Buying a car on the other side of the world

So, I have decided to buy a vehicle from Japan, which is roughly 6,700 miles away. I cant just walk onto a used car lot, scan the Japanese classifieds, or use Facebook Marketplace. But there are a couple options.

The first, and by far the easiest, would be to purchase an imported car from an "import dealer" located in the states. While there are a few located near me, they usually only import high quality examples (out of my price range) and also obviously charge a mark-up. 

Next, you could pay an importer to source and ship the car for you. Again you would be charged a mark-up or fee for their services, but they will take care of everything else.

Finally, you can accept the challenge of contacting a Japanese exporter and having them export the car to you. This removes as much mark-up as possible, but puts most of the leg-work on the buyer, including arranging all customs stateside. Challenge accepted.

After doing a bit of homework, I have narrowed down 4 exporters that seem to have the best reputations:
  • Japanese Used Cars
    • I could not find a ton of reviews on these guys, but many forum posts mention using them. Seem to be a bit older
  • Pacific Coast Auto Imports
    • Lots of people recommend this company for their great service and low service fees.
  • Japan Car Direct
    • Another one with lots of recommendations. They also have by far the most information on the process and transparency on what to expect.
  • Trade Car View
    • Seems like most people use this site as more of a look book, as it aggregates a bunch of auction houses and sellers into one spot.
Right now I am leaning towards Japan Car Direct, as they offer the most transparency and seems like most support as well. It is still early in the game though, and I likely won't make the call until after the holidays once I have a plan in place.

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