How do you value your Super Custom?

I have proudly owned my Hiace some 12 months now, since I imported it from Japan at great cost, this was a high (auction) grade, very good quality 4x4 model.
During my 12 months ownership I have tried to sell it, mainly to see what sort of response I would get, the response has been incredible, I am saying in some 25 years of buying, selling and importing Japanese sports cars I have never had so much response/interest on a single vehicle before!
Yet I could not sell ?????? !
The feed back I have received from people was....."there only worth a couple of grand aren't they?"!
I was under the impression they had got there information from one or two individuals from this forum or forums alike, who buy and sell old nails???
That's Hiace and other such like Japanese MPV nails.
If this is the case, It might explain the lack of activity and members on this sight

More should be done to promote the rarity of the 'Super Custom' There seems to be very very few in the Uk compared to the 'Estima's and such like

The Hiace S/C is much bigger and better in every way, yet I can't demand £4k for my 1996 Hiace 4x4, it will probably O me £5.5k when I have spent some more money on paint keeping it up to scratch.
For those of you that don't no, you can't purchase a Good quality Hiace, pay shipping, duties etc etc and get much change out of £4k, 4x4 models as mine - £5-6k!
Especially due to the exchange rates and high fuel surcharge... charged by the shipping company's.
Those of you that think all Hiace's are only worth about £2k, think again, better still try and import one your self before you try valuing these lovely old vehicles.
No other 4x4 can do what my Hiace 4x4 can do, I'm talking about space, comfort, off roading, consumption, practability and most of all cost!

So come on guy's, lets do more to promote this site and vehicle prices

You are right as in these are great Van's. The problem I see is that in Aus they are advertised for between $13000-$19000 1994-1999. Now alot of consumers are narrow minded, being they think they are a Hiace, old van look and so on. They are not commercialy advertised and they are Jap imports ( freaking people out ).

What I have seen in the Van world is the Kia Carnival going of. For $35000 they get a fully equipped model, more modern looking and 5years warranty. Now I paid $10000 for mine and I love it, but people don't blink and eyelid at a $35000 loan these days.

These people don't know what they are missing, as in five years there build quality will suffer as ours will still be going and ours will be paid of.

Long live the SC.

Paul
A huge SC lover

I waited for 3 years to get mine, yes it does need a little work but that is half the fun of ownership for me.

Mine was an ebay one, sight unseen, drove 200 miles home on collection no problems.

What do I value it as, well far more than I paid for it. Not that I would ever get that as it is old, an import etc etc.

You say the car owes you, but why does it, you got what you wanted and at a price you were prepared to pay, used it for the purpose you got it for, does that not repay some of your outlay? As you can't sell it at what you want for it you will either have to keep it or lower to the going rate.

There is one on UK ebay at the moment, I viewed it at £3995 in September, very good for the year but to rich for me. I notice it is now £1995 and still not selling.

Happy with my 3.0 SCL, I'll run it until it dies.

i was after something nice and new looking,was gonna buy a galaxy/sharran clone but spotted this and fell in love.i`d never seen one before and yes they are a bit van like(cos they are).when i saw what the hiace had to offer over the clones(still get 7 people in and lots of luggage,clones 7 people n thats it!) it was a no brainer and i snapped his hand off.at no time did i ever think about profit, as with all cars they cost you to run em.the same clone diesel would i admit saved on diesel costs but would probably have cost twice the amount in service/parts over the same period.my guess is if the same cars i was considering were parked against the old bus they would look a bit family worn now and my hiace is probably another few years older without it looking like a sixteen year old clapped out scrapper.

I agree with Maximus, we've only had ours for 5 months but everyone thinks that it is new, not 16 years old. The finish inside and out is great, and it goes OK as well. Paul is right with the Aus prices, seems a lot for an old vehicle but..unless something major goes wrong we will have ours for many years to come

Hello from Canada.

I just join you today.
For my wife and I the Toyota Hiace that we imported from Japan is a 1992 4X4 Lh119v/2.8 engine Pop-Up camper and we are very proud of it.
It was a dream for us in Canada to be able to purchase this vehicle that will allow us to travel across our great country from east to west and from north to south and that in a great comfort. This is polyvalent van, easy to handle, fun to drive and economic. Last year we used it for our first trip and it was fantastic, 1000 km per day without any problems.
The only problem if any is the engine compartment that is small and difficult to work.
I wish I could find a workshop manual for my van but I really do not if there is even one that exists.

Galo...see if you can get the engine manual for the 2L and 3L engine... Toyota publication number RM123E
Other than that, enter your vehicle here
http://www.toyodiy.com/parts/
You may also get some mechanical tips from toyota surf enthuiast sites as the 4wd bit shares some technology

These vans would have cost big $$$$ when new if Toyota had sold them in Australia at least 50 grand I reckon.
A jap import Hiace is better than any new Kia or Mercedes Vito van and will out last them eaisly

"You say the car owes you, but why does it, you got what you wanted and at a price you were prepared to pay, used it for the purpose you got it for, does that not repay some of your outlay? As you can't sell it at what you want for it you will either have to keep it or lower to the going rate."

There is no going rate, this is my point! Because of the rarety of my 4x4, I thought I could gain a small profit from it when done, not loose £2 to £3k!
I hope I don't have to keep it until fit for razor blades, probably out last me

I paid the asked price of a hiace I saw "fairly" local to me off of an ebay add. I had previously looked at some Granvias, and other aces.

Mine was bought to use as a tow-er, friend carrier etc to use mostly on weekends beause I drive a works van.

After 2 years I have had no major problems and to me it has been worth every penny. Especially considering it is a '95 model, and I wonder how many similar Uk bought mpv's would be as good.



"So come on guy's, lets do more to promote this site and vehicle prices"..

GOOD CALL..

Having recently sold a highly desirable sportscar (didn't want to) and got a pitiful price for it due to market conditions at the moment, this is a subject close to my heart.

No offence intended but if you want to make money on a car then you really need to buy a classic. My Hiace probably wouldn't sell for the money I paid for it (present economic situation notwithstanding), but....

I paid what I was comfortable paying, it has sailed through France and Spain, transported the whole family in supreme comfort to a party on the south coast, saved me and the wife a lot of backache with the baby car seat in and out all the time, and delivered loads of other short trips with the pleasure of driving it and knowing that I'm not just driving another box on wheels that is the same as everyone else's.

The fact these are rare is a big part of why I own one. I hate being part of the crowd and find modern cars in this country to have such a lack of design flair and style that I truly despair of the choices available to those not willing to look a little further and see what more interesting alternatives there are!

With all this in my mind - I guess I don't think it owes me anything other than a fair price that I am comfortable selling it for.

If there were a way to target people who value space and comfort in a car then we could command a premium but that place simply doesn't exist and it's hard for us to advertise to the kind of people that the SC appeals to. If we held out long enough I think we might get good prices for these but there are too many others on sale who won't hold out - that's just the way it is. This forum is a start and hopefully will continue to grow over time but we'll never be mainstream even though we all own "the king of all MPV's" (I saw that in an ad when looking for mine and truly believe it to be true!)

Anyways, just my tuppence worth to be taken in or ignored at your pleasure..

agree with shark on the baby seat bit.cant remember how many times ive been arsed off with bending into the back of a car to get the baby in the seat whilst getting wet.got the ace and just jumped in the back wi the little one.seems like a few years ago now(more grey hairs).

two years ago the mate bought a series 7 bmw auto 4ltr petrol..at the time it was just over 3 years old.. he paid just over £20.000, the list price new for it was £83.000..... he reckons now its worth 10 or less .... ......so whats a grand here or there really.....

jimsmim wrote:

two years ago the mate bought a series 7 bmw auto 4ltr petrol..at the time it was just over 3 years old.. he paid just over £20.000, the list price new for it was £83.000..... he reckons now its worth 10 or less .... ......so whats a grand here or there really.....

I think we are all aware that new vehicles drop considerably in price as soon as you drive out the showroom doors, especially BMW S7's!
The point I have been trying to get through to people is the cost of some 'Hiace's' to buy and import in to this country.
If a vehicle after importing o's you £5-£6k but is only worth 1/2 that, then it is not worth doing no matter what the vehicle was intended for.
However I still think most of you are wrong, you pay for what you get!

The Hiace is rare, so a 4WD even more so.
You paid for what you wanted and think it is the best.
You got it to do a job and were happy with the cost, otherwise you would have got something else.
Now you are trying to sell it but need to find someone like you who has a special reason, the market price is the going rate, 4WD or 2WD don't mean a thing when you are buying an old used vehicle which has been imported and you may have problem getting parts and insurance - unless like us you know different.

I hear what you say, but I don't think you will ever get what you want.

5 years ago a Townace would be around £5-6K from a dealer, now with not many more miles and still often in showroom condition you would be lucky to get £1k. I know I've been there.

Clive wrote:

The Hiace is rare, so a 4WD even more so.
You paid for what you wanted and think it is the best.
You got it to do a job and were happy with the cost, otherwise you would have got something else.
Now you are trying to sell it but need to find someone like you who has a special reason, the market price is the going rate, 4WD or 2WD don't mean a thing when you are buying an old used vehicle which has been imported and you may have problem getting parts and insurance - unless like us you know different.

I hear what you say, but I don't think you will ever get what you want.

5 years ago a Townace would be around £5-6K from a dealer, now with not many more miles and still often in showroom condition you would be lucky to get £1k. I know I've been there.

I never said it's the best, but I have said it's a very nice example and very rare being all wheel drive.
For the record I turned down an offer of £4350 the other month.
Yes I know I was stupid and should have ripped his arm off
I'm using the Hiace every day now and is not for sale any more, although still advertised on one or two web sites for sale
Having said that if someone made me a sensible offer, everything is for sale

I think the forum is doing what I hoped it would do..provide help and contacts for people who have / had similar experiences.

New members can only come from people searching the web or word of mouth and as it is a free forum I do not pay for it to be ranked. If you feel like helping,use a search engine, and access the site through a found link.

I think that would push the site up the ranking results and hopefully get more members.

If you have any ideas for new members and how to get them you can always drop me an email.

As for people on this site buying and selling their cars (as trade or private) then so beit. I would hope anyone buying a vehicle of the age we are talking about would get some advice before purchasing.

[quote="Admin
As for people on this site buying and selling their cars (as trade or private) then so beit. I would hope anyone buying a vehicle of the age we are talking about would get some advice before purchasing.[/quote]

Well said! When I bought mine I was convinced I'd paid too much for it, but after a few drives I KNEW I'd got a bargain...
Even with it's quirky ways, high service/repair costs and a lot of head-scratching when something goes wrong, I love it to bits.
I would swap it for a Roller, but I'd trade that in for a newer SC

Mmmmm..........I still say you get what you pay for!

I have to add that I never intended to make money on my Hiace, but obtain most of my moneys back after such a short time of ownership, would have been expected?
After all we all agree they are very rare and exceptional work horses.
What ever numbers are in the Uk now, that is it. No one in there wright mind should import one again, far more costly then 12 months ago due to exchange rates and fuel/shipping costs.
Judging some comments on hear, no one on this site would import one due to costs & I certainly would never consider it again.
For that reason I don't think this site will grow in numbers due to the rarity of the Super Custom.

But hey......I don't want to fall out guy's, this is my opinion.

Long live the SC!

Quote :

For that reason I don't think this site will grow in numbers due to the rarity of the Super Custom.

I think your wrong mate....ebay is awash with recently imported super custom hiace campers, they sell because their size and price makes them a serious alternative to a VWT4. At 5-6 grand an unconverted super custom is up against second hand T4 caravelles or merc Vitos and I know which I'd buy (better mpg, parts availability, dealer back up) but I did buy a hiace camper... mainly because the equivalent T4 would have been double the price, this is also the reason the country is awash with Mazda bongos and Having also owned a bongo I know that the hiace is far superior in size and reliability, so as long as there is a hunger for cheap campers ( I'd say the mazda bongo sales proves there is) then I believe hiace campers will also continue to be imported ...

jimsmim wrote:

Quote :

For that reason I don't think this site will grow in numbers due to the rarity of the Super Custom.

I think your wrong mate....ebay is awash with recently imported super custom hiace campers

First of all I was not referring to Campers, secondly your wright......ebay is awash with Hiace Campers. The same Campers been advertised most of last year, thirdly there is very few units coming in to the country because nothing is selling and there are very few ships sailing from Japan to UK for this reason!
This information was also confirmed by my shipping agent in Southampton only last week.
You are correct in saying there will always be a market for Campers, however they are in a different price bracket all together.
Early 90's models from £8k upwards (retail UK) and before you say there are cheaper ones, yes there will always be cheaper scruffy models about!
I feel I keep repeating my self........you pay for what you get.

The current low value of the pound is'nt helping regarding importing.
I quite like the idea of well thought out campers...but quite a few good supercustoms are being spoilt by people trying to make a fast buck on 2nd rate conversions.
Some time back I was looking for a newer (any brand) alternative to the supercustom...there's nothing in the same league

chrisandhiace wrote:

The current low value of the pound is'nt helping regarding importing.
I quite like the idea of well thought out campers...but quite a few good supercustoms are being spoilt by people trying to make a fast buck on 2nd rate conversions.
Some time back I was looking for a newer (any brand) alternative to the supercustom...there's nothing in the same league

Here Here.....

For those of you that would like to know, I have just sold my Hiace for £3500 cash.
The full asking price over the phone with out even viewing first, what a trusting man
Now in 'Newport', South Wales.
I have to add.... I really fell in love with this machine and I do hope I own one again one day.

Cheers for now all

Good luck for the future mate. Glad you got your price