A quick word on importing cars

initial_j

initial_j

Made guy
Its come to my attention recently there seems to be a lot of unknown individuals popping up offering very cheap imports, especially on facebook and some even on here.


Sadly we live in a day and age where people believe anything and everything to be the truth because its on the internet. So just a bit of a reminder to be wary. As some of the adverts ive seen over the last few weeks have been ridiculously cheap compared to known reputable dealers of japanese imports.

Before you part with your money, ask a few questions.

Mainly, why is this so cheap?
Have the company imported cars before?
Who do you know who has used them before? (who isnt friends with the owner)
What sort of insurance procedures are in place if it goes wrong?


I.e is this a trusted, registered, experienced company? or is it just some guy winging it?

Seems to be far too many people ready to hand over huge sums of money to complete strangers on the strength of a few pictures of a car in japan. And a lot of people wont have been around in drifting long enough to remember a certain company ripping people off in the same scenario.

Be careful out there guys. :thumbs:
 
Last edited:
Master thread for importer/shipper reviews?

Only able to post once approved, to stop these "companies" creating spam accounts to make their selves look good.

I'm genuinely interested in knowing who's good/bad in the importing game, as the yen is doing pretty good things right now and it could be something worth considering.
 
It seems to me that all you have to be able to do to be an "importer" now days is register on Trade Car View, get a contact in the likes of Royal Trading and sell all the heaps of dung they can't get rid off. Skimming £1k of the top each time. Everyone is entitled to a bit of profit when they make smart moves/sales but when its someone with little to no experience taking a gamble with your money it becomes scary.
 
Also worth mentioning that if you are handing over a vast sum of money to a company then stick some of it on a credit card.

Purchases on a credit card are backed by insurance provided by the credit company, they'll cover the entire cost of the item even if a partial amount is put on the card.
 
So would it be a good idea to Name the good importers here?
Not a name and shame of the bad but more a "Heres who's good!"
 
can't agree with this more, every cunt and his dog is a facebook "japanese import specialist" these days.. copy and pasting auction pics from websites and spouting shit like "in stock with my man in japan" etc..

a fool and their money are easily separated though, when you deal with some clown operating out of their bedroom in their parents house and end up with some horrific clocked to death R graded scrapper then really.. what did you expect??

the upshot of the market being flooded with total fucking knackers is that it makes selling honest, good grade 4 cars (like mine, for example) hard because people won't pay the money when billy bollocks sees his mate turning out bent cars with fucked coilovers, starship kms, 20 coats of paint, scotchlocked wiring etc as super duper drift cars.

if you do want to go through an "importer" (and really, why would you bother when it's easier/cheaper/better to do it yourself) then you want to make sure they're registered at companies house, have premises, insurance etc etc etc.. as said in the original post
 
2 best and cheapest are opjp and japscrap or js imorts on facebook they do very affordable prices and offer a great service much better than using any of the bigger importers who over charge.
 
Bought my car from Powervehicles , top guys , honest car , well written spec list and incredibly accurate , up front about faults and issues , nothing hidden .
 
initial_j said:
Its come to my attention recently there seems to be a lot of new companies popping up offering very cheap imports, especially on facebook and some even on here.


Sadly we live in a day and age where people believe anything and everything to be the truth because its on the internet. So just a bit of a reminder to be wary. As some of the adverts ive seen over the last few weeks have been ridiculously cheap compared to known reputable dealers of japanese imports.

Before you part with your money, ask a few questions.

Mainly, why is this so cheap?
Have the company imported cars before?
Who do you know who has used them before? (who isnt friends with the owner)
What sort of insurance procedures are in place if it goes wrong?


I.e is this a trusted, registered, experienced company? or is it just some guy winging it?

Seems to be far too many people ready to hand over huge sums of money to complete strangers on the strength of a few pictures of a car in Japan. And a lot of people wont have been around in drifting long enough to remember a certain company ripping people off in the same scenario.

Be careful out there guys. :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Hi Jack,

I totally agree with your comments and share the same fear for those dabbling in this very competitive market without the relevant protection or guarantees.
I hope that your are not referring to us (Garage Sinister) as we pride ourselves with honesty and clear descriptions and have no negative customer feedback as we ensure the customer knows what they are buying. I have been importing cars since 2007, not commercially for all of those years, however long enough to know the truth about this business, and trust me I have bought myself some mingers and death-traps and had to put them straight which has cost me dearly.£££. Its a process that most importers have had to endure before getting it right. Dont be the test pilot for this process.

My advise to those who dabble "You are on very limited/borrowed time" if you don't own your own stock and are not 100% honest or sure of its history. At least make sure that you have a good enough bank balance to re-credit unhappy/dissatisfied customers.

The current status: If its cheap, its no doubt had a smack or needs some work - Very simple.
A good honest car with genuine mileage fetches premium figures especially at auction, we lose so many customers by been honest its crazy...Then what do you know they have bought one elsewhere in the UK???

For the likes of these agents in Japan that are sweeping up the ragged dog ends and selling to UK suppliers are that you will spoil it for everyone in the end, including myself.

There is a market for cheap tat and by all means exploit it, especially if its for parts or an on-going restoration project...But understand what your have bought and if possible view it in person or wait for a company like us to buy it first and take the risk, so you don't have to.
 
Last edited:
10000 percent no!

Just to clarify any gold registered traders on here are reputable good companies. Garage sinister and autospecs have been trading for years and have many happy customers.

I was reffering to the sudden surge of private individuals on Facebook recently that seem to be sticking up suspiciously cheap imports in promise of a hefty deposit
 
I've had 3x unregistered imports now.

1st company no longer exists, so no worries there (Ghost Dancer! Though unlike most, I didn't get ripped off).

2nd was from Powervehicles, and was bang on.

3rd one was literally earlier this week from 874age in Ireland, who's just a normal lad, not trying to be a big business. And it's honestly the best condition car I've ever had, far better than expected, nobody believes me the car is 13 years old rather than pretty much brand new, and just pissed though an MOT no bother.

I went with the above guy as a bit of research shows he isn't full of shit and has brought good cars over. Honest person who knows what he's doing.

Do a bit of research, know realistically what to expect, and you should be ok.

But YES, I know 101% quite a few of the companies that make out they serious import businesses are actually random chancers bringing cars in no differently to how you could yourself, and skimming a bit of profit off the top. BUT they have the knowledge to do so, so it's not underhand, it just is what it is.
As long as you not muggy enough to believe they some fancy operation with Jap-based staff, you'll be ok.
 
Last edited:
Quite a relevant subject for me as im looking into importing something at the moment.

As i've never imported a car before, either through a dealer or by myself, i guess my first question is: how is it easier/cheaper/better to do it yourself? As far as i can see from the various FAQ's ive read that'd mean me buying blind from a dealer in japan through tradecarview, gooexchange or similar (which also seems to involve a bank tranfser to stranger/company on the other side of the world) for a car that doesnt really seem much cheaper than than stuff in the uk by the time insurance, freight, registering etc is taken into account.

I've been scouring those sites lately looking at all sorts of stuff from kei cars to landcruisers and the prices on those sites dont wow me with their cheapness. Are the dealer cars massively marked up and they expect you to haggle? Or are those site not really the best places to be looking for good cheap cars? And are there sites for more modified stuff as i cant seem to find anything with much more than coilovers wheels and maybe an aftermarket drivers seat
 
On this note Jack, can you and the mods get back to cracking down on the traders on here? I've just had a look through some of the for sale cars and a few say things like "we accept part-ex" and "we've recently secured this at auction". Clearly guys trying to trade and unfortunately people still seem to trust the DW forum to provide a relatively safe buying environment
 
I was quite tempted by an r34 4dr on wastebook the other week. £2100

Might do some research into the "agent" now, hadn't considered it might be a scam :eek:

I've been around here long enough to know better too!!
 
Ed said:
I was quite tempted by an r34 4dr on wastebook the other week. £2100

Might do some research into the "agent" now, hadn't considered it might be a scam :eek:

I've been around here long enough to know better too!!
Click to expand...

Ha. Saw exactly the same car, was actually what made me write this post. Keep seeing a lot of posts on Facebook from a couple of people offering suspiciously cheap cars with no prior history of importing cars
 
If people are clearly "trading for profit" whether they're a legit business, or some spotty urchin in his bedroom with a Japaneseusedcars.com login shouldn't they be made to become a 'registered trader' (as with pretty much every other forum in the world) surely the regular "for sale" sections should be exclusively for people moving on their own personal cars/parts.
 
initial_j said:
Ha. Saw exactly the same car, was actually made me write this post. Keep seeing a lot of posts on Facebook from a couple of people offering suspiciously cheap cars with no prior history of importing cars
Click to expand...

How can we check to see if these cheap cars and sellers are genuine?

I guess credit cards payments and invoices for deposits are the safest bet?
 
its common sense really, would you hand over thousands of pounds to some random guy round the corner for a picture of a car or would you rather walk into a reputable garage thats been trading for years?

i used JDMGarage and got a very good service and a very good price.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top