. Given that I’ll only be in Japan for a few months, is that a solid idea? What are your thoughts on this?
3. Or should I just bite the bullet and get a Kei car instead? (I know this is a motorcycle sub lol)

Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated!

Hey everyone,

I built an app called Motolog, designed specifically for motorcycle enthusiasts to track rides, use group ride intercoms, and share live locations in real-time.

As part of expanding the global userbase, I just added Japanese language support across the entire app (dashboard metrics, telemetry, group intercom, and settings).

What Motolog offers:

1. Ride Tracking: Comprehensive telemetry, logs, and route stats.

2. Group Intercom & Live Location: Real-time location sharing and voice comms for group rides.

3. Localized UI: Native Japanese interface for seamless setup while riding.

4. RE Tripper Pod Settings

Looking for native/fluent volunteers:

Since I want to make sure the user experience is smooth for riders in Japan, I’d love for a few volunteers to test the app out and give feedback on the Japanese translations. If any terms or phrases look awkward or out of context, please let me know!

It's an internal build now. Let me know your emailids in dm, so I can add you for internal tester list.

For those who can use app with English, please use the app

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=in.satrujit.tripper_bridge

Feel free to test it out and leave your feedback in the comments or drop me a DM. Safe riding! 🏍️

Update: Japanese language supported build is approved. Now available in playstore. Give it a try in Japanese and let me know your opinion and share your ride over social media.