Japanese car auctions grade cars with a 3.5 grading for a variety of reasons. The most common ones being:
- High mileage (usually over 100,000 KM) and age.
- If the car is too rough to be classified as a grade 4.
- If the car has had internal damage, or if it has had repairs and replaced panels.
Please remember that grading is not an exact science: A grade 3.5 car might have been grade 3 or perhaps grade R in another auction. On the other hand a different inspector at a different auction may have graded it as a grade 4.
This is why we at Integrity Exports always remind our customers only to use overall grades as a tool to drill down to the cars they may want to bid on. To really understand the condition of a car, you must have a translation of the auction sheet. This is why we have professional auction report translators so you can make that decision with confidence.
We find that the most successful importers really understand how it all works - from the auction to the ship and beyond. Don't get left behind!
