VLADIVOSTOK, Far East -- Even the proudest patriots here admit that Russia's Zhiguli never stood a chance.


After local fisherman and sailors a few years ago started bringing home used Japanese cars -- many of them boxy models dating back to the mid 1980s -- the people of Vladivostok scoffed at even the latest Russian automobiles.


Car buyers in this port closed to foreigners until 1992 have shunned the domestic auto industry, with the result that over 80 percent of local drivers have switched to right-hand drive cars from Japan, according to the city's mayor.


The reasons are the same as those which humbled Detroit, America's motor city, two decades before. In a town plagued by icy hills, stubborn winter frosts, poorly lit streets and the usual array of potholes, these hand-me-down Hondas, Nissans and Toyotas keep running reliably.


"When you buy a Russian car, you need to find a mechanic to repair it all the time,' said Nikolai Zaika, president of the local journalists' association. "When you buy a Japanese car, all you need is someone to wash it."


Few seem to have done even that, however, as the resilient dirt that seems to plague the Russian auto across 11 time zones is just as stubborn on the Japanese car, often obscuring Japanese language markings which give them an exotic feel in an otherwise distinctly Soviet city 9,350 kilometers from Moscow.


For a region finding its way after pampering during the Soviet era, the auto trade has also provided a textbook example of the benefits of free trade.


Because Japanese law requires car owners to recertify their vehicles every five years in a rather expensive procedure, many prefer to sell for low prices rather than go to that trouble, according to Hideki Asahi, Japan's consul general in Vladivostok.


"It is very good for Japan to move those scraps to Russia," he said.


A Russian sailor, fisherman or tourist can as a result pick up a decent used car for as little as $500, and can earn a few hundred dollars profit by selling it later on.


The Russian government also did nicely by pocketing an average of about 200,000 rubles on the 39,750 imported Japanese cars last year, according to Anatoly Korolyov, a customs official overseeing import taxes.


In this era of Russian woes, however, the story of the Japanese automobile invasion does not end happily. This is where organized crime and what some call the other Mafia -- government bureaucrats -- enter the picture.


It was the crime underworld that first seized upon the local car market, helping to earn Vladivostok a reputation as one of the toughest cities in Russia.


"People -- many of whom can be described as criminal elements -- come here from all corners of the former Soviet Union to buy cars and throw a lot of cash into the city,' said Vecheslav Yaroshenko, the city's public prosecutor. "That makes Vladivostok the most expensive city in Russia after Magadan, and that, in turn, is a big cause of crime."He cites, for example, the 439 murders in the city last year, up five fold from 1989. The murder and overall crime rate would be about 20 percent less without all the money related to the Japanese car business here, he said.


Just when the Mafia seemed to have squeezed the last dollar out of the used car market, government bureaucrats in Moscow also stepped in two months ago and increased import tariffs 50 fold. The average tax shot up to 12-14 million rubles a car, with only sailors and fishermen allowed to bring in one car tax free for personal use.


"It was a really stupid decision without any logic," said Valery Sharov, local correspondent for Literaturnaya Gazeta. "The people in Moscow just don't understand the situation."


Added customs official Korolyov: "We think tariffs should be a lot less; who is going to pay this money?"


The answer is no one. Imports of Japanese cars to Vladivostok have dried up this year, as locals wait for the government to change its mind again on the import taxes. They recall that a year ago, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin tried to ban right-hand drive cars, but public outcry forced him to back down.


By now hooked on Japanese vehicles, Vladivostok's drivers are by no means giving up the struggle. Because of a loophole in the customs law, Japanese minivans are taxed at a rate of about a tenth of regular cars. Seemingly out of the blue, the compact minivans have become remarkably popular in recent months.


He cites, for example, the 439 murders in the city last year, up five fold from 1989. The murder and overall crime rate would be about 20 percent less without all the money related to the Japanese car business here, he said.


Just when the Mafia seemed to have squeezed the last dollar out of the used car market, government bureaucrats in Moscow also stepped in two months ago and increased import tariffs 50 fold. The average tax shot up to 12-14 million rubles a car, with only sailors and fishermen allowed to bring in one car tax free for personal use.


"It was a really stupid decision without any logic," said Valery Sharov, local correspondent for Literaturnaya Gazeta. "The people in Moscow just don't understand the situation."


Added customs official Korolyov: "We think tariffs should be a lot less; who is going to pay this money?"


The answer is no one. Imports of Japanese cars to Vladivostok have dried up this year, as locals wait for the government to change its mind again on the import taxes. They recall that a year ago, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin tried to ban right-hand drive cars, but public outcry forced him to back down.


By now hooked on Japanese vehicles, Vladivostok's drivers are by no means giving up the struggle. Because of a loophole in the customs law, Japanese minivans are taxed at a rate of about a tenth of regular cars. Seemingly out of the blue, the compact minivans have become remarkably popular in recent months.