Honda Shuttle Hybrid

👋 Haisai! I’m CULT.
Today, I’m reviewing a rental car in Okinawa. It’s a “compact car” category vehicle that seats five, has decent luggage space, and is a hybrid, so it’s fuel-efficient. Currently, there’s a promotion, so you can enjoy an economical trip to Okinawa with a daily rental fee of 4,500 yen. It was originally 5,500 yen, but since we don’t know how long the promotion will last, make sure to book quickly 😎

Today, I took some photos next to Senaga Island Umikaji Terrace. I often find myself shooting here. The reason I prefer this location is that I can capture vehicles against the backdrop of the blue sky and emerald sea. It just feels quintessentially Okinawan, don’t you think?

🚙 Vehicle Exterior

The Honda Shuttle is the largest among the compact car category. It would be great if you could choose directly, but when a vehicle goes in for maintenance or is involved in an accident and needs to be taken to a garage, it must be replaced with another vehicle, which is why this system is in place.

This is a view of the vehicle from the side.
It reminds me of the Hyundai i30, which was a big hit in Europe back in the day. I lived in Prague from 2014 to 2024, and when I first arrived, there were quite a few i30s around.
It was a great model for camping trips due to its spacious cargo area. While small cars are affordable and fun to drive, their limited boot space means they can realistically only accommodate two or three people. If four adults are travelling, you’ll need at least a compact car or larger.

This is the view from the rear. It somewhat reminds me of the Korean Kia Sportage, but with a lower body, it feels a bit different. Just because the body is low doesn’t mean the car is small. Japanese cars are narrow in width, but they’re definitely not short in height. So, you don’t need to worry about your height. There are many US military personnel stationed in Okinawa, and even those over 190 cm tall manage just fine.

💺Interior View

This is the view from the front seat.
The “No Smoking” sign really catches my eye. The interior space is comfortable. If there’s room for a central armrest, it means the vehicle is quite spacious.
Vehicles without a central armrest are usually compact cars. Compact cars are narrower than this vehicle.

This is the view from the passenger seat.
Sitting here offers the best spot when travelling north along Route 58. I don’t recommend using the motorway when renting a car in Okinawa. Coming to see beautiful sights and using the motorway is like repeatedly hitting the skip button in a game.

🕹️ This is what the driver’s seat looks like. It’s the opposite of Korea, so it might be unfamiliar unless you’re from Japan or the UK. In Japan, you always need to be careful when making a right turn. Unlike unprotected left turns, there are unprotected right turns here. As I always say, I have connections with various car rental companies and access to a wealth of information. It seems that those who have been accident-free for 20 or 30 years tend to have more accidents than beginner drivers. Let’s always drive safely.

There is still no smartphone holder available. The navigation system is in Japanese, making it difficult to use unless you understand Japanese. They plan to equip all vehicles with smartphone holders before the site opens in July.

The navigation monitor is primarily designed for Japanese users, so for others, it can only be used for checking the rear camera and Bluetooth audio. It does not support CarPlay or Google Auto. Since this rental car company originally catered exclusively to Japanese customers, it is optimised for Japan. However, they mentioned that they purchased a navigation system that supports CarPlay yesterday and are currently testing it. They plan to gradually increase its availability.

This is what the information panel visible to the driver looks like. The vehicle has clocked around 140,000 kilometres, which, by my standards, is still quite new. For me, a trip to Hallstatt for a shoot means adding about 1,000 kilometres to the car in just one day.

This is the gear control stick. Parking is not controlled by the stick but by a button system. Even if it’s different from your vehicle, you’ll get used to it after driving once or twice.

The cigarette lighter socket has two USB charging ports.

There are three foot pedals.
The one on the far left is the side brake, the centre one is the brake, and the one on the right is the accelerator. Additionally, on the far right of the photo, there is a lever to open the fuel cap. Knowing this in advance can save you from confusion when refuelling.

A dashcam is also installed, and I believe that in the Okinawa rental car industry, there are usually more companies without dashcams.

This is the view of the back seat. It can accommodate three passengers, but if you recline one seat, you can fit more luggage. However, since the car is large, it’s not a problem unless everyone brings a 28-inch suitcase. Even if five adults each bring a 24-inch (medium-sized) suitcase, it can all be loaded.

🧳 Rear Seat Trunk Capacity

This is the view with the rear trunk open. It’s a slightly larger derivative model of the Honda Fit, so it definitely feels similar to the Fit, but you can clearly notice the difference in size.

The suitcase on the far right is a 28-inch model, the largest among suitcases. You can roughly estimate that it can fit four of them. However, as I’ve often encountered people who couldn’t even clear a Tetris tutorial while working with Okinawa rental cars, I suggest you take a look at the photo and try to imagine it for yourself.

Opening the golf bag storage space makes it even more spacious. It has more cargo space than most small SUVs. However, when it comes to compact cars, the Aqua Hybrid is the smallest, so you should consider that vehicle as the standard.
If you booked a compact car and get a shuttle instead, you’re in luck 😗

💮 In Conclusion…

It’s great when the car you want is available when you make a reservation. However, it’s good to know in advance that the desired vehicle may not always be available due to operational and management aspects. Rental car companies often start with a small fleet and gradually expand, and as they experience trends and fashions, the variety of vehicles inevitably increases.

Currently, as part of a special offer, the daily rental cost is 4,500 yen. You need to rent for a minimum of 2 days, and insurance is optional. It costs 1,100 yen per day, and the NOC insurance is also 1,100 yen. So, the cheapest daily rental cost is 4,500 yen, and with all the insurance included in a typical booking, it comes to 6,700 yen. I am quite familiar with the car rental prices in Okinawa, and this is almost the lowest price available. There are cheaper options, but the condition of the cars is, well… a bit…

Wishing you a frugal and safe car rental journey in Okinawa. I’ll wrap it up here and will be back tomorrow with more Okinawa travel news. Matayasai 👋