Do-it-yourself imports a bargain via the net

By PETER GRIFFIN

For those finding it hard to stomach the cheesy smiles and hard sell tactics of the car yards, an alternative is to cut the dealer out of the buying process and go straight to the auto auctions in Japan - via the internet.

Perhaps more than any other country, New Zealand loves its "Jap imports". Up to 8,000 used cars leave the ports of Nagoya, Osaka or Tokyo every month bound for New Zealand and with the cars entering the country duty-free they come very attractively priced.

But the internet and e-mail in particular allow a growing number of auto-literate car buyers to arrange for the import of their own vehicles through Japanese agents buying the cars on their behalf and taking care of shipping.

Working through one such agent, I recently bought a 1992 Nissan Skyline, 2 litre GTS with 80,000km on the clock at auction in Osaka. The process involved the agent e-mailing me a list of cars that were going up for auction that week. I replied, telling him the specs for the car I wanted and making it clear that it had to be a manual 5-speed and black in colour.

Soon after I was e-mailed a selection of digital pictures of a Skyline fitting the bill and due to be auctioned. A photo of a small scratch along one of the car's panels was also included.

After gaining my approval and a ceiling price I was prepared to pay, my agent top-bid on my Skyline at auction, buying it for 90,522 yen ($NZ1,800) cheap even by agent's standards according to Heiwa Autos.

But buying the car was only the beginning of the process. On top of the actual cost of the car came my agent's fee, shipping and marine insurance, a compliance inspection on arrival in the ports of Auckland, cleaning by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF), registration and warranty. Adding all that up with the obligatory GST of 12.5 per cent thrown in, the final sum was close on $5,700.

Apart from dirty upholstery, an intermittent headlight problem and a glitch with the air-conditioning, my Skyline turned up six weeks later in satisfactory condition and a scan of Auckland dealers found models with the same specs as mine selling on yards for up to $9,000.

But the process was not as straightforward as that. I was working through an agent recommended by a friend in the motor industry who included my Skyline with a batch of ten other he was importing himself to stock a yard, driving down both the agent's fee and shipping costs.

Without that helping hand, choosing an agent from the dozens advertising their services in awkward English via the net would have proved daunting and cost savings would have been scaled back without the discounts.

While a multitude of sites have sprung up serving the car buyer keen to cut out the middleman caution is the name of this game. Most agents require you to deposit the value of the car and shipping in their bank account before the car leaves Japan.

Some will suggest you come to Japan yourself and provide you with an English-speaking agent to guide you through the complicated auction process. Cost effective if you're passing through Tokyo or looking to invest in some heavy earthmoving machinery but not ideal for the budget car buyer.

And the policy is very much "What you see is what you get". The photographs e-mailed are often all you have to go on to tell the condition of the vehicle. There are usually no money back guarantees or warranties on offer. An agent will try to build his reputation (and secure return business) by looking after his distant customers, but the level of risk involved is far greater than approaching local dealers.

An alternative affording a greater level of protection is to go through a local car wholesaler. These are organisations that bring cars in from Japan but do away with the expense of maintaining dealerships. Warranties can usually be purchases and finance can be arranged, but the cost savings in going through a wholesaler as opposed to going to a dealer is often minimal.

Links:


Heiwa Auto

Diyata Japan

Cars Direct

Occidental Cars

Kappa Motors

Toyo Bussan Co

Phoenix Japan Co

IBC Japan

Mehran Trading Co

Yokohama Trading

Star Auto