Here’s How Anyone Can Get An Incredible Deal Importing A Sweet Car From Japan

Each year, practically every car site comes out with a list of the coolest cars you can import into America from Europe and Japan. These cars really are awesome, but many of them also cost a small fortune, which is dissapointing if you ball on a budget. If you’re willing to make a concession on some features or even some models, you can get an incredible deal. Here’s how you can do it.

This year I want to import two cars. I’ve been dreaming about an Audi A2 for years and now many examples are finally becoming legal to import into the United States. Likewise, I want to import another car from Japan. But this car isn’t going to be a legend. Instead, it’s pretty much just a normal everyday car: The Honda Life.

I can’t wait to tell you how importing a car from Europe works, but I may wait on that one until trade tensions ease. It appears that cars from Japan are safe for now, so let’s see what’s cooking over there.

Some of the hottest Japanese Domestic Market cars right now are icons like the Nissan Skyline GT-R R34, the Autozam AZ-1, the Honda NSX, the Mazda RX-7 FD, and the Honda Integra Type R, among others. All of these cars are absolutely epic. If I still bothered to have actual car posters I would probably have posters of the AZ-1 and the NSX.

But here’s the thing, these cars are wicked expensive. People are spending $60,000 or more on NSX examples already in America. These cars remain expensive even in the Japanese auction system, where a decent example with a manual transmission may still cost $55,000 before you pay fees, import duties, and shipping.

If you really want a Nissan Skyline GT-R R34, it’s a similar story. You’ll be paying over $100,000 for one that’s already in America and the ones in Japan are currently trending above $100,000 even at current exchange rates.

Pick any car from the list above and the price is high no matter if you win an auction in Japan or buy from a dealer in America. I know I don’t have more than $20,000 to spend on an Autozam AZ-1 from a site like Bring a Trailer or a dealer like Duncan Imports.

The Compromise

Yesterday, our friends at the old site published an article in which the post’s author was curious about why someone imported a base model Mitsubishi Minica Kei car. Why bother with a base model Minica when you could get the weird Minica Toppo or the hot Dangan ZZ?

This post reminded me of great advice given to me by David Tracy a few years ago. A lot enthusiasts aren’t rolling in enough dough to buy the best, most iconic versions of a car. You may want a car from the 1950s, but can’t afford Tri-Five Chevy. Some folks might give up, thinking that a classic is unattainable. The advice David gave me was to buy the version of the car you want that nobody is looking for.

He applied this logic to classic cars. Everyone wants a hot two-door hardtop or something carrying an iconic performance badge. But, if you’re willing to make a concession on performance and body type, you can save a ton of cash. Forget the two-door hardtop, save a bunch of cash and get the sedan. Forget the performance badge, a standard V8 or heck, a base model six is fine enough. Cars like my 1948 Plymouth Special DeLuxe are also largely being ignored.

If you’re just looking to drive a classic car, nobody is actually going to care that you didn’t buy the best one. Kids and adults will love to see a Chevy Biscayne survivor just as much as a Concours-level Bel Air.

Before I continue, I have to note that due to the peculiarities of how the Japanese auction systems work, I cannot give you any permalinks to auction statistics.

Big Savings On Cool Cars

So, how do we apply this logic to Japanese imports? Let’s start with the Honda NSX. As I said before, if you buy one of these with low miles and a manual transmission you can expect to pay upwards of $60,000. How do you save some cash here? Well, if you check out Japanese auctions, you’ll find that you can buy an NSX with an automatic transmission for around $30,000. Yes, I know, it’s sacrilege to buy such a legend with an automatic transmission. However, it’s hard to deny the chunk of money you can save by not going after the one everyone wants.

How about the Nissan Skyline R34? Let’s say you go down from the GT-R and look at the 1999 Skyline 25GT Turbo.

This car is still a coupe and looks like the icon from the movies and the video games, but isn’t as aggressive. That doesn’t mean you’re looking at a slouch, either. This still has a 2.5-liter turbocharged RB25DET straight-six officially rated at 276 HP. You still get it with a manual transmission, too. But here’s the kicker. Brave the Japanese auction system and you could get one of those for around $28,000. Now, mathematics was never my strong suit, but that’s a huge slash down from six figures.

To be clear here, yes, you’ll be buying a lesser car. However, if you’re like me and there’s not a chance in the world of you buying the Godzilla GT-R, this might be close enough.

Even if you do buy a car that’s in demand, you can save some cash by skipping the dealer. Some U.S.-based JDM dealers charge a very hefty premium for their cars. Some dealers charge as much as twice what it would cost you to import your own car. Yes, importing a car does take months and you can’t really inspect the car in person unless you fly to Japan, but if you’re on a tight budget, it can mean all of the difference.

Let’s go back to that Autozam AZ-1. If you try to buy a decent one from a dealership or on an auction platform like Bring a Trailer, you’re likely to spend more than $20,000. However, slide on over to Japan’s auction system and you might be able to find a decent one for $10,000 at current exchange rates. You might get away with paying even less if you don’t mind one that’ll need some love.

If that’s still too much, I highly recommend the Honda Beat as an alternative. Sure, it doesn’t have gullwing doors, but it’s a convertible and has a bigger interior, too. Besides, all of these Kei sports cars make about the same power and go about the same speed, so you’re realistically just picking your favorite style. I recently saw a really nice Honda Beat sell for $3,800 in Japanese auctions. These are cars that U.S.-based dealers will happily try to sell for around $15,000 or more.

Finally, I have options for people who just want a car from Japan. Maybe you don’t care about a specific model or trim, but just want to experience having a Japanese car in America.

The great thing about not having a preference is that most 25-year-old or older cars in Japan are basically worthless. You can get any number of basic Kei trucks and average Kei cars for a few hundred bucks in an auction. I’m not talking about sometimes, either, but these cars will reliably cost peanuts in several auctions. Why? These cars are too expensive to keep in Japan (vehicles get taxed at a higher rate as they get older) and Americans usually want the ones with turbochargers, cool colors, or bubble roofs. A base model all-white Kei truck is a dime a dozen.

Here’s a 1999 Honda HR-V that I chose entirely at random. It got a decent condition score and sold for $1,800.

The same goes for Kei cars like the Honda Life. Reader and importer Tyler let me drive his Honda Life a couple of years ago and it was illuminating. This car drove similar enough to my Honda Beat and it still gathered a lot of curious people. Yet, this car was so outrageously cheap. It was like a JDM cheat code. Recently, I saw a Honda Life in great condition go for about $230. This is a car so cheap that the $1,000 or so you’ll pay in shipping would pay for four of them. When you’re all paid up, I bet you can get one here and through Customs for less than $3,000.

Getting A Car From Japan

To wrap up what I’m saying here: If you’ve had a heavy interest in JDM cars but are light of wallet, not all is lost! You might find luck in adjusting your search parameters. Perhaps go down a trim level, add a couple of doors, or go for the automatic. And if you just want “a car” from Japan, there are loads of models of all kinds selling for dirt cheap.

Here’s a 1992 Subaru Vivio that went for just $164!

So, how would you go about this adventure? If you want a white glove service where you just choose a car, pay for it, and wait for it to show up, I highly recommend the Import Guys in Ferndale, Washington. They’ll get you inside of the auctions and then take care of the rest for a relatively small fee. The shop’s proprietor, Dylan Cain, will make buying your JDM car as painless as he could make it. I imported my Honda Beat through the Import guys and to date it was the easiest car transaction I’ve had.

If you want to try doing some of your own work, I recommend Japan Car Direct, the team I worked with to import my Suzuki Every van. This service gets you into the auctions and helps you pick the car, pay for it, and get it on a boat. JCD will even translate auction condition sheets for you, though I have written a guide on how to read the sheets yourself. From there, you can either handle the rest yourself or contact a Customs broker to get you the rest of the way. Japan Car Direct’s fee is cheaper, but it ends up costing about the same if you end up doing the Customs broker.

Our reader, Tyler, also has a small import outfit here in the Midwest!

The absolute cheapest way would be to import the car yourself, but you would be responsible for ensuring all of the paperwork is correct and filed on time. I’ve written about that before. If you really care about the car you’re buying, you’ll also want to get the car independently inspected. The auction condition sheets are created by inspectors who are essentially giving their opinion on a car’s condition. They can and do make big mistakes that you might not notice until you get the car. Thankfully, many importers and auction agent services do give resources on inspecting cars in Japan.

Japanese imports can get crazy expensive, but they don’t have to be. If you’re willing to shop around and wait a few months, there are some great deals to be had out there. I’m going to get back to looking for everyday Kei cars now.