Thread: Bought a Jap import D3 4.4 V8 HSE let the fun begin

IIRC, you take out the cupholders and there are a couple of screws underneath-which need to be removed. Then put gear in N and lift firmly straight up to remove gear knob. Then there are a couple of clips which hold that panel in - lift up from the end and they will fly out.

Pretty sure you'll also need to get someone with CCF editing ability to change the country code for your car from Japan to Australia.

Looks like a good buy!

Originally Posted by Landybitz

How did you manage to get round the Import rule? on post 1989 vehicles

He posted that it came over in 2008,the only way it can be registered is if it was a personal import by the original owner.
Andrew

Hi Andy,
There is a yellow Australian import sticker under the bonnet which I am assuming makes everything legit. I've got CCF capability on my MSV 2 Extreme from Blackbox, I'll do the simple servicing first and then venture into the computer side of things when I have some time.

So far nothing has really highlighted itself as a problem.

Brakes were bigger on the 4.4 V8 NA version as you could not fit 17's on this model.
But no, Brembo was not an option either. Only on Sport with Dynamic Response Package as they had the choice for V8 NA or V8 S/C.

Cheers.

p.s. Good Find, My 200Tdi was a Japanese Import too & found many extra's on this model we did not have here.

Hi Pete,
Thanks that was what I sort of wanted to hear, some times the imports can be plagued with things you don't want to have to deal with. I managed to get this one considerably cheaper than a similar vehicle with 1000klms more on the clock and no fruit, a very basic HSE, it was in good nick, clean full service history etc however at some point recently it had done a hose, splashed coolant around the engine bay and a small of hot coolant.
Anyway deal is done now, thanks for the comments, appreciated.

Just got a jap import myself. The Japanese lady speaking on key on was actually from the toll card reader which was located in top glove box. Nimble fingers around the back unplugged the power and transponder wire.
Good luck

Originally Posted by rufusking

Nomad3 , make yourself very familiar with editing the Car Configuration File (CCF). For the Japan market they run a seperate SatNav unit, from memory plugged into the MOST bus (at least for the D4 series). Suggest you look at replacing the LR system if you plan to use a built in SatNav. Trolling through the CCF you will spot a number of setting that need to be changed. Change on thing at a time and test it or you will pull out a lot of hair. Good luck.

On my D3 fresh from Japan the importers just put a cloned NZ disc in Nav unit, as well as reprogramming radio to work the different frequencies, no need to change radio as it creates issues as it is linked to the MOST system via an optical cable I think.