Japanese Auctions or Japanese dealerships? Comparing prices to get you the best deals.

Dare to Compare: When Auction Hunters Meet Middleman Markups? What's the real cost of cars purchased at JDM auctions versus Japanese dealership importing?

So, you’re absolutely freaked by the thought of importing a car yourself. You've heard my horror stories about the Pepto-Bismol necessary to survive the ordeal, and you’re thinking, “I'd rather preserve my stomach lining and let someone else deal with the stress.”

Fair enough.

But what if I told you that taking the DIY route could save you a mountain of cash—like, several thousand dollars worth? Would that make you stop and reconsider?

Let's put a pin in the auction site horror stories for a later post. For now, let's break down your alternatives. You could:

Find an auction rep in Japan, get them to ship the car to Canada, snag a customs broker to wrestle it across the border, then find a transportation company to haul your new ride to your doorstep.
Opt for an intermediary (like the dynamic duos we'll gab about below). They can snag a car from auctions or dealers, handle the purchase, chip the car over to Canada, and yes, you still wrestle with customs and shipping.
Or, the lazy Sunday option: reach out to a company that’s already done the heavy lifting—imported the car to Canada, battled through customs—and all you do is have them ship the car from their lot to your driveway.

Option 3 sounds easy, but it’s a rabbit hole of its own. I promise to circle back to that in another piece. For now, let’s eyeball options one and two and see where the dollars really start to stack up.

A matter of perspective

It’s a no-brainer that you have to do your homework first. That’s just using your noggin. But eventually, you'll face the big question: What’s your car really worth? It's a legit question because, depending on your locale and import fees, a cheap car might seem like a total lemon, or an expensive ride might suddenly look like a steal.

Imagine snagging a $600 Mercedes (yes, they’re out there! Check out 2009 B Class Mercedes at auction if you think I’m fibbing). Totally doable. But then you realize shipping to Toronto is going to ding you about $6,000. Suddenly doesn’t feel like such a bargain, huh?

Or, how about dropping $30,000 on a rust-free Mazda RX7 with less than 60,000 km? When you compare that to local listings pushing CAD CAD $54,000 (USD $39,998.) to $67,000* that $6,000 shipping fee doesn’t sting quite as much—especially when you think about the rust buffet a Canadian winter can offer up.

And let’s not forget the depressed Japanese yen compared to the Canadian dollar. A weak yen? That’s your golden ticket to Importville.

So as you can see, all a matter of perspective…

Research before purchase

Let’s get real—you need to dig into the nitty-gritty before committing to a purchase. And I’m not just talking about ensuring you’re not buying a clunker. You need to scope out what these beauties typically go for. Your first stop shouldn’t be the auction house but rather a stroll through Goo Net.

Here’s where you’re peeking into Japanese car dealerships. These guys buy cars at auctions, maybe spruce them up to meet Japan’s tough safety standards, and list them for sale. Platforms like Goo Net and Be Forward not only help you buy the car but also get it shipped to a Canadian port, likely via Ro-Ro shipping, landing probably in Vancouver. You can eyeball these prices on their sites, which essentially repost dealership ads—and sometimes auction cars.

Now things get spicy—this is where you see the markups in live action.

For project 2.0, we snagged a mid-sized family hybrid, a 16-year-old Toyota Crown with decent mileage. We trusted the 4.5 auction grade in Japan and even got a walk-around photo tour of the vehicle for $50. Japan Motor did most of the grunt work: they translated documents (useless, but that’s for another rant), handled the export paperwork, and stuck it on a car carrier to Vancouver.

Unfortunately, we can’t compare our auction prince to its dealership twin because, well, it went to auction, not a showroom. But, for kicks, let’s peek at similar vehicles listed by Japanese intermediaries. This is where things get interesting, because now you can actually see some of the markups happening.

The challenge: Project 2.0 versus the intermediaries

So let's consider what we've done here for Project 2.0 (technically Project 2.1). We've picked up a mid-sized family hybrid, a Toyota Crown that's 16 years old, with under 60,000kms. We had to trust the 4.5 auction grade in Japan and we did receive photos with a walk-around of the vehicle ($50). Japan Motor handled most of the stuff themselves: they provided our translation (which is technically useless, see this article), provided the documentation for export, and put it on a car carrier to Vancouver.

Now, we obviously can't see our car listed at a dealership—because it was sent to auction, not a dealership; however, we can compare our car against a similar vehicle that has been listed in both Japanese intermediaries. Ironically, it is the same vehicle being sold by "エクストリーム自動車会社". (EXTREME AUTOMOBILE COMPANY) - yeah, you have to ALL CAPS a name like that. It's listed on 2 separate platforms (Goo-net and Be Forward) and makes a good basis for comparison.

So here is our comparison: a their base grade Toyota Crown hybrid versus our base grade Toyota Crown hybrid. Theirs has slightly higher mileage 77,623km compared to our 57,000 km. It has been listed as accident-free, which I guess we can try to equate to our auction grade of 4.5. This doesn't mean it's 100% damage free, but largely that damage is minor scratches from limited road driving. All in all, I would suspect our blue Project 2.0 car would fetch a higher price than the white one listed here. but of course, you would expect a bit of a markup. Let's just see how that markup is.

#1: Goo-net

This is usually the first pit stop for those jonesing for Japanese cars. Goo-net Exchange is the heavyweight here. They don’t just list cars; they make sure you’ve got a whole toolkit at your disposal for making that purchase decision - including maintenance, if you're living in Japan that is. You're seeing Japanese cars listed in Japanese prices (or USD - still no love for the loonie) with English explanations about the vehicle (big win for killing the language barrier). There are also usually a tonne of detailed pictures of the engine bay, interior and exterior - but that is because of the dealer's efforts, not Goo-net or BE FORWARD.

Arguably, it's showing what a local in Japan would cough up for a car (minus shakken - but that's another story). Goo-net typically doesn't list auction cars; these are cars being sold at Japanese used car dealership nationwide. A good rule of thumb? Peek at a Goo-net price tag, then bet you’ll pay 20% to 50% less at auction.

A good rule of thumb is to look at a price of a car on Goo-net and then assume that you will be paying anywhere from 20% to 50% less at auction.

So, at the current exchange rate, 1,400,000 JPY converts to approximately $14,672 CAD.

But shipping hasn't been factored into this price:

And that rings this in at $17,606 CAD

And wait - it gets better, and by better, I mean worse, because shipping your import taxes are usually calculated on the cost of CIF (Cost, Insurance, and Freight) and purchase. So if we do a bit of math running it through the CBSA Duty and Tax Estimator.....

Duties: Generally, vehicles manufactured outside Canada, the U.S., and Mexico are subject to a 6.1% duty rate. Based on your CIF, this would be approximately $895.19.
Goods and Services Tax (GST): This is calculated at 5% of the CIF value plus any duty paid. Hence, the GST would be around $778.55 (5% of $14,672 + $895.19).

So, close to $1700

Please note that these numbers are rough estimates...

#2: Be Forward

BE FORWARD BE FORWARD isn't just a big fish in the pond; it's more like a shark in the global used car ocean, especially over in Africa where it's basically celebrity status. Think major league, like sponsoring a football team in Malawi kind of big ( ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ who knew? ) . Founded in Tokyo by Hironori Yamakawa, it has grown to become a significant player in the export of used cars internationally. It’s got a wide range of used vehicles and parts that it ships to every corner of the globe, making it the go-to for car buyers who are looking to snag a ride from afar. Now let's dare to compare.

Showing some love for the loonie, we do have a Canadian dollars listing and a separate price below for shipping to New Westminister, BC

Duties: 6.1% of $8,500 = $518.50
Goods and Services Tax (GST): (5% of ($8,500 + $518.50)) = $449.43

So just under a thousand.

Would you rather pay taxes on on $8,500 or $15,000?

... or would you rather pay even less?

#3: Do-it-yourself importing

So, let's put in a reminder here. This car is the same year and model, but 20,000km less. At auction, they assign it a grade. And while you will see a half-dozen lower rez pictures from the auction site (unless you pay for that walk-around shot), it may not give a clear picture of how good/bad the car really is. It was bought at auction for approximately $4500 CDN and with CIF that brought it up to $6800. Japan Motor (my auction reps - ask for Umino-san and tell him JDMdream send you!) bagged her up and put her on a boat to BC for $2500.

Duties: on $6800 ... approximately $414.80 (6.1% of $6,800).

Goods and Services Tax (GST): 5% of ($6,800 + $414.80) = $360.74

#4: The Final Score

First off, when it comes to the financial tug-of-war, Goo-net is like that high roller in Vegas betting big every time—coming in at a whopping $1,700 in cross-border taxes and a jaw-dropping $14,000 original price tag. Sure, you're casting a big net when it comes to the number of cars at dealerships, but is it worth it? On the other end, our friend BE FORWARD, playing a bit more conservatively, asks an $8,000 original cost and would hit us for a $1,000 in taxes. Meanwhile, the doing it yourself option is the budget buddy of the bunch. sipping on a modest $750 tax latte and a comfy $6,800 original price. Clearly, when it comes to saving your loonies and toonies, the DIY route seems to say, "Less is more, and that’s just fine."

But let’s not forget, import costs across the board were playing nice—no drama; all the same. No wild swings or significant markups here, just the even-keel kind of deal that doesn’t make headlines but definitely deserves a nod for keeping things simple.

So, what’s the takeaway from our little dare-to-compare? Perspective. If your wallet's feeling adventurous and wants to flirt with some bigger numbers, more detailed initial pictures and not auction randomness, Goo-net might just be your dance partner. But if it's more about stretching those dollars and keeping things chill, then the DIY might just win your frugal heart. And for those stuck in the middle, BE FORWARD offers a middle ground of used car dealers —not too spendy, not too cheap, but just right. In the grand scheme of things, it's all about what makes your financial and automotive heart tick.

So do research, choose wisely, drive happily, and maybe keep some Pepto handy, just in case**.

~ Dream

*(prices taken at date of writing),

** (Because despite all of this, you're still gonna need a broker at the border)