Japan Vehicle Data
Japanese-language primary sources, aggregated for buyers outside Japan

Japanese Maintenance Record Book: What It Proves (And What It Doesn't)

Published 2026-08-08 ・ 21 min read ・ Japan Vehicle Data

When you buy a used Japanese vehicle remotely, a seller may offer you something called the 整備記録簿 (seibi kirokubo, maintenance record book) or its fuller name, 点検整備記録簿 (tenken seibi kirokubo, periodic inspection and maintenance record book). English listings describe it as “full service history” and treat its presence as an unambiguous positive.

That is not wrong, but it is incomplete. The record book is a specific document with specific legal roots, specific things it can prove, and several important things it cannot prove. For a buyer who will never physically inspect the car, understanding the difference matters.

This article is part of the Japanese vehicle documents series, which covers 車検証, export certificates, and related paperwork. The record book sits alongside those documents but serves a different function.

1. What Is 点検整備記録簿?

The 点検整備記録簿 is mandated under 道路運送車両法第49条 (Dōro Unsō Sharyō Hō, Road Transport Vehicle Act, Article 49). The law requires vehicle users to keep the record book in the vehicle and to enter the results of inspections and maintenance work performed.

The same Act (Article 48) establishes the underlying inspection obligations:

Vehicle typeRequired interval
Commercial vehicles (trucks, buses, taxis)Every 3 months
Other regulated vehiclesEvery 6 months
Private passenger cars (自家用乗用車)Every 12 months (法定12ヶ月点検) + every 24 months at 車検

Source: MLIT inspection types page (https://www.mlit.go.jp/jidosha/jidosha/tenkenseibi/tenken/t1/t1-2/), retrieved 2026-08-08.

One important nuance for private cars: the 12-month inspection is legally required, but for private passenger vehicles there is no criminal penalty for skipping it. The 24-month inspection (performed as part of 車検, the biennial roadworthiness test) is where compliance is most consistently enforced, because a designated workshop cannot issue the 保安基準適合証 (hoan kijun tekigō-shō, safety standards compliance certificate) without completing it. This means most private-car record books will show 24-month entries consistently, and 12-month entries only if the owner was diligent.

Who fills it in

Three different parties can fill in a 点検整備記録簿, and this is the most important thing to understand about the document:

  1. 指定工場 (shitei kōjō, designated workshop) — a certified facility that can perform both maintenance and the vehicle inspection in-house, under 道路運送車両法第94条の2. It enters its 指定番号 (shitei bangō, designated facility number) in the record.
  2. 認証工場 (ninshō kōjō, certified workshop) — authorized by the Regional Transport Bureau under 道路運送車両法第78条 to perform 特定整備 (tokutei seibi, specified safety-critical maintenance including disassembly of drive, brake, and steering components). It enters its 認証番号 (ninshō bangō, certification number). The vehicle must then be taken to a government inspection lane for the formal check.
  3. The owner themselves — anyone can legally fill in the record book. Owner-completed entries carry no official certification number.

Only the first two — 指定工場 and 認証工場 — are authorized to perform 特定整備. When either type completes an inspection, certified workshops also attach a 点検整備済ステッカー (tenken seibi-zumi sutekā, inspection-completed sticker) to the windscreen, recording the shop name and next service interval.

Physical form

The record book is a small booklet, typically issued by the vehicle manufacturer (in which case it is often called メンテナンスノート, mentenansu nōto, maintenance notebook) and contains both the manufacturer warranty section and the inspection record pages. Blank forms can also be downloaded or purchased separately for approximately ¥350 (price not confirmed from cited sources). There is no official digital equivalent as of 2026-08-08 — the book is still a paper document.

How it differs from 車検証

点検整備記録簿車検証 (shakensho)
Legal basisRoad Transport Vehicle Act Art. 49Road Transport Vehicle Act Art. 58
What it recordsInspection results and maintenance workRegistration and identity of the vehicle
Who issues itWorkshop or ownerGovernment (transport bureau / NAVI system)
Mandatory to present at sale?NoEffectively yes (required for deregistration and export)
Proves the car exists?NoYes
Proves maintenance was done?Yes (if properly stamped)No

The 車検証 is the document that determines whether the car exists legally. The 点検整備記録簿 is the document that tells you how it was looked after. They are complementary, not substitutes. The existing article on Japanese vehicle documents explains 車検証 fields in detail.

2. What the Book DOES Prove

2a. That specified maintenance was performed at a certified shop

When a 指定工場 or 認証工場 stamps the record and enters its official number, it is making a documented, legally accountable statement that the 特定整備 work was completed and the vehicle met the relevant safety standards on that date. The stamp is not decorative — it is the shop staking its licence on the claim.

This is meaningful because:

2b. The service timeline and odometer readings at each inspection

Each entry includes the date and the走行距離 (sōkō kyori, total odometer reading) at the time of service. This creates a cross-checkable timeline.

If you have:

And the current odometer shows 94,500 km in August 2026, that is a coherent picture. If the current odometer shows 60,000 km, something is wrong.

This odometer cross-check matters because since approximately 2018 (date not confirmed from cited sources), 車検時走行距離 (odometer readings at 車検) are also recorded on the 車検証 (for the last two inspections). The record book and 車検証 figures should agree. Discrepancy between the two is a significant red flag. Auction data systems (used at Japanese auto auctions) also independently track odometer readings per chassis number, making large-scale odometer fraud significantly harder than it was in the 1990s.

2c. Which consumable parts were replaced and when

The record book logs parts replacements — エンジンオイル (enjin oiru, engine oil), ブレーキパッド (burēki paddo, brake pads), タイミングベルト (taimingu beruto, timing belt), エアフィルター (ea firutā, air filter), ブレーキフルード (burēki furūdo, brake fluid), and similar items. A buyer can estimate remaining life on consumables from these entries.

A car with documented timing belt replacement at the correct interval, for example, eliminates one of the most common remote-buyer anxieties about used Japanese engines.

2d. Recall completion

If a manufacturer recall (リコール, rikōru) or service campaign (サービスキャンペーン) has been performed, it is typically noted in the record book or the accompanying メンテナンスノート. This is a check you cannot otherwise perform without the car’s chassis number and a search of MLIT’s recall database.

2e. Whether 12-month inspections were done voluntarily

The 24-month inspection is performed at 車検 and is effectively enforced (the car cannot pass 車検 without it). The 12-month inspection is voluntary in practice for private cars. A record book showing consistent 12-month entries indicates an owner who treated maintenance as a priority, not just a bureaucratic box to tick. This is a reliable signal of overall care culture.

3. What the Book Does NOT Prove

3a. That maintenance actually happened if the entries lack certified numbers

An owner can legally fill in a 点検整備記録簿 themselves. If a page has no 認証番号 or 指定番号 — just handwritten entries — it carries no independent verification. The owner is attesting to their own maintenance, which is not inherently dishonest, but is unverifiable. Treat unstamped entries as informational, not evidential.

3b. Accident history or structural repair

The 点検整備記録簿 records inspection results and maintenance work. It does not record accident history, and it is not required to record structural repairs unless those repairs were performed as part of a periodic inspection at a certified shop.

Accident history determination in Japan relies on 修復歴判定 (shūfuku-reki hantei, structural repair assessment), conducted by trained appraisers (主に日本自動車査定協会, JAAI). This assessment appears on auction sheets as Grade R (有修復歴, confirmed structural repair) or RA (修復歴なし/評価なし). See the article on R vs RA on Japanese auction sheets for a full explanation of what these grades mean and how appraisers reach them.

A car with a complete, stamped record book can still be Grade R. The two documents measure different things.

3c. Current mechanical condition

The record book tells you what was checked and replaced. It does not tell you the current condition of items that were checked and found acceptable — brake lining thickness judged adequate 14 months ago may be borderline now. No paper document can substitute for physical inspection of wear items.

3d. That the car was maintained at all if the book is missing

Absence of the book does not mean absence of maintenance. This is a common misconception in English-language import guides.

Several legitimate reasons for a missing book:

The Japan Automobile Appraisers Association (自動車査定協会) does assess a valuation penalty for missing メンテナンスノート — reportedly 10 to 40 assessment points, translating to approximately ¥10,000–¥40,000 in reduced appraisal value. This is a market signal, not a hard mechanical verdict.

If the book is missing, ask the seller: does the car have 車検証-documented odometer readings at the last two inspections? Those readings are on the 車検証 regardless of the record book.

4. How to Read the Book

Date format

Dates in Japanese maintenance records use the 元号 (gengō, imperial era calendar). A date written R4.12 means December 2022 (令和4年). H28.3 means March 2016 (平成28年). The full conversion table and explanation of why this matters for imported vehicles is at Japanese imperial calendar and car documents.

Quick reference for eras relevant to modern used cars:

Standard inspection symbols

The record book uses standardized marks across inspection items. These appear as single characters in the item columns:

SymbolJapaneseMeaning
✓ or 良良好 (ryōkō)Good condition, no action
×交換 (kōkan)Part replaced
A調整 (chōsei)Adjusted
C清掃 (seisō)Cleaned
L給油 (kyūyu)Lubricated
△修理 (shūri)Repaired
T締付 (shimetsuke)Tightened
〇分解 (bunkai)Disassembled for inspection
/非該当 (hikōtō)Not applicable to this vehicle
P省略 (shōryaku)Item omitted

Source: inspection record book reading guide (https://tatsuyajitian.com/entry/2026/01/03/090102), retrieved 2026-08-08.

Workshop identification fields

In a certified inspection entry, look for:

If all four are present and legible, the entry is by a trackable, licensed entity.

Odometer cross-check procedure

  1. List the 走行距離 entries in chronological order.
  2. Calculate the km added between each entry.
  3. Compare the final entry against the current odometer shown in photos.
  4. Compare the record book’s most recent two entries against the odometer readings now recorded on the 車検証 (for cars with 車検 since approximately 2018).

Uniform annual mileage that suddenly spikes or drops, or entries where the odometer appears to go backward, warrant direct inquiry.

5. Practical Guidance for Remote Buyers

What to ask the seller to photograph

  1. The cover of the メンテナンスノート — confirms it is the original manufacturer-issued book, not a replacement.
  2. Every double-page spread with an inspection entry — you need to see dates, odometer readings, stamps, and certification numbers.
  3. The most recent 12-month and 24-month inspection pages specifically — these show the latest certified state.
  4. Any pages showing major work — timing belt, clutch, water pump, brake components.
  5. The car’s current odometer in the same photo set, for comparison.

Red flags

Normal absences — not red flags

Connecting to price research

The presence of a complete, stamped record book is a genuine value indicator in the Japanese used-car market. For price benchmarking, the article on researching Japanese auction prices explains how to read auction sheet grades and pricing data — which should be read alongside record book quality when forming a bid or purchase price.

6. Method and Limits

Sample count and scope: This article draws on 8 Japanese-language web sources retrieved on 2026-08-08, covering legal text summaries, used-car industry practice guides, and MLIT official pages. It is not a statistical study of record book quality across a vehicle sample.

Sources successfully retrieved and their content:

Sources marked 未取得 (not retrieved):

Inferences in this article:

What this article cannot tell you:

Sources

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