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IMHO, I would never again buy a car sight unseen. Digital pictures lie like a rug. You're the one holding the bag and usually without any real recourse.
Japan is a very different marketplace, especially the dealer auctions. There are virtually no private car sales in Japan, nearly everything goes through a dealer and there is a large network of auction houses that handle those cars. The auction house itself inspects and grades the car, not the seller. The auction house has it's reputation to uphold, so they have no interest in misrepresenting cars. They also move huge volumes, often 20-25,000 cars a day, so it's a fast pace. The buyers rely on the condition sheet, it's actually very unusual to physically inspect the cars; most dealers buy sight unseen based on the condition report.
I have a friend who had a business bringing cars into Canada from Japan and the auction descriptions were always scrupulously honest, and quite conservative. I bought a Daimler from Japan and my car's interior was described as "dirty and worn" - that meant the carpets needed a light vacuuming and a piece of tape had been put on the underdash panels to hold a toll transmitter. It peeled right off.
Well, here she is! A 1995 Jaguar Sovereign, with a 4.0
Very nice condition, a few imperfections if you get up close, but overall very smart. Got her some new tyres, and have a number of other items I am getting sorted next week.
Give the pictures sometime to load - they are quite large! Hope you enjoy. Lovely colour as well. 180,000ks
Gorgeous Sovereign, I like the way the rims on your Sovereign are nice and shiny. Did you spend a lot of time polishing them? ;D Any hints?
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Yes, polished. First remove clear coat with paint stripper and remover. Start with a lower-grit sandpaper, such as 200-grit. Dry-sand the aluminum, focusing on major scuff marks, stains and bumps. Then use a clean cloth and denatured alcohol to clean the wheel’s surface.After the initial dry sanding, you’ll use a spray bottle of water and increasingly fine sandpaper to wet-sand the rims. Wet sanding helps you avoid dust and makes the process of sanding wheels much easier. Gradually step down your sandpaper, moving from 400-grit to 600-grit to 800-grit and so on. Make sure to rinse off the wheels before switching to the next grit.
As the sandpaper gets finer, it will remove the small scratches left behind by the previous grit. Using sanding blocks can further reduce scratches. They have a sponge-like consistency, helping avoid accidental scratches from sanding too hard.
