Re:Canadian Looking for Jimny

Hi everyone, 

My name is Steven and I’m from Winnipeg, MB Canada. I’ve been a Jimny fan since I discovered them about 10 years ago while importing a car from Japan.

as some of you already know the Jimny sadly was never offered for sale in Canada and that has made my search even more challenging. 

I joined this forum in hopes of someone in the UK providing some insight on purchasing a Jimny in the UK and finding the best method to bring it to a shipping port. I’ve had experience importing a car from Japan to Canada, but have never done Europe. Hopefully common English will make the process that much easier. 

I have visited some UK used car sites and have found some prices that I would be willing to pay. For reference, my only restriction is that the car must be at least 15 years old  in order to register in Canada. 

So, if anyone is selling a Jimny 07 - or can provide any information on the buying/transport side of the UK I would greatly appreciate it! 

(bonus photos of the Jimny I rented in Cayman)

Thank you,

Steven 

 

Wouldn't it be better to buy a RHD car with the steering wheel on the canadian side of the car?
Lots of Jimnys in the rest of Europe too, but not sure of the car and freight prices.
I know the freight price has doubled in the last year for some lines and countries. Would think that freight would be easy to fix from France to Canada.

Not too hard to drive RHD here in Canada, I’ve imported RHD from japan and never had an issue. Lots of JDM Cars here that are RHD as well.

The main reason why I’m looking in the UK is for easier communication. Not sure my high school level French would work well in France haha.

hope i do not upset the brits now, but the amount of rust on english cars i seen on pictures in here is nowhere near what I seen here in Norway. You must look for one that was treated when new. I think all norwegian and swedish cars are treated upon import so I would buy one of those. (Still rust sooner or later)
But good luck with the freight, these are expensive countries
And for a 2009 I would go for an auto as the manual from 2005 to 2010-ish is not so good.

As has been said. Avoid a manual car from 2005 - 2008 unless it has proof the gearbox has been rebuilt with the good bearings.( Or budget for £1000 to repair so get a good discount)

Cars from Japan domestic market typically rust less as they treat their roads differently so buying from Japan can give some benefit in that area.

Sent from my moto g42 using Tapatalk

Hi Steven,
I imported a jdm Jimny Sierra to BC last September, the process was fairly straightforward. It helps if you have someone experienced with the provincial inspection to help get you through it. I used pacificcoastjdm.com to access the auctions and get it shipped here.
Good luck!
Rick

Hi Martin,
I have a 2007 JDM Jimny with a manual transmission, I shoulda checked with you first!
What should I watch out for with the transmission and is it worth getting the bearings you mention so I don't have to source them in an emergency?
Thanks,
Rick

The bearings are commonly available industrial bearings so you should not have problems, even in a country where the Jimny wasnt sold.

The problem manifests itself as a loud whining noise in 4th and 5th gear. You should get enough advance notice of this but if it rapidly becomes noisy then stop as if you do not the shaft can drop into the rest of the gearbox and destroy it which then does give you an issue as replacement gearboxes are difficult to find even in a country that has the Jimny.

Just take care and be aware that it could happen and do not let a noise in 4th/5th go unchecked and you will be fine.

The issue is that the bearings in 4th/5th dry out and are poorly served by "splash" oil.