Jump to content
SAU Community

Problems with importing...

insanenissan
 Share

Recommended Posts

insanenissan Contributor

insanenissan

Posted
Posted

Im now thinking of importin the good ol r32 gtst.

Now, what are the main problems with importing? How do you really know you are not getting a piece of sh*t that some jap has absolutely flogged! Because the thing i dont wanna do, is import one drive it for a while then have to get a engine rebuild... new transmision... turbo rebore or whatever it is.

So how can you make sure you get a good car? With many importing places you see the car in a photo and have to choose within a few hours wether you want it or not. So you really dont know what you are paying pretty high cash for do ya?

Some one help me out before i make a decision.

Thanks

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/54924-problems-with-importing/
Share on other sites
RiverSide Proficient

RiverSide

Posted
Posted

Unfortunately there is of course an inherant risk involved with importing, it is for this very reason that impoting is not for everyone. Not everyone is happy to purchase with only a description and a few pictures.

If you are extremely concerned about this then i suggest you have a look around locally in dealers yards and privately, this will allow you to touch/drive the vehicle and have it checked out by your family mechanic.

You may well pay a tad more by purchasing locally, but if you feel more comfortable doing so then it is money well spent.

slow13dude Rising Star

slow13dude

Posted
Posted

I'd nominate two considerations:

1. Find someone you trust to examine the cars. I'm importing through Prestigemotorsport and Geoff has warned me off several cars that pop up at auction because they're dodge.

2. Look for the auction grade. If it's a grade 4 then it's pretty good all-round. If you see the auction sheet and there's xxxx everywhere then you're rolling the dice.

linxus40 Community Regular

linxus40

Posted
Posted

when i imported i went throug j-spec.com.au. better to get an angent that has people to check the cars out in japan and better to avoid the only 1 day to buy bs as there is no need to rush. get them to get a mechanic to fully check the car out (will cost you about $250) but you will get a full report as well as about 80odd photos. put ya deposit down so they start looking for ya but take ya time and dont take the first car ya see, wati till ya get a feel for the types of cars that are avaliable.

i did it this way and my machine is a rocket with no problems whatsoever.

wises Enthusiast

wises

Posted
Posted

on the other hand, i bought my 89 gtst through prestige, looked awsome in the pics, and the condition notes said all was good. HA HA heres the kick in the teeth, i went to collect the car to see it with bald tyres, missing an indicater (found in the boot), parker lights not working, no water, crack in the front bar (not in pics, i looked) and a terrible miss in the engine. after later examining the car found it was pissing water out of the head gasket staight onto the turbo cracking it (still waiting for replacemnet), im a happy person so i still love my car i just wouldve rathered not go through all this stuff.

WHEN i do it again, i will be getting a under 15 year old car through sevs, i think it takes alot of the aingst out of it and at least a grade 4 auction value

predator Grand Master

predator

Posted
Posted

depends what u want.. if you are getting a cheap car, you have to expect to have to do some work on it. I don't mind working on a car to fix little problems, I just see it as a challenge and part of the fun :)

If something is perfect it can only go down hill, whereas if something needs a little TLC you can only be happy with every little thing you do to it. My thoughts anyhow!

  • 3 weeks later...
MRK25T Experienced

MRK25T

Posted
Posted
depends what u want.. if you are getting a cheap car, you have to expect to have to do some work on it. I don't mind working on a car to fix little problems, I just see it as a challenge and part of the fun :)  

If something is perfect it can only go down hill, whereas if something needs a little TLC you can only be happy with every little thing you do to it. My thoughts anyhow!

His car would have been checked over by the guy in Japan and pictures sent. It is the fault of the guy checking the cars in Japan if he missed obvious problems.

redline2003 Community Regular

redline2003

Posted
Posted

So say if i were to import through prestige, would they be able to take the car i wish to buy to get it checked for accidents/compression/faults/etc, before i hand over the rest of the cash? Because i cant just buy a car by looking at auction sheets, if i cant feel or drive it, i at least need some checks done...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing


  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • GTSBoy
      M35 Aftermarket Fuel Pump

      By GTSBoy · Posted

      If it dies, then bypass. The task isn't difficult. I have one running on a standard R32 FPCM. That's after nearly 20 years of it running an 040, which pull substantially more current than the Walbro. They're not the same module, but I'd hope it indicates that the R33 one should be man enough for the job. I think people kill them when putting proper sized pumps on them, not these little toy pumps we're talking about here.
    • GTSBoy
      Rapid-fire squeaking/creaking from rear suspension

      By GTSBoy · Posted

      Silicone spray won't hurt anything. And if it does, that's an opportunity to put some solid steel spherical bushings in, so you can really learn what suspension noise sounds like, If you're going to try it, just spray one bush at a time, so you can work out which one is actually noisy. My best guess is that if the noise started only since putting the coilovers in, then it is just noise being transmitted up through the top mounts of the struts, and not necessarily "new" noise from bushes. But it's almost impossible to know.
    • GTSBoy
      Jacks that fit under GTR lips that can reach the subframe?

      By GTSBoy · Posted

      Are you saying the 34 is SUV height, and not that we're talking about an SUV here? (because if we're talking about an SUV, you don't fix them. You just replace them when something breaks. Not worth establishing sufficient emotional connection with an SUV to warrant doing any work on one). I wouldn't jack my car up on a short little loop of 10mm steel rod poking out through a hole in the bumper bar, front or rear end. I realise that we're probably not talking about that type of loop at the front, being the one under/behind the bar on a Skyline.... but even for that one, trying to jack up on what amounts to a thin piece of steel, designed purely for withstanding a horizontal tension force, not a vertical compressive force (and so would be prone to buckling/crushing) and, my most particular bitch about it - located RIGHT AT THE EXTREME FRONT OF THE CAR, applying a load up through the radiator support panel, etc, with almost the entire mass of the car cantilevered between there and the rear wheels? Nope. Not doing that. Not on the regular. That structure out there in front of the front crossmember is not designed to carry load in the vertical direction. Not really designed to carry any load at all, really. The chassis rail that the tow point is connected to would be fine loaded in tension, as per towing. Not intended to carry the mass of the whole car, especially loaded all on one rail, with twisting and all sorts of shitty load distribution going on. No, I will happily drive up on some pieces of wood, thanks. That can only happen on driven wheels, and they are at the other end of the car, and this problem does not exist at that end of the car. And even then, I have been known to drive up on at least 1x piece of 2x8 each side at the rear, simply to reduce the amount of jack pumping necessary to get the car up high enough for the jack stands. What really really shits me about Skylines is the lack of decent places for chassis stands at either end of the car. You'd think they'd be designed into the crossmembers.
    • f00stx
      Rapid-fire squeaking/creaking from rear suspension

      By f00stx · Posted

      I've got MCA Blues on my V36 Skyline, and while I've managed to sort out issues with scrubbing/bottoming out by raising it a smidge and increasing the damping hardness, the rear end still sounds *super* noisy when driving on anything other than the flattest surface imaginable. It sounds like a small party of flamingos are just chatting away in the back, which makes me think there are several link points in the suspension contributing to the noise. Am I hearing dried out/worn bushings? None of it sounds like metal-on-metal, it sounds more like hard rubber squeaking on metal. It's been suggested that a bit of silicon spray on each bushing might quiet them down, but I'm not sure what material the current bushings are made of (probably factory, I imagine) and whether silicon spray will degrade that material.
    • Kinkstaah
      NC MX5

      By Kinkstaah · Posted

      The obvious answer here is get a ND2/3 RF with the Targa top. The red is nicer, too!
×
×
  • Create New...