L300, Low Mileage on the West Coast

ceewaien

ceewaien

New Member
Hi all,

We're a small family based in LA on the hunt for a 3rd generation Delica for our adventures.

Our criteria:
≈$15k
Low mileage, under 80,000 mi/130,000 km
Automatic transmission
Crystal lite is ideal, not necessary
Good mechanical condition, general maintenance/repairs ok
Auction grade 3.5 or above
Minimal rust
Clean interior, shouldn't smell of smoke
Does not need to be registered in CA

Any leads would be grateful. Looking forward to becoming part of the Delica club!

Thank you,
Cynthia
 
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Might want to list your budget, condition of Deli 'fully sorted' vs needs maint/repairs and whether you are looking for one already registered in California? sub 80k, sorted & already reg'd in Calif is going to certainly increase price. Good luck with the searach.
 
Thanks for the feedback, adjusting post now

bikerjosh said:
Might want to list your budget, condition of Deli 'fully sorted' vs needs maint/repairs and whether you are looking for one already registered in California? sub 80k, sorted & already reg'd in Calif is going to certainly increase price. Good luck with the searach.
Click to expand...
 
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ceewaien said:
Hi all,

We're a small family based in LA on the hunt for a 3rd generation Delica for our adventures.

Our criteria:
≈$15k
Low mileage, under 80k
Manual preferred, but will consider Auto
Crystal lite is ideal, not necessary
Good mechanical condition, general maintenance/repairs ok
Auction grade 3.5 or above
Minimal rust
Does not need to be registered in CA

Any leads would be grateful. Looking forward to becoming part of the Delica club!

Thank you,
Cynthia
Click to expand...

I'd encourage you to look into the manual vs. auto aspect. I've driven both and find the auto performs quite well even off-road. Additionally, there is a a significant gearing difference that keeps the manual under 60 mph.
 
Good to know. It was more of a preference, and we tried researching about the difference, and couldn't find much.

ccmickelson said:
I'd encourage you to look into the manual vs. auto aspect. I've driven both and find the auto performs quite well even off-road. Additionally, there is a a significant gearing difference that keeps the manual under 60 mph.
Click to expand...
 
ceewaien said:
Our criteria:
  • ≈$15k
  • Low mileage, under 80k
  • Automatic Transmission
  • Crystal lite is ideal, not necessary
  • Good mechanical condition, general maintenance/repairs ok
  • Auction grade 3.5 or above
  • Minimal rust
  • Clean interior, shouldn't smell of smoke
  • Does not need to be registered in CA
Any leads would be grateful. Looking forward to becoming part of the Delica club!
Click to expand...
I think it's possible to find some/most of your criteria... (You do mean 80k miles aka 130,000km not 80,000 km aka 50,000 miles, right? Finding a 25+ year old car that was driven 2,500 miles a year might be a bit "hard") Not to mention, the reality of the reported mileage from Japan is "suspect"

For my 91 Delica (which I've spent a bit of time/money/effort on)
  • Paid $11,500 (Had a high budget of $16k for a well sorted Delica)
  • Automatic Transmission
  • Crystal Lite
  • Minimal Rust
  • No Smoke Smell, but carpet needs replacement
  • High mileage (290k km), BUT new D4BF engine installed in 2016 (was a huge plus for me)
  • As for CA Registration, it was registered in Montana BUT previous owner attempted to register as direct import in CA, thus had to spend $4k
All in ll, I love my Delica (as obvious by the work I've put into her) but if I had the option again, I would have tried to avoid the nightmare of registration I went through. But, I am fully CA legal now!
 
We meant 80k mi, clarified that above.

Also, heard that CA registration is a nightmare. Any advice or recommended route there? I have family in MN, so was thinking about registering it there, if possible, if we end up buying from a dealer. Congrats on the registration and your van setup is great! We're thinking something similar.


sck_nogas said:
I think it's possible to find some/most of your criteria... (You do mean 80k miles aka 130,000km not 80,000 km aka 50,000 miles, right? Finding a 25+ year old car that was driven 2,500 miles a year might be a bit "hard") Not to mention, the reality of the reported mileage from Japan is "suspect"

For my 91 Delica (which I've spent a bit of time/money/effort on)
  • Paid $11,500 (Had a high budget of $16k for a well sorted Delica)
  • Automatic Transmission
  • Crystal Lite
  • Minimal Rust
  • No Smoke Smell, but carpet needs replacement
  • High mileage (290k km), BUT new D4BF engine installed in 2016 (was a huge plus for me)
  • As for CA Registration, it was registered in Montana BUT previous owner attempted to register as direct import in CA, thus had to spend $4k
All in ll, I love my Delica (as obvious by the work I've put into her) but if I had the option again, I would have tried to avoid the nightmare of registration I went through. But, I am fully CA legal now!
Click to expand...
 
ceewaien said:
Also, heard that CA registration is a nightmare. Any advice or recommended route there? I have family in MN, so was thinking about registering it there, if possible, if we end up buying from a dealer.
Click to expand...
It can be a problem no matter who you buy it from. I would say, either...
  • Buy the US registered Delica that you like, then try to register it in CA. If you have any issues, then "your family" takes it off your hands and registers it there. As long as there is no annual inspection requirements.
  • But the best Japan/Canada Delica and import it yourself, then register it with "your family". Ditto on the "As long as there is no annual inspection requirements."
If you do your own import, you may save a lot BUT you may also get screwed over by the importer/auction when "your" vehicle arrives. Some people have bought a blue MINT condition L300, and what arrives on the boat is red and rusted. Then it's a hassle to get straightened out.

Since my high budget price was enough to cover buying a Delica plus getting it CA-Legal, I just let it go. But, I had fallback plans in other states as well.

Hope that helps and good luck!
 
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