General help

[Petrolhead]

Hiya,

Another newbie here.

I've had my CTR for almost 2 years now, and last week was about an inch away selling and buying an older UK DC2 ITR. However having seen a local importing place near me selling DC5's for about £15k, I have decided to research into this instead!

Has anyone ever bought one from Langtree garage in Wigan? Does around £15k sound alright for one?

This would be my first import, so would it be ok for servicing? do i have to add octane booster when filling up?

Just some general info please?

Thanks,

Adam.

 

[SJ_Skyline]

First off, welcome aboard Adam

I have no experience of your importer but I would recommend that you get the car checked over by the AA - £60 now for a check can save you a big nightmare in the future!

£15K sounds about right for a 51 Plate with say 20K miles on the clock.

I run mine on 97RON SUL courtesy of Sainsburys with no problems. Some of the guys here run optimax and octane booster.

Like the CTR - be sure to religeously watch your engine oil!

Hope that helps a bit

 

[Petrolhead]

Thanks Rich.

Its little things advicewise like the AA check that are important to find out thanks!

Have there been any nasty incedents regarding any other used imports before (DC5's) that anyones heard of. I'm pretty confident of Honda engines, but as this is my first import am a bit sceptical.

Do they come with a History, or is that paper work that could be fiddled by anyone importing etc?

Thanks again,

Adam.

 

[SJ_Skyline]

Horror stories.... LOL :lol:

Yup, my engine blew after 2 months of ownership, £3K rebuild which kinda soured the whole thing for me. This was caused by oil starvation in the engine hence why I say check your oil religeously!!

There are a number of items that you need to make sure are taken care of: SVA - car should now have a rear foglight, speedo should now rackup and read in mph plus a few other things I can't remember off the top of my head. Make sure the car has had an underseal put on it or else the winter salt on the road will eat it alive.

The paperwork is in Japanese but there are links (funnily enough) in our links section that have "babelfished" the manual to English so you know what needs to be seviced and when. I had mine serviced by my local dealer - I also bought a UK hondacare warranty from mine after the service. It all depends upon your local dealer and if they are happy to do the work for you after all - you ARE a paying customer!! I would however keep a check of what mileage the car goes in to be serviced on and what iot comes out on - you know the horror stories you read on other boards about the junior mechanic taking the car out for a spin at lunchtime, etc etc.

 

[MJ Type-R]

Hi

The most important piece of paper to look at when you are buying an import is the auction data sheet. On this you will have an auction grade. If this is not 4 or above, then walk away!!!

If they refuse to let you see this, then walk away.

As to price, seems to be about correct, considering age and mileage. Also check the spec of the car you are buying. Simple things such as a rear wiper are options in Japan !! If worried, just ask on here either in public or be PM.

Good Luck

Mike

 

[Petrolhead]

Thanks everyone. Not sure how far i can take it though after checking insurance.

I'm currently with Direct Line paying £850 fully comp for my CTR and i'm 23 with 5 years NCB. I got quoted on a DC2 teg at £890 and they wont touch me on a DC5 as its import :?

 

[SJ_Skyline]

Both Mike and myself are with Tesco who can be very good IF you get the right person!!

...and if you get the wrong person :xak:

Just be patient with them - it took me about 8 phone calls and 3 or 4 sets of documents before they got it right

 

[MJ Type-R]

Thanks everyone. Not sure how far i can take it though after checking insurance.

I'm currently with Direct Line paying £850 fully comp for my CTR and i'm 23 with 5 years NCB. I got quoted on a DC2 teg at £890 and they wont touch me on a DC5 as its import :?

The problem you may have m8, and sorry to say is your age m8 :cry: :cry:

I know that only a few will cover you once your 25 on a JDM import, but even more will once you hit the big 30 :roll:

Best of luck

Mike

 

[Petrolhead]

Great news!!

Having checked Tesco insurance as someone suggested, I spoke to them in person and they have offered me fully comp insurance for £1200!

Sorted!

DC5 ahoy!

Just going to get next this month out of the way and plod on to get one!

My mind is set!

 

[MJ Type-R]

Make sure its on a Import m8, I checked 4 times, and on the 4th time, the chap said they had quoted me previously on the UK 1.8!! by mistake. Please be very careful!!

Mike

 

[Petrolhead]

Did do! I had to phone up because 1.8 was the only one on the system. Spoke to a guy who then realised that the 2.0 litre import was not on the web so passed me over to another underwriter who then offered me the 10% discount for the import not being on the normal system.

They say i have to prove that i get a CAT 1 alarm fitted to it though. I think a lot come with them don't they?

 

[SJ_Skyline]

Thats a great quote on your age!

The CAT1 alarm is not fitted as standard. You should be able to get the garage to install a clifford / toad / cobra system.

 

[Petrolhead]

Apart from the keeping an eye on the oil (which you have to do with the CTR), are there any issues which keep cropping up with the imports? Are there any other stories?

Did all you owners when shopping about come across a lot of "hounds", or were they all generally really nice well maintained motors. And finally, withthem not having a full Honda warranty, are the Jap imports fully reliable and not knackered from a good screwing in Japan with no oil in.

The garage have offered a years warranty.

Thanks,

Adam

 

[Adz]

Hi Adam, great choice to go with the DC5!.. but be a little cautious when
shopping for one, Im sure there are not many about, but when I was looking for mine I went to see a black one in leicester, looked lovely, price was very good.. had it checked over by honda before parting with ANY cash, and it turned out to have been writen off and repaired, apparently most of the back end and near side had been replaced! :evil:
I went wiv my blue baby in the end parted wiv about 1.5k more for it
nearer £17000 in the end!.. but it is mint, wiv all the docs/paperwork etc. including japanese auction papers etc. + had only done 12k
At the end of the day, the prices of second hand tegs in Japan are holding there value well.. so If the price looks too good to be true here.. it probably is!?...

Adz

 

[Petrolhead]

Thanks for that advice Adz.

I suspected as much with the crash repair jobs.

I don't mind one that has nearer 20k on the clock and pay a bit less as opposed to your 12k one for a bit more, as my budget is knocking around the £15.5 ish margin.

How did you get Honda to check it over? Because that sounds like a VERY good idea.

How much milage have you done now? Has it been reliable? Any visible signs of it being razzed previously?

Thanks Adz

 

[Adz]

I was going to travel down to leicester from shrewsbury to see the car,
so I just looked up the leicester honda dealer and had a chat with them..
they were more than helpfull and booked me in for the honda assured
checkup that they do on all there trade ins before wacking them on the
forcourt. think it was about £30, but well worth it. They said the repair job
was a good one, and they could'nt see it until they got it up on the ramps.

This is one of the reasons why it's good to see the auction documentation from japan,
as they are throughly checked over before they are placed in the auction.
The car is given a grade by the auctioneers so that bidders know of any underlying problems like this.
At the end of the day there should'nt be any reason why the importer has not got a copy of the auction docs to show you,
as I think its common practice for them to hav a copy prior to shipping? I know i'd want to if I were them.
In short I would be a little suspisious of a dealer who could'nt get there hands on a copy..
Is there somethin on the paperwork they don't want you to see?

Well.. not too sure on my current mileage, done quite a bit so probably short of 15k?..
running sweet, no probs so far.. having said that I have experienced on a couple of occasions when Ive been
driving her hard for a while, she'll start to suffer from quite a bit of lag at lower revs..??
gonna keep an eye on it.. no real concern at the moment.. mite just have been me?! Other than that check the oil
very reguarly, like every 2 weeks!.. but Im sure your used to that with the CTR...
oh and they do lke to eat rubber off ya tyres! :wink:

 

[AndyBITR]

That sounds pretty shocking Adz.

What did the dealer say when you told him about it? :?
R u able to name & shame the dealer? :wink:

But the moral is quite clearly, GET IT CHECKED.

 

[MindMorgue]

Isn't the auction documentation in japanese though? Surely that's makes it a little tricky to understand?

 

[Petrolhead]

Thanks Adz,

I spoke directly to Ian at Litchfield imports before, and he says that all his motors are grade 4 and above.

He says that i will be able to get a nice DC5 thats a 4.5 auction grade for my budget. He also mentioned 2 year Honda care warranties too.

A pretty helpful bloke, and think that I may use Litchfield Imports.

 

[Adz]

AndyBITR: The dealer just said that he did'nt agree with Honda findings :? :?:
and that he no longer wished to sell me the car.. not that I wanted to buy it mind!

I'd rather not name & shame him in public.. but if anyone is thinkin of bying a DC5 from the Leicester area.. then PM me.. just to be safe

MindMorgue: The auctions docs are mainly in japanese, but they still write alot of thir numbers in english. The grading on my sheet is very clear to see.

Petrolhead: Sounds like a safe deal.. 4.5 is a good grade for second hand i think.. the grading scale alters slightly depending on the age/type of the vehicle.?. Has he mentioned the a letter as well? The japs grade exterior and interior seperatly, number for exterior and letter for interior..
mine was a 6A. But if you have seen the car then you will know what the inside is like, so its not so important.
The honda care warrenty is good and quite comprehensive from what ive heared and well worth having.