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Japan: Radioactive Cars

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Khatir Soltani
Last March the radiation coming from the Fukushima nuclear plant (damaged by the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan) made nervous headlines around the world. Disaster was avoided, but the radioactive cars in the area are now being sold to unsuspecting buyers.

In fact, they’re currently flooding the used car market in Japan. No less than 660 vehicles have been banned from export with radiation limits exceeding the tolerable level.
Instead of destroying the cars deemed dangerous by authorities, several dealers have decided to disguise their origins to dupe consumers.

A striking example
One dealer acquired a minivan that emitted 110 microsieverts of radiation per hour. It was significantly higher than the 0.3 microsievert/hour limit, so he chose to decontaminate it.

Despite his valiant efforts, though, he only managed to bring it down to 30 microsieverts/hour.

He decided to sell it anyways because he “couldn’t afford to lose the money.”

A real safety hazard?
Exposure to 1 sievert (the unit used to measure radiation absorbed by human tissue) automatically results in radiation sickness: 1 sievert contains 1,000 millisieverts and you need 1,000 microsieverts to get one millisievert.
Generally, human beings are exposed to between 1 and 5 millisieverts per year.


Source: Fox News

Khatir Soltani
Khatir Soltani
Automotive expert
As a car enthusiast, he tests and compares vehicles from different categories through the eyes of the consumer, ensuring relevant and objective reviews.
  • Over 6 years experience as a car reviewer
  • Over 50 test drives in the last year
  • Involved in discussions with virtually every auto manufacturer in Canada