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| Latest News! |
Quebec SAAQ had implimented a ban of inspections stations from inspecting RHD vehicles on April 29 2009. This ban was to be either lifted or made into law as of this month. Instead SAAQ has implimented a further 6 month "temporary" ban. This is a means of banning RHD registrations. This is also an example of how fast a ban can be implemented in ANY province by corrupt government proceedures.
Ivoac has been unable to reverse this proceedure at this time.
Luxury Imports is suggesting if you are interested in owning and grand fathering a RHD vehicle then waiting is not in your best interest. Whether you purchase from us or from your favorite importer, now is the time to take action.
Caution must be exercised when making a purchase from ANYONE or ANY company in Japan. It is recommended not to invest money you can not afford to sacrifice if our government decides to play dirty. There was a number of owners that had vehicles purchased in Japan, on the water and sitting in the owners yards that could not be registered after April 29th.
Should this action be implemented in any other province it is in our own good interest to stand up for each other and make our voices heard. Being apethetic will not stop the actions of CADA, CCMTA, SAAQ, ICBC or any other organization that are being coerced by the North American Dealers Association or the various insurance companies.
Our government is not looking out for our best interests, it is looking out for the above organizations financial interests.
This is a proven fact with our tax money being spent to back the private industries of GM and Chrysler.
The RHD craze is over.
Many of the importers that have sprung up in the last 3-4 years are now no longer in business. There are some that have stolen the deposits of the unwary and have disappeared not to be found. This a sad fact but one that must be announced to protect the innocent. It would be prudent to do a back ground check of the importer or curber you are thinking of dealing with and ask the following questions:
Has this importer been active for a long period of time?
Does this importer advertise vehicles that are not his own?
Does this importer have a clean reputation? If there were issues, did the importer deal honestly with the customer?
It is important to remember that being a registered dealer does NOT make the importer an honest individual. "Curbers" or unlicensed importers can be found to be more honest than many of the licensed importers. Remember, you are giving money to an individual so it is the HONESTY that is in question. If, for any reason, you suddenly feel the individual is untrustworthy then walk away before you make that deposit. Your gut feelings will tell you whether you can trust the importer or not. Do NOT get caught up in the spiel, the sales pitch, it is your money, your time, your investment.
RELOCATION:
After much consideration Luxury Imports will be moving to Ontario.
Alberta has been a great place to live and work. We will miss our
friends, customers and subtrades. It has been a fantastic 28 years but
it is time to head home. During this transition period Luxury will be
happy to locate a unit for you but email and phone coverage will be
sporatic. Please leave a message and we will return your calls as soon
as possible.
TIME IS TIGHT:
Due to the
ever increasing calls from concerned customers from other importers and
due to the time restraints because of the move we will no longer be
able to help others that are not our own customers. We need to be able
to supply parts, help and information for those individuals that
invested in a Luxury unit. It is not fair to ourselves and to our
customers to burn what hours we have to spare trying to find solutions
to other importers clients. Do your research before you buy, make sure
you can source parts, service and information from your importer. being
stranded on the side of the road with an importer that won't / can't
help can be frustrating.
WINTER MAINTAINENCE:
This
time of year it is important to have your vehicle checked over to make
sure it is up to the task at hand. a cracked head, rotted tires, faulty
exhaust can all be not only frustrating but deadly.
have your batteries load tested, your charging system tested, your
coolant tested and pressure tested and your lights inspected.
IF YOU HAVE NOT JOINED www.ivoac.ca WHY NOT?
this
is an important association that is fighting for YOUR rights, we need
your support and encouragement. The association has traveled far and
won some impressive battles already but the battle is far from over.
NEW FALSE INFORMATION FROM ICBC:
ICBC
is messing with your insurance coverage and has released a false
statement "Right hand drive cars are 40% higher chance of being
involved in an accident." through the freedom of information act we
accessed the information they based this false claim on and after a
cursory glance our statisions found the percentage to be incorrect, how
far off is the 40%? at first glance the figures are 9%... LESS chance
of being involved in an accident. This makes sense since when you are
driving a vehicle that is different from what you are used to it makes
you MORE cautious, not less cautious. ICBC, in all their wisdom, sent
this information to a great number of insurance agencies through out
Canada as well as to Transport Canada. Transport Canada, with out
reviewing the statistical source posted this information up on their
site.
if you are having difficulties getting insurance or your full coverage
is now rediculious then contact www.ivoac.ca and join in the fight. we
will try and help you but in return we ask for your support.
ICBC Shoots Themselves In The Foot Yet Again.
The blatant personal attack on RHD vehicles have never been so obvious as the latest release by ICBC.
On
Tues ICBC posted up a new (incorrectly) report stating that RHD
vehicles are 40% more likely to be involved in an accident. When ICBC
posted this link up IVOAC committee members went to work to disprove it
immediately. Mike Bain contacted the original station that had relayed
this info asking for the right to dispute the findings which he did on
Wed. Daryl Chymko was contacted as well for a live interview Wed
evening. Thursday Evening Mike went head to head with ICBC on a 1/2
hour live radio broadcast.
The committee was also approached by a private statiscion that showed
some of the blatant mistakes in the most recent report. his comment to
the committee was "I am utterly surprised that for someone familiar
with SPSS, SAS, survival analysis and cox regressions, and working for
a crown corporation, would make such a blatant mistake in the
calculation of R.R....I would doubt the validity and reliability of the
entire analyses, as results can be twisted to match each other" This
report is an embarrassment to ICBC and the BC government.
Here is the report in it's whole.
Additional reports and information:
http://www.icbc.com/library/research_papers/right-hand-drive_vehicles/index.asp
http://www.icbc.com/library/research_papers/right-hand-drive_vehicles/pdf/rhd_vehicle_safety_report.pdf
These are IVOAC discussions about the report:
http://www.ivoac.ca/pn/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=861
http://www.ivoac.ca/pn/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=874
Transport Canada Threat Is Now Fact
Canadians Denied Quality Imports
http://www.ivoac.ca/pn/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=286
it is important that YOU join the fight. www.ivoac.ca
NEW THREAT??
http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2006/12/22/japanesecars.html
To be bluntly honest I feel they have just shot themselves n the foot.
We now know that just because they have taken a step back on
enforcement of the SAE/DOT compliance random inspection, which gave the
BC persons a false sense of hope, was just a ruse so they could try a
different angle.
With this information reaching the headlines there is hope
that finally the owners of RHD cars and trucks will rise up and fight
this movement. A call to action per says.
...more info...
LJ71 / LJ78 Prado WARNING!!
The head issue concerning the 2LT/2LTE heads is a real concern for
those that are considering purchasing a LJ71 or LJ78. Just in the last
few months there have been a record number of units that have had head
problems. DO NOT BE DECIEVED this is a serious and expensive concern.
On average the cost to replace a head on the engine is $3000+ (plus a
week minimum down time and any tow bills).
There are ways to circumvent the problem but even these are
not cheap. If the dealer you are buying from does not inform you of
this issue then our advice is to walk away.
We at Luxury Imports have warranted 3 of these units in the last few months.
We at Luxury Imports will not bring in any of these units
unless by special request and we will NOT warranty the heads or the
costs of replacement.
Here is some informative reading for those that are leaning towards purchasing these units.
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Here is my take on the situation in Japan. When I first started
importing the auctions seemed very strict when it came to grading the
interiors and exteriors, a '4' was actually a '4' and a "B" was a "B"
interior.
This seemed to be the case for about 3 years then I watched as
the grading fell dramatically and the attitude at the auctions visibly
changed for the worse. I started hearing complaints from the exporters
that money wasn't being transferred in a timely manor.
Scam artists were surfacing in Canada. One such example of
this is one importer here in Canada pulled a serious scam by using an
ordered "low grade" HJ61 as an example of the "poor product" coming out
of Japan. So he contacted a gent in Japan, who was desiring to expand
his export business, but refused to pay for the HDJ81 till after it
arrived in Canada so he could examine it in person. The agreement was
it would be at this time it would be paid for in full. Once the truck
arrived the Canadian didn't pay for the unit but said he would at time
of sale to a customer. The truck is still not paid for but is
advertised as a "high end unit". This truck has been in the works for
nearly a year.
What is the problem with this situation? It affects all of us
The Japanese exporters talk amongst themselves. The good
importers in Canada are respected and the shady ones are noted. If a
Canadian importer buys a unit where the mileage is questionable (say
the mileage is reading 55,000 km but it has been noted that the
speedometer cluster was changed out at one time) and posts it up for
sale with the mileage “confirmed” (and the importer knows this is a
lie) then this is noted. The Japanese exporters, in general, are an
honest breed and do not respect this form of deceit.
Also the buyers need to realize that when they buy a unit from
an exporter, in most cases the exporter does not check the car over.
Most just take your order and bid amount and find you a unit that
matches both. The exporter gets his commission by supplying the unit,
not by doing the extras that the rare few charge for. Plus there are
some shady exporters in Japan but I have only come across a couple. In
comparison, there are VERY FEW dealers in Canada that I trust.
The auction grade has fallen dramatically. I have seen grade
‘4’ with rust, with serious dents, with heavy fading and I have seen
“B” interiors with rips, heavily smoked in. to me this is unacceptable
but you must adjust with what is going on. If you do not have a contact
in Japan that visually inspects the unit, that can inspect the unit
after the auction unit has been won and is willing to invest at least
an hour of his time to test drive the unit then you are buying a high
risk unit. You could end up with anything.
The units that are showing up with head cracks, I suspect, are
units bought directly out of the auction, trucked to the dock and
shipped over. These are usually units bought for a low-end dollar by
someone trying to save a buck. Repair bills at this end will quickly
eat up the buck you save. Of course if you are an unscrupulous importer
and buy one of these units then you try and flog it to an
unknowledgeable customer so you can cut your loses.
Especially with the 2LT-E equipped units a truck could arrive
in Canada with no problems but days/weeks/months later the head issue
WILL show up. People buying these engines must be ready to drop between
$2000 and $3000 to get the engines up and running. Does replacing the
head mean an end to the head issue? No. I was chatting with Dan (4wheel
auto) last week and he mentioned of a guy with surf that is on his 3rd
head now. Once the new head is installed take preventative action to
make sure the entire system is upgraded to resist the high EGTs and the
problematic cooling system.
In most cases it is not the exporter that is to blame for the
issues showing up, it is the attitude of the Canadian importers, the
price people are willing to pay and the demands that accompany the
price.
My recommendations is first, do not buy a 2LT(E) equipped
unit. PERIOD. Unless you are prepared to pay what it costs to do the
head and upgrades.
Next do not deal with the exporters in Japan (unless you KNOW
they sell a good product) if you cannot afford to loose the investment
money.
Lastly, if you really want a trouble free unit then buy from a
REPUTABLE importer here in Canada that will stand behind the product he
sells. DO YOUR RESEARCH.
In my mind there are 3 tiers of exporter in Japan. The low-end
exporter that will sell you anything and lie about the product to make
a sale. The 2nd level that try hard to have a happy customer with
prompt service and actually having the units inspected before the bid
goes in and the high end exporters that actually have all the units
inspected before auction bidding, an inspection after the purchase and
a good long test drive. Of course this costs more to the consumer but
at least the exporter feels comfortable in selling the units to the
importers in Canada.
Cheers
Trouble in paradise:
Due to the over whelming number of emails and calls from
dissatisfied customers that purchased their units from uninformed
importers and curbers, we must be very selective in the calls we take
and emails we answer. We need to support our own customers first and
foremost.
To further complicate matters the BC government has decided to
clamp down on the imports coming in from Japan. This is causing the
phone to ring off the hook so we must ask you to make sure you are
purchasing your units from dealers that KNOW the answers. Some of the
inspection facilities do not even know the rules and regulations for
the imports and are also going by hearsay, this is muddying the waters
even worse. (an example of the worse misinformation I have heard so far
is that Right hand drive units are illegal in Canada!!)
A STRONG word of caution: even though a unit has passed the
out of province inspection in one province does not make it eligable
for registration in another province, you MUST check and make sure what
the regulations are in your home province before buying a unit. Some of
these costs to make a unit conform to the provincial specifications can
be quite expensive indeed.
We at Luxury Imports are striving to make our vehicles conform
to all the provinces regulations but until the BC inspectors actually
know what they are to be looking for it will be up to the purchaser to
ask the questions from the inspection facility they are going to be
using for the out of province inspections.
Here are the regulations in the BC governments own words, this might help...
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After chatting with some of my customers, a common comment that is
coming up in the "trade" is the line "I have a brother, cousin, son etc
living in Japan and that is how I find my units". What does this say to
me? If my brother was running a used car dealership would that make him
any more trustworthy, especially if you never met my brother or have
done business with me before? No, it doesn't.
Should you buy from these importers? The choice is up to you.
What I am saying is you need to be an informed buyer. An
informed buyer is a smart buyer. An informed buyer knows what he wants,
what questions to ask and how to decipher between "hot air" and facts.
To further this desire to have informed customers I contacted
Toyota Canada. I had a chat with Nathan at Toyota Canada's head office
on what I perceive as a conflict of interest and to hear their reaction
to Toyota dealerships selling unit that Toyota Canada will not bring in
parts for.
This is a basic summary of our conversation:
I mentioned they put a stop on all foreign parts that are not on the North American Electronic Parts Catalogue last year.
Nathan's answer-- he agreed this was the case.
I mentioned this seemed to show non-support of Toyota Canada for the JDM units coming in from Japan.
Nathan's answer--no comment
I mentioned there are at least 7 dealerships selling JDM units
in western Canada and how does Toyota Canada feel about this issue
since this seems to be in conflict with their stand on Japanese
Designated Market (JDM) imports.
Nathan's answer--no comment.
I asked how they feel about their franchises selling units that even they cannot get parts for.
Nathan's answer--no comment.
I asked them how they feel about the customers of these dealerships needing parts that they cannot get.
Nathan's answer--the customer should do their research
before buying these units. Toyota Canada does not stand behind these
units.
I suggested that maybe Toyota Canada should insist on their dealers warning the customers of this fact.
Nathan's answer--it is the customer’s responsibility to do their research.
This was a conversation with Nathan at Toyota Canada's head office.
I found the results to be interesting to say the least.
An informed customer is a smart customer.
I have no problem with anyone selling JDM imports, I DO have a problem if the Importer does not warn the customer of:
Possible shortcomings in design of the unit sold
Possible problems getting parts
Possible problems of registering a unit
Sold as is / where is without telling the customer straight up what is wrong with the unit
An informed customer is a smart customer.
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| About Us: |
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Luxury Imports is an extension of Crushers Rule, a company that has built, owned,
restored and maintained Land Cruisers for over 20 years. During that time we have seen over 400
Land Cruisers of all years and vintages pass through our shop. Land Cruisers are more than just a
vehicle for us, they are a passion that we share with our customers.
We've taken this love of Land Cruisers overseas and are now importing exotic
Land Cruisers with options and features never available for the North American market.
We specialize in the rare BJ74, BJ71, HJ61 units with low mileage that just
can't be found in Canada. These units come with unique options like Power Windows, Power Mirrors,
Air Conditioning, PTO Winches, Stainless Steel Bumpers, Raised or Removable Tops, Power Sunroof,
Turbo Charger, Direct Injected Engines, Full Floater Rear Differential, Limited Slip or Cable Locker,
and best of all, rust free bodies.
We service what we sell.
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| Recent News: |
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March 18, 2007 - All Units Sold By Luxury Imports Are DOT/SAE Compliant (unless otherwise stated).
Should the 15-year importation rule be changed, the projected value of
existing COMPLIANT units will increase in value 20% - 50%.
Non-compliant vehicles will be weeded out by Transport Canada and
de-registered. Join the FIGHT FOR RIGHT www.ivoac.ca
(Imported Vehicle Owners Association of Canada). Should we loose the
fight then Luxury Imports will be increasing the selling prices
accordingly.
Luxury Imports is supporting the efforts of IVOAC morally and financially in an effort to prevent this change from taking place.
Study your future purchase carefully and ask questions of the
person you are purchasing your unit from. Some importers are claiming
their units are compliant when they are not. The SKYLINE GTR and GTS
stock headlights will NOT pass inspection at this time. Getting a unit
registered through back door means is a false sense of security. CVSE
(Commercial Vehicle Safety Enforcement) has the legal right to force a
re-inspection of the unit in question at any time. Should it not pass
they can revoke the existing registration. Careful consideration should
be exercised unless you want an expensive lawn ornament gracing your
property.
Should the 25-year rule take effect then replacement vehicles,
in case of an accident, will NOT be available for 10 years from now.
Join www.ivoac.ca today and protect your freedom of choice of the vehicle you deserve to own.
Jan 01, 2005
- Due to the recent influx of calls in regards to the units sold by our
competitors, we WELCOME questions needing answers about how to repair
hidden flaws. Contact Us . For your own piece of mind, ask your importer lots of questions. There is more to buying a import than just price.
Jan 01, 2005
- We now supply CD radios installed in all the units coming in from
Japan. If a 24-12 Converter is needed then that is also included. Jan 01, 2005 - We
supply FACTORY shop manuals with every Land Cruiser we sell, both
engine and chassis manuals. These are not Haynes or Max Ellery manuals.
Jan 01, 2005 - The Mitsubishi Diesel Jeep page is coming soon containing links, trivia, specifications.
Nov 28, 2004 - FACTORY reproduction manuals are now available.
Nov 24, 2004 - We now are bringing in HZJ77, HZJ81, HDJ81 and the HZJ73 Contact Us for more details.
Nov 8, 2004 - We now offer Propane Injection for diesel applications. Visit our Propane Injection FAQ for more information.
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| Old News: |
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April 3, 2004 - We now offer 12HT, 13BT, 3B swaps into your trucks.
If you are interested in a diesel conversion, feel free to contact us.
Please check out our For
Sale section to see what is available
today. If you don't see the vehicle you are looking for, contact
us to discuss availability and price. Buying a used Land Cruiser
shouldn't be a "buyer beware" experience. Please check out our FAQ before you buy for a list of commonly asked questions as well as a detailed list of what we inspect on
our vehicles before putting them up for sale.
Also, be sure to check out our sister
site Crushers Rule for complete
restorations as well as Land Cruiser adventures
and trivia.
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