

I would stay near (ish) to Kyoto and just go one day, the National Museum in Kyoto is really good and you can see the rest of what you want to see quite quickly. It is about as commercialized as you can get for a town in Japan, its approaching Disney levels of parody.
Staying further away lowers the cost and as long as its on one of the direct train lines into Kyoto it doesnt take long to get there. There is a lot to do in daily travelable distance in the region that is a better use of your time.



Cars have also gotten much bigger, generally speaking more reliable, and stuffed with extra technology, some of which makes the car safer than before. Little of that technology is really optional now in the EU but still adds to the price.
A cirrent polo is the same size as a mark two golf, a three series is same size as an old face series. Most could downsize and not notice.
New cars are purchased on the monthly cost than anything else where I am, with a balloon for the final payment. Manufacturers make money again on the same car at the second sale but can only do so if they protect the resale price, which means ever increasing sales prices.