Question about NSX imports

S

Sgt. Pepper

Contributing Member
Joined
14 December 2007
Messages
104
Hello again!


Its been forever since I was last on this forum. After the constant frustration of having every NSX in my budget bought out from under me, I finally gave in and took said budget to get a 2007 S2000. While I don't really regret my decision, I still long for the NSX. Its a flame that will never die with me... one of those "things to do before I die" notes I have scribbled somewhere.


Anyway, heres the question.



I see that NSX's here in the states are becoming more and more affordable.

Problem: Its also a little harder to find stock and unmolested examples of this car.

However I'm actually planning to be in Japan in a few months for work and might remain there for a year or two. From a variety of websites you can see that NSX's in their original form are abundant over there, and the prices cant be beat. BUT, has anyone in a similar position as myself ever owned an NSX in japan? And to all the Japanese owners out there, is it possible to bring it back to the states with me if I were to make the purchase there??? :confused:


Everyones input would be greatly appreciated!
 
yes, you can import them for "show" or "off road use only"

By your user name Im guessing ur Army? Im Air Force and have tons of friends that go to Japan and want to bring cars back. It costs about 2 times what the car itself costs over there to make it legal. Not worth it at all. But if you did manage to get it done, please do tell us folks that still have "hope in bring back a car from the motherland" how u did it :biggrin:

Good luck and thanks for the service (if u are Mil)
 
Im very tempted to try bringing one back legal or not, just because of the great condition that the cars are in over there and the prices of said cars without the modifications to make them street legal here.

Has anyone here heard of people having cars taken away because they were not street legal JDM's? Ive read about the potential consequences of getting caught with one but has anyone had any experience first or second hand?

Also sorry for any misunderstanding, but my name is a reference to the Beatles album :)
 
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Cars inpounded and HUGE fines from US Customs all the way to DOT. Actually not inpounded when its dealing with a customs, more like seized lol
 
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That thought is NOT an option... I never plan on even visiting Australia... Everything over there can kill you. I'm either here or there (japan). I just wish you didnt have to jump through so many hoops just to bring a single car over, especially one that is for all intensive purposes identical to a production car sold here anyway.
 
Sgt. Pepper said:
Im very tempted to try bringing one back legal or not
Click to expand...

It's really not worth the headache. I was driving a JDM Supra here in AZ for about 2 years before an ADOT enforcement agent was on my ass. It's just too difficult to keep a gray market vehicle out of the spotlight unless you just want it to sit in a garage.
 
Wow that really sucks about the Surpa... a MKIV I'm guessing. Sorry to hear that :( . Though youre probably right. Guess ill just have to save up for one in the US market.

I figure the prices on the 97 through 00 will be down and in my budget by the time i return, but I was really hoping to find a good condition coupe. Im not a terribly huge fan of the Targa, especially since the car WILL be taken to a track every once in a while. Most coupes now are well over 100,000 miles. There is just such an abundance of them in japan. Real shame.
 
Cars in Japan can only have 60k kilometers before they have to start paying taxes per year on the car...a crazy amount.

Hints why you see a lot of cars in the US with motor swaps from cars in Japan and the motors having just under 60k on them (about 40k miles). You barely dont see any cars in japan with over 100k miles on them. They get sold countrys like Australia and New Zealand, where people love the endless supply of cheap, slightly used cars from Japan.
 
Sgt. Pepper said:
That thought is NOT an option... I never plan on even visiting Australia... Everything over there can kill you. I'm either here or there (japan). I just wish you didnt have to jump through so many hoops just to bring a single car over, especially one that is for all intensive purposes identical to a production car sold here anyway.
Click to expand...

True, even the sun now.:biggrin: But we manage not to die frequently. Those hoops are allegedly there to protect everbody's paypackets. I'll jump through them to get that NSX. :redface:
 
Erik B said:
Cars in Japan can only have 60k kilometers before they have to start paying taxes per year on the car...a crazy amount.

Hints why you see a lot of cars in the US with motor swaps from cars in Japan and the motors having just under 60k on them (about 40k miles). You barely dont see any cars in japan with over 100k miles on them. They get sold countrys like Australia and New Zealand, where people love the endless supply of cheap, slightly used cars from Japan.
Click to expand...

You pay tax on your car every year regardless of kilometres. Please check your facts (and sentence structures)!

Pollution laws, tax increases for older cars, Shaken (strict regulation checks)and how easy it is to get loans approved, all contribute to the reasons why there aren't many older cars on the roads in Japan.
 
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ajnsx said:
You pay tax on your car every year regardless of kilometres.
Click to expand...

Wow... always wondered about that. No wonder they barely look used compared to some of the ones I've seen in the US.

Does anyone know the kind of cost per year this adds up too? Im kind of afraid to ask how much it would cost just to own a car for the time I'm living there :frown:
 
Sgt. Pepper said:
Wow... always wondered about that. No wonder they barely look used compared to some of the ones I've seen in the US.

Does anyone know the kind of cost per year this adds up too? Im kind of afraid to ask how much it would cost just to own a car for the time I'm living there :frown:
Click to expand...

In Yen..Parking 10-20,000, shaken(car inspection 100,000-200,000 every two years), yearly car tax-50-100,000, insurance ?, drivers license 3,000 yen.:smile:
:smile: Then you have petrol, services, road tolls etc. Not cheap!:smile: That's why i prefer riding a bike, a car is a luxury, back in Australia a necessity.:smile:
 
Still! You'd think in a country with such an incredibly efficient public transportation system and huge automotive industry that they would be thinking of incentives on purchasing vehicles instead of making the prospect of owning one as miserable as possible. With added expenses like those it would take me a couple of years to buy the car cause I'd have to save not only for a down payment but all of those costs!
 
Sgt. Pepper said:
Still! You'd think in a country with such an incredibly efficient public transportation system and huge automotive industry that they would be thinking of incentives on purchasing vehicles instead of making the prospect of owning one as miserable as possible. With added expenses like those it would take me a couple of years to buy the car cause I'd have to save not only for a down payment but all of those costs!
Click to expand...

They make getting anything done, miserable here, everything takes forever as they have to follow the rules to the letter (Unless you're in a power position), any deviation starts you back at square one. Incredibly frustrating (and expensive, building permits-holy hell, yakuza payoffs, unbelievable, everyone wants a piece of the pie:smile:). It's the Japanese way (A lot of places in asia, i've heard):redface::smile:
 
:( I thought japan was gonna be like Candy Land for car enthusiasts...

Sounds like its not even worth it anymore. But thats all I've been looking forward too over there. So many racetracks too even with the hassle it still feels like a shame not to own something to take advantage of so many great driving locations.

I live in Las Vegas, Nevada, so even if I were to own an NSX here it would only be pleasurable in the sense that I fully appreciated the car for what it was and what its capable of, but hardly ever put its potential to use. Its that way with my S2000 right now. Nothing more boring than driving around a Grid, all right angles.

Is there any MORE bad news that could possibly dissuade me from making such a purchase over there???
 
Sgt. Pepper said:
I figure the prices on the 97 through 00 will be down and in my budget by the time i return, but I was really hoping to find a good condition coupe. Im not a terribly huge fan of the Targa, especially since the car WILL be taken to a track every once in a while. Most coupes now are well over 100,000 miles. There is just such an abundance of them in japan. Real shame.
Click to expand...


Most 97-00 coupes fall into the range of 50K - 75K (from used car web site), with mileage rarely breaking 100,000 KM (~60K miles). From my point of view, you can't really call them bargain.

Even comparing similar year/condition, the Japanese NSXs are normally 10% - 15% more expensive than the US ones. Combine that with strong yen, it's going to be pretty bad.

If you're living in central Tokyo (like I am), owning a car is more of a curse than a blessing. My building parking cost US$ 450 /mo. Like ajnsx said, along with all the other costs, and the fact that you're a foreigner, makes it not really feasible for car ownership.

My opinion would be just save more $$ and then buy one back in the US.

Good luck.
 
ajnsx said:
They make getting anything done, miserable here, everything takes forever as they have to follow the rules to the letter (Unless you're in a power position), any deviation starts you back at square one. Incredibly frustrating (and expensive, building permits-holy hell, yakuza payoffs, unbelievable, everyone wants a piece of the pie:smile:). It's the Japanese way (A lot of places in asia, i've heard):redface::smile:
Click to expand...

Cannot agree more about this. So much redtape and everything has to be done by the book...that drives me crazy. You cannot get things done in a timely manner.

Being an Asian in Tokyo that doesn't speak Japanese, I felt like I am the odd man out. Locals think I'm a foreigner and Westerners treat me like locals...no win situation.

Sorry for hijacking this thread a bit. :tongue::redface:
 
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