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How Long Did It Take You To Find The One?

Puggy

By Puggy,
in Importing Vehicles

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Puggy Rookie

Puggy

Posted
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Hi All,

I'm new to the forum here.

I decided to take a leap and import from Japan.

Shout out to the chef for this one - been an awesome experience so far.

Been looking for a v36 for about a month now and I have seen some sweet cars go by (didn't have a big enough budget to fight for it) and some not so great.

What was your experience with finding a beauty and how long did you take to search for it?

Cheers,

Puggy

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Duncan Grand Master

Duncan

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8 weeks so far, but I'm looking for something specific this time. Generally I'd still expect 4-8 weeks to find a good car.

And THEN the wait begins....if you are feeling impatient now wait until it has been at the compliers for 3 months waiting for a RAWS audit....

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Sikahalv Experienced

Sikahalv

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hi All,

I'm new to the forum here.

I decided to take a leap and import from Japan.

Shout out to the chef for this one - been an awesome experience so far.

Been looking for a v36 for about a month now and I have seen some sweet cars go by (didn't have a big enough budget to fight for it) and some not so great.

What was your experience with finding a beauty and how long did you take to search for it?

Cheers,

Puggy

My first time took only 2 days - 2003 V35 Skyline 350GT Premium Coupe (Silver) 28,000 Kms, Immaculate :yes:

Second time around it was only 6 days - 2007 PV36 Skyline 350GT Type SP 50th Anniversary Limited Edition (Black) :wub:

Both times I got extremely lucky as these time frames are generally unheard of, for someone who is after a very specific car with (and without) particular options from the factory.

Both times I got *more* than I wanted, which worked out perfect for me.

Interestingly enough, now that I'm importing a third car (for my mum this time around) it's already been one month, and we've found nothing suitable so far (Black PV36 Skyline Type P or Type SP). It's all swings and roundabouts :)

Edited by Sikahalv
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Puggy Rookie

Puggy

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My first time took only 2 days - 2003 V35 Skyline 350GT Premium Coupe (Silver) 28,000 Kms, Immaculate :yes:

Second time around it was only 6 days - 2007 PV36 Skyline 350GT Type SP 50th Anniversary Limited Edition (Black) :wub:

Both times I got extremely lucky as these time frames are generally unheard of, for someone who is after a very specific car with (and without) particular options from the factory.

Both times I got *more* than I wanted, which worked out perfect for me.

Interestingly enough, now that I'm importing a third car (for my mum this time around) it's already been one month, and we've found nothing suitable so far (Black PV36 Skyline Type P or Type SP). It's all swings and roundabouts :)

That is absolutely insane luck! I read your blog as well, it is extremely well written and exciting to read.

I'm still waiting for the right one to come by. But, hopefully my patience pays off!

8 weeks so far, but I'm looking for something specific this time. Generally I'd still expect 4-8 weeks to find a good car.

And THEN the wait begins....if you are feeling impatient now wait until it has been at the compliers for 3 months waiting for a RAWS audit....

Yeah, I heard the compliancing stage can be relatively quick at times though! Hopefully everything moves smoothly..

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GRKGTR Experienced

GRKGTR

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Don't want to go too off-topic but just a quick one.. Looking at grabbing a car from a dealer in Japan in the very near future.. So is the process basically the same as the auction process through an agent ?

Just tell them who you want to buy from and which car then de-reg, put it on a boat and ship it over? (Simplified of course ahah)

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Sikahalv Experienced

Sikahalv

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That is absolutely insane luck! I read your blog as well, it is extremely well written and exciting to read.

Thank you very much for the positive feedback Puggy, feel free to subscribe to my blog so you'll be notified when I post next... should be within 1 week regarding Australian customs and shipping experience :)

Edited by Sikahalv
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Juvo Rookie

Juvo

Posted
Posted

Trying to find a R34 GTR through the Chef and just started last week. Seen a few examples but not quite in the colour/condition I want. Guess it's all timing in finding the right car and I think I might take a little longer than I thought. ?

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Puggy Rookie

Puggy

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Finally found a 370gt that I liked.

It'll be shipped on the 4th of July and arriving on the 24th of July.

Took me about 3 months to finally get one. Lost a lot of bids and even saw a mint 55th anniversary go by too...

Awesome experience so far and can't wait to drive her home from the work shop in August.

I'll add pics of her as soon as I can!

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Sikahalv Experienced

Sikahalv

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Took me about 3 months to finally get one. Lost a lot of bids and even saw a mint 55th anniversary go by too...

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

...who is your Import Agent?

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Puggy Rookie

Puggy

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Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

...who is your Import Agent?

Yeah, I was gutted too... I believe I was off by a few hundred?

Troy from Iron Chef.

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Iron Chef Grand Master

Iron Chef

Posted
Posted

Funnily enough, we find we're often fussier than our customers are. There have been times when we've had customers begging us to buy cars that we're standing in front of and know they're shit (and say so to the customers). In that situation, the answer is always no. I'd rather refund the customer their broker fee - because you know damn well that when the car arrives, they will then turn around and complain about the quality. With buying cars at auction, you have to treat the journey as being as important as the destination :)

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