Tracking Ships from Nagoya – this information was correct, to the best of my knowledge, when published (November 2021)
You all probably know me from elsewhere… tracking ships from Nagoya became my thing back when patiently waiting for my car to be built. I’ve tried to keep up with vessel coming from Nagoya – but this might not always be the case.
So when I do eventually lose interest or just stop. I pulled this guide together on what I’ve learnt since I started following ships from Japan in January 2021. This is a guide to tracking GR Yaris being transported from Japan to the UK. But I’m also aware Rav 4 users are now following it and it will no doubt help future GR owners for cars made in the Toyota factories near Nagoya
Start of voyage
Cars are shipped on RORO Vehicle transporters from Nagoya, in the Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
The ships dock at Nagoya Berth E5 which is located here just to the south of the Meiko-Higashi Bridge. Its also sometimes referred to as MEIKO I6.
From July 2021 we saw all vessels sailing to the UK have used the south berth of the Toyota Dock.
Shipping Agents and Managers
Since January 2021 the following shipping agents have been used;
Cars have been shipped on vessels owned and operated by a number of different companies. These include;
Added 08/05/21 - all boats confirmed to be carrying GR Yaris have been 199m long by 32m wide. Some car carriers are wider and some longer and dock at both Nagoya and Bristol - so it’s not to say bigger ships won’t be used, but something else to look out for.
The Journey
Leaving Nagoya
Ships leave Nagoya berth E5 the day before the My Toyota app updates with the ‘left the factory’ notification. Looking at reports on the Vessel tracking thread and feedback on Facebook the email is normally received between 24/48 hours after the ship has left. A ship will have been in dock for between 1½ and 3 days loading cars prior to leaving.
First Stop Singapore
Not always, but between Jan – August 8, 15 out of 29 Ships either docked or anchored in Singapore. Some stop at Singapore Anchorage for Crew changes, occasionally they dock in Singapore to load/ unload.
Typical sailing time from Nagoya to Singapore is between 6 and 7 days. Ships that stop at Singapore typically stop for up to 21 hours. The average stop is 11 hours.
Next stop Suez - Updated 8th August
Whether or not they stop at Singapore, the next notable point is the Suez Canal. From Nagoya, it typically takes between 20-21 days for ships to get to the southern end of the Canal. Passage through the canal should take about 12-16 hours, depending on traffic – and stuck ships.
Ships normally transit first thing in the morning so if they arrive afternoon, they generally anchor and wait for the next day. While there is a second sailing south in the Canal there presently appears to only be one northern transit per day.
Through the Mediterranean
Ships now take two different routes – this appears to alternate with one ship sailing to Livorno in Italy the other going to Sagunto.
Livorno bound Ships
Livorno Ships typically sail directly from Suez. The sailing time from Nagoya to Livorno is between 24-26 days. Docking in Livorno takes up to 24hrs. The average docking time is about 16 hours.
Update 8th August 2021
For the first time with Grand Cosmo's sailing (Left Nagoya on 16/07/21), we saw a ship stop at Alexandria before proceeding on to Livorno. With the exception of one ship, all boats have alternated between Livorno and Sagunto and this pattern seems unchanged.
Sagunto bound Ships - updated 8th August 2021
Sagunto bound ships, on the other hand, sometimes stop at Alexandria for anything up to 24 hours – although this varies wildly, and a stop here is not always guaranteed. After leaving Alexandria they head to Sagunto. The sailing time from Nagoya to Livorno is between 25-26 days but includes the stop at Alexandria. Docking in Sagunto is a little quicker than Livorno typically taking up to 12 hours. The average docking time is about 10 hours.
The Final Leg (for UK bound Cars) to Portbury
After leaving the final port in the Mediterranean it’s on to Portbury, from Livorno this final leg typically takes just over 6 days. From Sagunto it's normally about 5 days. Total sailing time from Nagoya is typically between 28 and 31 days. This has been longer but was due to the Suez Canal blockage caused by Ever Given.
The Tidal range into Portbury often has an impact when ships can dock and they typically dock within a window that’s a couple of hours on either side of high water. Unloading at Portbury seems to take between 12 and 24 hours.
Update 14th Jan 2022
A couple of oddities in Jan 2022 that went to Southampton. Not clear if this was due to Portbury being full or some other Covid Impact. The first seemed like quite a last-minute change and the other looked prepared for, but vessels seem to be back to heading to Portbury.
After Portbury
After leaving Portbury the ships all seem to head to Zeebrugge, Bremerhaven, Malmo and Gothenburg - I've not tracked them to check on sailing and docking times but all seem to follow a similar route. Gothenburg appears to be the last port on this Toyota delivery route.
Useful Links
Bristol Port Forward Shipping Timetable
https://www.bristolport.co.uk/shipping/forward-movements
This site gives arrivals at Bristol and Portbury – it is not always accurate and regularly gets updated. It can be used as one piece of the jigsaw working out what might be leaving Nagoya.
It’s worth noting that just because a car is shown stopping at Livorno or Sagunto on the schedule doesn’t mean it has GR Yaris onboard. Some of the ships marked as stopping at Livorno or Sagunto have never stopped at Nagoya, some have but not at the correct berth. Some may have stopped at the right berth at Nagoya but then gone round the UAE first – these are not carrying GR Yaris to the UK.
Some of the ships which stop at Sagunto are marked as stopping at Livorno.
However, if the route is Livorno or Sagunto to Zeebrugge then the ship might be of interest. Also the ships with no “from” an “to” also may be worth checking out. The ships also need to be from the shipping agents DEPS, OS-K, PS or INCH.
An example of the likely ships when checking the forward movement schedule but on investigation Hoegh Sydney actually docked at Yokkaichi and Dionysos Leader docked at Nagoya Berth W5. Both ships will end up with a similar sailing time to Portbury but one will not have GR Yaris on board.
Dionysos then moved over to Pier E5.
Which illustrates the point - The real key here is what was at berth E5 in the 48-hour window prior to the My T notification - if you know that you have a good idea which ship a car will be on.
Bristol Port Tide Timetable
https://www.bristolport.co.uk/shipping/tide-prediction - Useful to check the tides if you really want to know if the docking time is accurate.
The Ship Tracking Thread
TBC
Vessel Tracking
Marine Traffic
https://www.marinetraffic.com/ - Useful for general tracking and with a paid account for custom areas/ notification of ships leaving a post/ specific berth. For me, this takes some of the leg work out of seeing what docked and when.
FleetMon
https://www.fleetmon.com/ - Most accurate position of a single ship – with a free account - that I've found.
My Ship Tracking
https://www.myshiptracking.com/ - Useful to check port calls to see when a ship stopped at Nagoya – if you sign up for an account you can get 20 days of historic information.
You all probably know me from elsewhere… tracking ships from Nagoya became my thing back when patiently waiting for my car to be built. I’ve tried to keep up with vessel coming from Nagoya – but this might not always be the case.
So when I do eventually lose interest or just stop. I pulled this guide together on what I’ve learnt since I started following ships from Japan in January 2021. This is a guide to tracking GR Yaris being transported from Japan to the UK. But I’m also aware Rav 4 users are now following it and it will no doubt help future GR owners for cars made in the Toyota factories near Nagoya
Start of voyage
Cars are shipped on RORO Vehicle transporters from Nagoya, in the Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
The ships dock at Nagoya Berth E5 which is located here just to the south of the Meiko-Higashi Bridge. Its also sometimes referred to as MEIKO I6.
From July 2021 we saw all vessels sailing to the UK have used the south berth of the Toyota Dock.
Shipping Agents and Managers
Since January 2021 the following shipping agents have been used;
- DEPS
- OS-K “Mitsui O.S.K.Lines”
- PS
- INCH
Cars have been shipped on vessels owned and operated by a number of different companies. These include;
- WILHELMSEN WILH ASA WILSHIP
- WALLENIUSREDERIERNA AB WALLENIUS LINES AB
- VAN YU TRADING CO LTD
- KAWASAKI KISEN KK K LINE http://www.kline.co.jp
- STAMCO SHIP MANAGEMENT CO LTD
- NIPPON YUSEN KAISHA N Y K http://www.nykline.co.jp
- ABO SHOTEN
- CIDO SHIPPING AND TRADING CO
- HAKUYO SHIPPING CO
- MITSUI OSK LINES
- TAIYO NIPPON KISEN CO LTD
- SHOEI KISEN KAISHA LTD
Added 08/05/21 - all boats confirmed to be carrying GR Yaris have been 199m long by 32m wide. Some car carriers are wider and some longer and dock at both Nagoya and Bristol - so it’s not to say bigger ships won’t be used, but something else to look out for.
The Journey
Leaving Nagoya
Ships leave Nagoya berth E5 the day before the My Toyota app updates with the ‘left the factory’ notification. Looking at reports on the Vessel tracking thread and feedback on Facebook the email is normally received between 24/48 hours after the ship has left. A ship will have been in dock for between 1½ and 3 days loading cars prior to leaving.
First Stop Singapore
Not always, but between Jan – August 8, 15 out of 29 Ships either docked or anchored in Singapore. Some stop at Singapore Anchorage for Crew changes, occasionally they dock in Singapore to load/ unload.
Typical sailing time from Nagoya to Singapore is between 6 and 7 days. Ships that stop at Singapore typically stop for up to 21 hours. The average stop is 11 hours.
Next stop Suez - Updated 8th August
Whether or not they stop at Singapore, the next notable point is the Suez Canal. From Nagoya, it typically takes between 20-21 days for ships to get to the southern end of the Canal. Passage through the canal should take about 12-16 hours, depending on traffic – and stuck ships.
Ships normally transit first thing in the morning so if they arrive afternoon, they generally anchor and wait for the next day. While there is a second sailing south in the Canal there presently appears to only be one northern transit per day.
Through the Mediterranean
Ships now take two different routes – this appears to alternate with one ship sailing to Livorno in Italy the other going to Sagunto.
Livorno bound Ships
Livorno Ships typically sail directly from Suez. The sailing time from Nagoya to Livorno is between 24-26 days. Docking in Livorno takes up to 24hrs. The average docking time is about 16 hours.
Update 8th August 2021
For the first time with Grand Cosmo's sailing (Left Nagoya on 16/07/21), we saw a ship stop at Alexandria before proceeding on to Livorno. With the exception of one ship, all boats have alternated between Livorno and Sagunto and this pattern seems unchanged.
Sagunto bound Ships - updated 8th August 2021
Sagunto bound ships, on the other hand, sometimes stop at Alexandria for anything up to 24 hours – although this varies wildly, and a stop here is not always guaranteed. After leaving Alexandria they head to Sagunto. The sailing time from Nagoya to Livorno is between 25-26 days but includes the stop at Alexandria. Docking in Sagunto is a little quicker than Livorno typically taking up to 12 hours. The average docking time is about 10 hours.
The Final Leg (for UK bound Cars) to Portbury
After leaving the final port in the Mediterranean it’s on to Portbury, from Livorno this final leg typically takes just over 6 days. From Sagunto it's normally about 5 days. Total sailing time from Nagoya is typically between 28 and 31 days. This has been longer but was due to the Suez Canal blockage caused by Ever Given.
The Tidal range into Portbury often has an impact when ships can dock and they typically dock within a window that’s a couple of hours on either side of high water. Unloading at Portbury seems to take between 12 and 24 hours.
Update 14th Jan 2022
A couple of oddities in Jan 2022 that went to Southampton. Not clear if this was due to Portbury being full or some other Covid Impact. The first seemed like quite a last-minute change and the other looked prepared for, but vessels seem to be back to heading to Portbury.
After Portbury
After leaving Portbury the ships all seem to head to Zeebrugge, Bremerhaven, Malmo and Gothenburg - I've not tracked them to check on sailing and docking times but all seem to follow a similar route. Gothenburg appears to be the last port on this Toyota delivery route.
Useful Links
Bristol Port Forward Shipping Timetable
https://www.bristolport.co.uk/shipping/forward-movements
This site gives arrivals at Bristol and Portbury – it is not always accurate and regularly gets updated. It can be used as one piece of the jigsaw working out what might be leaving Nagoya.
It’s worth noting that just because a car is shown stopping at Livorno or Sagunto on the schedule doesn’t mean it has GR Yaris onboard. Some of the ships marked as stopping at Livorno or Sagunto have never stopped at Nagoya, some have but not at the correct berth. Some may have stopped at the right berth at Nagoya but then gone round the UAE first – these are not carrying GR Yaris to the UK.
Some of the ships which stop at Sagunto are marked as stopping at Livorno.
However, if the route is Livorno or Sagunto to Zeebrugge then the ship might be of interest. Also the ships with no “from” an “to” also may be worth checking out. The ships also need to be from the shipping agents DEPS, OS-K, PS or INCH.
An example of the likely ships when checking the forward movement schedule but on investigation Hoegh Sydney actually docked at Yokkaichi and Dionysos Leader docked at Nagoya Berth W5. Both ships will end up with a similar sailing time to Portbury but one will not have GR Yaris on board.
Dionysos then moved over to Pier E5.
Which illustrates the point - The real key here is what was at berth E5 in the 48-hour window prior to the My T notification - if you know that you have a good idea which ship a car will be on.
Bristol Port Tide Timetable
https://www.bristolport.co.uk/shipping/tide-prediction - Useful to check the tides if you really want to know if the docking time is accurate.
The Ship Tracking Thread
TBC
Vessel Tracking
Marine Traffic
https://www.marinetraffic.com/ - Useful for general tracking and with a paid account for custom areas/ notification of ships leaving a post/ specific berth. For me, this takes some of the leg work out of seeing what docked and when.
FleetMon
https://www.fleetmon.com/ - Most accurate position of a single ship – with a free account - that I've found.
My Ship Tracking
https://www.myshiptracking.com/ - Useful to check port calls to see when a ship stopped at Nagoya – if you sign up for an account you can get 20 days of historic information.
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