I Bought a Car at Auction in Japan and IMPORTED it!
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00:00Well, I bought this little Honda S660 from an auction in Japan.
00:04I paid the equivalent of £6,600 for it,
00:06which seems like a bit of a bargain when you see the price of them online.
00:12But as we'll find out, there are a lot of extra costs that you need to add on,
00:15and so I'm not entirely sure whether I'd have just been better off trying to buy one here
00:19in the UK rather than importing it myself.
00:22The bigger the car gets, the more expensive the shipping cost becomes.
00:25There's also certain things you need to know and hoops you have to jump through
00:29in order to be able to legally register and drive an imported car in the United Kingdom.
00:34So then, Gav, I take it it's passed?
00:35Unfortunately not, mate.
00:37I'm not even sure that this car that I bought is a good one or a bad one
00:41because I only had a few minutes to look at it before I bid on it in the auction in Japan.
00:45So this will be the first time I get it on the ramp.
00:47So there is one problem, Matt.
00:48What's more, I haven't even driven it, or any Honda S660 for that matter,
00:51so I don't know if I'm even going to like it.
00:53This doesn't feel like a particularly quick car.
00:55Well, it is only 64 brake horsepower.
00:57I'm a little bit worried that buying this car might be a bit of a mistake.
01:05A few minutes ago, I went to Japan and while I was there,
01:07I wanted to check out a Japanese car auction.
01:09So I got in touch with a chap called Aman from Autocom Japan,
01:13which exports cars from Japan all around the world.
01:16Anyway, I got a bit carried away and bid on this little Honda S660 and ended up buying it.
01:22Autocom Japan managed everything from transporting it to the port in Japan
01:26to shipping it to the UK.
01:28I'll break down the costs and how they handle the whole process
01:30so you don't even need to go to Japan yourself later in the video.
01:34But what happens once your car arrives in the UK?
01:37I've come to My Car Import in Derbyshire.
01:40Now, they're the largest processor of privately imported vehicles in the UK.
01:44They do 3,000 vehicles a year and they're going to be getting my car
01:48road ready so I can drive it legally in the UK.
01:50This is Gavin Heward, the workshop manager at My Car Import.
01:54He'll be responsible for getting my S660 road registered.
01:57But first, we need to see if the car I have bought is a Minta or a Lemon.
02:01Let's get it on the ramp.
02:03To me, it looks almost like it's new, not like it's done 60,000 miles.
02:06No, it's absolutely perfect, to be honest.
02:09What about these bolts? I mean, look.
02:10They're all like new, even all the subframe, everything about it,
02:14the steering rack boots, even down to the brake calipers themselves.
02:17And a lot of cars that come in from Japan,
02:19they all normally have brand new suspension on them,
02:22even though it doesn't need it.
02:23That's just the way they do things out there.
02:25I feel like I've bought a great car, but you're saying to me that this is normal.
02:29For a Japanese car, this is normal.
02:31The rubbers, like, on here are really good, you know.
02:33Yeah.
02:34100,000 kilometers, but every bit of rubber just looks great.
02:37It will be, yeah. I mean, all these brake pins,
02:39these have been removed and re-greased.
02:42In the UK, you don't get to see these things.
02:44Its servicing levels are a little bit different as well.
02:47So, again, it's nice to see.
02:49And these pipes here, are these the...
02:51They're all your air-conditioning pipes, the ones, yeah.
02:53No corrosion on them at all.
02:54No, absolutely nothing.
02:56And the belt, look, the belt's, like, new.
02:58Yeah.
02:58Are the Japanese really fastidious with their servicing as well?
03:01They love it.
03:04And this is one of the great things about importing a car from Japan,
03:06is that, really, the condition is going to be better than the equivalent in the UK.
03:10Correct, yes.
03:10So there is one problem, Matt, that I'd like to tell you about,
03:12is the underseal on the car.
03:14Nothing too major.
03:15As you can see, there is stone chip on the floor pan.
03:18That's normally about the only place that they put it.
03:20Everywhere else is normally exposed.
03:22As you can see, just up here, there isn't any.
03:25It's, yes, it's coated with a little bit of paint.
03:27But as you can see, right on the corner edge, just here,
03:29it's just starting to get a little bit of surface corrosion.
03:32Again, nothing major.
03:33But if you catch it now, get it undersealed, you're good.
03:35Because otherwise, if I drive this in the UK over winter...
03:39Yeah.
03:40...it's not going to look like this.
03:40It won't look nothing, no.
03:42Won't look nothing like that.
03:43Japanese cars don't often have as much underseal as European ones from the factory.
03:47Reason being, in Japan, they don't salt their roads like we do in Europe.
03:51And salt causes corrosion.
03:53No salt, less need for underseal.
03:55And it's why, when I bought my Suzuki Jimny,
03:57I chose to add some extra underseal to it,
03:59so I knew it would be more likely to rust than an equivalent European model.
04:03Anyway, maybe I'll do the same treatment to my S660.
04:06But as the car's looking good so far,
04:08let's see if it's actually safe to use on the road.
04:10One of the key things I need to be able to drive this car on the road in the UK is an MOT.
04:15Unfortunately, they can do MOTs here at MyCarImport,
04:18so we're going to put it through the test and hopefully, fingers crossed, it'll pass.
04:22The MOT is an annual vehicle safety, roadworthiness and emissions inspection
04:27required for most vehicles over three years old.
04:29When you're buying a used car in the UK, it's always worthwhile going on the government website
04:33and checking the past MOT history.
04:34You can look at reasons for if it's failed in the past,
04:37find any advisories, so things that need to get fixed that, you know,
04:41you probably want to look into.
04:42And you can also look at the past mileage for each MOT that was carried out.
04:46So you can use that to vouch the car's current mileage.
04:48Really, really handy.
04:49So this is the past MOT history for my Porsche 911 996.
04:53Unfortunately, there isn't a similar history for the Honda S660 for me to check
04:58because obviously it's fresh off the boat.
05:00That doesn't mean, though, that it hasn't got a similar history.
05:04In Japan, the similar test is called the shaken and it's done every two years.
05:08It's actually much stricter with testers checking almost every nut and bolt on the car.
05:13Unfortunately, there's no centralised online system for the shaken like there is with the MOT.
05:18So even if I understood Japanese,
05:20it would be very hard for me to check all the past history of the shakens for my S660.
05:25Hopefully, everything will be OK.
05:27So what are we going to do now, Gav?
05:28So basically, what we're going to do this part of the MOT is testing the suspension and the steering.
05:33Basically, here at My Car Import, we use the ATL,
05:36which means that we don't need a second man inside the vehicle.
05:39Waggling steering wheels.
05:41Yeah, that's a thing of the past for us.
05:43Everything's automated, all on the remote.
05:45To do the suspension, checking all the bushes, ball joints, everything like that.
05:49We press that button, which switches the motor on.
05:51And then we press this button.
05:53As you can see, side to side motion.
05:55All we're looking out for there is any excess movement that obviously shouldn't be there.
06:00And then the second one that we do is then for the steering, all the steering joints.
06:04So that one, we press this button.
06:06Now, as you can see, it's moving the steering.
06:08So now I can check everything there.
06:10So what we'll do is go underneath it now.
06:12Let's find out if it's all good.
06:18How's it looking?
06:19In all honesty, absolutely perfect.
06:20It's exactly as I expected it to be.
06:22And there's no plane in any of the joints.
06:23Honestly, it is lightning.
06:25Result.
06:26Gav got on with the rest of the test.
06:28The brakes were spot on.
06:29The emissions were amazing.
06:31And all the lights worked as they should or properly aligned.
06:34The car appeared to be flying through its MOT.
06:37So then, Gav, I take it it's passed?
06:39Unfortunately, not, Matt.
06:40What? It was doing really well.
06:42What's going on?
06:42To be honest, I could have told you it would fail before I even brought it in.
06:45There's no fog light fitted to the vehicles that come from Japan.
06:48Oh, let's have a look.
06:49So we've got no switch in the dashboard.
06:51Yeah.
06:52And obviously on the back, you'd normally be a location somewhere for a fog light.
06:55Now, a fog light in the UK has to be either central or to the off side,
06:59which is the right-hand side of the vehicle.
07:01We have a reflector, not a problem,
07:02but normally we'll have a fog light somewhere located around here.
07:06But don't they have fog in Japan?
07:08Well, they have fog around the world.
07:09But no, they don't need fog lights as standard.
07:11And why do I need to fit this with a fog light now?
07:14What's the reason?
07:15Well, the reason being is if we put this through for an IVA now,
07:18it will fail for not having a fog light fitted.
07:20We've got to fit one.
07:21We're going to fit one.
07:22The IVA test, or Individual Vehicle Approval,
07:25is for imported cars not sold in Europe,
07:27and it ensures they meet UK standards.
07:29Unlike the MOT, which checks for road worthiness,
07:32the IVA focuses on compliance with UK and EU laws.
07:36For example, with the MOT, you check the tread depth and condition of the tyres,
07:41whereas for the IVA, the tester is merely looking for an e-mark on the tyres
07:46to make sure they meet UK regulations.
07:48Right, let's check the tyres then, Gav.
07:50So.
07:51Yeah.
07:51So what we're looking for, Matt, is one of three stampings on the tyre.
07:57One is a DOT, one is an e-mark, and the other one is a JIS mark.
08:02Either one of them three will do the job.
08:03So this corner, as you can see, you've got a dot mark there.
08:06So this tyre is absolutely fine.
08:07Good.
08:08Again, we look around the circumference of the tyre.
08:09So we've got an e-marking and we've got a dot marking.
08:12So we've got both on this side.
08:13They're the same.
08:14They're exactly the same brand, exactly the same tyre.
08:16And size.
08:17Everything's the same.
08:19Okay, but it's good.
08:19That's a double pass.
08:20That's all good.
08:21So on to the offside front.
08:23Yeah.
08:23We've got an e-marking on this one, but we haven't got a dot marking.
08:26But it doesn't matter, we've got the e.
08:27Doesn't matter, we've got the e.
08:28Good.
08:28So that's all good.
08:29So what have we got on this one?
08:30So then on this one, what we're looking for, the same three.
08:33Yeah.
08:35I don't know if I can't see it properly, but there isn't one.
08:38So some we've got two, some we've got one, and this one we've got none.
08:41None, zero.
08:42It's the same blimmin' tyre, I don't...
08:43It's exactly the same tyre.
08:45So unfortunately, this one will fail the IPA unless we change it.
08:49Gav said this sometimes happens with cars from Japan.
08:51As tyre sellers there sometimes have access to tyres which are earmarked for export to places,
08:56which don't require e-markings.
08:58I actually didn't know what tyres were on the car,
09:00and I didn't check them before I bought it.
09:01So I thought I better play it safe and order some in advance.
09:04And obviously, I thought I should get some Japanese tyres for my Japanese car.
09:08So I went for some Yokohamas.
09:10I've actually had Yokohamas on my Mazda MX-5, really liked them.
09:12So I thought they'd be great for the Honda.
09:15Funnily enough, it's actually got Yokohamas on it right now.
09:17But it's a really good job that I have these tyres
09:20with the all-important markings to get it through the IVA.
09:23We were about to get the new tyres fitted, and then something happened.
09:27What we're going to do now is remove the tyres.
09:29We're going to fit the new ones.
09:30I'm actually going to have a go at it.
09:31I've never done it before, and I thought it'd be a bit of fun.
09:33The main tyre we need to remove first, get that one done.
09:37And we might as well put the new ones on as well.
09:39Well, Matt, finally e-marking.
09:41What?
09:42It's the first time I've ever seen it on the inside.
09:44This is perfectly compliant.
09:45So the IVA test will always look on both the outer and the inner side of the tyre.
09:50Absolute madness.
09:51Should we put it back on then?
09:52Because these tyres actually look pretty good.
09:54It seems like a bit of a waste not to use them.
09:55They are, yeah. That's absolutely fine.
09:57There you go.
09:58So we decided to put the old tyre back on,
10:01and I returned the other new ones to save some money.
10:03And then we cracked on with the one change we definitely had to do.
10:06Installing the fog lamp.
10:08Hopefully, it would be a simple job.
10:10So, Gav, how do we go about fitting the fog lamp?
10:12Well, on this vehicle, we've got three options.
10:14The first one is to use the headlamp fuse,
10:17which we'll test in a moment to see if we've got a nice 12-volt signal there
10:20that doesn't work on side lights and will only work on the dip beam and the main beam.
10:25Now, if that doesn't work, we can use front fog lights
10:28because that's perfectly okay with the IVA manual.
10:30Correct. We haven't got any on your vehicle.
10:31That's a no-go.
10:32That's a no-go straight away.
10:33Third option is to go into the CAN bus system.
10:35Now, this is where you don't want to go, really, unless you really, really have to.
10:39Mainly because the feed that goes down to there isn't a constant feed.
10:44It's more of a signal.
10:46So the control module inside the vehicle will send a signal down to the headlamp.
10:50The headlamp will go,
10:51yes, brilliant, I'll switch the headlamp on.
10:54Nightmare. You don't want to touch it.
10:55So are there any cars that you've worked on that have that problem
10:57where you have to do it through the CAN bus?
10:59It is, yeah. Toyota Priuses.
11:00So we're going to test yours in a moment,
11:02and let's hope we don't have to go down that route.
11:04First, we needed to locate the main headlamp fuse and check the voltage.
11:07There should be no voltage when the lights are off or just on side lights.
11:11However, you do want voltage when the lights are on dipped or main beam,
11:16since that's when the fog light should operate.
11:18Will the Honda work as we hope?
11:20So we've got side lights.
11:21OK, no, it hasn't changed.
11:23Dip.
11:2412 volts.
11:24That's perfect.
11:25And then main.
11:26Yeah.
11:26And I want that voltage to stay there as well.
11:28Yeah.
11:29Is that staying voltage? Perfect.
11:31Does that mean that we can do the easy, cheap system?
11:33That's the easy, cheap system.
11:35Result.
11:36Next, Gav measured a wire longer than the car and threaded it through the bulkhead with a tube,
11:40being careful not to damage the wire loom or the dash.
11:43He then added a piggyback fuse for the fog lamp into the headlamp fuse slot.
11:47He secured the wiring with cable ties and fitted a surround
11:50to make sure it's protected from the elements.
11:52For the IVA test, he needs to fix the wiring every 30 centimetres
11:55to prevent it rubbing and then chafing, as that's a common cause for car fires.
12:00And there were a few more rules he needed to follow as well.
12:03Right, so basically for the IVA, switch has to be visible from the driver's position.
12:07Luckily on this one, we've got a traction control button down here.
12:11I've also got a blank here, which I've already removed.
12:13Oh, that's the place.
12:14Which I've taken off.
12:15So because I can see it from the driver's view, then that's OK to fit.
12:19These two, you do have to drill into the dashboard.
12:21We don't use those.
12:22But we're not doing that today.
12:23We can fit one of these ones.
12:25I mean, this one will need to be trimmed down a touch.
12:29Ah, that's not bad.
12:30We can make that one work.
12:31OK, good.
12:32Gav trimmed the switch, fitted it into the dash panel and wired it up.
12:35After connecting an earth and testing it,
12:37he ran the output wire to the back, hiding it under the interior trim.
12:41He carefully worked it through the rear bulkhead,
12:43following the car's wiring route to keep it tidy for the IVA test.
12:46A few cable ties later, it was ready for the fog lamp.
12:49So we've got the all important fog lamp fitted.
12:52So what will the IVA test to be looking for with this?
12:55The correct markings.
12:56E marking and then an F mark or a B mark.
12:59Is that why we didn't put a light in here or in here?
13:03Because while I can see some E marks, there's no F or Bs.
13:06That's right, yeah.
13:07And also the fog light has to be more than 100 millimetres away
13:10from the lighting surface of a brake light.
13:13So even if the brake light bulb is here and it emits light
13:16around this part of the light unit,
13:18it has to be still more than 100 millimetres away
13:20from that light in the lit surface.
13:22However, I'm not going to lie to you, that doesn't look great.
13:25So when the vehicle's registered,
13:27you can make things more aesthetically pleasing
13:29as long as it emits for the MOT the correct amount of light,
13:33which is normally in conjunction with the brightness of a brake light.
13:36And that's the kind of brightness that an MOT test was looking for.
13:38So once you've done the IVA and it's passed that, forget about that.
13:41It's box ticked.
13:43All you have to think about is passing an MOT then.
13:45It is, yes.
13:46That's madness.
13:47All we had to do now was test it.
13:49Right then, Gav, let's see if you fit it correctly.
13:51So Adam's going to tell us if the light comes on.
13:53First thing I'm going to do is just turn on the switch.
13:56We have the ignition on and now I just need to rotate the light switch.
14:01Ready? So it shouldn't come on with the side lights on.
14:04No, it's not on.
14:05Good. And now it should come on with the headlights on.
14:09No, it's not on.
14:12Well, let me just put full beam.
14:13No, no, it's not on.
14:14You lying?
14:16It's not on.
14:17It's actually not on.
14:19It's not on.
14:21What the hell?
14:22Have we got a faulty switch?
14:23No, we haven't.
14:23You tested the switch.
14:24It's a lamp.
14:25Yeah, we did all that.
14:27This is not supposed to happen.
14:29Thankfully, because Gav had previously checked the circuit at the switch,
14:32he could identify the issue as being the fog lamp itself.
14:36Are we going to fit a new light?
14:37No, what somebody's gone and done is they've put the wiring on the wrong way around.
14:42Not exactly what they've done there.
14:44So yeah, somebody's used the live as the earth.
14:46That'll be the apprentice.
14:51After a bit more work rewiring, it was time to try again.
14:54Okay, take two.
14:55So once again, we've got the ignition on.
14:57I'll just turn the switch on.
15:00Lamps off.
15:01So it should be off.
15:02It's off.
15:02Side lights should be off.
15:04Off.
15:05And the fog lamp should come on now with the headlights on.
15:10No.
15:11Well, let me try main beam.
15:13Not on.
15:13You are definitely lying this time.
15:17Classic Adam.
15:20We got it working.
15:22So that's that done then, isn't it?
15:24And now we've got to move on to the next thing.
15:26Speedo.
15:27Speedo.
15:27Japanese cars use kilometres an hour, but we need miles per hour for the UK.
15:32With analogue dials, this switch is simple.
15:34You just replace the clock face with one showing MPH, like these for Land Rover Evoque.
15:38However, it gets more complicated with a digital speedo like on this Honda.
15:43So there's two options.
15:44Now, the first and cheapest is to have a little digital display,
15:47which is wired into the OBD port, sits up there on the dash,
15:50and it will read your speed in miles an hour.
15:52However, you'll have your clock showing kilometres an hour
15:55and your odometer will be in kilometres as well.
15:58A better and more expensive solution is to have this special box here,
16:02which can convert the feed from the CAN bus from kilometres an hour into miles an hour.
16:06But you then have to have it married up to the clocks,
16:10which have to be sort of reprogrammed and rewired to accept this feed
16:13so that they'll actually display the speed in miles an hour.
16:16Though you do have to add a little sticker to say that you are looking at MPH.
16:19The beauty of this, as well as being able to use the normal clocks,
16:22the odometer will be in miles.
16:24The car is just over 100,000 kilometres.
16:27So when we turn it on and wire it up, it should actually read about 60,000 miles or so.
16:32Let's find out if it works.
16:34Gav spliced in the converter box to the CAN bus and then refitted the speedo.
16:38Before screwing in the rest of the instruments around,
16:40we needed to check it worked.
16:42Hopefully, it would.
16:43Right, and Gav, moment of truth.
16:48We've got, yes, 62,000 miles.
16:54But we do have a check engine light.
16:55Use the dashboard for now.
16:57OK, good. All right.
16:59Let's build it up and then take it for a little road test.
17:02OK.
17:02Then it was just a case of replacing the last bits of trim
17:05and testing the dials read the speed correctly.
17:07The IVA testers could have to put the car on a rolling road
17:10to check it if they sense it's not been done right.
17:13OK, we're in the car and we're going to test this speedo out.
17:16So I've got an app on my phone which uses GPS to measure the car speed in miles an hour.
17:20Gav, you're going to drive down here about 10, 20 miles an hour.
17:23See if that agrees to that.
17:26Away you go.
17:30Yeah, 12, saying 11.
17:33So that is about one mile an hour over this,
17:36which is what you want, isn't it, for the test?
17:39It's about what you'd expect, to be honest.
17:40It will never be 100%.
17:41Obviously, you're picking up the GPS.
17:43So, but yeah, more than happy with that.
17:44Now, isn't it the case if the speed on the speedometer
17:46is exactly the same as the actual speed, then it's a failure?
17:50Yeah, there is a discrepancy in the speed.
17:52And on the speed rollers that we will put it through on the test,
17:55the IBA test will be able to see what the actual speed is
17:58to what the speed rollers are saying.
17:59Speaking of speed, tell you the truth,
18:01this doesn't feel like a particularly quick car.
18:03Well, it is only 64 brake horsepower.
18:06With the car MOT'd and now ready for its IBA test,
18:09the last thing to do was a quick oil and filter change.
18:11I asked Gav to take an oil sample so I could send it away for analysis
18:15to make sure the engine is in good condition.
18:17Now, I'll be getting the results later in the video.
18:19We did that oil and filter change just as a matter of caution.
18:22Don't know whether we needed to.
18:23However, I have found these stickers here inside the car
18:26which have some information and some kind of kilometers written on them
18:30and they relate to oils and stuff.
18:32I'm actually going to speak to someone who might know what all this means.
18:36Let's see how well I can fit this roof.
18:43I guess I've got to learn.
18:47It's so not in there.
18:49There's probably a better technique like rolling it across but...
18:53It's easy.
18:54I can't believe that's the roof done.
18:56I feel like there needs to be a central bit.
18:59What's this? No, there is.
19:01Is there?
19:02What is this?
19:04What was there?
19:05I feel like there's something that goes there.
19:07That's not right.
19:10There's something. It's not got a Honda written on it or anything
19:12but that's the only thing that's down there.
19:13That is it.
19:13That'll come out right.
19:14Yay! We have the part.
19:17We have the part.
19:21That's better.
19:23Now it's done.
19:25Wasn't as easy as I thought, eh?
19:27Right then, that's all the bits back together again.
19:30We've done all the mods we need to for the IVA.
19:32Correct, yeah.
19:32And so we're going to get it tested...
19:34On Monday.
19:35Brilliant. Can we film that?
19:36Not allowed to, unfortunately.
19:38A government thing then, right?
19:39It is.
19:40Okay, so you can get that done
19:41and then we're going to get the car delivered to me
19:44and then we'll have to wait for a bit to get all the paperwork.
19:46Yeah, it's normally around two weeks.
19:47Normal plates get allocated and all the paperwork sorted
19:50and it's UK road legal.
19:51And then I can get and drive it.
19:52So I'm actually going to have a couple of other things done to it
19:54so look out for that.
19:55It's coming shortly in the video.
19:57But for now, Gav, thank you very much for your hard work.
19:59Really appreciate it.
20:00It's been good.
20:01I left the S660 with my car import for its IVA test
20:04and contacted a man from Autocom Japan
20:07which helped me buy the car
20:08because we'd noticed there was something missing.
20:10Normally when you buy a car in the UK
20:12we'll have the manual with it
20:14and you'll look to have like service history
20:15but I didn't find any of that in the car.
20:17When they put their cars into the auction
20:19they remove all these belongings.
20:21They will ship it later.
20:22I got some manual books and some papers for you
20:25which I will be sending them to you very soon.
20:28Well, that's interesting because I did notice a sticker.
20:30Looks like something to do with like servicing.
20:32The white one is about the transmission oil.
20:35The owner changed the transmission oil
20:37at around 95,000 kilometres.
20:39Previous owner was changing every 40,000 kilometres
20:43usually done at 80,000 kilometres.
20:44So he was keeping it better condition.
20:46And the second sticker is about engine oil change
20:48done at 99,000 kilometres.
20:50I actually noticed when I was looking around the car
20:52all the parts seemed to be like genuine Honda parts.
20:55I found out that this guy went to the Honda shop.
20:57He had the full package servicing
20:59and had everything done at Honda.
21:01Every 12 months, sometimes more regularly
21:03they keep it well maintained in good shape.
21:06In such good condition.
21:07I'm really, really pleased with that actually.
21:09So do you know anything else
21:10about the other owners of the car?
21:12There were three previous owners.
21:14First purchase was done in 2016, November.
21:16Next owners were after 2022.
21:19One of the things that I find interesting
21:21is that you do it all pretty much online.
21:23So you're not going to see the cars.
21:24How can you tell the quality of the car
21:27that you're bidding on?
21:28Japanese auto auctions are known for their reliability.
21:31We read through the auction report of the car.
21:33We make sure that whatever customer gets
21:35is in best condition.
21:36So that's very different to like a UK auction.
21:38UK auction, you go along, you have a look at the car
21:40and it's basically on you.
21:41Whereas in Japan, you have like experts
21:44going over the cars and giving you a full report
21:46so thorough that you can just trust that
21:48and it's all good.
21:48There's an important point.
21:49To be able to access all this Japanese auto auctions
21:52you must be a company registered in Japan.
21:54They don't have access to this all auctions.
21:56They must go through reliable companies
21:58like AutoCom Japan
21:59so that they will be able to browse
22:01and choose cars from auto auctions.
22:03You don't have to come to Japan.
22:04Just sit in your armchair in UK
22:06and just pick the car
22:07and we will handle the rest.
22:09We have exported more than 940,000 cars overseas.
22:13Shipping cars anywhere in the world.
22:15So apart from our main markets
22:17like Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, Jamaica
22:20we are also sending tons of cars
22:23to USA, Canada, Australia, UK, Ireland, Malta, Cyprus.
22:26I was quite surprised at the cost.
22:28For my car, it was like just 400 quid.
22:30This is all due to our big amount
22:32we are handling every month.
22:33Regarding the shipping, the bigger the car gets
22:36the more expensive the shipping cost becomes.
22:38Mine was quite a small car.
22:40So I think mine was 700 pounds
22:42and that's for shipping it from the port in Japan
22:45to the port in the UK
22:47and that's all of that stuff.
22:48There is one problem with all of this Aman
22:50and I think you've probably made it far too easy for me
22:54to import some other cars from Japan
22:55because I quite fancy a Toyota Century.
22:57Maybe that's for another time.
22:59Now, listen, if you're thinking about
23:01importing a car from Japan
23:02check out AutoCom Japan.
23:04Okay, I'll put a link in the description to this video.
23:07Alternatively, just scan the QR code there.
23:09Use your mobile phone, it'll take you directly there
23:11and I've also got a link in the pop-out banner.
23:12Listen Aman, thank you very much
23:14for all your help getting the S660
23:16and for sorting out all the information on it as well.
23:18Really enjoyed it.
23:19A few days later, I got a message on my phone
23:21that my S660 had passed its IVA test.
23:24All I had to do now was wait for the registration paperwork
23:26to come through the post.
23:28In the meantime, my car import delivered the car to me
23:30and I was pleased to see some cool changes.
23:33Let me show you this.
23:34It's a bit silly
23:35but it's also a bit of fun.
23:36So I've got myself a personalized number plate
23:38and it works really well with the square Japanese plate.
23:40Here's Matt.
23:41Another thing I need to show you is this.
23:43So if I go in here and I turn on the lights
23:46all the way on, remember,
23:48go down here, turn on that fog lamp.
23:51What we have now is a fog lamp that is hidden.
23:55Look, so it's in there, shines brightly through that gap.
23:57So we replaced the reversing light bulb,
23:59got that bulb in there
24:00so we don't have to have the exposed fog lamp
24:02here at the back.
24:02Just looks a lot neater
24:04and that should pass the MOT,
24:05which is good news.
24:07I'll tell you what else is good news.
24:09So I had that oil sample back that I took
24:11and it's all clear.
24:12So the car is in good condition.
24:13Don't need to worry about that.
24:15Also, I don't need to worry so much
24:16about the salty roads in the UK
24:18because Gav did me a favor
24:19and undersealed the car,
24:21which is really handy.
24:22However, there is one small problem.
24:24My registration papers still hadn't come through
24:26on the car yet.
24:27So I can't actually drive it on the road.
24:29That'll be for another video.
24:30So make sure you subscribe so you don't miss out.
24:32Finally, though, let's find out
24:34how much this little Honda S660
24:36has cost me in total.
24:38And will it work out cheaper
24:39than buying one that's already here in the UK?
24:42You know, I said at the beginning of the video,
24:43this car cost me £6,600.
24:46Got that wrong because I used the wrong exchange rate.
24:48It actually came to £6,358.
24:51Then there was Autocom Japan's fee of £404.
24:54Shipping, that was £700.
24:56VAT and import duty, that was £1,542.
25:00There.
25:01Finally, my car imports fee,
25:02which includes everything from them
25:03picking it up from the port,
25:04getting it converted for UK road use,
25:07putting it through the IVA, the MOT,
25:09and getting it road registered,
25:10plus six months road tax,
25:11came to £1,833.
25:14That means the total cost of my little Honda S660
25:17is £10,837.
25:21So was it worth it?
25:23Well, this car is so rare.
25:24There are only a few online,
25:25but most are automatics, which I didn't want.
25:27The only manual I saw, it's more expensive.
25:29So then, not only did I make a decent saving
25:31by personally importing this little Honda S660 myself,
25:34I also had more choice.
25:35You see, there's 50 of them up for auction
25:38every single day in Japan,
25:40and half of those are manuals.
25:41So I was able to find the right car
25:43to meet my needs and my budget.
25:46And I'll tell you what, I'm just so happy with it.
25:50It's cute and unique.
25:52I hope you'll enjoy the video if you did give it a like.
25:54If you'd like me to import another car from Japan,
25:57give me some suggestions in the comments.
25:58I'll read through them and it'll give me inspiration
26:00because do you know what?
26:01I think I've got the bug for it now.
26:03Speaking of which, huge thanks to Autocom Japan
26:05and My Car Import for making this all possible.
26:07And if you haven't done so already,
26:09make sure you subscribe to this channel
26:10because very shortly, I'm going to upload
26:12a full in-depth video review and road test
26:15of my little Honda S660.
26:18And there'll probably be another video in the future
26:19as well about me tuning it.
26:21Anyway, thanks for watching.