why is it so hard to find classic Japanese cars ?

Mully_2011

Bar the usual AE86 Corolla and KP Starlet why are older japanese cars impossible to find ? even the early 90's stuff seems to be going rare

salamander27

As an owner of a early 90s japmobile I'd say it is the old tin worm that gets the better of them!

Stained Class

I'd say parts are hard to find for many of them.

Unlike, say Triumphs, MGs, Fords & the like, which have an army of specialists/clubs here & in the UK, to rely on.

In some cases new spares are being made for these cars to keep them on the road.

Japanese classics wouldn't have this kind of backup, I'd imagine.

hi5

Lots of jap stuff gets shipped to Africa.
They fill the vans with car bits,whats left of the cars are then scrapped.
This happens when the cars are in their twilight years...too old to be popular....too young to be classic.

carchaeologist

I have loads of old Jappers...
but i get what you mean..
Hungry tinworms like the taste of cheap steel. Nyom.

S Line

hi 'hi5'

Do you have any more of those pics from the docks ???

Hermy

That's my pic.:p
You'll find a few more here.

blastman

I have a Japanese car that's about to turn 20 (next month). I have been told by a company that specialises in classic insurance that it is considered a mass-produced vehicle and therefore not classic. It isn't, I hasten to add, a Corolla or anything similarly abundant in Ireland at the time. But I think this sums up the attitude of most people to old Japanese cars, so they are left to fall apart. Rust is an absolute killer.

corktina

go to Axa then. They were more than happy to take my money for my Sierra policy.(1990)

corktina

carchaeologist wrote: »

I have loads of old Jappers...
but i get what you mean..
Hungry tinworms like the taste of cheap steel. Nyom.

loads? it seems you have them all!

carchaeologist

corktina wrote: »

loads? it seems you have them all!

In the same way that most late Cortinas in Ireland are linked to you!:p

Blue850

carchaeologist wrote: »

In the same way that most late Cortinas in Ireland are linked to you!:p

Late..? as in MK5s or dead:P

carchaeologist

Blue850 wrote: »

Late..? as in MK5s or dead:P

Late as in MK3/4/5s, corky has had them all! With a few MK2s thrown in for good luck.

Gladius

I have a 91 Nissan 300zx I have it 5 years now and it's mint it's been fully restored by the chap I bought it from, he was a mechanic in Tokyo and brought it home to Ireland with him but it's a killer to run now that I'm not working, it's off the road almost 2 years and I can't get classic tax/insurance on it because it's only 20 years old

corktina

carchaeologist wrote: »

Late as in MK3/4/5s, corky has had them all! With a few MK2s thrown in for good luck.

thast a serious exageration although I have owned over 50 since 1998. Actually I think the majority were mk2s. I didn't buy one for ages now.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150242734757161.319597.630552160&type=1

heres a few of them if the link works.

Nissanzx

@gladius I have a 1990 300zx insured as a clasic,it has to be a second car tho,u need to have your own policy/be a named driver in another car,think it's about €240.

Pdfile

Mully_2011 wrote: »

Bar the usual AE86 Corolla and KP Starlet why are older japanese cars impossible to find ? even the early 90's stuff seems to be going rare

boy racers.

simple as.

FearDark

My Jap will be 19 years old in 2 weeks time...

Type 17

hi5 wrote: »

Lots of jap stuff gets shipped to Africa.
They fill the vans with car bits,whats left of the cars are then scrapped.
This happens when the cars are in their twilight years...too old to be popular....too young to be classic.

True enough, a good few years ago, I remember seeing a very tired curtain-sided Mercedes truck in the breakers opposite the Red Cow Inn (Kinsella’s) with six KP-60 Starlets piled on the back, two piles of 3, with their roofs cut off at the bottom of the pillars and stacked on top inside each other, to fit them all in. I asked the guy what the story was, and he said that the truck and cars were all going to Africa, and that when they got there, the roofs would be welded back on :eek:

V480

Good point. I have a 20 year old MR2 and I think I was pretty lucky to find one that was not crashed or modified to death - seems to be the case with many of the sportier Jap cars.

carchaeologist

FearDark wrote: »

My Jap will be 19 years old in 2 weeks time...

Going by your signature that's at least 10 years too old...:pac:

Gladius

Nissanzx wrote: »

@gladius I have a 1990 300zx insured as a clasic,it has to be a second car tho,u need to have your own policy/be a named driver in another car,think it's about €240.

Sweet I'll try get some quotes tomorrow cause I miss driving it the real problem is the tax though thanks for the info