Importing Forester STI

Importing Forester STI

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Discussion

lemmingjames

7,433 posts

203 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
So how much do you think you saved vs buying one thats at an importers/one in the country?

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Monday 4th June 2018
quotequote all
So, we have news. Time for tea?

Updates have been thin on the ground only due to taking a break in Mallorca in May. Ironically the boat sailed past the island and docked in Barcelona, which was the closest I would get to it for some time.

Whilst we were away NSA did send me the arrival documents via email with instructions on the C384 form (VAT and duty) and some other things to fill in, they also required one of the original bills of lading from Japan (at home in my desk). As we would still be away when it arrived I emailed them back to let them know and it turned out the boat was delayed so it wasn't an issue.

Got back and posted some hard copies to NSA having already sent over some of the requested documents by email (invoice, certificate of export). They managed to deal with VAT and duty just with the emailed stuff and I then got an invoice for the total amount including their fees of about £130 for acting as shipping agents and customs clearance. Paid that by bank transfer and then had to ring and arrange a day to collect.

The main problem is that NSA are only open for car collection in two sessions per day and half-day on a Friday, plus you have to give a full-days notice of your time to collect, so if you work full-time then I would recommend sorting out a trailer company to go and collect it for you. Otherwise, as happened to me and I had a last minute change of plan, you get charged an extra £35 per week for storage....cheers.

So it was last Wednesday I took the train to Newcastle, then Metro to Bede and walked from there to the port. You will need some photo ID and the reg number or chassis number to collect. I handed this over and the chap wheeled the battery pack out to where it was parked and drove it out with the words of warning "it's as flat as a pancake and you won't get very far."

The fuel gauge needle was bent around the E helpfully, so I set off looking for a petrol station with no means of re-starting it (see the point about arranging trailer collection, above). The battery was so dead that it could barely run the engine and the ignition was flicking on and off for the short drive (not good for blood pressure). Got to a petrol station and sat with the engine running in the hope it would charge enough to re-start. Which was fine until it didn't. Had to buy a set of jump leads and coral a friendly chap in a Legacy estate to give me a jump start. Then began the longest 80 miles of my life...

First, a picture:



Helpfully I couldn't turn the stereo / satnav combo off so it gave me a few words of encouragement in hushed Japanese tones every now and then. The satnav just showed a road up to the sea in the docks, so presumably this was the last position it registered in Japan! Bit of a nightmare drive back from that point. The battery was obviously cooked and could barely supply enough power to run the engine. Not being able to switch the stereo off meant that every time I indicated to change lanes the stereo would cut out, then re-start. Every 25 mins or so all the warning lights would come on as if the key was at position 1 and the ignition would flutter causing the car to judder. Then I made the mistake of flashing someone to let them out and the thing nearly died in the outside lane of the A1. Then it started to rain....

Fortunately as I got close to home I left the motorway and took the old A1 from Dishforth, so I had the opportunity to flex the right foot leaving roundabouts and was also out of the way should there be any problems. I then decided to go the long way round to get home and see what it could do on some roads I know well, which proved to be an error: having had a minor thrash I got to a t-junction about 250 yards from the house, didn't dip the clutch in time and rolled to a halt in the middle of the road. Cue pushing it for the second time that day (and having pushed my Series 3 Landy around at home recently I can say it doesn't weigh much less, surprisingly).

Ran home, got changed, got other car, jump started subaru, took it home, ran back to other car, went to work.

Since then I went to Halfords and bought a new battery for it, fitted, now all sorted and it turns out it has an alarm which also works. The battery fit is a fiddly job though, and whilst I was looking for the spark plugs I got the impression that anything other than routine maintenance will involve taking a lot of the top of the engine off...

I went out for a quick spin with Mrs M last night and the boy in the back (isofix compatible rear seats). First impressions:

Ride is generally good, more forgiving than my daily drive (520d M sport with 19 inch wheels). I suspect this may be down to the
larger sidewalls on the Subaru and that they are not run-flats. Much less crashy over potholes and poor surfaces. Interestingly though the rear tends to bunny hop over expansion joints and undulations at motorway speeds. Not jiggly, more just a pronounced feeling of bobbing from the rear end that takes a little time to settle.

The handling goes fist in glove with steering-not a huge amount of feel but incredibly direct. I keep on ending up about with about a quarter of a turn too much lock at corners I'm familiar with. Not a huge amount of body roll and it feels well controlled, much more so than DD, which tends to lurch a bit when pushed on especially when exiting roundabouts. I'm struck by how narrow it feels which is probably a combination of the steering effect and also that it is a relatively upright body. The seating position is more SUV than estate car, certainly much higher than DD.

The seats look great but aren't actually hugely supportive. Is it just me? The wings on the seats don't really touch my shoulders. Maybe I've just been corrupted by years of poor seats?

Engine: Brace yourselves, it's just too quiet. From inside you can hear the exhaust up until about 3.5k, but after that it becomes sewing-machine thrash with a slight induction whoosh overlaid. I tried it with the windows open, and all that happened was that the wind noise drowned anything out above 40mph. I see Dan went with the Hayward and Scott 2.5 backbox which is now on my list of upgrades down the line, subject to approval by the financial controller.

I've ordered a replacement headunit that should be arriving in the next few days and the car was dropped off last night at my local MOT centre, which it'll need before I can register it and apply for the V5. Hopefully it'll be back soon and from the look of the dipstick it will be off to HD Subaru for a full service...

Sa Calobra

37,010 posts

210 months

Monday 4th June 2018
quotequote all
HD Subaru is good. He spots things but doesn't say anything unless you prompt him laugh

If you want more noise you could take off the bonnet insulation?

Jim on the hill

5,072 posts

189 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
That all sounds very stressful and not a nice start, unless you saved thousands I can't see it's worth it personally.

Hope you enjoy it and look forward to the updates.

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
Sa Calobra said:
HD Subaru is good. He spots things but doesn't say anything unless you prompt him laugh

If you want more noise you could take off the bonnet insulation?
Top tip-I'll try that when it comes back. And thanks for the HD info, only about 45 min drive and sounds like it will be worth it.


Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
Jim on the hill said:
That all sounds very stressful and not a nice start, unless you saved thousands I can't see it's worth it personally.

Hope you enjoy it and look forward to the updates.
Yes, it was unnecessarily stressful. It was the old "new toy!" story when actually a car transporter for 100 quid or so would have been money well spent. I think combining the cost of the train fare, jump leads etc it probably would have worked out about the same too.

Having said that the rest of the process was pretty hassle-free if I'm honest. Plus the savings in doing it yourself leave a healthy budget for some upgrades spin

lemmingjames

7,433 posts

203 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
How much did you save in the end?

Or whats your final OTR cost?

And i might have an exhaust for sale soon if your interested?

Edited by lemmingjames on Tuesday 5th June 09:39


Edited by lemmingjames on Tuesday 5th June 09:39

crispyshark

1,261 posts

144 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
[quote=Cpt Flashhard]So, we have news. Time for tea?

Engine: Brace yourselves, it's just too quiet. From inside you can hear the exhaust up until about 3.5k, but after that it becomes sewing-machine thrash with a slight induction whoosh overlaid. I tried it with the windows open, and all that happened was that the wind noise drowned anything out above 40mph. I see Dan went with the Hayward and Scott 2.5 backbox which is now on my list of upgrades down the line, subject to approval by the financial controller.

quote]

You need a K and N Typhoon....that will sort some of the issue....and a good zorst. tongue out

Sa Calobra

37,010 posts

210 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
Jim on the hill said:
That all sounds very stressful and not a nice start, unless you saved thousands I can't see it's worth it personally.

Hope you enjoy it and look forward to the updates.
It's only a battery

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
crispyshark]pt Flashhard said:
So, we have news. Time for tea?

Engine: Brace yourselves, it's just too quiet. From inside you can hear the exhaust up until about 3.5k, but after that it becomes sewing-machine thrash with a slight induction whoosh overlaid. I tried it with the windows open, and all that happened was that the wind noise drowned anything out above 40mph. I see Dan went with the Hayward and Scott 2.5 backbox which is now on my list of upgrades down the line, subject to approval by the financial controller.

quote]

You need a K and N Typhoon....that will sort some of the issue....and a good zorst. tongue out
idea

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
lemmingjames said:
How much did you save in the end?

Or whats your final OTR cost?

And i might have an exhaust for sale soon if your interested?

Edited by lemmingjames on Tuesday 5th June 09:39


Edited by lemmingjames on Tuesday 5th June 09:39
Difficult to calculate at the mo in terms of OTR, will total it all up when it comes back and is registered. I found it quite difficult to compare like for like when looking through the classifieds as some are just off the boat with bare minimum to get registered here, others have been lightly breathed upon and others still significantly so. At the moment I reckon I'm still about 3-4k up on the best examples

lemmingjames

7,433 posts

203 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
You must have got in at the right time as the average across goo-net is £8.9k

I was following your thread with interest as was tempted to do it myself but need a car sooner than later.

Itll be interesting to see how much it comes to in the end (pm me if needs be).


crispyshark

1,261 posts

144 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
Cpt Flashhard said:
crispyshark]pt Flashhard said:
So, we have news. Time for tea?

Engine: Brace yourselves, it's just too quiet. From inside you can hear the exhaust up until about 3.5k, but after that it becomes sewing-machine thrash with a slight induction whoosh overlaid. I tried it with the windows open, and all that happened was that the wind noise drowned anything out above 40mph. I see Dan went with the Hayward and Scott 2.5 backbox which is now on my list of upgrades down the line, subject to approval by the financial controller.

quote]

You need a K and N Typhoon....that will sort some of the issue....and a good zorst. tongue out
idea
I'm running Zero back box with straight through and it sounds pretty good (but not too loud compared to other scoobies).....going to put a H&S sports cat on soon.

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Tuesday 5th June 2018
quotequote all
lemmingjames said:
You must have got in at the right time as the average across goo-net is £8.9k

I was following your thread with interest as was tempted to do it myself but need a car sooner than later.

Itll be interesting to see how much it comes to in the end (pm me if needs be).
I can definitely recommend Patrick at JDM auction watch if you're still interested-either getting an auction car inspected or they also have cars for sale at dealers which they can sort out transport / duty etc. I found a peach for about 7.5k but we just missed it!

david1972

26 posts

73 months

Thursday 7th June 2018
quotequote all
Thanks for the tips for port collection day. Sounds fine, other than the battery issue which I hadn’t thought about. Might just go armed with a spare when I collect my Impreza.

Where was the nearest petrol station? I assume you put v/power or Tesco momentum in?

joefraser

725 posts

110 months

Friday 8th June 2018
quotequote all
I love the car! I live local to Bede metro abd drive a Forester, and have been through the pain of importing one- I could have given you a hand on the day and moral support.

david1972

26 posts

73 months

Friday 8th June 2018
quotequote all
joefraser said:
I love the car! I live local to Bede metro abd drive a Forester, and have been through the pain of importing one- I could have given you a hand on the day and moral support.
Might call you out on that in mid-July if you are around fella smile

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Monday 11th June 2018
quotequote all
david1972 said:
Thanks for the tips for port collection day. Sounds fine, other than the battery issue which I hadn’t thought about. Might just go armed with a spare when I collect my Impreza.

Where was the nearest petrol station? I assume you put v/power or Tesco momentum in?
Nearest Shell station is about 4 miles down the A194 I think, I put a tank of V-power in.

Went for the H&S 2.5 backbox which is being fitted today along with the foglight. Should have a certificate by the end of it = number plate. Then time for the remap and underseal.

Also managed to get hold of a combined DAB / satnav which is being delivered today, so in an idle moment (there are few) I shall have a crack at fitting it.

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Monday 11th June 2018
quotequote all
joefraser said:
I love the car! I live local to Bede metro abd drive a Forester, and have been through the pain of importing one- I could have given you a hand on the day and moral support.
Aha! Had I known that I probably would have been in contact. Looking forward to getting it back and working-I got my Alfa 145 Cloverleaf back yesterday and enjoyed a thrash around the lanes. Nothing like the simplicity of 5 gears, an n/a 2 litre and superb induction rasp on the way through 3k. 150 bhp was a lot in 1998....

Cpt Flashhard

Original Poster:

115 posts

133 months

Thursday 14th June 2018
quotequote all
david1972 said:
Thanks for the tips for port collection day. Sounds fine, other than the battery issue which I hadn’t thought about. Might just go armed with a spare when I collect my Impreza.

Where was the nearest petrol station? I assume you put v/power or Tesco momentum in?
Forgot to ask when the big day is! Will you be traveling far?