Importing cars from Japan to the UK

[Patryk Biczuk]

Hi.

I'm trying to gather information and and set up a business plan for importing cars from Japan to the UK. The main questions I have are regarding logistics and the cut I should be taking, if anyone has experience I'd love your input.

I'm in the early stages of trying to set up a part time business importing cars from Japan to the UK. I have good knowledge of mechanics, repairs and even web design and marketing but I have zero import experience.

I'm not sure whether I should use and existing service to import the car and mark up the price accordingly or try and find someone in Japan to help me with inspecting and transporting the cars. I think the latter would be more expensive but also paying an import company to import a car for me then selling it myself seems like it might be equally if not more expensive.

TL;DR; my question is, should i inspect and ship the cars myself or use an import service like carused[dot]jpauction or jdmauctionwatch[dot]com/how-to-buy/uk/

Also, I have no idea how to calculate what hind of cut I should be taking and how much to expect to make per car

 

[Mr D]

Usual method in business is to try and cover your costs plus add on something for your profit.
So if it costs you £20k to inspect, buy, ship and market the car then you should be charging £20k plus some element of profit.

Factor in all your costs. Warranty, accountancy, insurance, travel etc.

Oh and don't forget VAT. You'll be paying it when importing, you'll be collecting it from the customer when you sell if you do enough business.

 

[ystong]

Well, I think you have to find an import company as consignee and find a professional logistics company to do the ship for you. Better to find a logistics Japan domestics, I suppose the frieght charges will be more workable. Ship a car by sea is not like that simple as other normal products as I supposed. Before doing that, you need to check the all frieght-cost, special requirements of UK Customs, duty, vat, or any possibility Vat-refound.
Above just some clues for your ref only. Good luck~

 

[Ian J]

Factor in all your costs. Warranty, accountancy, insurance, travel etc.

I think that you also need to get the car approved in a scheme similar to an MOT

I have no idea what the market is like nowadays but 20 years ago I bought a Honda Prelude from a dealer that had been imported from Japan and it was a wonderful car. It was the old coke bottle shaped car with a 2.2 V-Tech engine that wasn't available in the UK through official channels. I am surprised that I didn't lose my licence driving it as the car needed to be revved hard and high to hear that wonderful engine scream. - End of reminiscence

 

[Import Expert]

I used to work for these guys - they specialise in private car shipping and may be a good starting point: https://www.rjjfreight.co.uk/car-shipping

 

[Financial-Modeller]

There is a possibility that you are about 30 years too late to market @Patryk Biczuk

What value will you bring to the customer that your competitors do not?

It seems to me that the value is one or more of:

• buying stock (which you won't have much control over if buying remotely using a local agent)
• trade documentation and shipping (which you will outsource)
• preparation (which is the easiest bit in terms of management), or
• marketing (and I'm guessing you will pop your stock onto Autotrader)

 

[Financial-Modeller]

I have no idea what the market is like nowadays but 20 years ago I bought a Honda Prelude from a dealer that had been imported from Japan and it was a wonderful car. It was the old coke bottle shaped car with a 2.2 V-Tech engine that wasn't available in the UK through official channels. I am surprised that I didn't lose my licence driving it as the car needed to be revved hard and high to hear that wonderful engine scream. - End of reminiscence

Coincidentally, I had the same model, also imported with the help of a UK specialist. Loved that car - very fond memories.

 

[Paul Norman]

There are many aspects to importing cars. The mark up is just one, and that is covered above. You will need to be making a profit, so ensure you understand the costs you are going to have to pay.

In addition, ensure you have a reliable source of cars that meet UK/EU regulations. Not all Japanese cars do, and for sure, there are cases of them changing the spec to meet certain markets. I remember the big 'grey' import scene in the 1990's, resulting in people driving around in cars that were not totally legal.

 

[Ecommerce-Help]

I worked for a company that had a Mazda rotary import. It was hard finding a main dealer who would touch it. There were specialists who would work on it but they weren't cheap.

 

[Paul Norman]

I worked for a company that had a Mazda rotary import. It was hard finding a main dealer who would touch it. There were specialists who would work on it but they weren't cheap.

The rotary engine, as an aside, was one of those engineering ideas that never delivered. It just never got taken up by enough people - hence the high maintenance costs.

I am still undecided whether that is just a fashion thing, or whether it was a totally poor idea.

 

[Ecommerce-Help]

It had problems but when it ran well it was fast. Triple rotors and twin turbo also meant 15 miles to the gallon with your foot down.

 

[Mark T Jones]

It had problems but when it ran well it was fast. Triple rotors and twin turbo also meant 15 miles to the gallon with your foot down.

and roughly the same for oil.

 

[billmccallum1957]

Take a look at what these companies offer and see where you can fit into the market.


www.torque-gt.co.uk

Torque GT - The UK Japanese Car Import Specialist

carfromjapan.com

CAR FROM JAPAN: Import Directly From Japanese Car Dealers


www.thecarwarehouse.co.uk

The Car Warehouse - A different kind of company

www.japimportcars.co.uk

Jap Import Cars

 

[GrantaNetworks]

Whilst not exactly the same and also not particularly recent, I have some experience of doing something similar.

I used to import old/classic VWs from Southern Africa and, towards the end of the business, South America.

Because they were older than a certain age, I was often able to get them classified as 'historic' and pay no import duty and reduced (I think 5%) VAT. They only required an MOT to be UK road legal.

Modern vehicles (at the time) would incur 10% import duty plus VAT at the full rate. Remember that these are on the purchase cost, plus cost of shipping.

Modern cars will have to pass an SVA test (you'll have to Google it, I can't post the link the the DVLA website) to make sure that they correspond with all of the relevant regulations.

If stuff gets held up at customs, you will have to pay storage, etc. eg if they decide to xray your container (assuming that you are shipping in containers).
Roll on roll off is cheaper, but riskier in terms of potential damage.

There's probably more that I can add to this but I have to run at this point in time.

 

[cts1975]

Buying cars at auction in Japan is safer than in the UK. The Japan system has a grading of I think 1-5. The 5 being what we would call 'ready to retail' in the UK. I can't think of mainstream cars that would fill a gap in the UK market to be honest?
I would consider something like a Mazda Bongo 4x4/ Toyota Previa 4x4 and any other 4x4 camper type vehicle as having a market in the UK.
As others have mentioned in the 90's the import of Jap cars via Ireland was booming.
Subaru Impreza's/Mitsubishi Evo's that were only available in Japan (JDM) were very sort after.
I'll 3rd the Preludes with the Vtec engine. They were all auto aswell I think. They screamed!

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Another 1 hit wonder! The OP joined on the 16th December, posted once on 16th December and hasn't been seen since 16th December.