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It looks better head-on rather than three-quarters, imo...

Looks to be a Kiha 185 and will be on the Dosan Line.

It was announced June 30 that the central government will provide additional aid to regional railways JR Hokkaido and JR Shikoku, to help fund the replacement of aging rolling stock and rail maintenance. Between FY2016 and FY2018, 120 billion yen(~967 million USD) will be provided to JR Hokkaido in the form of grants and no-interest loans, and similarly 20 billion yen (~163 million USD) to JR Shikoku between FY2016~19. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/economy/20150630-OYT1T50085.html

Overshadowed no doubt by the news about JR East's new E235 series, here's JR Shikoku's new cruise train, the Iyo-nada Monogatari. Based on a two-car KIHA47 set, these have been redesignated KIRO, RO indicating Green Car, as far as I know. They're still numbered as 47s, 1400 subseries. Service will start July 26th. The livery is tasteful, I think, and I really like the interior and bentos :). http://railf.jp/news/2014/07/02/170000.html

Just saw this linked on Ompuchaneru. A new express EMU for JR Shikoku, but it doesn't tilt like the 8000 series. Looks a bit like a British Rail design, particularly the 350, as mentioned in the discussion. Not bad. This illustrations are often quite accurate, but I'll wait to see the real thing. On this page, click the link for the pdf, it has the illustration: http://www.jr-shikoku.co.jp/03_news/press/13-11-25/01.htm from this thread on Ompuchaneru: http://rail-uploader.khz-net.com/index.php?id=1124914

This is a video recorded along the Seto inland sea of the electrified section on the Yosan Line, I think somewhere between Takamatsu and Tadotsu considering the Shiokaze and Ishizuchi is coupled although I can't find the exact location: This video is recorded in and around Shimonada station and at some neighbouring stations on the non-electrified section of the Yosan Line, also along the Seto inland sea:

Here's a nice window view video of JR Shikoku's Tokushima Line by YT uploader syaso, gotta love that 4:30AM start. It's especially nice as it doesn't seem there's much coverage of JR Shikoku's network. I really like the onboard annoucements, I think it's a recording but some of it sounds quite funny, if it is a recording I gotta give JR Shikoku credit for choosing that ossan! Maybe the Tokushima branch is pulling a fast one by hiring a guy who's fluent in Awa-ben but has no idea what Tokyo people are saying! :) It's much easier to imagine him as the conductor, but the sound quality is too good, and many but not all of these are driver-only services. syaso includes several on-screen notes, a few that stand out are: - at 1'16" there's the Hinode Honten building, the company is apparently known for its grape monju. The company dates to 1914, and it seems that the building might too, I think they're lucky it's still standing. - at 2'46" the KIHA47s get fired up - at 9'40" the Asan/Sanuki mountain range comes into view. He calls it Asan first, 'A' from Awa, the old name of Tokushima, and 'san' from the first character of Sanuki, the old name of Kagawa, most commonly heard in the context of udon. Wikipedia has it as the Sanuki mountain range, mentioning that only in Tokushima, it's often called Asan. - at 28'40" indicating that Kawashima Caste can be seen in the distance. - at 24'09" there's Gaku station. Gaku is 学, to study/learn, and there's some language trick here, go-nyu-gaku can mean 5 platform tickets for Gaku station, but it can also be the sounds for getting into school (via passing an entrance exam), so buying a set is done for good luck. So, during exam season, the station is staffed (otherwise it's unmanned), and packs of 5 platform tickets are sold, and a "charm bag" (don't know what else to call it) is included for free. - at 58'05" the Akui River is crossed, and we're now in Tokushima City. Looks like a nice regional city, and a great place for DMU fans, no catenary in sight! Links: - English Wikipedia on the Tokushima Line: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokushima_Line - English Wikipedia on some stations: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anabuki_Station http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaku_Station http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awa-Kawashima_Station http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akui_Station http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokushima_Station - English Wikipedia on the Sanuki Mountains: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanuki_Mountains - Hinode Honten's site: http://www.budoumanju.com/ - a few pages on the good luck charms at Gaku Station: http://www.jr-eki.com/service_ticket/htm/shikoku/goukaku.html http://www.jr-shikoku.co.jp/03_news/press/11-12-09/01.html http://mbp-ehime.com/dsk-p/column/2134/ - Google map centered on Kamojima Station, about halfway between Anabuki and Tokushima: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=34.0738,134.3561&ll=34.061477,134.36245&spn=0.245455,0.385551&t=m&z=12