車検（しゃけん、shaken）
- car inspection

車検（しゃけん, shaken） refers to the compulsory vehicle inspection required in Japan. It's a comprehensive check to ensure a vehicle meets safety and environmental standards. This inspection is mandatory for most vehicles and is typically required every two years for passenger cars and every year for commercial vehicles and vehicles older than a certain age. The purpose of 車検 is to ensure that vehicles on the road are safe to operate and comply with environmental regulations. The 車検 process involves a thorough inspection of various components of a vehicle, including brakes, lights, steering, emissions, and more. A vehicle cannot be legally driven on Japanese roads without a valid 車検 certificate. The word 車検 itself also refers to the act or process of undergoing an inspection, so you might say you are going to get a 車検 or that your car needs a 車検.

⚫︎ 車検を受けなければなりません。 Translation: I have to get a vehicle inspection. ⚫︎ 車検の費用は高かったです。 Translation: The cost of the vehicle inspection was expensive. ⚫︎ 来月、私の車は車検の時期です。 Translation: My car is due for its vehicle inspection next month.

You use 車検 when discussing or referring to the mandatory vehicle inspection. You would use it when talking about the process itself, the due date, the costs, or the results of the inspection. It's used in conversations about car maintenance and regulations. For example, if you are talking about car maintenance, you might mention that you need to schedule a 車検. Also, when talking to a car dealer or mechanic, you'll be using the word often.

車検 is typically written in kanji as 車検. The reading is しゃけん in hiragana. There is no other common way to write this word. Okurigana (the suffix hiragana) isn't used in this word.

There aren't any direct synonyms in Japanese. However, depending on context, you might refer to it as 自動車検査（じどうしゃけんさ, jidousha kensa) which also means "vehicle inspection" or simply 検査（けんさ, kensa) which means "inspection". Though, these are more general terms.

There are no direct antonyms for 車検.

私の車の車検は来月です。 ・Translation: My car's vehicle inspection is next month. ・Explanation: This sentence clearly states when the vehicle inspection is due.

車検に通るために、整備が必要です。 ・Translation: Maintenance is necessary to pass the vehicle inspection. ・Explanation: This sentence illustrates the need for maintenance to ensure a vehicle passes the inspection.

The word 車検 is a compound word formed from 車（くるま, kuruma) meaning "car" or "vehicle" and 検（けん, ken) which is an abbreviation of 検査（けんさ, kensa) meaning "inspection" or "examination." Together, 車検 literally means "vehicle inspection".