ChrisP

Hi, did you sell the car?  Why did you want to sell it so soon after taking ownership?

After a fair bit of research I'm dropping the hybrid requirement of my car search.  I've come to the conclusion that it's not superior enough over the standard 2.4 model in terms of petrol economy to justify the price difference.

So I could get an AA approved vehicle from a UK garage.  But with the low yen I will probably ask Paul to import a car from Japan. 🤔

1 hour ago, ALSALPHARD said:

 just rememberd a few small items i needed ontop.

locking wheel nuts

remote batteries

i also did  gave it a full service with Toyata parts.

 

My car breakdown main cost  were

The Algys admin Fee  was £420 ontop of OTR price

 

I wasnt billed for auction to dock must be included in price (their end)

basic cost £9260  must vary with exchange rate

 

Then:-

Algys on the road price included below  UK

collect from dock

prep???

odometer to mph

mot

mot arrangement

reg admin

dvla first fee

6 or 12 months tax- you can  choose

number plates

small parts?

£806

 

The shipping cost admin

duty/vat/ fees

£1330

basically my car was

£11695 OTR by Algys -it worked out a bit less with only  6 months tax.( a year ago)

 

Thanks for that. 🙂👍  I have had conversations with another importer recommended to me and will approach my purchase with considerable more knowledge and caution.  

I'm not singling any company out. I am now aware of the vagaries and hazardous nature of the Japanese car market/export procedures and will proceed better informed thanks to this forum and your input.

7 minutes ago, ALSALPHARD said:

My car was a Singapore car (Algys say their cars are from Japan!) it didnt come with an auction report, from the many videos PB has on you tube  i have watched   yours should come with that report and confirmed  condition/damage/ mileage.  The reports do usually check the general condition of everything working OK.

I spent quite a few years  watching  out for a vehicle, bit the bullet  for a petrol as saw writing on the wall for diesel.

Many of the dealers here will buy the cars on Algys. ( and add their mark up accordingly)

I suppose the safest way to be sure of a good car is to buy one already imported that you can see (eg:-Goodmayes/ Stuart Spencer/ebay lots though have no experience of any of them bar watching cars on site) some dealers refuse warranty claims  though not sure how legal that is!

If you look at auction sites like "be forward" thats one of many Algys get their cars from and will buy  your chosen car for you. (thats how i checked out mine and read report )

Main dampener for me was lack of any comms at all!  bar its being loaded on a ship, informed of wrong ship name ( can follow on line if you know name )  then uk garage taking over  a month to get it  ready,   tv cd dvd radio  stolen from glove box, security tape that they put on doors has left imprint  i cant remove+ has had  quite a lot of panels respreayed you cant see that on a video! ( will probably get full respray in a couple of years.) It was  about six months  from deposit paid to collection.

From what i have read avoid an early hybrid  model, later models are better/might be ok but it does  make it harder to find a garage to deal with them if you have a problem.

We have an Auris hybrid as main runaround and its a great car especially for  economy, though you do feel you are tied to a dealer for everything. I will say our dealers is quite good!   I havnt asked if they will deal with an Alphard yet.

Best to budget for say new tyres as might come with winters on possibly an alternator / regas/ battery/full service.- I havnt yet undersealed mine. the garage  did say about £275  -300 ish cant remember,  i was keen to get it and that meant even longer delay. A purchase via Algys will give the  garage uk side  a small budget to get it through an mot, (My car on pick up was  dirty, garage said new battery was fitted, my front led indicator wasnt working when i got it home/ air con needs a regas and tracking out, he said tyre pressures checked  one was very low, so have had  a few small  issues though van is good as its a Toyota.

That's very informative, thank you. 🙂👍

Sorry you had those issues.

The car I saw was on the SBT website from a car dealer in Japan.  So there's no auction report.  Although Algy's do state that when they source a car they inspect it and give a report.  I asked for reassurance from the dealer and they sent him a message.  In reply he said the paint was good and everything was as it should be.

In the contract for purchase it said I was liable for anything that befell the car during transportation so it was up to me to arrange insurance if I wanted that reassurance.

The hybrid I'm after is either a Vellfire or gen2 Alphard.  The one I saw on SBT is $9k (£7.5) plus freight. On the road in the UK through Algy's they invoiced me around £14,600.

5 hours ago, ALSALPHARD said:

Hi Chris,

I used Algys, i thought at time i'm taking a bit of a gamble here! though  vehicle did arrive from Singapore though not without a few issues.

Though i do like my Alphard, the garage this side that collects from dock said Paul Bowden  will source the better cars.

It might be a few hundred dearer from Paul Bowden, I'm inclined to agree  it will be worth it.

Might be best to PM if you need more info.

Thanks for your input.  I will contact Paul Bowden.

My worry is that there's no report on the car.  There are 80 pictures of it but can I be sure there's nothing wrong with it?

2 hours ago, Rojie said:

 

Hello Chris,

 

Welcome to the Forum.

Thanks.  I look forward to properly engaging when I actually purchase a car.

Although I'll probably be a pain in the arse in my attempts to scour your brains. 😄

20 minutes ago, skippy992 said:

I would contact Paul Bowden at jap auto agent he is super reliable just charges a flat fee of about a £1000 I’ve imported an elgrand through him when I lived in the Uk he gets the best cars he even has some on his YouTube page ready in Japan for sale hope that helps beware there are some dodgy dealers out the lying about true mileages on these cars hope this helps.

I appreciate your reply Skippy.

I guess because I'm after a specific model I don't want to be too hasty when I see the 'perfect' vehicle. 

I want a hybrid Vellfire and that pushed up the price point.

I saw the listing on SBT at $9k (Japanese dealer) $12k shipped to Bristol. This ends up at £15k registered and MOT'd through Algy's.

I'll check out your suggestion.  Thanks. 🙂👍

Hi, I haven't posted here yet as I am yet to purchase a Vellfire. 😄

But I'm hoping to change that by importing a car from Japan through Algy Motors as intermediary.

I thought it meant might be a good idea to ask on this forum if anyone has knowledge of this company?  There are a lot of fake profiles on their Facebook page in the review section.  But they have good Google reviews.

I have a contract and deposit to pay and whenever I have to fork out money my super cautious nature kicks in.

Thanks in advance. 🙂👍