Another Importing Newb Here!

[ironpaw]

Hi all,

Been lurker for the past few days here and picked up some pretty useful info.

I'm in the market for a family car with a bit more oomph. I just bought myself a Mazda 3 at the start of the year and to be honest, whilst it's leaps and bounds better then my old Hyundai Excel, its not exactly fast. On top of that, I could use some extra $$$ to clear some credit card debt, hence I want to sell it.

My budget is $14-$15k max, and that's complied + all ORC. I've read that if the car's going to cost under $20k then I shouldn't bother importing. I think that might be true for the Stagea, but there's barely any Caldina's in Australia for sale. I'd much prefer the 3rd Gen ST246W GT4 anyway...not the 2nd Gen. The only reservation I have with the Caldina is that parts are supposedly harder to come by in Aust for it.

If I decide to go the Stagea route, should I buy local or import? I noticed there's quite a few WC34's for sale locally, but not MC35's. I've also noticed some pretty bloody low km cars - i.e.: http://www.carsales.com.au/all-cars/privat...id=12061410D46E - how would I know whether its genuine K's or its be wound back?

Also, apart from looking a bit more "civilised", is the M35 a much better car then the WC34 S2? I take it that the VQ25DET isn't as responsive to mods as the RB Neo?

I think that's all I have for now. Thanks for all your advice! I've contacted Kristian and Geoff from PMS and they've given me some good info.

[Mr Eps]

hi there and welcome to SAU

if i was in your shoes i would go the M35 over the C34... just because it's a newer car - as fast as stagea's are though... they're not exactly "make you crap yourself" fast - simply because of the sheer weight of them... they're more a "practical cruiser" as opposed to a massively fast supercar.. the same fate is dealt with in the caldinas... while they SHOULD feel like a fast nible car... they're not really the same hair raising experience as say... a TT supra..

but that been said - pit a caldina / stagea up against a commodore wagon / i30 wagon then they're leaps and bounds in front of any competition!

M35 would be my personal pick out of that bunch... they're much larger, practical, sexier and much easier to justify importing in these times - let's face facts, it's 2010 going on 2011... go the newer option if you can afford it!!!

i'll be honest with you, though... your budget of 14/15K - you would probably want to raise that a substantial amount for an M35!!! the compliance on these guys is murder (so i've heard)

they certainly are sexy though..

I've read that if the car's going to cost under $20k then I shouldn't bother importing.

^^^where did you read this? what does it mean? my car is about 15K landed complied in vic then freighted to me in perth then registered and ORC's (well it would have but then i bought work wheels and tyres)

and it will whip the pants off most cars when comparing features, value for money, straight line power and comfort...

so that arguement does baffle me..

anyway - Rowan's picks for "value for money" imports are as follows:

late model ZZ30 soarer vvt 5MT

R33 GTR

RZ supra TT 6MT

Mitsubishi Legnum (if you're set on a wagon)

oh and my current personal KILLER as far as value for money...

the JZX100 and ZX110 mark2 / chaser.

style, elegance, class and comfort... all rolled into a neat powerful yet practical 4 door.

by the way - if your budget is 15 grand -and you want practical power... how does a lexus gs300 with a 2JZgte swap sound?

[ironpaw]

Hey mate, thanks for your reply. Yeah, I think I'll go the M35 if I was to get the Stagea - looks better and probably has a bit more up to date features.

I like your recommended list, but I need a 4 door sedan/wagon, as I have 3 young kids! Hence the Caldina/Stagea requirement. Don't like the Legnum - drinks fuel like a mofo (reportedly 15+ L/100km!) and it looks pretty ordinary...

What about the 4 door R34 GT-T R34 Sedan? What are they like/how much do they go for?

I want more power, but not like over the top power...I think the stock 200 kw would be sufficient...for now!

I never understood the appeal of the Chasers...is it just because they have a 2JZ? They're kinda...ugly to me

Edited August 2, 2010 by ironpaw

[jrm]

C35 Laurel? Might be outside your budget tho ..

I quite like the R34 4-door for me, but I don't know how practical it would be with all three rear seats used by kids ...

[PRIMO]

Ive had the Stagea M35 as a drive car in japan and out of all the cars ive had it was buy far the best wagon or 4 door sedan that is on offer from japan.

there are a few good examples getting around just make sure you get a copy of the dereg docs to confirm klm are legit.

between the C34 and M35 there is no comparision they are just totally differant cars in all areas, and i would waste your time to much searching for a C34 model, allthough they can be had cheap, id rather spend the little extra.

[ironpaw]

C35 Laurel? Might be outside your budget tho ..

I quite like the R34 4-door for me, but I don't know how practical it would be with all three rear seats used by kids ...

Looked at the Laurel...looks like a Maxima? I think I still prefer the Stagea...the extra space is good for prams and whatnot.

So I take it the M35 has a wider body then the R34 sedan?

[ironpaw]

I noticed that a couple of M35's on carsales belongs to the guys here. I take it they're hard to sell?

[Mr Eps]

hard to sell or not - the "game" of being an import owner is a different race to the domestic cars altogether, please understand this - importing is for specialist and enthusiasts... if you're not one of these people i advise against buying one...

in short - they're not hard or easy to sell... they're not really MEANT to be sold - you import a car to DRIVE it, to OWN it, to make your friends wonder why THEY didn't think to get a car like yours instead of spending 38K on a commodore..

i understand now you're in need of a FAMILY car haha

jzx100 ugly? i hardly think so..

then again there's the newer x110... again - how is this ugly??

i'm hoping you're thinking of a different car here

so yeah - sorry for spurting my "value for money" imports i didn't read the "wanting family car" part!!!

so x100 / x110 is suitable... but if you want the wagon... i'd definitely have the M35 stagea... they have great power they're not that cheap to comply i'll be honest but they're a very nice car to have...

they're powerful but i'm just saying - understand it's a wagon... not a low stanced coupe.... so it will FEEL a bit sluggish and heavy compared to EVO or GTR..

my personal thoughts are - if you're a leader of a family and want to cart them around - get a FAMILY car, downsize it to something cheap and get something you don't mind having baby puke / poo / cranberry juice / nutella / chips / fanta etc spilled in / around / all over it...

and get an imported toy for your "man time"

don't get a car where you're tempted to drop skids with babies on board =P

would you consider E51 elgrand?

[PRIMO]

All car just now are hard to sell i wouldnt say imports are only ones not selling.

[ironpaw]

Mr Eps - I love your reply...cracked me up!

I guess I'm after something different. We've already got a Mitsubishi Grandis for general kid carting duties - believe me, that car has all the stuff you mentioned + more...

I'm after a car for myself - but there'll be time when I'll need to cart the kids around as well, and hence the need for a sedan or wagon. That Elgrand looks...special?

I have to agree thats a good looking Chaser you've shown there - I was just going off pics on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Chaser and they like just like all the other large jap sedans...anyway they're pricier then what I can afford I think...

[ironpaw]

Ok, had a chance to take a ride in a workmate's R34 25GT...even without a turbo it seems like a pretty sweet ride!

How much are R34 GT-T sedans landed & complied on avg? I see a few on carsales for $10k....

[Mr Eps]

a GT-T sedan can be had within your budget no worries... want some examples? hold up...

EDIT:

okay had a few glimpses of "pricing ideas" (mind you - this is looking at what's available at pre-auction... so basically it's cars that are put up for sale at a price to see if anybody will purchase BEFORE the auction goes up...

THIS is up at pre-auction for about 800K yen FOB

auto, red, TE37s, 74,000km and could be a good car...

landed and complied this is about 16 thousand (you'd get a bit of change from that though)

then there's THIS

bone stock, turbo, auto, 68,xxxKM grade 4.5 car

460,oooY FOB... soooo about 12/13K landed complied?

keep in mind - auction would probably save you a bit of money... this post is just to show you what can be had for such and such cost... so in short - yes they can be had for your budget... but the regular

there's a HEAP of ER34 sedans on yahoo japan but not many exciting ones

oh wait

look what i found

black turbo manual ... 164xxx km (high km)

550,oooY car cost (about 650K FOB) so about 15 grand landed complied - mind you this is at a DEALER ffs... so paying a premium and dealers generally dont like selling to foreigners!

given it's mods... if you love it - you buy it... but given it's KM - this is very expensive for an ER34!

it's a nismo edition

LSD

Tein colovers

tastefully modified

bla bla bla

shut up and buy this instead

it's a R34 GTT - NOT a GTR!!!!

but that's out of your price range =)

Edited August 3, 2010 by Mr Eps

[Mr Eps]

hit refresh

[ironpaw]

Where are you finding all these cars from!?

I had a look on USS via directimport...

any idea why this one has a 2.6?

https://bzl.cis6200.jp/e/p5_search_detail.a...p;o=ASC&p=1

Does it mean it's got a Rb26DETT in it? Or is it a typo?

What's the diff between Regular R34 GT-T sedan and HR34/ER34?

I also noticed that on the listing:

https://bzl.cis6200.jp/e/p5_search_result.a...rNam&o=DESC

There are "Skyline 4D" and "Skyline 4D AWD". I take it only the GT-T and GT-R has AWD?

[NISMO]

Yep, buy a 34 sedan, then do this to it

[Mr Eps]

a 2.6 means they've put RB26 inside... means it's a massive headache to comply. i personally wouldn't bother

SOME GTT came with AWD. not all...

but i'm not a big enough skyline nerd to know all about that sorry!!!

and the yahoo japan cars can be viewed on

www.importmonster.com.au

then hit

browse

cars

yahoo japan cars

on the left sidebar hit

nissan

then

"SUTAGEYA"

(said phoenetically it says stagea)

[iseekool]

a 2.6 means they've put RB26 inside... means it's a massive headache to comply. i personally wouldn't bother

SOME GTT came with AWD. not all...

but i'm not a big enough skyline nerd to know all about that sorry!!!

and the yahoo japan cars can be viewed on

www.importmonster.com.au

then hit

browse

cars

yahoo japan cars

on the left sidebar hit

nissan

then

"SUTAGEYA"

(said phoenetically it says stagea)

R34 GTt never came out in AWD.

Only the GTR (RB26DETT) and non turbo 2.5L (RB25DE) models came out in AWD - Known as GT4.

[Mr Eps]

yeah that was what i was thinking but i figured if he said it's true then it MUST BE!!!

(again - not a big enough skyline nerd to know about these!!! )

[ironpaw]

So is the auction sheet with the comments and grading the ONLY thing I have to go on re the car's condition?

Do certain brokers/buyers have actual eyes on the car to be bidded on in order to give it a once over? Also, mechanically it'll be a mystery bag right? I.E. you would have no idea what needs fixing and whatnot?

[Mr Eps]

hahahha aoh dear lawdy yes indeedy you're totally right..

just kidding

this is how it works (from a customers perspective - i'm sure aaron / kristian / shan / phil will be happy to add their 2c

YOU as a customer pay a thousand dollars... this is your BROKER. you tell your BROKER what you want. set ANY criteria you feel like... car brand, make, colour, extras, trim level, modifications YOU NAME IT...

your BROKER scours auction after auction for you in their supercomputers. if there's anything that matches your criteria, he sends the information your way... if you like the look of the car from the two pictures, (you should really have at least a day or two warning) then you tell your broker "can i have an inspection on this, please?"

the broker then sends ONE OF HIS STAFF as an auction runner (with no vested interest in the car at all) to go inspect the car thouroughly... obviously they can't tell if a "big bearing" is about to come unstuck - nobody can... they can just give you an educated guess on the interior and exterior condition thorughouly and based on it's km and age and how it starts etc and tell you what the car's like

THEN they give you about half a page to a full page report as to what the car has and has not got... what their opinion of the car is... and what their thoughts are...

it's then up to YOU the customer if you want your BROKER to place your maximum bid on that car...

from there - your broker places your bid for you, invoices you, gets the car delivered to port, de-reg'd from jap, ready for export. gets it put on a ship for you, organises it to be offloaded from ship then put through AQIS and customs to be steam cleaned for bugs etc...

then deliveres it to a RAWS workshop for compliance then organises delivery to you to be registered.

....and they do ALL OF THIS for a small fee of (around about) a thousand dollars. it really is money well spent. DO NOT trust auction reports. money talks in japan. a dealer can pay an assessor off or the auction may own the car themselves and grade a car at 4.5 when it's a clunker...

...or in my case - it can be graded at grade 3 even though (in my opinion) is a total GEM!

so yes... get a GOOD broker... not all brokers work the same... some brokers i've heard get you the car fk it out of japan then you never hear from them again... not naming names that's just wat i've heard!