Japanese imports

Hi all,


Not sure if this is the right sub forum for this so apologies if it is not.


I buy and sell cars and have done for years but have found some good deals for cars in Japan I want to import, mostly these will be German brands, BMW/Audi/MB/VW I have done some homework and asked around and I am fairly confident with the procedure/registration and tax side of things.

The only concerns/questions remaining is regarding the cars themselves, does anyone know if theres any reason why it would be a bad idea to import these, I know years ago it was hard to insure due to the different build quality, but from my research the German cars beside the instrument measurements which can easily be changed, the cars are virtually the same but tend to be in way better condition, most of the cars I deal with are up to 4 years old so nothing old.

The other question I had was to do with paperwork, I can't do VIN/registration checks to see their full history, so I am concerned that if one has been in a crash however minor or severe will this appear on my log book as a CAT S/N?

Also once the IVA test has been completed does this note onto the new UK logbook that the car is now an import?

Do these cars loose much value as they are imported?

Is it just normal German cars that are readily available here?

I don't agree with the opinion that cars from Japan are in better condition.

I thought it was because they don't put salt on the roads in Japan in winter? The other issue is that they often don't come with emissions data and whilst this may mean lower VED for the sportier models (you pay as a LGV vehicle), it wont be accepted as exempt any of the CAZ or ULEZ.

I've read articles bout those who have imported models, especially if grey imports of models not normally sold here, w have found they are not exempt.

They are better for a few reasons, but I don't think the rain or air quality has anything to do with it. It is not the weather in this country that wrecks our cars its how we deal with it.
Japanese roads are not salted and all the auctions are generally graded accurately. The bad examples are just not exported in the same numbers as the good ones.

There are a lot of individuals and companies importing non domestic branded JDM car's. I'm sure you can make a go of it and make some money but it seems to me there are many basic things you could research first. Generally you don't want to be importing cars under 4 years old like you have implied, I'm not convinced nearly new JDM cars are much cheaper than UK equivalents and the nearly new UK market is dominated by dealers offering finance. Will you be able to offer finance on a nearly new Japanese import?

The market for JDM cars are the obvious Japanese performance / 4x4 / campervan / suv cars and then the European cars, Alfa Gta's, VW R32/R36, BMW 335i...etc all of which are over 10 years old and only need a UK mot not an IVA. Demand is high for these as they are being shipped over in outstanding condition. I have a 335i with 68k miles and full Japanese BMW history that i actually believe was more than a book stamping exercise so often the case for uk main dealers.

The advice above from others is generally good.

A few points.

KPH to MPH converters are available and are wired at the gearbox or behind the cluster. Older cars are generally easier, newer CANBUS less so but still possible. There are a few UK suppliers of these around.

Ive never had an issue with the rear fog light in the cluster replacing one reverse light. Its tidy, its passed all MOT's without issue.

Also, worth budgeting for some undersealing too.

JEVIC or BITMA can do a car history check on any Japanese car.

Also, worth doing research on the IVA process if under 10 years old. Depending on the model you import there is a chance it will be troublesome. Head over to the Japanese forum on here to see examples. I expect its a minimal amount but always been a risk for me so I have stuck with 10 years+ every time

Sorry Captain - thought I'd put my 2p on your observations

Buttons are usually a mix, Skyline was all symbols & English but my Crown is a mix of those plus Japanese text, it doesn't take long to work out what each does.

There are specific FM radio expanders, mine cost £12 from amazon and now I can get most UK radio stations, Radio 2 will always be the strongest though.

Modern ones are likely to be locked, I have a big ocean vista on my 2006 Crown screen. Older cars will probably be better as it's less complicated to replace.

I did unsightly awful thing on my Skyline, for the Crown I put it into of the reverse lights so it's just like some other UK sold cars with 1 fog and 1 reverse.

Standard square plates should fit fine in the Japanese plate slot, just make sure the holes are drilled in the right place. No issues ordering new ones from any mainstream plates place.

Whenever I look at this it seems to generate discussion. As far as I believe it's an offense to have your car in KPH only under the construction & use regs, however this technically only applies to cars originally sold in the UK (this is how it's explained to me) so your import could be exempt, I wouldn't want to test that theory. To be sure you can get converters which change the signal before it hits the speedo and it'll display the MPH on the dash.

The MOT doesn't check what the speedo reads in just that it lights up and you can read it.

Personally I don't see the issue with leaving it in KPH, the conversion isn't hard and even so you can learn the key speeds, but legislatively you have to account for stupid people. One bit of fun in changing the signal is that it removes the JDM speed limiter (180kph/112mph) as the speedo is effectively in MPH, take that law

I'm strongly biased to JDM metal so I justify all the little things you have to put up but the big one for me is that I have owned cars not sold in the UK. If I wanted something like a BMW/Audi etc I'd just search for a looked after UK example.

I wouldn’t be confident I’d be able to get parts for a European car imported from Japan if it was some weird spec not sold in Europe.

Probably wouldn’t be in the European EPC so dealers won’t be able to help unless they ask the manufacturer, and they may say they can’t support it.

People accept that on a Japanese made car, but why put up with the hassle on a BMW or Merc?

Why would anyone buy an import with unknown potential parts and servicing problems, over a UK car? Yes if it's JDM only maybe, but not if available here.
It may not have any issues but not knowing would put me off, as i guess it would a lot of others.

I'd be the same - a friend was looking for an E39 at the start of this year, after checking out some of the imports available he chose a UK market car with 95k miles on it. His reasoning was that the imported cars he drove felt like they needed either rebushing or a complete suspension overhaul anyway (which the car he bought also needed), but with the money he saved he's having the subframes removed, underbody 'restored' and then coated, so chances are it'll look better/withstand rust longer than a JDM car anyway - plus I think he's still about £1500 better off than the cheapest imported car he viewed. Better the Devil you know, as they say...