Related Posts
- Auction Finds: Mitsuoka Le Seyde
- Auction Finds: 1999 GT-R V-Spec with only 1,390km!
- Auction Finds: Lancia Delta HF Integrale Evolution II
- Insight or Prius… or Leaf?
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Auction Finds: Electric Porsche 356 Speedster
Want to combine the classy looks of the original Porsche Speedster with the efficiency and low-down torque of electric motors. Can’t wait for a Tesla Roadster, or looking for something cheaper and not as common? This might be the answer.
Click here to see all the details on the eBay auction page.
Categories:
EV, auction finds, custom cars, porsche
Auction Finds: BMW 2000 CS Coupe
This 2000CS BMW was in the auction last week, a grade 2 selling for almost 400,000 Yen. This model was made between 1965 and 1968. To my eyes the styling is pleasantly modern, although maybe not to everyone’s tastes. Apparently, the 2800CS is more popular, but if you want an affordable and classy classic, this could be the one for you.
(Click image to see more detail.)
Want to find out more about the Japanese car auctions? Click here.
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auction finds, bmw
Auction Finds: Morgan Plus Four
Morgan is one of those quintessential English marques. Not only has it got a long and glorious history, but it let’s its classic heritage all hang out - even when creating an all new model with advanced materials, like the Aero 8.
From the 1.99 liter engine displacement mentioned for this particular Plus 4, we can guess it was made between 1953 and 1962, although all we know from the auction is that it was first registered in Japan in 1995. As for how much it will fetch, like the Mini Moke in my last post, it is one of those cars that is so rare that it is impossible to predict a market price.
Categories:
auction finds, morgan
Auction Finds: Mini Moke
I haven’t seen one of these on the roads for years - certainly not in Japan - but here is a great example of the utility vehicle that was based on the Mini for sale in the car auction in Japan today.
Apparently the whole Moke concept started with an attempt to create a Jeep-type vehicle that could be air-dropped. Of course, as you can see, the slight problem with the Mini Moke being used as an offroad vehicle is fairly obvious: Ground clearance is minimal. Power was also lacking, and so it was really not a practical proposition as a military vehicle.
That did not stop the Moke entering production as a utility vehicle, gaining cult status in such diverse locales as Australia, the US, the Seychelles and the Carribbean.
I wonder how much it will go for in today’s auction? This is such a rare site, there is no real historical prices to go on, but with a start price of 500,000 Yen, I expect the owner is looking for a good payout.
Categories:
auction finds, mini
Auction Finds: Lancia Delta HF Integrale Evolution II
I started getting interested in cars as a teenager in the 1980s. These were the days of the Countach versus the Testarossa, and later the 959 against the F40. But another battle was in progress a little further down the food chain: This was the battle of the offspring of the horsepower-fueled insanity that they called Group B rallying.
Famous names in this particular turf fight were the Metro 6R4, the Ford RS200, the Peugeot 205 T16, the mighty Audi Quattro S1, and Lancia’s own 4WD step up from the formerly-dominant 037 - the Delta HF Integrale. The Lancia was a little later on the scene, but was born from the same gene-pool as these other crazy machines.
Unfortunately for Lancia, rallying dominance did not translate into sales as their other cars were critically panned, with Lancia as a brand withdrawing from many markets not long after.
Here is a nice example in the Japanese car auctions today with mileage under 65,000 KM and little work needed to clean it up. Looking at previous sold prlces, I expect this will go for between 1.2 and 1.5 million Yen.
Categories:
auction finds, lancia
Auction Find: Mercedes 230S Fintail (1967)
This Mercedes 230S in today’s auction is not just a beautiful-looking car, but it is also a piece of automotive history: It is likely that thousands of people owe their lives to the pioneering engineering work on crumple zones that were premiered on this model.
Ironically, this particular car was graded R in the Japanese car auction due to its front accident repair history. Nevertheless it ended up fetching almost 500,000 Yen, and I am sure it will be a really great car when completely restored.
Categories:
auction finds, mercedes
Auction Finds: 1999 GT-R V-Spec with only 1,390km!
Sometimes I see cars in the Japanese car auctions and I really wonder what the previous owner was like. Take this beautiful Nissan GT-R V-Spec. Bought in 1999 with the same owner ever since, it is immaculately turned out with only 1,390 (authentic) kilometers on the clock. Now, I understand how a proud owner would love their car, but surely a car like this is just begging to be driven. I mean, this car is ten years old, so it has not even managed 200 km each year!
Where has it been? What has it been up to? It’s all a mystery.
Whatever the reasons, the low mileage got the buyers out with it reaching almost 4 million at auction, when regular V-Specs of this age and grading (4.5) would normally average 3.1 million - although they also would typically have about 70,000KM on the clock, whereas this pristine example is only just starting to get run in.
If you are interested in GT-Rs, or any other kinds of vehicles from the Japanese car auctions, please contact us here.
Categories:
auction finds, nissan
Auction Find: Pushmi-Pullyu Rover Mini
This Pushmi-Pullyu Mini is a hot tip from one of our friends. It’s not in the Japanese car auctions here, but you can pick it up on eBay where it is available until September 8th, 2009. Someone really had Minsanity, and spent about 40,000 Pounds (and, I am sure) countless hours creating this amazing machine. Apparently the creator wants to export it out of the UK to make sure his next (presumably even more bonkers creation) does not have to go head-to-head-to…. errr…-head with this piece of craziness.
Categories:
auction finds, custom cars, funny, rover
Auction Finds: Toyota Century - Japanese Exective Meets Zil
Not the most beautiful car in the world, the Toyota Century. In fact, it would not looked out of place parked in front of the Kremlin in the bad old days of the Cold War.
Its one redeeming feature is that, as far as I know, it is the only Japanese production car with a V12 engine, although it only puts out a lazy 276 horsepower. I just wonder what would happen if Japan had a cottage sports car industry like you find in the UK. I’m sure some bright spark would find a way to add a couple of turbos and shoe-horn this into a light chassis for some real fun. In the end, though, it must be one of the most frustrated engines in the world - doomed to spend its days trundling around in a glorified taxi.
Toyota Century
Japanese Taxi
You can expect to pick up a late-model 2006 grade 4 for about 4 million Yen in the auctions here. If you are interested in Japanese car auctions, or you are interested in getting a Century for yourself, please contact us.
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auction finds, toyota
Auction Finds: Mitsuoka Le Seyde
Mitsuoka take innocent-looking run-of-the-mill Japanese cars and turn them into classic car pastiches. Often these draw on styling cues from 1960s British classics, like the Jaguar S-Type (see the Viewt, for example). But when it comes to the Le Seyde model, they have really laid on the false-classic look in spades.
Here is one that failed to sell in today’s auctions, so I expect it will be coming back around next week if you are interested.
(Click above to see the full-sized picture.)
This is perhaps one of the more extreme cars we can source from the Japanese car auctions. Whether it is something like this Le Seyde, or a more prosaic vehicle, you can alway contact us here to find out more about buying and exporting from Japan.
Categories:
auction finds, mitsuoka