> > Tell me about the cost of renting a scooter in New Zealand. Everywhere I've been they cost way more than a car. And I've been to a lot of places where motorscooters are the primary means of transportation.
> > Howard
>
> Hehe. I thought that part would pique your interest, Howard. Barry tells me that these were very large motorscooters -- sort of like small motorcycles. And having the muffler mounted on the outside was just really rotten design...
>
> The rental agency warned them about the muffler, but I can't help thinking it's strange the agency would dare to rent scooters with such a well-known defect, especially when there are other models that don't have that problem.
>

Talking about language, my relatives noticed that in New Zealand the name 'Subaru' is properly prononuced
Suh-BARU -- and not the way North Americans typically say it (SUE-bah-roo). Must have something to do with the proximity of Japan to NZ.

There's also something about how the auto insurance on a car *increases* with the car's age, which is the complete opposite of the way it works in N.America. I now know that that's the way it's always worked in Japan, anyway.

Wolfspirit