I look at every Land Cruiser for sale in Japan every day. I think $10,000 is a reasonable price to pay. If you want to know why I didn't buy it, send me a PM.
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I look at every Land Cruiser for sale in Japan every day. I think $10,000 is a reasonable price to pay. If you want to know why I didn't buy it, send me a PM.
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- #22
I look at every Land Cruiser for sale in Japan every day. I think $10,000 is a reasonable price to pay. If you want to know why I didn't buy it, send me a PM.
Absolutely will PM, as soon as I figure out how to do so on this forum.
"Inbox" ... Top right
Select "start a conversation"
Put in Steve's 'MUD handle.
Select "start a conversation"
Put in Steve's 'MUD handle.
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- #24
I've have someone translating the sheet for me fully, my Japanese is pretty piss poor, but I can sound out the kana. She said the exterior was rated 0/5, which seems crazy. The interior was rated 3/5, which I can see why. What I'm wondering is, did this get submerged? Notice the stains on the rugs and inner lining of the rear doors? It's a uniform brown silt. Could be explained if the owner was in a very dusty area, but after 49k miles, it just seems a little funny.
Possibly in the 2011 tsunami.
I think mine might have been submerged at one point. I recently pulled all of the seat out and the vinyl flooring and I vacuumed up at least 10 lbs of rocks, ocean sand, and pebbles. Explains a lot.
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- #27
Those were my thoughts as well... it may explain something about the light body damage, too.
Anybody know the legality issues with exporting previously submerged vehicles from Japan? Would there be record? Is there a Japanese version of Carfax?
Edit: Found it. Google is magic. http://www.carfaxjapan.com/
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I can clearly see now why it is VERY IMPORTANT to deal with an established importer who has the contacts to throughly inspect every potential purchase from foreign lands. There are issues being discussed here that would have never crossed my mind.
The truth is, buying and importing a vehicle from auction overseas is a roll of the dice. The time frame involved is often less than 24hrs from when a vehicle is entered into the auction system and when it crosses the auction block. This short time frame makes it rather difficult to get the vehicle properly inspected. To compound the issue, auctions are held in multiple locations around the country. Getting someone you trust to inspect the vehicle is one thing, but getting them to the auction in time is another. Having people at each auction house willing to do an extra inspection on your vehicle is key, that comes at a price. Timing is key! The auction sheet that grades the vehicle condition used to be considered accurate, but in recent years complaints of improper grading have been on the rise. Not surprising considering these auctions see upwards of 25k vehicles cross the block in a day, so inspections are done in a matter of minutes as it passes through the photo booth. Buying cars at auction in Japan or elsewhere is about a 1000 times riskier than buying off eBay! Not to mention the import complications, costs and headaches.
Ultimately it boils down to this. No one should ever buy their dream land cruiser sight unseen even if it's from an established importer! Go kick the tires, crawl under it, test drive etc at the very least. Having a good Diesel mechanic give it a once over is money well spent. If you just gotta have it, well .....you better have the checkbook to back up your impulsive decision.
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- #33
Very sound advice. If I weren't able to get a refund on my deposit, I wouldn't have dropped the cash. As it stands, I'll know more when the car hits the dealership and he sends me more photos. I plan on being very diligent when looking this over. I will also insist upon a VIN. I'm not going to let my desire for this car cloud my judgement.
good sized dents on the rear pillar too.
The vin is 0008622
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- #36
No, the VIN isn't 0008622. They have very long VINs. That's likely the production number.
Auction grade 4 is rare with a vehicle of this age, but they do come around every so often, when they do I am skeptical of the actual grading. 3's and 3.5's are the norm for purchase worthy vehicles. Your interior and exterior grading is in the upper right hand corner of the inspection sheet.
Yes true, but it is unlikely that it is attached to the vehicle. The Japanese vin might prove to be difficult to obtain.
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- #39
I see it now.
Overall = 3
Exterior/外観 = C
Interior/内部 = B
Three scratches, one significant body damage (back left), one notable (back right), one dent (left) - more or less.
Overall = 3
Exterior/外観 = C
Interior/内部 = B
Three scratches, one significant body damage (back left), one notable (back right), one dent (left) - more or less.
The Japanese VIN is BJ700008622.
Some good cautions brought up in this thread. I'll take the opportunity to point out how Land Cruisers Direct solves these problems. First, we work with one of the largest exporters in Japan. We have guys at each of the auction sites who are familiar with our criteria and a quick 20-point checklist for deciding which vehicles to buy. However, things still slip through the cracks. The real way we've taken the risk out of the game is by purchasing the inventory, bringing it over, doing a complete inspection and baseline maintenance procedure, and then completely documenting the vehicle with over 200 photos before offering for sale. This gives any stateside buyer the chance to show up, inspect the vehicle and say yes or no. We don't take deposits, and we don't sell anything "on the water" or before it's gone through our complete process. Our method and efforts are intended to provide a good buying/owning experience to people interested in an imported Land Cruiser.
Some good cautions brought up in this thread. I'll take the opportunity to point out how Land Cruisers Direct solves these problems. First, we work with one of the largest exporters in Japan. We have guys at each of the auction sites who are familiar with our criteria and a quick 20-point checklist for deciding which vehicles to buy. However, things still slip through the cracks. The real way we've taken the risk out of the game is by purchasing the inventory, bringing it over, doing a complete inspection and baseline maintenance procedure, and then completely documenting the vehicle with over 200 photos before offering for sale. This gives any stateside buyer the chance to show up, inspect the vehicle and say yes or no. We don't take deposits, and we don't sell anything "on the water" or before it's gone through our complete process. Our method and efforts are intended to provide a good buying/owning experience to people interested in an imported Land Cruiser.