Well I thought I had an importer here in Portland but I was wrong

Ryan

Ryan

New Member
Hi guys. Well I thought I had an importer here in Portland, OR but I was wrong. I had a very discouraging conversation with the guy yesterday on the phone, basically got the impression he wasn't interested in doing business with me. He mostly imports Toyota vans and made it clear to me that he just wasn't THAT interested in dealing with the Delica much...even though he has Delicas on his website that he's imported, worked on and sold...but I digress. I have a contact here in town that used a broker in Toronto to get his Delica. I've sent him a text hoping he'll forward me the contact info, haven't heard back from him yet. If that doesn't pan out I'm not sure what to do. Can anyone make a recommendation?
 
I got mine from Japanese Classic Cars out of Virginia. Good dudes, shipping will cost you but it was surprisingly cheap for me because if you aren't in a hurry to ship they'll arrange your shipment with other guys. I think if you tell them you are looking they can try to find you one.
 
cks4131 said:
I got mine from Japanese Classic Cars out of Virginia. Good dudes, shipping will cost you but it was surprisingly cheap for me because if you aren't in a hurry to ship they'll arrange your shipment with other guys. I think if you tell them you are looking they can try to find you one.
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cks4131, thank you so much for the reply! I'll look into that place :)
 
I don't know what your budget is, but I would just buy a van from Rising Sun. They import only the best ones, go through them mechanically and they are ready to go after that. They may seem expensive, but I firmly believe in the end you pay about what they are asking.

Case in point. I bought my Delica for 6500 from a guy in Vancouver. Drove it a while and decided to get it fully checked over mechanically with a specialist in BC.

Long story short, I am now into mine for about 12K US. The van is totally solid and I could drive it anywhere, but I could have just saved myself the trouble and gotten one from them. (But that is my personality, I want the stuff I have to be always fully functional and ready for anything I dream up.) Remember their prices are listed in CA $'s so you save about 25% in the conversion. I have not been into Delica's that long, but I have been restoring cars for 40 years. I firmly believe that you need to be very fortunate to get a solid Delica for under 10K. Which is still cheap compared to the alternatives.

An alternative would be to get one from a BC owner like I did. But get it inspected up in BC first. Again, I am a huge Rising Sun fan, but there are other Delica Specialist up there.

And Yes, then you need to import it. But you can hire a local company to do the paperwork for you for $150 over the cost of the import fees etc. and not deal with the head ache.

Good luck, let me know if I can help. I am local.
 
Tom Boyd said:
I don't know what your budget is, but I would just buy a van from Rising Sun. They import only the best ones, go through them mechanically and they are ready to go after that. They may seem expensive, but I firmly believe in the end you pay about what they are asking.

Case in point. I bought my Delica for 6500 from a guy in Vancouver. Drove it a while and decided to get it fully checked over mechanically with a specialist in BC.

Long story short, I am now into mine for about 12K US. The van is totally solid and I could drive it anywhere, but I could have just saved myself the trouble and gotten one from them. (But that is my personality, I want the stuff I have to be always fully functional and ready for anything I dream up.) Remember their prices are listed in CA $'s so you save about 25% in the conversion. I have not been into Delica's that long, but I have been restoring cars for 40 years. I firmly believe that you need to be very fortunate to get a solid Delica for under 10K. Which is still cheap compared to the alternatives.

An alternative would be to get one from a BC owner like I did. But get it inspected up in BC first. Again, I am a huge Rising Sun fan, but there are other Delica Specialist up there.

And Yes, then you need to import it. But you can hire a local company to do the paperwork for you for $150 over the cost of the import fees etc. and not deal with the head ache.

Good luck, let me know if I can help. I am local.
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Hi Tom! Great to hear from a Portland local. My budget is definitely in the higher range you're suggesting. I want a great Delica that is ready to go anywhere and based on what I've learned so far, you get what you pay for. I didn't give Rising Sun much thought, only because I'd heard a bad review from a local Delica owner. He was only relaying what he'd heard though, not a first hand experience, so maybe I shouldn't put so much stock into it. I'll look further into Rising Sun. From what I've read they're pretty clearly established as far as the Delica community go's. Thanks for all the info man. If I have further questions I may PM you if that's ok.

Cheers :)
 
I think Steven is an acquired taste. I have heard people complain about the list of work he always suggests. I firmly believe that he just wants to make sure that anything he touches (puts his name on) is done properly with no short cuts.

I have used him for everything for the entire time, over a year, that I have had my Delica. He has always been very easy to deal with, competitively priced, does excellent work and customer service. I would not dream of going anywhere else.
 
Ryan - shoot me a PM, I'll get you in touch with the (Seattle-based) guy who imported mine. He's great and imports them regularly. Last import went to a Portland customer, I think.
 
+1 for Japanese Classics on the east coast, too. But jesus do their Delicas sell fast. Good luck.
 
Not sure if you've found someone to sell ya one out of Portland but my boyfriend and I actually import Delicas (based in Portland, OR).

Hit me up if you're interested :)
 
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