Importing from Japan

[97'Scort]

I posted this in the Alberta BMW forum, but I'll open it up to everyone. I have a family friend living in Japan who has been exporting various cars (mostly Mercedes, BMW, and Porsche) using the 15 year import rule. He has given me the opportunity to order whatever I want from him.

He has offered a good price on a '92 BMW 325 coupe, and the BMW dealership here in Edmonton has agreed to service it, along with a full mechanical inspection and a compression test.

The only problem is, of course, it's caveat emptor. Once they buy the car, I'm stuck with it.

Has anybody else imported a car from overseas or had experience with the general quality of these cars? The cars I have seen from this guy range from near mint Mercedes SL500's to seemingly ok low-end bimmers, and even a few BMW 850s. All have minor mechanical problems off the start, but I hope to avoid that by getting the dealership to do a full check.

Thanks for your input!

[AllGoNoShow]

No car you import will be 100% off the boat unless you bought it new in Japan, used it for 15 years in Japan, did the maintence yourself to keep it 100% and then brought it over here.


Just remember that.


That being said, teh BMW's that seem to be coming out of JP are a great buy. I just about an old 735i befoe i got my iL locally. MUCH lower kilometers, not nearly driven as much. Little to no rust on them. and the price is great compared to locally sometimes as well.

I would say go for it, there are a few JP BMW owners on this forum and theywill probably say the same.

[97'Scort]

Yeah I'm expecting it to need some work, but for the price they're offering (plus the fact that I know him personally and that he'll find a good one for me) I can afford to fix it and then some.

I'm already planning new rims and a Brembo brake kit, along with a nice new audio system :)

I am aware of the other threads on this too, so no ripping my head off! I'm looking for BMW specific comments.

[FivE.SeveN]

Most of the time there's no rust on JDMs. When I was in for an alignment, the dealership guys said 'the underside of your car looks good... actually it looks amazing'. Calgary winters rape cars, no doubt. You'll almost certainly get a bmw with a body that's in excellent shape. Besides, engine mechanics can be repaired relatively easily.

[97'Scort]

Yeah the rust doesn't seem to be much of an issue. I will make sure to get it undercoated well.