Japanese 911s
I just read an excellent article about buying 911s and older MB SLs in "Oldtimer Markt" here in Germany. Apparently, more and more Europeans are "sourcing" their youngtimers and oldtimers in Japan. Oldtimer Markt is a very reputable source here. They decided to research the issue an came back with some astounding results:
1) its not unusual for a 20+ year old car to have only ~60thousand kms (no, not because the Japanese are permanently in traffic jams, but because these "exotic" cars are generally their 3rd or 4th vehicle, and its not driving much)
2) Japanese sellers generally refuse to sell to private buyers. So, you need a midde man
3) Service booklets are generally never filled out. The Japanese prefer to put service stickers in the engine compartment, which, unfortunately, are often removed by the middlemen to "clean up the engine bay".
4) Beware of aftermarket add-ons. Apparently, the Japanese invented pimping their rides.
5) Pricing tends to be much lower than here, in Europe. The Japanese like to have new stuff and sell their older stuff at "used prices".
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