MVI Direct Imports
28 February 2000, 12:33 AM
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Dave,
The company is STi Imports who are based in Bristol (01454 411300 or 0410 533947) and I have had excellent service from them.
The price I quoted still stands (I just checked with Dave) and it also includes a CAT1 alarm - he calls it their "deal of the month"!
Just to clarify the warranty situation, STi Imports will actually provide the warranty rather than getting a third party to cover the car, ie. it's like getting a manufacturer's warranty on an import - I think that's a first!
The managing directory is Dave Morgan who's a true gent, and has lots of real experience with Scoobys. He's a direct, no-bull sort of person, most unlike all the other dealers I've spoken to and visited in my research to achieving Scoobydom. The others seem like estate agents once you spoken to Dave Morgan! Honestly!
And also, just because they're in Bristol - it doesn't matter - Dave delivered my car to me in London.
And then there's also an excellent courtesy car - a Prodrived UK car!
Personally, I can't fault their service but it's up to you weigh up the pros and cons of getting the "best possible deal" from an import agent or buying from a known quantity and with 'manufacturer-like' backup.
Rich.
The company is STi Imports who are based in Bristol (01454 411300 or 0410 533947) and I have had excellent service from them.
The price I quoted still stands (I just checked with Dave) and it also includes a CAT1 alarm - he calls it their "deal of the month"!
Just to clarify the warranty situation, STi Imports will actually provide the warranty rather than getting a third party to cover the car, ie. it's like getting a manufacturer's warranty on an import - I think that's a first!
The managing directory is Dave Morgan who's a true gent, and has lots of real experience with Scoobys. He's a direct, no-bull sort of person, most unlike all the other dealers I've spoken to and visited in my research to achieving Scoobydom. The others seem like estate agents once you spoken to Dave Morgan! Honestly!
And also, just because they're in Bristol - it doesn't matter - Dave delivered my car to me in London.
And then there's also an excellent courtesy car - a Prodrived UK car!
Personally, I can't fault their service but it's up to you weigh up the pros and cons of getting the "best possible deal" from an import agent or buying from a known quantity and with 'manufacturer-like' backup.
Rich.
28 February 2000, 08:34 AM
#5
Anyone had any dealings with MVI Direct imports from Japan. I am considering importing a WRX and would like to know of any good or bad reports on MVI.
Any other Direct japanese Import agency info would also be appreciated (Not U.K based import Dealerships, as they charge too much)
Any other Direct japanese Import agency info would also be appreciated (Not U.K based import Dealerships, as they charge too much)
28 February 2000, 09:28 AM
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Scott,
How much are you looking at paying and for which model???
I know of a place (incidentally where I bought my STi) that can sell you any STi 2,4 or 5 door for only £24995 OTR and that even includes a 3 year DEALER-BACKED warranty.
Buying an STi5 or 6 without a warranty is a liability - they are prone to blow pistons without mercy if you use 95 RON for example. They also have a problem with their 5th gear synchromesh failing very early in their life. You really do need a warranty because for example an engine rebuild with new pistons and con-rods will cost £5000 and that's not an exaggeration because it's happened to me (and several others on this BBS)!
So what do you do? Buy an aftermarket warranty? No way! I have seen it happen to too many friends and others on this BBS where if the repair bill comes up to say, more than £500, they will send their 'engineer' who will inspect your car and 99.9% of the time will find some way of getting out of paying up. For example they might say that it's a 'manufacturer's fault' which is specifically excluded in the small print.
After reading about and witnessing other unfortunate cases of 'people versus warranty companies' I am almost certain that these 'warranty' companies are only in it for the money and will only pay out claims that are a couple of hundred pounds or so. It's a professional scam and we know it!
Just be careful Scott, yes, you can save maybe a couple of grand buying from an import agent but no backup at all means serious damage to your wallet if you (or your other half) makes a simple error like filling up with 95 RON!
Cheers,
Rich.
How much are you looking at paying and for which model???
I know of a place (incidentally where I bought my STi) that can sell you any STi 2,4 or 5 door for only £24995 OTR and that even includes a 3 year DEALER-BACKED warranty.
Buying an STi5 or 6 without a warranty is a liability - they are prone to blow pistons without mercy if you use 95 RON for example. They also have a problem with their 5th gear synchromesh failing very early in their life. You really do need a warranty because for example an engine rebuild with new pistons and con-rods will cost £5000 and that's not an exaggeration because it's happened to me (and several others on this BBS)!
So what do you do? Buy an aftermarket warranty? No way! I have seen it happen to too many friends and others on this BBS where if the repair bill comes up to say, more than £500, they will send their 'engineer' who will inspect your car and 99.9% of the time will find some way of getting out of paying up. For example they might say that it's a 'manufacturer's fault' which is specifically excluded in the small print.
After reading about and witnessing other unfortunate cases of 'people versus warranty companies' I am almost certain that these 'warranty' companies are only in it for the money and will only pay out claims that are a couple of hundred pounds or so. It's a professional scam and we know it!
Just be careful Scott, yes, you can save maybe a couple of grand buying from an import agent but no backup at all means serious damage to your wallet if you (or your other half) makes a simple error like filling up with 95 RON!
Cheers,
Rich.
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28 February 2000, 01:37 PM
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Yunus,
You missed my point completely - AFTERMARKET WARRANTIES ARE USELESS! The sort of costs that are involved in repairing STis and suchlike are mind-boggling to say the least!
Ask a dealer selling these warranties if they have RECENTLY been successful with claims for an engine rebuild. I don't think you'll find many, if any at all. Warranty companies have all smartened up and won't pay out on our Scoobies with a barge pole!
When they have paid out a few times on the same problem (like the dodgy 5th gear synchro - real example) they will reject further claims saying that it's a manufacturer's defect - which isn't covered.
Tread carefully in the warranty minefield!
Rich.
You missed my point completely - AFTERMARKET WARRANTIES ARE USELESS! The sort of costs that are involved in repairing STis and suchlike are mind-boggling to say the least!
Ask a dealer selling these warranties if they have RECENTLY been successful with claims for an engine rebuild. I don't think you'll find many, if any at all. Warranty companies have all smartened up and won't pay out on our Scoobies with a barge pole!
When they have paid out a few times on the same problem (like the dodgy 5th gear synchro - real example) they will reject further claims saying that it's a manufacturer's defect - which isn't covered.
Tread carefully in the warranty minefield!
Rich.
28 February 2000, 01:37 PM
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Scott
brought my own STi V2 in from Japan, was relatively straightforward too.
Start with a quote from Nick D'Onofrio at Showa Trade email to: showatrd@opal.famille.ne.jp
Tell him I sent you,
top service made it a pleasant experience even tho I made a few minor mistakes with getting it registered. Plus knowing someone who actually got their car makes the buying much less stressful.
brought my own STi V2 in from Japan, was relatively straightforward too.
Start with a quote from Nick D'Onofrio at Showa Trade email to: showatrd@opal.famille.ne.jp
Tell him I sent you,
top service made it a pleasant experience even tho I made a few minor mistakes with getting it registered. Plus knowing someone who actually got their car makes the buying much less stressful.
28 February 2000, 07:06 PM
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Arent STI Imports linked to Interpro ?. I think youll find in the archives some horror stories about these guys. In fact I think one recent one was about servicing.
Rich
You say that STI V and VI's are prone to piston and gearbox problems. If this is the case how many rebuilds has Dave had to cough up for ?. Has he some other members on this list that would come forward to verify his generosity ?. 5k a shot would seem to make his profit margin disapear and then some. Seems like he must be trading at a loss. How can he guarantee that he will be in business in 2 years 11 months when your engine fails ?.
I hope I'm wrong because if the above is true its great. Interpro ran an STI Type R on the Rollers with the diff only letting one set of wheels turn ! and with the bonet up. They did it to the wrong owner on IWOC though.
Jonthan
Rich
You say that STI V and VI's are prone to piston and gearbox problems. If this is the case how many rebuilds has Dave had to cough up for ?. Has he some other members on this list that would come forward to verify his generosity ?. 5k a shot would seem to make his profit margin disapear and then some. Seems like he must be trading at a loss. How can he guarantee that he will be in business in 2 years 11 months when your engine fails ?.
I hope I'm wrong because if the above is true its great. Interpro ran an STI Type R on the Rollers with the diff only letting one set of wheels turn ! and with the bonet up. They did it to the wrong owner on IWOC though.
Jonthan
28 February 2000, 09:02 PM
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You know I visit this forum most days and some of the stuff I read is very amusing.
Why on earth would you want to buy an import?
Why dont you save a few more shillings and buy a P1.
Factory warranty and thrash it for 3 years without a care in the world.
Imports have now had their day.
If you buy one and dont run it on super plus it wil go bang.
its on;y a matter of time. And if anything else goes wrong it WILL cost you dearly.
SO DONT BOTHER
Why on earth would you want to buy an import?
Why dont you save a few more shillings and buy a P1.
Factory warranty and thrash it for 3 years without a care in the world.
Imports have now had their day.
If you buy one and dont run it on super plus it wil go bang.
its on;y a matter of time. And if anything else goes wrong it WILL cost you dearly.
SO DONT BOTHER
28 February 2000, 10:37 PM
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Johnathan,
STi Imports are linked to Interpro in as far as that they share the same premises but are separate businesses with separate owners.
I personally found Dave Griffiths (MD of Interpro) to be very professional, knowledgable and thorough when working on my car.
Horror stories? Well, have you heard the one about Power Engineering (Anders' 22B, blown engine) and Park Lane (court cases pending about misinformation on using 95 RON in STis resulting in several blown engines) and so on and so forth...!
I think you'll find that almost every dealer has been mentioned in a 'horror story' even including some UK dealers that have won awards for 'best dealer of the year 2 years running' (eg. Lancaster, Pangbourne).
Everyone has their good and bad days - we're human after all. Are you telling me that you never make mistakes in your line of work?
There's nothing wrong with making mistakes as long as you admit to it and fix it. It's only bad if you disown the problem or walk away from it.
I think you'll find that if Interpro made a mistake they would have sorted the problem out rather that cause the customer to take out a law-suit to force them to pay.
As for Dave Morgan I think he's the sort of personable kind of person that doesn't hide behind a 'company' to fob off customers. If you've got a genuine problem he'll sort you out - he doesn't wait until court action - life's too short for wasting time like that.
Also, Dave has only just started this new 'warranty deal' - as I've said, it is probably a first. He wanted to 'own' the problem as he and his customers have been let down too much in the past by different warranty companies who haven't paid out where they should have - he's trying to put the customer first, is that a bad thing to do?
I've seen original letters from many happy customers that Dave has on file so there's backing if you need it. And just because a company is 'large' doesn't make them a 'better bet' as far as customer service goes. I know of one person and several others on this BBS that have bought imported UK spec cars from Holland from a small company that you probably wouldn't touch a barge pole with if you saw it - hey, they could run away with your money!
But I think it's quite easy to square up a person from first acquaintance. Otherwise you'll have to rely on personal recommendations.
I'm just sticking up for Dave now because I've had good service from him and wish others to enjoy that level of service that's now missing from the multitude of import dealers out there. Don't use STi Imports and it's your loss in my honest opinion (and experience).
Johnathan, you sound like you've been hard done by judging by the toungue-in-cheekness of your wording. If you have been let down, spill the beans and tell us about your situation. But if you haven't got any hard (and preferably first-hand) evidence to back up your grievances I'd refrain from slagging companies off on this BBS as you're playing with people's livelihoods as we are all human beings.
Rich.
STi Imports are linked to Interpro in as far as that they share the same premises but are separate businesses with separate owners.
I personally found Dave Griffiths (MD of Interpro) to be very professional, knowledgable and thorough when working on my car.
Horror stories? Well, have you heard the one about Power Engineering (Anders' 22B, blown engine) and Park Lane (court cases pending about misinformation on using 95 RON in STis resulting in several blown engines) and so on and so forth...!
I think you'll find that almost every dealer has been mentioned in a 'horror story' even including some UK dealers that have won awards for 'best dealer of the year 2 years running' (eg. Lancaster, Pangbourne).
Everyone has their good and bad days - we're human after all. Are you telling me that you never make mistakes in your line of work?
There's nothing wrong with making mistakes as long as you admit to it and fix it. It's only bad if you disown the problem or walk away from it.
I think you'll find that if Interpro made a mistake they would have sorted the problem out rather that cause the customer to take out a law-suit to force them to pay.
As for Dave Morgan I think he's the sort of personable kind of person that doesn't hide behind a 'company' to fob off customers. If you've got a genuine problem he'll sort you out - he doesn't wait until court action - life's too short for wasting time like that.
Also, Dave has only just started this new 'warranty deal' - as I've said, it is probably a first. He wanted to 'own' the problem as he and his customers have been let down too much in the past by different warranty companies who haven't paid out where they should have - he's trying to put the customer first, is that a bad thing to do?
I've seen original letters from many happy customers that Dave has on file so there's backing if you need it. And just because a company is 'large' doesn't make them a 'better bet' as far as customer service goes. I know of one person and several others on this BBS that have bought imported UK spec cars from Holland from a small company that you probably wouldn't touch a barge pole with if you saw it - hey, they could run away with your money!
But I think it's quite easy to square up a person from first acquaintance. Otherwise you'll have to rely on personal recommendations.
I'm just sticking up for Dave now because I've had good service from him and wish others to enjoy that level of service that's now missing from the multitude of import dealers out there. Don't use STi Imports and it's your loss in my honest opinion (and experience).
Johnathan, you sound like you've been hard done by judging by the toungue-in-cheekness of your wording. If you have been let down, spill the beans and tell us about your situation. But if you haven't got any hard (and preferably first-hand) evidence to back up your grievances I'd refrain from slagging companies off on this BBS as you're playing with people's livelihoods as we are all human beings.
Rich.
28 February 2000, 11:37 PM
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Rich,
Ive not been done by STI. Maybe read the topic on Interpro/STI Imports under the General Section, last post 22 Feb subject STI Imports. Phil Gardeners run in with Interpro is well documented in the past as is Bob Isles.
What I do find a touch sceptical is that with all these problems that Dave can afford to undertake the warranty himself. This after Steve's lack of warrenty. At 5k a rebuild it must hurt if too many V's or VI's fail. He sells his cars at a competitve price that there cant be huge margins in it comapared to other Importers. Personally I'm not sure that many STI blow up, but it just seems a huge step to take on the warranty yourself. As a customer you rely on him being in business - this at a time when the import market is a bit uncertain.
I have no personal issues with STI Imports. I choose DVI when I bought my V and would recommend them, but I'm sure there are some horror stories about them to.
Jonathan
Ive not been done by STI. Maybe read the topic on Interpro/STI Imports under the General Section, last post 22 Feb subject STI Imports. Phil Gardeners run in with Interpro is well documented in the past as is Bob Isles.
What I do find a touch sceptical is that with all these problems that Dave can afford to undertake the warranty himself. This after Steve's lack of warrenty. At 5k a rebuild it must hurt if too many V's or VI's fail. He sells his cars at a competitve price that there cant be huge margins in it comapared to other Importers. Personally I'm not sure that many STI blow up, but it just seems a huge step to take on the warranty yourself. As a customer you rely on him being in business - this at a time when the import market is a bit uncertain.
I have no personal issues with STI Imports. I choose DVI when I bought my V and would recommend them, but I'm sure there are some horror stories about them to.
Jonathan
29 February 2000, 07:46 AM
#17
Can you lot stop bleeting on about buying £27,000 STi's and, saving a few more shilling's and buying P1's.
This started as my enquiry about a WRX, of which I am expecting to pay about 8-10K. That's a few shillings less than a P1 and I don't think a 1994-1995 car will still be covered by a manufacturere warrenty somehow.
So that put's pay to that little saga.
So if any of you do have some info on importing a 1994-1995 WRX please help, otherwise please take you view's and fat wallet's elsewhere.
Thankyou
This started as my enquiry about a WRX, of which I am expecting to pay about 8-10K. That's a few shillings less than a P1 and I don't think a 1994-1995 car will still be covered by a manufacturere warrenty somehow.
So that put's pay to that little saga.
So if any of you do have some info on importing a 1994-1995 WRX please help, otherwise please take you view's and fat wallet's elsewhere.
Thankyou
29 February 2000, 12:57 PM
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Jonathan,
I just read my post again - sorry about the dig about you being a bit 'tongue-in-cheek' I didn't mean any harm by it.
Agreed, Dave seems to be taking on a big step by offering this 'dealer-backed' warranty, but who knows, he might have negotiated a deal with an insurance company or something.
Maybe he's not that daft after all and is trying to appeal to those that are worried by the now major issue in buying an import - aftersales support. (And we know that there have been enough poor examples of that recently.)
I think the best thing to do knowing that STi5s SEEM to regularly blow pistons and have dodgy 5th gear synchros is to:
Get it in writing that "If this car blows its engine (and you can't prove that I used 95 RON in it) then 'the-dealer' shall bear all the costs in repairing the damage." And then get them to sign it and a witness too.
Do the same for the 5th gear synchro-mesh.
It would be interesting to see if any dealer out there would sign such a document as it clearly states where they stand should something go wrong.
Or we could all sell our Scoobs and buy Daewoos - I've heard they have an excellent customer service record, 3 years this, 3 years that, hell you'll probably get a full refund after 2 years and 11 months if you say that you weren't really happy with the car. (they'd probably understand)
Rich.
I just read my post again - sorry about the dig about you being a bit 'tongue-in-cheek' I didn't mean any harm by it.
Agreed, Dave seems to be taking on a big step by offering this 'dealer-backed' warranty, but who knows, he might have negotiated a deal with an insurance company or something.
Maybe he's not that daft after all and is trying to appeal to those that are worried by the now major issue in buying an import - aftersales support. (And we know that there have been enough poor examples of that recently.)
I think the best thing to do knowing that STi5s SEEM to regularly blow pistons and have dodgy 5th gear synchros is to:
Get it in writing that "If this car blows its engine (and you can't prove that I used 95 RON in it) then 'the-dealer' shall bear all the costs in repairing the damage." And then get them to sign it and a witness too.
Do the same for the 5th gear synchro-mesh.
It would be interesting to see if any dealer out there would sign such a document as it clearly states where they stand should something go wrong.
Or we could all sell our Scoobs and buy Daewoos - I've heard they have an excellent customer service record, 3 years this, 3 years that, hell you'll probably get a full refund after 2 years and 11 months if you say that you weren't really happy with the car. (they'd probably understand)
Rich.
02 March 2000, 11:31 AM
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Scott.T
See my post further up, Showa Trade will def get you an immaculate wrx for your cash, mine only cost 10K (before all the vat etc..etc) Give them a go, you'll not be disappointed, you'll also get a newer model than you think going direct..forget UK importers, you'll pay 12K for a 93/94 go direct and get a 9/96 for your money easily
[This message has been edited by Showtime (edited 02-03-2000).]
See my post further up, Showa Trade will def get you an immaculate wrx for your cash, mine only cost 10K (before all the vat etc..etc) Give them a go, you'll not be disappointed, you'll also get a newer model than you think going direct..forget UK importers, you'll pay 12K for a 93/94 go direct and get a 9/96 for your money easily
[This message has been edited by Showtime (edited 02-03-2000).]
02 March 2000, 01:30 PM
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Scott.T,
I've just imported a nice '94 WRX using an import agent called Home Straight. They have people here and in Japan. I specified what I wanted and the budget, they found it and now I'm driving it! Cost just over 10k in all(including VAT, etc.).
Give Ian Paterson a call on 01932 843777.
Cheers,
Justin.
[This message has been edited by Justin (edited 02-03-2000).]
I've just imported a nice '94 WRX using an import agent called Home Straight. They have people here and in Japan. I specified what I wanted and the budget, they found it and now I'm driving it! Cost just over 10k in all(including VAT, etc.).
Give Ian Paterson a call on 01932 843777.
Cheers,
Justin.
[This message has been edited by Justin (edited 02-03-2000).]
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