dan79brooklyn

We're moving to Japan at the end of the month.

I'm debating what to do with our stock 1993 Midnight Blue Coupe.

We've been looking into shipping it over to Japan, but it sounds very expensive to ship and federalize and register it there.

The other options are.

1. Store it at my Dad's place in Vermont, and/or let him drive it periodically if insurance is reasonable.

2. Sell it before we go.

Does anybody have any experience shipping a 964 to Japan?
or
Anybody interested in buying a nice '93?

Let me know if you guys have any advice.

Thanks!

ducnine

I bought my car from a gent that was going back to Japan. I guess it was about $10 grand or so to take it over. Not sure about the federalization costs afterwards.

wellcraft290

Sorry to see you leaving. Going for a long time?

elbeee964

Yeah, Dan, sorry to see you leave!

Simplest way depends on your Japan duration, it would seem:
Shortish - 1-5 years, dad get's a cost-free 'new' car to chaperon for the interim.
Longish - 5+ years, "sorry ol' pal, but trading is the way with Porsches"

According to this forum's "Survey" thread, '93's are nicely uncommon commodity. You might do well in the sale!

Good luck, amigo. And for your next destination, konnichiwa!

raspberryroadster

i lived in japan 96 until last yr., still split my time between vanc. & tokyo and we too are likely going to return to nihon-land next spring.

-costs of container shipping plus $3000 for car alone, or you can do roll on roll off (RoRo) for less than 1/2. if you are taking your household possesions you can move up to a larger container, incremental cost may be $4000-5000 including prep of the car for shipping
-registration of the car is not difficult (if you have japanese assistance). will you have a japanese driver's license? - and unless the rules have changed recently, is difficult for an american (requires taking a test as opposed for most europeans/canadians who can just turn in their homeland d/l in exchange for jpnese d/l. most americans i knew there who drove did so on an international permit.....anyway something you might ck out beforehand
-big cost of car ownership esp. for older cars is shakken system. rigidly enforced annual or biannual requirement for full inspection by licensed/qualified mechanic accompanied by requirement that any/all deficiencies identified by the mechanic are corrected. cost of a shakken runs approx US$ equiv. $800 - 1200 before any repairs/maintenance items
-not sure if you have been there or driven there or if you will be in magor city or not, but streets in residential areas are narrow & you will be driving on "wrong side of the road" and there are NO street names (japan exists on a very efficient grid system) but it does mean navigating anywhere outside of spitting distance from home likely requires installing of a navigation system with english software (you can price it out, but i estimate plus $1500.

unless you speak japanese or have translation assistance you are likely relegated to dealing with big porsche dealers (ie expensive) vs. the smaller & very competent pro shops.

personally if you have not been a driver there previously, before i arranged to take the car i would have a minimum living experince of say 6 mos.

by the by 964's there price to a premium over US prices, but there are all low mileage (say average 60,000km) and in far better condition generally.

if you have any specific questions you can pm me or if you have a question re japanese website ( i can likely assist, or my wife can do accurate translation)

good luck

Greg964

PM sent

amfp

Unless you biz is paying for shipping and getting it registered, tax, suggest selling.

Once you get settle in Japan there will be many option to buy the car you want. I had difficult driving in Japan with left hand drive car. For me, it was bit difficult getting used too, especially with many signs I could not understand. You may not need a car as the transportation system is along best in the world. May be better to sports cars when needed. Good luck - you'll love it there.

raspberryroadster

?? all porsche in japan (and most bmw's, all italian sports cars, etc) are LHD, and most signs are in english/japanese in major cities...but thats the easy part imo.

dan79brooklyn

Thanks everyone for your good wishes and advice.

I love the car, but I really don't want to see it get stored, I would rather the car find a new owner who will drive it and enjoy the ride.

I would have some help getting the car set up for Japan if I decided to ship it, but I think the hassle and expense might not be worth it.

I looked into collector car insurance and it would still be $500 per year, and I'm not real confident that my Dad is up for driving the 911 and taking care of it.

My wife is Japanese and we have a three year old so we want him to be raised in Japan for a year or so. If it doesn't work out, we will come back to NYC.

I found a job teaching English in my wife's hometown of Okayama so we are preparing to be there in time for the school year to start in April.

If anyone is interested in the car I'm going to take some pictures of it tomorrow.
I'd like to get $20,000 for it but if it went to one of you I might settle for a bit less.
It's pretty much stock and in really nice shape for 134,000 miles 8.5/10 for sure.

Best,

Dan

PorscheZen

Dan, I think I met you a few years back at a Metro PCA event. I my wife took a few photos of you son...
Good luck with everything

amfp

I agree, it makes no sense to bring the car based on what you stated as the primary reason.

I found many of the new Porsche's are RHD in Japan/UK. As we know, some countries are RHD, so it is not specifically for Japanese market. For the signs, yes, there are some Engish and Japanese, many universal, like stop signs. But, I found away from the major motorways, the signs are usually all Japanese.

dan79brooklyn

Hello,

Here is a link to some pictures.

http://picasaweb.google.com/daniel.d...rrera2ForSale#

I'm putting up a listing on Pelican and Craigslist as well.

If anyone has any questions, just let me know.

I'd like to get $20,000 for the car. (I'll throw in the C2 as well).

rarebear

absolutely stunning car !!! I have the same one, same color (different wheels)
give it your father... you will regret selling it !!!!

dan79brooklyn

Well, the car is SOLD, went to a Porsche guy, adding to his collection of P-Cars, also has three boys,
they drove off happily, I'm glad it found a good home. But will be missing my miles and smiles in the 964, I will have another as soon as possible.

LI Steve

Dan,
Thanks - I will take great care of it!

The ride home was not what I would have hoped for due to all of the traffic - could not get out of 1st gear for the 1st hour or so (Damn BQE & LIE !), but the boys loved it, and the car handled it great too.

I took it to a party last night at my buddy's house, and no one could believe it had 134k on it. I got a bunch of compliments on the color too.

It was really a pleasure to work with you on this - thanks for that. Best of luck to you and your family on the move and time in Japan.