Today, April 6, is Sticker Day in Japan. It’s a play on words, combining four (shi) and six (ru), for shiru, which means “sticker” or “seal”. It’s probably safe to assume that, as car people, we’ve all accumulated significant collections of stickers. Some are given away at car shows, others are prized and purchased, some come as a bonus with a car part. Stickers can act as a roll call, mementos of experiences, decoration, graffiti, or whatever. Do you fulfill the sticker’s destiny and put it on your car or toolbox? Stow them away in an album? Adhere them to something completely unrelated?
What do you do with your stickers?
The most entertaining comment by next week will receive a prize. Scroll down to see the winner of last week’s QotW, “How do you find the car of your dreams for sale?“.
We had a few answers that called out a specific dream car that the commenter was looking for. Oddly, they were all Mazdas. Nihonnotekko was looking for “the one that got away,” a Stardust Blue 1980 RX-7. BlitzPig, due to the attrition of vintage parts, will get a new ND Miata Club. And Joe Musashi is hoping to find an RX-7 Spirit R.
But if you’re looking for places where you should be looking, here are the answers in today’s market: Ernie recommends the aggregator Cargurus. Negishi no Keibajo relies on good ol’ Craigslist. Taylor C. uses a mix of Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. Speedie asks friends to keep a lookout on Facebook Marketplace as well as checking Hemmings and Bring a Trailer. And for Japan-market cars, TheJWT‘s go-to is goo.net.
Of course, there are ways that don’t involve looking at all. Steve suggests buying a house instead and putting your wrenching skills to fixing it up. @ye‘s zen attitude is to let the car find you. Whatever you do, r100guy cautions, don’t use a shipping broker.
The winner this week is daniel, whose advice requires the most work but will probably lead to the best results:
The internet has undoubtedly become the primary resource for finding your next vehicle. What I don’t remember is which specific website I found my truck on… two photos, not from the best angle, and almost at night. It could have been anything. The good thing is that it was relatively close, and I encountered very professional sellers willing to give me their time to check everything. I think that nowadays, with more experience (a long learning curve in Facebook groups for the make and model), there are always some hidden gems. It’s likely that the model’s “social network” and WhatsApp groups are the most direct way to connect with the vehicle we’re looking for. It requires time, the right questions, and doing your own research on the owner and the particular vehicle (narcissism or a lack of knowledge leaves interesting records in groups about the vehicle’s problems). I suppose it ends up being a kind of hybrid between word of mouth and digital, conveniently at your fingertips.
Omedetou, your comment has earned you a set of decals from the JNC Shop!
My stickers for all of the aftermarket additions are proudly displayed on the underside of my trunk lid.
All of the stickers I got when I lived in Japan and from various trips back there since then now hang in a 24 x 36 frame above my desk at home. A lot of them have great sentimental value from places I went and people I met – a Uras sticker I bought from Nomuken, a sticker of a car club I was invited to join, one from my friend’s bar in Setagaya, stickers from every track I went to, etc…
Everything else goes onto my toolbox in the garage – mostly stickers from companies I’ve bought parts from, JNC stickers, and rider classification stickers from motorcycle track days.
I’ve only got 2 on my car – a small, gold Junction Produce sticker at the base of the rear window, and the original Kanagawa Toyota dealership sticker on the rear bumper.
Thanks for this surprise!
Regarding this week’s question, I think they represent a bit of the vehicle’s history and previous owners. Some are also mandatory (like the MOT or parts engraving), but they’re also traces of the places the vehicle has been and even repairs. In my case, I found original importer stickers, factory verifications, and the detachable shock absorbers that the (I assume) original owner installed. I still need to add one from JNC, as is appropriate for its age.
Well now you should be getting some in the mail!
Right now I’m saving and collecting them, but the plan is to put them on my tool box. I’m planning to upgrade to a bigger toolbox in the future, and then place them on that one, so my current tool cart is sticker free at the moment.
Good question, and for the winner to answer what they’re gonna do with the stickers they earn!
I personally keep them stored in my own album, seeing what groups, orgs, teams, and events I interacted with in the past. It’s nice to even see some stickers decades before and remember, “Hey, they used to exist” and or “Look where they are now!”
Like the ones I won from here, for example? I stuck them to my toolbox and some are under a glass mat on my desk. I’m hoping to buy a couple more. I would take a picture and share it if I could.
On the rear window, never on paint. Behind the driver & not too many to keep a clear rear view. Having said that, I still have a pile of them in an envelope. Mostly Japanese. My partner usually keeps a discreet but wacky “B-Side” Japanese sticker on her rear window.
The ones I want to keep I make magnets out of. Most of them are stuck on my file cabinet. The ones I don’t care about I give to my nieces because stickers are fun for kids.
The cool ones go all over the back window of my Honda Element. Instead of cool national park decals or being all Patagonia’d out, mine is FWD and adorns brewery, biking, and Sasquatch decals.
I have a folder full of stickers. I’ve also stickerbombed the rear window of my wagon. I also stickerbomb the sides of my old CRT TVs. I love stickers too much. Saving the 25 year JNC sticker for that special vehicle one day.