Importing a Car Yourself
Importing a Car Yourself
You can save quite a lot of money by allowing us to find a vehicle for you to import yourself. Once we have found you a vehicle we then arrange to have it imported on your behalf. On arrival you have it delivered to our RAWS workshop and have it complied according to the Australian Design Rules. At present Autoworx can comply the R32, R33 & R34 Nissan Skylines, Nissan 180SX, the JZA80 Toyota Supra and the KZH100 Toyota Hiace Super Custom Luxury 7 & 8 seater 2WD & 4WD vans. Coming Soon is the S15 Silvia , V35 Skyline , Toyota Aristo and Mitsubishi Delica. The process works like this:
Step 1: Pay Service Fee
Most people wanting to import a vehicle themselves from Japan tend to use a broker. I’m sure you have seen them running full page ads in magazines such as Hi Performance Imports etc. The problem is that they charge a hefty fee usually around the $1100 mark. Our service fee is only $880. Once we receive the service fee we can start looking for the car of your dreams. If we don’t have approval for a particular vehicle you are looking for, we can still help you find one and have it complied by another RAW. The service fee is fully refundable should you wish to pull out for any reason before you purchase a car.
Step 2: Finding your car
Once you have paid your service fee and signed a contract we can start looking for the car of your dreams. All we need is an email with your exact requirements. When we find cars that fit your requirements we send auction photos and details and an estimate of how much the car will sell for at auction. It is up to you whether you want to bid on a particular vehicle or not. We also have suppliers in Japan who buys cars at auction and put them into their own stock at a fixed price so we will also be offering these cars to you.
Step 3: Buying your car
Once we have found you a car and your bid is successful or you wish to buy one of the vehicles offered by our suppliers, you are required to make a payment within 7 – 10 days by Telegraphic Transfer at your local bank for the cost of the purchase price plus all fees associated with buying the car eg de-registration and transporting the vehicle to the nearest port. This is known as the FOB (Free On Board) cost.
Step 4: Shipping
Once payment has been confirmed we will organise for your vehicle to be transported to the nearest port in Japan for shipping. When the ship arrives in Fremantle, you will be given an invoice for all other costs such as customs duty/GST, freight, quarantine inspection & cleaning, custom agents fees and sundry costs. This must be paid before you can receive your vehicle. Once this fee has been paid and the vehicle has been released from Customs you can either arrange for transportation to our workshop or we can organise it for you, at your cost, by our transport contractors.
Step 5: Compliancing
This is a very important part of the importing process. Before any vehicle can be licensed in Australia it must have a compliance plate fitted (unless 15 year old). Before a compliance plate can be fitted, the vehicle must be modified to comply with the Australian Design Rules (ADR's). Only RAWS workshops are approved to conduct this work. It involves the removing, fitting or modifying of things such as child restraint anchorages, new tyres, catalytic converters, charcoal canisters, mirrors, intrusion bars (if not factory fitted) and generally making sure the vehicles comply with the ADR's. The cost for compliancing varies so call us for a current rate. Autoworx has been complying vehicles for nearly 7 years so you can be assured of a thorough and professional job. Autoworx is a one stop service looking after your investment from the time you purchase your vehicle until you drive away with a grin on your face!
Step 6: Vehicle Repairs
The compliancing only covers the work required in accordance with the ADR's. So if there is any sort of mechanical, electrical or cosmetic repairs required, that will be additional at your cost. On arrival to our workshop, we conduct a thorough inspection of your vehicle for any problems and advise you of what is required and the cost involved. You can choose whether to have us repair them or you can fix them yourselves or have them repaired at another workshop.
Step 7: Licensing
Once all the compliancing and roadworthiness items have been completed the vehicle is now ready to license. You can do this yourself or we can do it for you for a fee.
Step 8: Enjoy your new car!
As we have been importing, compliancing & servicing these great cars for a long time now, we know a hell of a lot about them. If any customer ever needs any advice or parts we are always available to help them out. As we are also a licensed dealer we can also offer you an after market warranty that is normally only available if you purchase a car through a licensed dealer. Click here for warranty details.
OUR SPECIAL GUARANTEE
Our special guarantee is that if the vehicle we have helped you import and comply is not “as described*”, we will buy the vehicle from you and reimburse all costs inc freight and duty/GST. Why would you import a car through someone who doesn’t offer a money back guarantee? Check out all details on our contract.
If you have any queries regarding the above please call us at on (08) 9409 2445 or email.
*Conditions apply. (see contract)