Import Monster

Hiya SiR-RB Beer Baron speaks the truth - we ALWAYS strongly advise to buy only at auctions where we are able to have our guys inspect the car, or if it is a private seller or a dealer and not too far from one of our guys, have them go and check the car out. We regularly look at cars with a 4.5b grading that we wouldn't touch with a barge pole - the auction gradings are useful as a guide only. Especially with the volume of cars going to auction dropping steadily, the auction gradings seem to be getting more and more relaxed. No matter who you go with, ensure that they are buying only after a thorough inspection of the car (as thorough as is feasible at auction - a test drive is not possible, but starting the car and running it up to temp is fine) and not based on what's on the auction grading sheet. Regarding Yahoo cars, I've personally bought many cars from Yahoo auctions and often they show up and are very very nice cars and sometimes they are not quite as nice as they were in the pics - because of this element of risk I generally only pick these cars up if they're very very cheap and/or have nice mods and am always being prepared to chop the car in half for parts if it's not worth bringing in as a runner - not everyone is in a position to take this risk of course and I think this is why we are able to purchase some cars very cheaply via this medium. If we are ever instructed to purchase a car through Yahoo auctions for a client, we ensure their full understanding of the risks associated, along with a strong recommendation to reconsider - it's not rocket science, just common sense stuff - with a substantial outlay of money like this, you want as much info as you can get. We have seen some real dogs come in off Yahoo but with that said, we've also had some unbelievable bargains come from there too. For most guys looking at importing, it's simply not worth that risk that the car may be a rough one - often the car purchase price is the smallest part of the overall cost of importing - best to spend good money on a good car than chance saving a few thousand bucks overall. This is a lesson you're better not to learn through experience! I don't really agree with Yahoo being more dodgy then Ebay however, I have made perhaps 3 dozen purchases through ebay and have a 20% strike rate for dealing with stooges with nfi whereas with thousands upon thousands of purchases made through Yahoo, less than 1% give us grief. Having been at it for 6 - 7 years, we've gotten pretty good at what we do Feel free to give me a ring or drop me an email about any aspect of importing cars mate, I'm happy to explain any aspects of the import process or how we work. At the end of the day, the broker you choose should be chosen because you feel confident in their ability to meet your expectations. All the best Aaron

I have a series 3 R33 GTS-T manual halfcut mate, not sure if that's what you're looking for?

Hi Mate I just got a set of Nismo LM GT1 in, $1750 - pics here http://www.importmonster.com.au/shop/produ...products_id=932 Can put brand new cheapie chinese rubber on them for $400 245/40/18 - or sort out some good second hand Pirelli or something like that? Cheers Aaron

Hi Mate I have a 33 GT-R master cylinder here, but the vehicle it came from was fitted with ABS. I thought all 33/34 GT-R were factory fitted with ABS to be honest! Cheers Aaron

19" Work VS-XX http://www.importmonster.com.au/shop/produ...products_id=931 18" Work Meister S1 http://www.importmonster.com.au/shop/produ...6b30cfd46f29c78 I have more wheels here and on the way, but these two sets just came in

street cred 11ty+

it does seem that some unscrupulous types are using it to get their post count up. Don't know how they live with themselves

Heya Mate what car are they to suit? I have loads, but don't wanna try selling you staggered sets if you're wanting them for your gt-r Cheers Az

Hi Mate saw your wtb ad and went off to do some research, as I recently got a couple of catback systems for Stageas in but I'm unsure if they're for series 1 or series 2. The only difference I can see between a series 1 and 2 is that the piping off the muffler is a bit longer on the series 2 - I assume to account for the fact that the bumper comes down a bit more vertically on the series 2 vs the series 1. From what I can tell, the hangers are the same and the rest of the system are all identical between the s1 and 2. Can anyone confirm this? Cheers Aaron

bugger! ah wells, best of luck

Hi Mate I need the following please (provided it is an AWD model and not RWD?) Full set of front and rear suspension Front and rear brake disks and pads 10 x wheel studs Obviously provided they are in good serviceable condition and not worn out If you are able to box it all up, I can arrange freight from my end. Cheers Aaron

Long story short mate, no one really knows from one day to the next what the currency is going to do. In the space of a month it went down 40% last year and it has taken since October 08 to get back to around the 80 yen/aud that we see today. If it were to get to 100yen/aud again I believe it will take a combination of a recovering Japanese economy and confidence in the AUD which really means, confidence in resources. Monday this week we saw 82yen per aud and today it was 78 - this is a 5% variance in a couple of days, influenced by a bit of pessimistic data about the Chinese economy recovering and Japanese economic data showing no signs of a recovery in their economy. I read everything I can get my hands on to try and get a feel for what might be coming, but truth be told, I didn't expect the aud to recover to 80yen for a while longer. I think that for as long as this GEC is continuing, our currency is going to be volatile. If it holds around the 80 yen mark, I will be happy - when I started importing from Japan around 6-7 year ago we were getting 70yen to the dollar so 80 seems good to me, though I was certainly never complaining when I could buy cars and parts at 110yen to the dollar last year! Exchange rates aren't the be all and end all of getting good buys. The prices of many used cars and also used car parts in Japan have dropped as demand has dropped domestically and from abroad due to the strengthening yen. At the moment, most cars can be imported for the same sort of dollars as they could be when the aud was 25% stronger against the yen. I don't expect that will continue though, with Japanese new car sales down by almost half, the flow of used cars onto the market in Japan is slowing markedly, with the amount of available cars at around 60 of the levels we were seeing this time last year. This can only result in prices picking up again, especially as other currencies gain against the yen. My personal advice? If you're looking for an import - look locally first. If you don't find what you're looking for, importing is the way to go. You will generally save vs buying locally, particularly on more expensive cars (evo, gt-r and 34 or later skylines) and get a better choice of cars This probably hasn't shed any light for you on what to expect with exchange rates - I don't think anyone can predict what will happen day to day - the so called experts have 20/20 hindsight vision but they all have different opinions on what's to come. Doesn't inspire confidence really, but at the end of the day - we've all seen that even when the shit hits the fan, life goes on A good source of foreign exchange news is on www.xe.com. I also check www.ozforex.com.au as they have handy info there too Cheers Aaron

No I don't, sorry mate.

no problems fyi, I also just got in a genuine R34 Nismo front bumper

I have a lower lip and diffuser too

Hi mate I think this is just plain flat white, but the condition is excellent. Includes the factory mesh for the ducts too Cheers Aaron

Black on black manual with autocouture kit = perfect!

Hi Mate I have a series 1 33 gt-r box - wasn't noisy at all, drove fine before we chopped the car - $750 Cheers Aaron

Hi Mate, just had one arrive from Japan, haven't even unwrapped it yet - not sure if it's the right white colour for you but I'll get some pics of it tomorrow for you Cheers Aaron

Hi Mate Beer Baron is spot on - only the late model cars or the UZZ32 are worth worrying about importing now. The early model ones cost more in compliance as any Soarer pre 94 needs new seatbelts, something about the early ones not being UV stable. Costs a small fortune and you'd probably find the same car here $2-3k cheaper than you can import one for. Also the V8 models cost extra because they need a very expensive cat converter for compliance. Shop hard locally and you'll get a very nice car at a ridiculously good price - the Soarer has to be one of the bargain cars around now as you get so much for your money and not much really goes wrong with them. The dashes get blinky and the door and window trims crack. The LCD aircon controls often fade and the control arm bushes last til around 120k before the front end starts to feel sloppy. The majority of these issues were fixed in the post 96 models which is another tick in the late model box A friend recently asked me to import a Soarer for his wife, I hopped on carsales and found a clean 97 model JZZ31 (2JZ non turbo) for $7900. Leather, sunroof and in great shape. The best I could find to import him one of similar spec would have been around $8500-9000 landed and complied - so it was more expensive and he'd have had to wait 2 months to get it here, get it through compliance etc Importing isn't always the best way to get a good car, particularly on the models that are quite prolific in Oz now, like Silvias, R33 GTS-T and Soarers. Hope this helps

Hi Mate I just got a pair of 18 x 10 +30 in this week, they're chrome centred - I can't do them for that budget unfortunately, but if you're interested please drop me a line and I'll mail you through some pics Cheers Aaron

Hello Mate I just got a 97 Manual GTS-T halfcut in from Japan, I will have the entire manual conversion available in about a week or so if you're keen Drop me an email to [email protected] if you'd like to discuss I will also be getting the diff in from that car in 6 weeks, in case the ratio in the auto 33 is wrong for the manual box Cheers Aaron

Never a truer word spoken.

no sorry mate, not at the moment!

I have a set mate, I will be shipping some bodykit parts over to a mate in the next week so for minimal extra, I could include them in the same shipment and co-ordinate for you to pick up from him if that worked for you? They're from a 95 model and the condition is really good - will shoot through some pics if you're interested