Japan Domestic Market (JDM) BMW specs?

[jac1d]

There are lots of firms exporting JDM BMW models, especially 3's, 5's and 8's to BC and the rest of Canada.

Also M5's, Alpinas, all kinds of modified units.

Does anyone here have any sense of any major differences in the JDM spec cars that would relate to parts and servicing, or are they truly "world cars" in most ways?

-Jeff

[PCP JR]

Chat with CDNALPINA

[madchild]

I have a friend who brought in a JDM E34 M5 LHD and its a Euro Spec car. Dunno if they are all Euro spec or not, but he got a hell of a deal on a super low milage car (came in with 34K KM)

[zubbie]

They are almost Euro spec with a few minor exceptions. Generally 5's have no sunroof and a cloth interior. As well the JDM cars have a stupid thermistor in the exhaust ($150) that fails and throws a code. Something about a grass fire prevention?

[Sam Son]

that and alot of the jap cars are autofailbox

[skylinergtr]

a few forum members here have JDM bmws and so far have been good with them however i know a lot of people who have JDM mercedes and bmw's in vancouver who have nothing but problems and phony milages on the odometers. Myself i wouldn't trust a JDM and would not buy them but each person has their opinion. I work at a shop and i see a lot of JDM cars coming in and needing new headgaskets and that say 60000km but when you plug in the computer it says 300000km. A JDM bmw is basically a euro spec car.

[thespeedfactory]

I live in Japan. There are a ton of BMW's getting exported to Canada now cause of the 15 year rule. Biggest thing to remember is that mileage means exactly JACK and $HIT. Island is too small to rack up mileage and the majority of the time the cars have not been properly maintained. I see 1997 E36's getting junked for blown headgaskets all the time.

JDM cars are Euro spec and can come in all trims, left or right drive. I personally have two JDM Euro spec cars that are left drive. Majority of my repair customers are all right drive. After the car is 10 years old the Japanese consider them throw away cars.

To give an example of the jacked up mileage...my 1987 325i left drive shows 29,xxx on the odometer.LOL

TONS OF ACS BITS on the JDM cars!!!

[jac1d]

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like my concern/wariness about a JDM car is accurate.

Worse, this one has been in NS three years essentially in storage and the owner is a dealer, not an enthusiast.

Of course everything is "mint" and "practically showroom" but he didn't have any photos at hand.

It is a leather interior, not sure about the sunroof but it sounds like it could be more trouble than it is worth.

-Jeff

[jessejames]

"if it sounds too good to be true..."

[cdnalpina]

The J-specs are usually just Euros, with a couple of minor tweaks. The one big thing on them, for that era, was catalytic converters and having the downstream temperature sensor. As far as I know, they were the only cars to have this. Hence why when you start up the car you get a 'catalyst overheat' message as an idiot message and then goes away - like a system check. If it stays on while running, it is sensing that you have an imbalanc in temperature between yout O2 and temperature sensors, indicating a plugged cat. All 3,5,7 and 8 series I have imported have had this.

The 8 series cars are very different in that they have a second alternator - the only 8 series that did (that we are aware of). Same goes for the E32 750il. I assume because it they have a V12 and with the short distances they drive in Japan, it is to get the batteries charged up as fast as possible from the starting etc.

All the lights are euros - all have the rear fog lights.

Here are my experiences with the 20+ cars I have imported from Japan (these are my observations and generalizations, but are not always the case):
- usually the bodies are great
- mechanically poorly maintained it seems, cars are such a disposable commodity there and especially as they get older are not worth maintaining, too expensive relative to their value. Luckily BMWs are very robust and can handle a fair amount of neglect. The exception to this have been all my Alpinas, they seemed to have all been well loved (came with service records etc).
- headliners are almost always are coming off
- easy to find cars with aftermarket goodies as they are all about presentation. AC Schnitzer kits are common there on all series of cars, predominantly on the E34 5 series. After market wheels are very common.
- 'cloning' is a popular thing as well - again trying to have the look of prestige etc without the high price tag. I have bought and seen several 'Alpina clones' - all with authentic Alpina parts, just missing the Alpina seats and Alpina engines. E34s are the most common for this. Alpina was PISSED about dealers who did this as it tended to devalue the authentic ones and take away the rarity of the real ones somewhat.

So, my take on it is that indeed you can get a low mileage BMW from Japan and usually pretty cheap but be prepared to:

- buy all new ignition components (for the cap and rotor style engines - M30 etc)
- suspension parts are often worn out
- stereo won't work here (radio station wise)
- headliner usually needs or is close to needing replacing
- on the E34s, the infamous door trim separation is common as well

If you are handy with tools and can do the majority of this work yourself, you can save a bundle relative to a domestic of equivalent condition (even after cost of repairs). So, I would say be careful with what you buy (as with anything) but certainly don't go running scared from getting a j-spec - some good value to be had, in the low mileage and after market goodies alone.

Feel free if you want to PM me to chat more about it

Cheers,

Rob

[zubbie]

The J-specs are usually just Euros, with a couple of minor tweaks. The one big thing on them, for that era, was catalytic converters and having the downstream temperature sensor. As far as I know, they were the only cars to have this. Hence why when you start up the car you get a 'catalyst overheat' message as an idiot message and then goes away - like a system check. If it stays on while running, it is sensing that you have an imbalanc in temperature between yout O2 and temperature sensors, indicating a plugged cat. All 3,5,7 and 8 series I have imported have had this.

The 8 series cars are very different in that they have a second alternator - the only 8 series that did (that we are aware of). Same goes for the E32 750il. I assume because it they have a V12 and with the short distances they drive in Japan, it is to get the batteries charged up as fast as possible from the starting etc.

All the lights are euros - all have the rear fog lights.

Here are my experiences with the 20+ cars I have imported from Japan (these are my observations and generalizations, but are not always the case):
- usually the bodies are great
- mechanically poorly maintained it seems, cars are such a disposable commodity there and especially as they get older are not worth maintaining, too expensive relative to their value. Luckily BMWs are very robust and can handle a fair amount of neglect. The exception to this have been all my Alpinas, they seemed to have all been well loved (came with service records etc).
- headliners are almost always are coming off
- easy to find cars with aftermarket goodies as they are all about presentation. AC Schnitzer kits are common there on all series of cars, predominantly on the E34 5 series. After market wheels are very common.
- 'cloning' is a popular thing as well - again trying to have the look of prestige etc without the high price tag. I have bought and seen several 'Alpina clones' - all with authentic Alpina parts, just missing the Alpina seats and Alpina engines. E34s are the most common for this. Alpina was PISSED about dealers who did this as it tended to devalue the authentic ones and take away the rarity of the real ones somewhat.

So, my take on it is that indeed you can get a low mileage BMW from Japan and usually pretty cheap but be prepared to:

- buy all new ignition components (for the cap and rotor style engines - M30 etc)
- suspension parts are often worn out
- stereo won't work here (radio station wise)
- headliner usually needs or is close to needing replacing
- on the E34s, the infamous door trim separation is common as well

If you are handy with tools and can do the majority of this work yourself, you can save a bundle relative to a domestic of equivalent condition (even after cost of repairs). So, I would say be careful with what you buy (as with anything) but certainly don't go running scared from getting a j-spec - some good value to be had, in the low mileage and after market goodies alone.

Feel free if you want to PM me to chat more about it

Cheers,

Rob

+1 well stated and pretty well exactly my experience. The only thing I would add is that you can go to the dealer and get a printout of any dealer service checks that were done. Since they document milage and dates it will help verify a "true" low mileage specimen. (not that that makes the car any less neglected)

The issue with mileage is that it is a measure of distance traveled and not hours on the drive train. 10 years of bumper to bumper traffic in the heat takes it's toll

[mtg729]

does anybody know the rule for importing JDM cars to the US? I remember hearing somewhere that after 20 years JDM cars do not have to be "legalized" to meet emissions etc and can be imported to the US as a full JDM car?

[brsteel]

I believe the rule is 25 year old vehicles are allowed, not sure about vehicle modifications that have to be done. The most important thing to find when buying vehicles out of Japan is someone there who is reliable and knows cars. I have imported around 15 cars from Japan everything from Mini's, Skyline GTR's, MB's and BMW's. You have to be very patient and buy smart. There are so many people buying out of Japan now you are bidding in an international market place with a lot of people willing to pay outrageous prices for cars that are simply not worth it. Also get documentation, if there isn't any buyer beware, every car has to go through "Shakan Inspection" every 2 years for a complete inspection, mileage is recorded every time, also there should be some maintenance records. Most importantly your buyer in Japan has to know what he is looking at. Here are some of the cars I have brought in 91 Hartge 535 with Hartge serial #, 91 mini, 89 M5, 91 10TH Anniversary BMW Japan Special Edition 535, my current 92 M5, another Rover Mini, SL500 AMG, this is a "REAL" AMG car complete with suspension, brake, and most importantly hand built custom bored and stroked AMG engine, making about 400HP, Lancia Delta Integrale and Skyline GTR for you JDM lovers! The last picture is a E28 Alpina I bid on at last auction, sold for around 9 Canadian, landed in Canada that car is well into the mid teens, too much in my opinion, that is why I havent bought a car in about a year, prices in Japan are too high, the Yen is very strong against the dollar and the car market here is slumping

[jac1d]

What are 535's going for right now? Something stock.

-Jeff

PS - I am thinking, if the body truly is really nice on that one in NS, and he comes down in price, it might be worth it. All the wear items an earlier poster mentioned as usually needing attention and not a problem as I intended on doing a bunch of them as part of routine maintenance (iginition, suspension bushings etc).

[zubbie]

What are 535's going for right now? Something stock.

-Jeff

PS - I am thinking, if the body truly is really nice on that one in NS, and he comes down in price, it might be worth it. All the wear items an earlier poster mentioned as usually needing attention and not a problem as I intended on doing a bunch of them as part of routine maintenance (iginition, suspension bushings etc).

You are talking about this one right? http://halifax.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ104583841

If so It's been listed for a few years now. I'm not sure exactly who this dealer is but I could look at it for you if you want

[jac1d]

Zubbie,

That is the one. I would really appreciate if you could take a look at it some time, take lots of photos and report back.

The guy was surprisingly disinterested on the phone, despite saying he'd had the car on hand for a few years and he has sort of gotten out of the JDM import business. Said it was a money loser and he lost money on this car to etc etc.

The mileage is improbably low, although Japanese cars CAN be low mileage. If the body and interior are super clean, it can probably be revived. $8K is a pile of cash for a car with no clear history from another country though.

Either way I'd be grateful if you have time to check it out and report back.

-Jeff

[brsteel]

Stock 535's are going for around 300,000 yen, thats about 4100 Canadian, add in your buyers fee's 500-1g, shipping 1g, tax's and duties on total, including shipping and buyers fee's + 20%, inspections and repairs, you are around 8,000 Canadian, it aint cheap! that price in Halifax is not as far out of line as you might think, take into account that car will have brand new tires, and will have had to pass a Canadian Motor Vehicle Inspection, it should be in top shape, I can tell you from experience the body and interior are probably in mint shape the thing you have to watch out for is acid rain etching on the paint and glass. you have had to see it to recognize it, it almost looks like staining on the paint and water spots on the glass, very faint and hard to see, almost impossible to get rid of, if the car was well looked after and garaged in Japan no problem, but if it was sitting outside and neglected,its almost certain to have it. Also check to see if it has optional sport interior, may have dual zone A/C, rear sun shade, power heated seats etc. if the car is what he says it is the price is fair, check to see if he has maintenance/shakan docs, if the car was stored in a garage it won't need any rubber parts replaced, my 92 M5 was a garaged car and all the rubber, plastic, paint and leather is like new. also if you are shipping it to BC it will have to get another MVI inpsection done, add that to the cost

[zubbie]

Zubbie,

That is the one. I would really appreciate if you could take a look at it some time, take lots of photos and report back.

The guy was surprisingly disinterested on the phone, despite saying he'd had the car on hand for a few years and he has sort of gotten out of the JDM import business. Said it was a money loser and he lost money on this car to etc etc.

The mileage is improbably low, although Japanese cars CAN be low mileage. If the body and interior are super clean, it can probably be revived. $8K is a pile of cash for a car with no clear history from another country though.

Either way I'd be grateful if you have time to check it out and report back.

-Jeff

No problem. I will give him a call and check it out. According to the add he lives not more than 10 minutes from me. Fortunately I've been through the JDM experience and know what to look for.

Byron

[nmp411]

brsteel- That is quite the line up of awesome cars. I bet that Lancia was awesome

[mtg729]

I want a skyline

[jac1d]

Dealer/importer claimed it was garaged in Japan, so you should expect the condition the poster from Alberta suggested. It will be interesting to see if the physical reality matches what it *should* be. Like I say, I found it odd how casual the guy was about my interest after telling me he had basically sat on it for a few years and occasionally drove it (but admitted he hadn't titled it yet as he has dealer plates).

He didn't mention any special Euro/J spec options like dual zone etc.

-Jeff

PS - Anyone know how much MVI is in BC?

[cdnalpina]

Are you using a broker based here or over in Japan? Through my broker, I can get a decent 5, like an AC Schnitzer 535i from Japan for about $5000 or so landed with taxes. Most of the 5 series I have bought have ben for 170,000 yen or less at auction. Lately they have been going for closer to 120,000 yen from what I have seen. If you are thinking of getting more cars, drop me a PM - might be able top help you get them cheaper...

Stock 535's are going for around 300,000 yen, thats about 4100 Canadian, add in your buyers fee's 500-1g, shipping 1g, tax's and duties on total, including shipping and buyers fee's + 20%, inspections and repairs, you are around 8,000 Canadian, it aint cheap! that price in Halifax is not as far out of line as you might think, take into account that car will have brand new tires, and will have had to pass a Canadian Motor Vehicle Inspection, it should be in top shape, I can tell you from experience the body and interior are probably in mint shape the thing you have to watch out for is acid rain etching on the paint and glass. you have had to see it to recognize it, it almost looks like staining on the paint and water spots on the glass, very faint and hard to see, almost impossible to get rid of, if the car was well looked after and garaged in Japan no problem, but if it was sitting outside and neglected,its almost certain to have it. Also check to see if it has optional sport interior, may have dual zone A/C, rear sun shade, power heated seats etc. if the car is what he says it is the price is fair, check to see if he has maintenance/shakan docs, if the car was stored in a garage it won't need any rubber parts replaced, my 92 M5 was a garaged car and all the rubber, plastic, paint and leather is like new. also if you are shipping it to BC it will have to get another MVI inpsection done, add that to the cost

[shogun]

some other comment from Japan:
E32 750 do NOT all have 2 alternators, I have several of them, only the Highline has a second alternator and a second battery.
And the E32 usually also does not have fog taillights, some have some not.
LKM is LKM J version in most cases, that means 3 relais only, none for rear foglights.
Cat has a special temperature sensor, and a special relay for that.
If you look on the ETK, there is a lot for Japan only version.

If you buy a car in Japan, you have to know where it comes from area-wise.
And my good friend in Okinawa: my friend is a used car dealer, his recommendation is to never buy a car from Okinawa. Too much salt in the air, corrosion probs. Whereas when you buy a car from the Pacific side, let's say Kansai area or Tokyo Bay with almost no snowfall, no problem. Hokkaido is very cold in the winter, lots of snow, more corrosion.
the other side towards China/Russia/Korea also has much more snowfall than the Pacific side.

@ thespeedfactory
let's meet next time you come to Tokyo area.

[brsteel]

Hey Alpina I used to live near Calgary, in Invermere B.C. How many km's and what condition are the cars you are bringing in? most of the ones I have brought in are documented with under 80k, usually try to get them around 40-60k, can you get low k 5's doc'd with leather etc grade 4 for that price?

[jac1d]

CDNAlpina:

If you can get a nice low mileage 535 with a stick (or an auto) for C$5K landed, I'm definitely interested in talking. I'm looking that that car in NS as well as a nice one in the US, but I wouldn't mind another option. The US car is shaping up as a nice option but I also have to ship and import that one, so I'd like to know what else I could do if that one doesn't end up being the right one.

How much flexibility do you usually have on locating a particular colour? I want an essentially stock car, not an Alpina or anything. I'd prefer Red and I want leather. Stick is preferred but would take either. Can you be that specific and still easily find something?

-Jeff