Importing problems arise

[Remix-]

Hi guys,

4 Months ago I paid for a R32 GT-R to be imported through a well known import broker which I will not name at present. I am currently waiting for a spot on the Kawasaki - Fremantle boat. As a result of not being able to get in contact with my broker (due to easter holidays), Yesterday I decided to write a letter directly to the contact in Japan, asking him if my car will make this months boat, he replied to me with this letter:

"Hello, apologies for delay in reply. I have been advised by the

shipping company that your vehicle could not be shipped due to the fact that

the clutch was slipping. I'm not sure what happened to the vehicle on it's

journey down from Hokkaido to Tokyo but the clutch was fine when it left my

premises. Anyway, to avoid your car being forklifted onto the ship and sent

down to Australia (which will cause damage to the undercarriage) i suggest

that we try and fix the problem and ship the vehicle once the repairs are

finalised. Please let me know your thoughts and i will act upon your wishes.

Regards, name withheld"

Firstly I am puzzled as to how a perfectly working clutch can become totally damaged to the extent that it is unable to be driven onto a boat within the period.

I have spoken to the import broker and he has informed me that it is my responsibility to pay for the clutch repair/replacement. The contact in Japan has obviously passed ownership of the problem to me. This does not seem right to me, as I purchased the car subject to it being in sound mechanical order as per my reason for paying a broker $1100 (to ensure that the car is in working order which it is not). I appear to be left with very few options other than fork out the fold. The last thing I want is a damaged chassis due to fork lifting.

This is not a good feeling right now.

Any thoughts?

[Beer Baron]

mate, as much as it sucks your best option is to pay for the clutch. also be prepared for you hokkaido car to have some rust that need attention, unfortunately Hokkaido is the northern most island of japan, and they receive a lot of snow, and they melt that snow with salt... not good. some cars come from the north with no problem (proabably only been up there a short time) but some have truly dishearting levels on rust underneath.

from a few clues in your post I can guess who both your supplier and broker are, and both are not out to shaft you. they only want to make the most money with the least trouble and would not go out of their way to hammer you for a clutch for no reason.

They are right in that being lifted by forklift can damage your car, and a non-driveable car can cause you more headaches at this end so it's best not to have it loaded as a non-driveable car.

The clutch must be very bad if the car can not even be loaded.

I would talk to the broker, ask him to enquire as to the cost of a new clutch. I would think in this situation if you get away from it with change from $1500 you have done ok.

try not to let it get you down mate, sh1t happens, you will get through it ok

[pentae]

well at least your car will have a new fully sick, brand new "JAP SPEC clutch" when it gets here right?

[confuzion]

I also have had a rough time through the same broker and supplier (i know gtr90 personally) and I also think somehting isnt right.

My car was advertised as 'perfect mechanical condition and very fast' etc etc, I purchased the car on the basis of that report and photos (theres not much else to go by) and after the money was transfered i received a parcel in the post with some intercooler pipes.

I emailed the broker and he stated that i had to pay for the cost of the parcel to be sent to me and some of the labour involved FOR REPLACING THE TURBOS ?

I had no choice but to pay the money of course as he stated he would not release the vehicle and Bill of lading until it was paid.

Firstly, the report indicated the vehicle was mechanically perfect, and the car had some supporting modifications that leads me to suspect the car has some aftermarket turbos on her - which were removed and replaced with stock items. (e.g 550cc injectors, hks cams, impul ecu, exhaust, ebc etc etc)

Secondly, I had to pay for postage for a set of aftermarket intercooler pipes which were removed from the car and replaced with stock items. The package was $190 itself - I was totally unaware of this and of course had to pay it.

Anyways not much i can do, just stating my experience with importing.

After a 8 months wait of missing boats and what not, i also got smacked with anotehr fee for storage of $219 for when the vehicle was elgiable to be imported and was stuck at the dock.

Anyways - happy importing guys, there is a risk and should be considered, i wont be doing it again!

[Beer Baron]

that sounds pretty poor mate. you guys realised that you could have bought from auction, or if buying from a dealer (which is fine too) you could have paid to have the car inspected by a third party?

even still Sprinta, your deal sounds a bit rough but if the report didn't specify aftermarket turbos, you can't really be dissapointed that it doesn't have any. What reason did they give for you having to pay for turbo replacement though?

[confuzion]

Indeed problems do arise, and im not shouting all over the place - i paid and got my car. I did not know of any 3rd party inspections that were available so that was unfortunate.

Turbo replacement reason, because the vehicle was my property now = my problem, however they did not charge for the cost of the turbos so yes, it could have been worse.

[noise]

offset some of the risk cost by not paying $1k to some useless prick here to do nothing for you

[driftaR32]

one of two things happening

bullshit vehicle descriptions inducing people to pruchase on false grounds

or

correct descriptions and these people holding cars ransom to do false repairs

[R33S2]

When I imported my car they (ADR) rejected two in the same batch one for rust on chassis rails under motor they cut the numbers outa da car and the other for forklift marks in chassis which could be repaired with a very detailed list of repair instructions very sic way of doing it but he had no choice glad it wasnt mine.

I also learnt if you repair this b4 they see it you can get away with it.

[ossie_21]

With the brokers payment you mentioned of $1100 & you're location I have a very good idea of who you went through, and from what I have heard about him I am glad I went with someone else..................................

I honestly wish you the best of luck though, but if I am sure of who your broker is, he wouldn't have provided you with a guarantee on the vehicles condition. IMO you have been ripped off/decieved with this car, and really the broker should be held responsible. I suggest you find out your rights before anything else.

[driftaR32]

seems to be a matter of buyer beware. Way to many incidents from this clown for people to ignore!

[allblitz]

I feel sorry for you buddy. If the agents purchased the vehicle then sold it to you, they should be liable for any 'non working' parts that were not mentioned to you. But if they were just acting as an agent and buying it for you, then i guess all costs are on your shoulders. But after saying that, if they had told you the car is in excellent condition mechanically, then they should be paying up for misleading information.

That's why I always encourage my clients to pay the extra $300 before purchasing the vehicle to get a full mechanical inspection done (RACV equivalent with over 50 photos taken).

Hope it all works out for ya dude.

[cowie165]

The same broker, who shall remain nameless, sent me this (which now infuriates me):

Please note that the buyer is making 25,000 yen on the car, that's it. There are no huge profit margins. Had the vehicle been in stock at the lower price, it would have sold 5 times over as we had that many people wanting it over the last couple of months that only turned it down as it was sight unseen. He had to move it to his yard, and therefore the cost was increased for the extra security of having the vehicle checked by one of our suppliers.

I've mentioned this episode before, but just came across this email excerpt when cleaning out my inbox. When the car arrived, I was surprised to find there was significant rust underneath and the ATTESSA system had a critical leak that nearly necessitated dropping the rear of the car out whilst on the hoist.

Boy I sure am glad that I paid for "the extra security of having the vehicle checked by one of our suppliers".

To the guys that have had good experiences, I'm glad things went well, but I reserve the right to be pissed off for being misled.

Mark

[Remix-]

Prior to purchase of the GT-R I was able to view and rely on the following information stated on the vehicle's description web page:

"Condition notes: Body is in very good condition with no blemishes to note. Interior is also in very good condition. Test driven by the supplier who reports that it runs well and appears in be in very good condition all round."

I am absolutely disgraced that a clutch can be rendered undrivable due to transportation. This raises many questions in my head of how badly has my car

been treated in Japan to destroy a 'working' clutch on a car that runs well and appears to be in very good condition all round?

I purchased the car SUBJECT to it being in working mechanical order, now it is not.

But anyways, It'll be me that looses out. I'll end up having to pay for it. Lesson learnt the costly way. I'll keep you guys posted on my import status and how this issue is handled and resolved by both the Supplier and Broker involved.

Thank you,

Lyndon

[RiverSide]

gtr90......I have to agree with you that it should not be beyond driveable if when tested the vehicle was in good condition overall.

I think the passage that will come back to bite you in the ass is ..........Test driven by the supplier who reports that it runs well and appears in be in very good condition all round."

The word APPEARS is the one you need to watch out for........just another of the "ASS COVERING" methods used by your broker.

By my interpretation that could legally place the entire responsibility of the vehicle and any and all faults wholely on you. I hope this experience does not sour you on importing or imported cars.......believe it or not there are plenty of importers that are NOT out to decieve you.

[pentae]

cowie165: Mate i'm shocked to hear what happened. I too am using the same broker as you.

PM Sent..

[Lithius]

Can someone name the broker? Or pm me the name I paid $1100 for my brokerage and the car i got was certainly beneath par of what I was led to believe it'd be... Just wondering if it's the same mob.

[Guest]

Just Don't use a Broker, Use a good buyier,

Don't buy a car from Wholesaler's stock as it is usually damaged cars bought cheap (minor accident repair) if you are selling it of course you will say it is minor,

If they say it a Grade 4 car post the Auction Report,

They say that they are just the middle men so cant be hold responsible,

How about the "supplier reports the it is mechanically sound" 300Z and the bill is $3,700 plus exhaust to get over pits, let alone the body damage.

Do a bit of research before committing as a mate bringing in a mint R34 GT is different from you importing a R32 GTR with 3 photos in the Snow if you are told he is good,

Their job is not going to be around soon so they are getting what buck they can,

On the list of most distrusted service providers I think it will be Motor Vehicle Brokers or face up to the fact they are just "car salesmen with no risk".

[pentae]

Lithius: just use some creative settings in the 'advanced search' area and you'll be able to figure it out for yourself

[Baz]

I went through that 'same' broker and his regular supplier [Please no names] . They asked me to pay the fee of $371 for the storage fee's, I decided to wait for the car to arrive instead. I got 4 bald tyres when I was told it had good tread left and a good body covered in surface rust. As far as I'm concerned they can go shove the fee up there A$$es. From experience I believe that you should refuse to pay the fee until you have seen the car itself and totally avoid using 'that' supplier. I will never use him again and I would hope that no one buys cars from him in the future as from what I have heard very few of his cars come in an 'as mentioned' condition and he is terrible with after sales support (got my Bill of Lading 3 weeks after the car had arrived, was told it was going to be supplied prior to the vehicle landing in fremantle). Mark Hocking is apparently a good salesman from what I have heard.

Thats my opinon anyway.