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Wednesday, January 6, 2010
A Bunch of RHD Honda Accord Wagons on eBay
For the last few weeks I've been noticing a lot of 1997 RHD Accord Wagons for sale on eBay in Torrance, CA from a seller called Right Hand Drive JAPAN, LTD. They all have around 40-60k miles and a starting bid of around $6,000 with a reserve (their website lists them for around $9,000). The seller describes them as being well-suited for paper routes or postal carriers, but I think there must be some perceived demand from retail consumers, too. Not sure why they're all automatics - you'd think the import crowd might be into a stick-shift RHD wagon.
The 1994-1997 Honda Accord RHD Wagon and Sedan were granted NHTSA "VSP" eligibility in 2004 based on a petition from a registered importer that a similar vehicle exists on the American market. The cars only needed to have some parts converted to the necessary US-spec counterparts like headlights, ECU, and OBDII diagnistics. The cars are now EPA legal as well, having been converted to US-spec Accord emmissions systems, but they still do not meet California's stricker "CARB" requirements. They're appropriately marketed as 49 State Legal.
One detail that strikes me as kind of funny is that these JDM cars were actually built in America. I know they built some of this generation of Accords in Japan, but maybe the wagons were only built here.
Some of the seller's cars are mildly kitted-out while others are stock-looking. I'm not sure how many mail carriers are looking for pimped-out JDM Accord Wagons, but it sure is an interesting alternative. The seller also has on offer an early Skyline "GT-R clone" that's pretty rad-looking for $30,000 and some other pretty intersting JDM classics. They also appear to be working on a 1999 Nissan Silvia, but I don't know if/how this is going to be federalized.
Check out the seller's website here: http://www.righthanddrivejapan.com/ and their eBay listings here.
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I agree that these would be great for a paper-route or postal driver. The fact that they were built in the USA for the Japanese market cracks me up, and regarding a potential market, I know a few people, mostly retired postal workers and expat Brits and Kiwis, who prefer a right-hand-drive car over a conventional LHD model. Those types of folks may be interested in one of these Hondas, as a change of pace from the surplus postal jeeps and RHD Jeep Cherokees and Subaru Legacies that are the majority of the non-vintage RHD cars here.
ReplyDeleteNoticed these guys a few times, there vintage Skylines had me drolling all over the keyboard. That 99 Silvia S15 looks very nice, no chance in hell that will ever be federalized, track car maybe?
ReplyDeleteIf these Honda Wagons were build here in the U>S>, Are parts available, for steering boxes and tranny's?
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to say, if they're used specifically in the manufacture of RHD cars, then the distributor might not have a way to sell the parts to a retail customer in the USA. Not to mention that these are old-generation, so any parts that they had have probably moved on to who-knoes-where. I doubt they'd be kept in the US. Your best bet is to call Japan, or if you're not so good at Japanese then call UK, Australia, or New Zealand...
ReplyDeleteThe mechanical bits between U.S. & Japanese Hondas are almost completely identical, save for the computer & an extra o2 sensor.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, the steering rack body is different, but the internals & tie-rod ends are identical.