JDM Import guide/walk through

Yeah, generally you are getting a better one for the money from Japan. Doesnt always apply,

The one I spotted today:

2004 VW Lupo GTI
1600cc
Grade 4
Interior C
72,673km
6spd, AC, AW, PS, PW, AirB
Original silver

Report
Headliner loose
Interior scratched, dirty
Winter tires
Minor oil leak
Various scratches

Diagram notes
Front bumper paint cracked





So, looks decent, low KM's, thats only 44k miles. The minor oil leak the only call out there, the rest is fine. What Ive found in past is that minor really means minor. Likely rocker cover or similar.

I'll likely bid on it, but not before checking later today what else comes up in case something better arrives. They are shut now till midnight so it makes no difference.
 
Last edited:
I have a midlife crisis E30 BMW lurking at the back of my head, do you see much of that in Japan? I'm surprised to see things like Lupos tbh, when I was in Japan I saw almost exclusively Japanese cars.
 
Lupos seem quite popular there for some reason.

Ive not any e30's come up, but the e36 does quite a bit and anything newer
 
Last edited:
I'll keep my eye on things till just before bedtime, think its just the Lupo I'll bid on.

I did spot these two:

Galant vr4, loved my old one, should have kept it. This one is repaired, but will be cheap. 114k kms, but I know them well. Tempting.
Corolla Fielder Z. This comes with the 190bhp 2ZZ 1.8 and 6 speed manual. Quite light and looks boring. This one though is a Grade 3 which is probably too low and it has a cracked windscreen, which would be a nightmare to find.

Might bid on the Galant, but currently feeling only the Lupo


 
Last edited:
I bid 300000 on the second Lupo. Its upper end for it, but Ill find out probably midnight tonight when they open in the morning in Japan if I won it.

I also spotted this S4, which i really liked, decent miles and love the colour. However, one fatal flaw, upon asking for the photos I then found out its left hand drive. Sad, really liked it.

 
Im also looking at the Nissan Cedric and Gloria again. I had a lovely white one with the 3.0 v6 turbo that ended up in Slovakia I think. I much prefer the VQ30 over the 1JZ to be honest. They sell very cheap in Japan and are still a bit under the radar for the money.

This one came up but I missed it, it didnt sell, so might appear next week. 280bhp, super smooth, great cars but some parts are hard to find. These usually sell for about 150000 yen (£775). This one has about 40000 miles, grade 4, tempting!


 
Yeah, thats what Im going to be showing through this process. Thats just the cost of the car. Shipping, tax and duty etc all to come :)

I'll keep a log of all costs and explain as I go. The £775 for that car is the price in Japan for the car, bargain, but might be £4k here. Still great for the money in my opinion.
 
This is a very interesting thread, thanks. I'm looking at importing something like a Lexus IS350 (not sold over here).

What do you do with the more advanced models, some have a 70mph limit on the cruise control IIRC. I remember there is a top speed limit of 110mph?
 
Never had a limit on cruise personally but the speed limit to 112 I think is true (180kph).

Typically, if you convert the speedometer this is then 180mph. If you just do the speedo face then it will still be there but can usually be mapped out.

I sometimes leave them in km now, just depends

The IS350 is a good shout, the gs460 is cheaper and something like the newer Crown Athlete would be cheaper and a step up.
 
Last edited:
Primeras with the SR20VE are usually quite cheap

Yeah, some things you can do yourself, others you can't and some things are just not worth the bother, we'll get to that

Shipping agent is the one annoying part that I gladly pay a small fee to get done
 
One thing you can also do is pay a licence fee of £10 per month to USS auctions to have direct access to the pics and sheets. It's probably useful if aiming for a pricier or rarer car where timing is more critical.
 
Axeboy said:
Never had a limit on cruise personally but the speed limit to 112 I think is true (180kph).

Typically, if you convert the speedometer this is then 180mph. If you just do the speedo face then it will still be there but can usually be mapped out.

I sometimes leave them in km now, just depends

The IS350 is a good shout, the gs460 is cheaper and something like the newer Crown Athlete would be cheaper and a step up.
Click to expand...

I like your thinking on the gs460, I had a 2007 is250 so know that generation well. I'll find out more on this 70mph CC limit as was spotted in my travels. The 112 is not really an issue as not going to be tracking it.

There is a gs460 on ebay atm @Feek ?

The crown athlete is a good option, they seem to be all hybrids and I am trying to avoid Hybrids.
 
Yeah, on the Crown there are two specific models, hybrid and non hybrid. There are loads of both at auction.

An idea of prices at auction, 2008, grade 4, similar kms:

IS350 - 500000yen
GS460 - 360000yen
Crown Athlete - 400000yen

The GS350 is less than all of them too
 
Axeboy said:
Yeah, on the Crown there are two specific models, hybrid and non hybrid. There are loads of both at auction.

An idea of prices at auction, 2008, grade 4, similar kms:

IS350 - 500000yen
GS460 - 360000yen
Crown Athlete - 400000yen

The GS350 is less than all of them too
Click to expand...

So....... a GS460 for £1.8k :eek: + Then other costs.

I was looking for the next generation for all the Lexus safety toys, but that price has got me thinking!
 
I have a Crown Hybrid and yes the cruise control only works up to 115kph. I would imagine all the Toyota models would be the same. It's kind of annoying tbh, but the 180kph limit on JDM models is of absolutely no consequence, nobody drives that fast.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom