Frequently Asked Questions

In response to the many questions we have asked we have compiled this list. Please read it carefully before emailing us further questions which may have been already answered here. Please click on the relevant question to view the answer.

Can I have a password please?

We have a system for setting up new membership to our auctions and dealer services through our membership application form. Please send us the required information and we look forward to hopefully doing business with you. Remember membership only comes with a 100,000yen refundable deposit.

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Who Can Be A Member of the Auctions Online?

Any dealer of motor vehicles can apply for membership. Membership is subject to the terms of trade of membership and is granted based on criteria set by Provide Cars.

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How much does it cost to join the Auctions Online?

There are no costs to join, just a refundable 100,000yen deposit.

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How can I get an indicative price for a particular vehicle?

Upon becoming a member and logged into our "Auctions Online" system, search for your desired vehicle amongst the thousands available each auction day. Having selected a vehicle, clicking on the highlighted starting price will give you an average price that vehicles of similar criteria sold for recently.

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When you make a bid what extra costs are there?

Commission and any extra costs (Inland transport, extra auction fees etc.) are all included in the FOB price billed to you so you won't pay any more than that amount. This does not include shipping or insurance. The FOB cost shown on the bidding page is the estimated cost and the real price may vary.

Although, many of our dealers allow us to go over their total FOB budget by about 15,000 yen or so when it looks like we may be able to get the car desired.

Please refer to the terms of trade for more details.

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Are the auctions conducted on a 'tender' basis or do they 'bid up'?

Some are tender and some are "live". Although we generally keep to your maximum bidding price, you may often be disappointed when the vehicle sells for a few thousand yen over. Thus many of our dealers allow us to go over their budget by about 15,000 yen or so when it looks like we may be able to get the car desired.

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At what time (in Japan) does the 'Tomorrow' auction become 'Today's'?

Today's auctions begin at about 9am Japan time. Please have your bids in by this time.

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At what time (Japanese) does the 'Tomorrow'/'Today' list finalize?

By midnight JST each day.

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At what time (Japanese) does bidding to you close for today's auction?

We have no set closing time but if your bid comes in after 9am the car may have already gone through the auction so we can't guarantee we will be able to bid on it. We also cannot guarantee that we will see instructions from you after this time, so if you want to cancel your bid on a car, please contact us before 9:00 am.

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How well do you get to inspect the vehicles?

We go by the auction sheet and find these to be very comprehensive and honest. We have had very few problems with this. Please refer to the auction gradings below.

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Are there better days and better auctions for different vehicle types?

Thursday and Saturday have the most vehicles.

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How Long Will It Take to Get My Cars?

We always attempt to get the vehicle on the first possible ship, HOWEVER, beginning with the auction, timing varies greatly and delays sometimes occur. Please understand that the process has many factors involved:
1. We buy the car
2. We pay for the car within a couple of days.
3. The documents are sent from the seller to the auction. Sometimes this takes the longest time, and is totally out of our control.
4. The documents are sent from the auction to us.
5. The registration is cancelled. Any missing documents have to be received from the original owner and then auction house.
6. Vehicle documents are sent to the customs brokers.
7. Documents are taken to the Japanese Customs for export approval.
8. Documents are sent back to us.
9. BL is issued a few days after the ship has left.

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Could you adjust the kms back on my car after purchase please?

I know it is common practice in Japan amongst exporters but sorry we don't do it. Please don't embarrass yourself by asking us.

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Do You Export Left Hand Drive Vehicles?

There are many foreign made LHD vehicles in Japan, available for purchase and export. Japanese-made LHD are not as common and have usually been imported from some other country (for example the US). 

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Only grade 4 cars please. What is the real story of grading?

CAR GRADING SYSTEM
OVERALL GRADE (almost all auctions)

Grade 6, 7, 8, 9 or S is given to a virtually new car that is being sold in an auction.
Grade 5 to a car with less than 10,000kms and less than 3 years old in perfect condtion.
Grade 4.5 is better than a grade 4 vehicle, but not as good as a grade 5.
Grade 4 is good but may need some paint or panel. We recommend our customers only consider grade 4 and above vechicles.
Grade 3.5 is similar but may need even more paint and panel, or it has high kms, very few cars are given grade 4 if they are over 100,000kms.
Grade 3 has either serious paint and panel or it has had a panel replacement somewhere.
Grade 0, A, R, RA Are repair history cars. The auctions definition of "repair history" is a car that has had an inside panel repaired in some way. This can range from extremely minor to major
Grade 1 Can be one of the following 1). Flood history (rare)
2). After market turbo / engine.
3). Transmission changed from auto to manual.
Grade ??? Are write off cars. Auctions provide NO information about the cars on the auction sheets, and there is a very good risk that they are complete junk. If the cars are driveable, no extra costs occur. If the motor does not start, extra transportation costs occur. If the engine does not start and is not steerable, transportation and port costs skyrocket. We strongly recommend our customer

EXTERIOR & INTERIOR GRADING (On some auctions)
Some auctions have a letter, A, B or C to denote the exterior and interior grade separately. These letters can be seen near the overall grading number. A is excellent, B average and C below average.

CAR MAP
Car maps differ slightly between auctions. Please ask if you are not sure of a letter or symbol. The number after the letter denotes the severity of the damage. (1 = light, 2 = moderate, 3 = significant , 4 = major)

• A Scratch
• U Dent
• B Dent with scratch
• W Wave, or repaired area
• S Rust (orange surface oxidization)
• C Corrosion (rust has progressed so now metal is flaking away)
• P Paint
• H Hole
• XX Replaced panel
• X Needs replacing
• G Stone chip on glass

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Can I cancel a car purchased on my behalf?

The following penalties will be appied for cancellations:

An order for a vehicle can be cancelled at any time between the moment it is bought at auction and the moment it is booked on a ship for transportation from Japan. Once this booking has occurred, the order cannot be cancelled and the full value of the car must be paid.

In the event of cancellation, a cancellation fee of 100,000 Yen + 20% of the auction price of the car must be paid within 14 days, otherwise the cancellation will fail and the full value must be paid.

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What Are the Payment Terms?

Payment is by TT in Japanese Yen or US$, however funds will only be credited in yen at the rate that week. Credit cards are not accepted except for the initial deposit by PAYPAL. Payment must be made according to the "Terms of Trade" page.

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Does the deposit come off the total costs or is it non-refundable?

We require that you keep a positive balance of 100,000 yen in your account to continue bidding. If you have finished business with Provide Cars then we can deduct this amount from your final purchase. Alternatively, we can refund it to you if you decide to stop buying from us. However, you will be charged for the international transfer to remit it to you.

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Is a larger deposit required if more than one vehicle is required initially?

No. You can purchase as many vehicles as you can pay for. The initial deposit is just a goodwill measure to sort out the serious dealers from the web surfers.

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If I bid on a car and get it for 200,000 Yen, what else do I have to pay?

If we have 200,000 Yen from you already, our commission will be 74,000 Yen (at our prepay commission rate of 70,000 Yen + 2%), otherwise you will pay the regular commission rate of 70,000 Yen + 5%, which is 80,000 Yen. (Please note that in the case of a single-car private buyer this will be 102,500 yen - 90,000 yen + 5%.)

So the total FOB will be 274,000 Yen for the Prepay buyer, or 280,000 Yen if you pay the regular commission rate.

This FOB price includes all the regular costs for getting your car onto the ship (although not the shipping itself). It does not include the cost of transporting the car from the auction to the wharf, or the cost of auction fees above 10,000 Yen. Once the car arrives in your country you will pay freight collect, compliance, registration, duty, tax etc. and all other costs there. You will have to find out what these will be as each nation has different laws concerning car imports.

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