JDM Enthusiast Imports Right-Hand Drive Car, Discovers America Is Left-Hand Drive

A Japanese domestic market enthusiast who imported a right-hand drive 1995 Nissan Skyline GT-R has discovered, over the course of several months of daily driving, that the United States road system is designed for vehicles with the steering wheel on the left side. "I knew it was right-hand drive when I bought it," acknowledged owner Takeshi Boost, 29. "I thought it would be charming. It is charming. It is also functionally inconvenient in ways I did not fully model." The inconveniences, which Boost has catalogued in a running list on his phone, include: inability to use any drive-through without a passenger, inability to reach toll booth baskets, inability to see around vehicles when passing on two-lane roads, and a persistent sensation that the car is "two feet closer to oncoming traffic than feels safe." The drive-through issue has proven the most socially disruptive. Boost's girlfriend, who sits in the left seat, is now responsible for all ordering, payment, and food collection at drive-through windows. "I am his drive-through interface," confirmed girlfriend Sarah Lane. "He tells me what he wants, I relay it to the speaker, I hand over his card, I receive the food. I am a human API between my boyfriend and fast food. This is not what I imagined the relationship would involve." Boost has also discovered that parking garages present unique challenges, as the ticket machine is located on the driver's side — which, in his case, is the wrong side. He now carries a reaching tool, purchased from a medical supply store, to retrieve tickets without exiting the vehicle. "The car is worth it," Boost insisted. "It's an R33 GT-R. Twin turbo. All-wheel drive. 280 horsepower that Nissan was absolutely lying about. Every inconvenience is a conversation starter." Lane has noted that the conversations typically begin with "Why is your steering wheel on the wrong side?" and end with a twenty-minute explanation of the gentleman's agreement among Japanese manufacturers, which she can now deliver herself from memory.