Importing from Japan - Am I missing something?

blobert

Hi there,

I've been looking at a lot of the main Japanese car exporters and it seems to me (though I'm sure I'm missing something) that it is very good value even with VRT, VAT etc

I've been looking at some 2002-03 Nissan Micras, newest body, in very good condition with about 40,000 - 60,000 km on the clock (I know this may well be clocked)

Here are the numbers:

Car : €3,300
Vat: : €660
Shipping to Dublin: €500
VRT: €1550
Papers/Getting Car through Dublin Port: I don't know??? €200?

Total: €6,210

Similar Cars on Carzone.ie:

€ 7,500 -8,500


Granted I have a car that I do not know the history of (other than trusting the Japanese) but it still seems to be a great saving.

Am I missing out on something?

Thanks,
Robert

peasant

Isnt't there some kind of duty as well on Japanese (i.e. non EU) imports?

drdre

peasant wrote:

Isnt't there some kind of duty as well on Japanese (i.e. non EU) imports?

yes i think its 10% duty.

What website are you using to buy a car, Has anyone used tradecarview before?

colm_mcm

yeah but you're buying the car without a warranty and without the facility to trade in or finance. similar Irish Micras can be had in the auctions.

dealer prices are open to haggling, and the trade value of those cars advertised is much lower, you would be buying the jap car as a trade car, no comeback.

legs11

better off buying here in ireland, as colm mentioned if you wave straight cash you will get it far less than advertised price. going to a lot of hassle importing a micra, now if it was a DC5 would be a different story.............

Do-more

Check out Merlin Car Auctions, the dearest 2004 Micra that was sold there last month had 22,000 miles on the clock and went for €6,500! A 64K miler was €5,350....

drdre

Heres a 04 for 7,200 with only 38k
http://www.usedcars.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=621370

03 for only 6750
http://www.usedcars.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=597499

Remmember the jap version is cheaper so its better buying it here.

blobert

Thanks for all the replies guys,

I was looking at IBCJapan for the cars, having had another look they actually are a bit cheaper that the prices I was quoting. Another of the reasons I was looking to Japan is that they have a greater range of automatics (because I do most of my driving in traffic I want an auto).

I was going on the prices on carzone as being the actual prices, I did not factor in that you could haggle the price down quite a bit!

I'm going to guess you'd recommend against buying in the UK for cheaper small cars as well?? I think a big part of it is I want to feel like I'm being very clever in importing a car from abroad and saving a bundle, whereas the reality is it's probably just easier to buy here.

So where is the best place to go looking for bargains if I was going to buy in Ireland. Buying privately? I have no experience with auctions such as the aforementioned Merlins, are they an option?

And finally any suggestions on a small <1.2 litre automatic for about 6k or preferably less. I think the new Micra is probably one of the better options, I was also looking at Punto automatics and the old model Micra, which is meant to be bulletproof and would be a lot cheaper. Important factors are reliably, fuel economy, running and service costs and ideally I'd like something a bit interesting (though I cannot justify 10k for a 1991 Micra in the form of a Figaro or 12k for a Daihatsu Copen:) And I should add that while all of these cars seem small and crappy I'm moving up from a beast of a 0.8litre Fiat Cinqecento so all of these cars are comparatively luxurious and powerful!

Any more advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

peasant

THIS might be an option?

blobert

Thanks but I really hate the look of those older Corsas.

peasant

There's a few automatic (Jap imports, mostly) old style Minis on carzone.

But Mini and Auto? ...naaah ...not really.

Otherwise, value for moneywise, the Micra seems to be your only choice really.

Yaris(es) are way overpriced and I really can't bring myself to suggest a Pajero Junior.

blobert

Thanks, I like the new MINIs a lot but they are too pricey, the old ones are even smaller than my current vehicle.

In terms of small (<1.2l) automatic cars that I'd like the options that interest me are:

(1) Newest Model Micra: Cheap to run/insure, looks quite nice
(2) Old Model Micra: As above but cheaper, don't like look though
(3) Fiat Punto: Not as reliable, as a I know from current Fiat, like look
(4) Nissan Figaro: Looks fantastic, overpriced for 1991 Micra
(5) Daihatsu Copen: I think it's great looking, but even imported too expensive
(6) Suzuki Swift: I'd have to wait another year or two for Japanese 03 models to be within price range. Like it a lot though
(7) Fiat Panda: Dualogic gearbox looks great, impressive MPG, still too pricey
(8) Toyota BB: Very interesting looking car (essentially Yaris) but nicer newer model is too pricey.

Based on what's been said above it seems the Micra 1.2l Auto is the way to go. Insurance is very cheap (less than €500 which is great for my 1st insurance in my name) and though it is a bit more boring than a Figaro/Copen I should probably err on the side of practicality.

Any further advice on where the best places to look are. Any more opinions on car auctions? Can you actually test drive a car before an auction?

I realise I've gone very off the point of my original post:)

Thanks

G Luxel

blobert wrote:

(4) Nissan Figaro: Looks fantastic, overpriced for 1991 Micra

This car was produced in a run of 20,000 so that is one reason why it is overpriced. It was originally a concept but people started placing orders immediately. It is an extremely high spec compared to the micras of the time. It is considered a cult car by many japanese and by Europeans.
The car overhere is actually priced cheaper than in the UK where it is known to change hands for I5,000 euros +.

I have checked out tradecarreview and found a corolla X Axio bottom range car from November 2006, new model as they were only launched that month, with 300 kms for only I0,000 euros and was sold straight away. Although I dont know why it is so cheap when a corolla over here is 20,000 euros.

colm_mcm

you have to factor taxes in, G Luxel.

Mary-Ellen

hey there,

my brother imported a car from Japan lately (only collected it last week)
price was just over 4K and it ended up costing over 7K so your budget thingy seems reasonable.

It did take about 2 months to get sorted though, from order to collection.

Give me a shout if you want me to ask him any particular Qs :rolleyes:

best of luck

Do-more

You could enquire with the fleet sales departments in the hire car companies, they are probably the biggest users of automatic vehicles in the country and tend to keep such vehicles for 2-3 years (rather than the short term lease vehicles for the summer season)

nxbyveromdwjpg

Motor dealerships in attempt to turn a profit shocker?

blobert

Do-more wrote:

You could enquire with the fleet sales departments in the hire car companies, they are probably the biggest users of automatic vehicles in the country and tend to keep such vehicles for 2-3 years (rather than the short term lease vehicles for the summer season)

Are they likely to sell directly themselves or on through auctions such as Merlins?

blobert

Do-more wrote:

You could enquire with the fleet sales departments in the hire car companies, they are probably the biggest users of automatic vehicles in the country and tend to keep such vehicles for 2-3 years (rather than the short term lease vehicles for the summer season)

Any idea how to go about doing this? I see no details on any of their websites, perhaps they sell through auctions?