Import auction grade

Can someone quickly tell me about the grading system?

 

I've spotted one with auction grade 3.5 is this good or bad?

 

Cheers

Justin

Grading as below :

 

5 : Immaculate Condition with mileage below 60,000km

4.5: Excellent Condition

4 : Good condition

3.5: Some repair work needed or slightly higher mileage than average

3 : Lots of repair work needed or high mileage

2 : Piss poor condition

1 : Modified, Debased or Affected Car (Submergence, damaged from salt, hailstorm etc.)

 

Thanks very much Lusty you're a star.

 

That adds up as the car I'm looking at has done 84000 and has a slightly knackered fibreglass front end.

I thought mods could cause a shift in any band e.g. a perfect car with different wheels maybe body mods would drop a grade or 2.

 

Therefore i don't think you can condem a car just because it has a low grading.

When I was looking for a Supe - I saw a lovely Silver one in full Veilside kit - that was a 4.5 ... after my mechanic looked thru it ... the car had serious suspension issues.

 

I saw another that was 4.0 and that had gearbox issues.

Personally imo - I wouldn't rely on the auction grade at all.

Cheers for the advice Clarkey will bear it in mind.

Originally posted by lust2luv

Grading as below :

 

5 : Immaculate Condition with mileage below 60,000km

4.5: Excellent Condition

4 : Good condition

3.5: Some repair work needed or slightly higher mileage than average

3 : Lots of repair work needed or high mileage

2 : Piss poor condition

1 : Modified, Debased or Affected Car (Submergence, damaged from salt, hailstorm etc.)

 

 

I'm sure I've seen that somewhere before lol

 

Very modified cars tend to be graded in the majority of auctions as 1 - that's what that grading is reserved for. A grade 2 car is a shed period.

 

Clarkey_Sparkey - Suggest something suss in the cars you looked at....... the Jap auction grading system is very accurate in my experience. A grade 4 or 4.5 car is a safe bet

 

Justin - 3.5 sounds accurate for what you describe, so a sound car other than the cosmetic damage but again the auction sheet will detail all faults that will make you realise why it has been awarded the grading it has if you have it translated.

 

HTH,

 

Brian.

Do not use bonsai cars:)

Originally posted by ThunDeR

I'm sure I've seen that somewhere before lol

Me too, can't remember where though. I know you've posted it on here in the past but where did it come from originally? I wonder how official it is.

Justin,

 

Im sure i have heard too that older imports, say 1993 \ 1994 even if they are immacualte may struggle to gain higher than 3 - 3.5 just because of age. I could be wrong though.

Originally posted by lust2luv

Grading as below :

 

5 : Immaculate Condition with mileage below 60,000km

4.5: Excellent Condition

4 : Good condition

3.5: Some repair work needed or slightly higher mileage than average

3 : Lots of repair work needed or high mileage

2 : Piss poor condition

1 : Modified, Debased or Affected Car (Submergence, damaged from salt, hailstorm etc.)

 

 

When I got my car originally from JIC they gave me a bit of paper with grades and descriptions similar to the above...

God I wish JIC were still around

Just be careful is the major point i handed over £6000 when i was first looking for a supra and the car never turned up this is very true if like i did getting someone to source a car there has been a alarming number of cases of ileagel rings operating in Japan this is what i got sucked into we found out after some investgation that all the paper work was fake auction doc shipping docs you name hell iam not sure the car even exsited.

luckly the guy was honest and i got my dosh back,anyway getting back to the subject mine is a 1993 and was listed a s 4 and is in very good nick i have been told that any lower you should be looking for paint work new panel etc.

Also dont forget that iam sure the interior also gets a grading with B being the adverage...

My advise to you would be to find a fresh import that is in the country to view then you can say stuff the auction report to a certain degree and judge for yourself.

Anyway good luck iwill sign off now as iam boring myself

My vvti supra was imported last year which had a 4.5 grade and it has been an absolute dog! i wouldnt trust the grading too much..

 

However on the outside my supra is in immaculate condition, its only when u look at the engine bay you get the problems! 2 blown turbos, seized aircon compressor ect ect all fixed now tho

Originally posted by Jake

Me too, can't remember where though. I know you've posted it on here in the past but where did it come from originally? I wonder how official it is.

 

I wrote it, as a more accurate translation of what is available on the Jap auction sites in bad english. I know the gradings and have seen evidence because I import myself.

 

ChrisR - That's incorrect, I've seen cars from 1986 with grade 4 ratings and often see '93's and '94's with grade 4 or 4.5 ratings.

 

supradibbs - That's unlucky but the way to avoid that is to deal with someone that has a good reputation for importing honest cars.

 

osso - The grading system only reflects what the jap auction engineers can see / feel / hear as they inspect the car in the auction house yards. Again, I've imported quite a few cars now (it's a hobby more than anything else) and have found the auction gradings to be entirely accurate if you go by the translation of the description that shows why it was awarded the grade. There's always going to be the odd one that slips through with an un-noticed fault I'd suppose though, but I'd say it's very rare.

 

HTH,

 

Brian.

In my experience of looking at Supes when I was buying mine - salesman were trying to hit me over the head with this Auction report.

 

Through bad experience of looking at Supes - I take the Auction report with a pinch of salt. The grading isn't proving to me that the car is mechanically sound, suspension, gearbox, steering, brakes etc etc.

 

For me - I take the grading as a First Glance guide (ie 2 minutes looking at a car)

 

Seeing is believing imho.

the importer i use is always been trumps here is the following i have purchased

 

180sx grade 4 = had a minor stonechip on arrival here

180sx grade 3.5 = had rear spat lose and a sratch on wing

mr2 turbo 4 = was immac faint scratch on rear bumper

fto grade 3 = had a small dint in door

wrx grade 4 = immac

wrx grade 4 = one tyre was suspect

supra grade 4 = fully loaded mint

wrx grade 3.5 = 112 km

wrx grade 3.5 =interior had bit wear and scuff on front bumber

supra tt 3.5 = high miles 65,000

 

thats my experience