Well, it’s time for the one-year inspection.
Plus the deadline is February 5th next month, so I need to get it done early.
There are two things I’m worried about.
1) JWL aluminum wheels and van tires
For commercial vehicles, aluminum wheels need a JWL-T marking.
I’ve heard that if the payload is 500 kilograms or less, JWL is okay, so I’ll confirm with the inspector.
2) My tax payment certificate is from when I paid back taxes, so the inspection certificate doesn’t have an expiration date on it.
Those are the two issues.
I went to my usual tester shop to have them check just the lights and side slip, and then off we go!
I went to the Tokyo tax office to check on the tax payment certificate.
Decoboco: “This tax certificate smells fishy!”
Old guy: “This one’s from Saitama! You need to get a certificate from Saitama! If you didn’t pay it in Tokyo, they won’t issue one.”
Ugh, seriously? Why don’t they link these systems together…?
Going there is impossible, so maybe I’ll ask an administrative scrivener to handle it.
That’s where today ended, so I went to the shop to ask about the truth behind these doubts.
Decoboco: “Sorry! This is a commercial vehicle, but if the payload is 500 kilograms or less, is it really okay to use aluminum wheels with JWL?”
Blue guy: “Huh? What’s that? No way—commercial vehicles need steel or JWL-T. There was something about that 500 kilograms thing way back, but not anymore! It’s not allowed now!”
Decoboco: “Thanks!”
Well, I’ll swap the wheels back to stock and just keep driving it. They’re in the way anyway…
I guess it’s a learning experience every day!
[Update]
After I got back to the office…
I called the Saitama Prefecture Automobile Tax Office…
Ring ring ring…
Decoboco: “I need a tax payment certificate for the renewal inspection…”
Phone: “Huh? Didn’t the Tokyo tax office pick it up for you as a proxy?”
Decoboco: “What?? No, they told me to go to Saitama and bring it back myself…”
Phone: “I see! I see!”
There seem to be various issues, so I’ll leave it at that for now.
Damn! Well, since there’s the wheel issue anyway, I’ll let it slide.
Saitama Prefecture is very friendly—they said they’ll send it by express mail from the automobile tax office today!
Now it’s just the wheels…
