For Sale HDJ81's for thousands less by bidding yourself on Japanese auction sites

Year

1991

Vehicle Model

1. 80 Series

Location

Phoenix, Arizona United States

Mileage

120000

PSA - Some of the for sale prices I'm seeing here are ridiculous. Search reviews for exporters in Japan and pick a reputable one - I've used Pacific Coast Auto Auctions, and also Japan Car Direct . They all speak English, usually Canadians for some reason. You give a deposit, find a car you like and tell them a max bid*. They'll walk you through everything. Their fees plus shipping and US broker fees would be maybe $4000 or so (estimating as it's been a few years). An HDJ81 with 250k km that auctions for $12k-$14k ends up under $20k. I picked up a 91 w/ 120k km or so for 9k to my door 7 years ago. It's just a few hours of emailing, paperwork and setting up an account or two. (* Just be careful your max bid is a reasonable amount you're ok with - I bid on one which coincidentally sold to me for my exact max bid)

 

[SolidDuke69]

Appreciate the heads up. I’ve been waiting to import one myself as the prices seem so inflated once they land here. Would love to ask you so more questions if that’s cool.

 

[sr5pickup]

If you do this route make sure you get it inspected thoroughly! Things like rust and previous damage isn’t always disclosed.

This FB group is a really good source for information on importing from Japan as well as who and who not to work with because well they’re shady.

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[mudandrock]

PSA - Some of the for sale prices I'm seeing here are ridiculous. Search reviews for exporters in Japan and pick a reputable one - I've used Pacific Coast Auto Auctions, and also Japan Car Direct . They all speak English, usually Canadians for some reason. You give a deposit, find a car you like and tell them a max bid*. They'll walk you through everything. Their fees plus shipping and US broker fees would be maybe $4000 or so (estimating as it's been a few years). An HDJ81 with 250k km that auctions for $12k-$14k ends up under $20k. I picked up a 91 w/ 120k km or so for 9k to my door 7 years ago. It's just a few hours of emailing, paperwork and setting up an account or two. (* Just be careful your max bid is a reasonable amount you're ok with - I bid on one which coincidentally sold to me for my exact

I’m sure the prices must be exactly what they were 7 years ago when you bought yours. Probably more to choose from too!

 

[AdamFire]

7 Years ago I turned down a 90k mile troopy for only $9k USD! Imagine the prices nowadays! Ridiculous!

 

[chansdaman]

I highly recommend JCD. I’ve imported over a dozen vehicles from them. If you have some appetite for risk (even inspected cars can have issues once landed), be ok without physically looking at the have cash on hand, and ok with not having anything for two months after wiring thousands of dollars, it’s worth it to do it yourself. Also, don’t forget sales tax off of the purchase price to title.

As far as 80 series, I have seen quality ones become more scarce. I feel a lot of the good ones have been bought.

 

[duece71]

They will ship the truck with dead batteries.

 

[Nickelaus]

I’m sure the prices must be exactly what they were 7 years ago when you bought yours. Probably more to choose from too!

Well, prices are up but definitely cheaper than some I've seen here. All of the 25-yr old stuff basically nobody's interested in it except for bidders in the United States. That said, there's for sure fewer than 7 years ago. You can sign up and watch for a few months taking note what shows up and the going prices. When you know what you want, provide the broker a deposit and have the discipline to bid only on examples that fit your criteria.