Why Japan is where the right-hand-drive classics are

The bubble bought them new

Between the Plaza Accord of 1985 and the collapse of the asset bubble in the early 1990s, Japan became one of the largest markets in the world for European cars. Yanase sold Mercedes and BMW, Mizwa sold Porsches, Cornes sold Ferraris, and Rover sold more Minis in Japan than anywhere outside Britain, with sales still rising by 17% in 1998 while the rest of the Japanese market fell. Japan drives on the left, so where a right-hand-drive version existed it was ordered: 964s and 993s, Minis, Range Rovers and Defenders, W124s and R129s, E30 and E36 3 Series, Jaguars and Lotuses.

Those cars then lived in a country with mandatory inspection every two years, a culture of garaging, low annual mileages and, outside the snow prefectures, no road salt. Thirty years on they are the cleanest survivors of their generation, and they carry a Japanese registration history that the auction system can read back.

Which cars exist in right-hand drive, and which never did

Right-hand drive in Japan: Porsche 964 and 993 (Carrera 2 and 4, Tiptronic and manual), Rover Mini in every 1990s form including the Japan-only air-conditioned automatics, Land Rover Defender and Range Rover Classic, Mercedes W124 saloons and estates, R129 SL and W126 S-Class, BMW E30 and E36 3 Series and E34 5 Series, Jaguar XJ40 and XJS, Lotus Esprit and Elan M100, and a scattering of Alfa 164s, Saab 900s and Volvo 240s.

Left-hand drive everywhere, Japan included: the E30 M3, the Mercedes 500E, the Lancia Delta Integrale in all its forms, the Ferrari 328, 348 and Testarossa, the Lamborghini Countach and Diablo, the Peugeot 205 GTI in most years, and the American cars. A Japanese Integrale or 500E is a left-hand-drive car with Japanese paperwork; a fine thing, but not the argument this guide is making.

Japanese-market specification

The cars are not always the cars you remember. Japanese Minis have factory air conditioning, single-point injection until late 1996, catalysts, and often the four-speed automatic; a 1998 Paul Smith edition is a Japan-only car. Integrales wear Japanese headlights, a rear aerial and non-standard wheels. Porsches may have the Japanese side repeaters and a 180 km/h speed warning. Instruments read in kilometres, which suits Ireland. Some cars were specified lower than their European equivalents to hit a price point, and a few were later given European parts by their Japanese owners; the auction sheet and the photographs tell you which.

Rust is the exception rather than the rule, but it is not absent. Cars from Hokkaido, Tohoku and the Japan Sea coast see salt in winter; ask where the car lived and look at the underside photographs before you bid. A UK Integrale specialist puts it well: a Japanese import, if not from a coastal area, will be rust free.

What they cost, and the tax comparison

Japan is not a bargain source for European classics. Its own collectors value them: a 964 Carrera 2 retails at ¥12 million to ¥20 million, a 500E at about ¥14 million, an Integrale Evo II at ¥12 million to ¥20 million with the 1992 special editions far above, and a good late Mini at ¥1.5 million to ¥2.5 million. What Japan sells is condition, choice and, for the cars that exist in it, right-hand drive, at an exchange rate of about ¥178 to the euro.

Since Brexit the tax comparison with Britain is closer than it looks. A classic bought in Britain now pays 23% import VAT in Ireland and 10% duty unless it is of UK origin or declared under heading 9705; a classic bought in Japan pays 23% VAT and 10% duty unless it is Japanese-built with a Statement on Origin or declared under heading 9705. For a German or Italian car the two routes are taxed identically. For a British-built car, Britain has the edge on duty if the seller can evidence origin, and Northern Ireland beats both: a car in private use there comes south with VRT only, no duty and no VAT. VRT is €200 either way once the car is 30.

The engine’s figures for a 1990 964 Carrera 2 at ¥13,000,000: €96,211 landed with heading 9705, €105,652 without it, against a Dublin asking price of £95,000 for a comparable car. For a 1996 Mini at ¥1,800,000, €16,783 with the heading against £8,500 to £30,000 in Britain depending on the car. The Japanese car wins on condition and history, rarely on the sticker.

Inspecting a classic in Japan

The auction sheet grades the car as a used car, not as a collectors’ piece: it will tell you about panels, paint and repair history, and nothing about matching numbers, originality or the quality of a restoration. For anything above a Mini, pay a specialist to look at the car in Japan: engine and chassis numbers against the paperwork, evidence of accident repair, the state of the underside, and whether the Japanese-market parts have been swapped for European ones or the other way round.

Then check the car against the heading 9705 tests before you bid, because the customs saving depends on originality and the price you pay should reflect whether you will get it. A modified car is still worth buying; it is not worth buying at a price that assumed the duty relief.

1. Ask where the car lived, and for underside photographs
2. Check engine and chassis numbers against the deregistration certificate and the auction sheet
3. List the Japanese-market differences and decide which you will change
4. Check the three heading 9705 tests and price the car accordingly
5. Get the classic insurance quote and the agreed value before the bid, not after