Remote Check or a viewing
Remote Check or a viewing: which does your car need?
Photos show less than you think. So the real question is what you need to know about the car, and whether a phone call can find it out.
- If what you need is answers and paperwork from the dealer, a Remote Check is usually enough. We phone the dealer in Japanese, ask your questions, ask for the photos you're missing and translate what they send.
- If what you need is the car itself — the things that don't show in photos — you need someone to go and look. That's an On-Site Vehicle Viewing.
Neither is a mechanical inspection, and neither is the shaken, Japan's roadworthiness test. We record what we see and what the dealer tells us.
Side by side
| What you want to know | Remote Check | On-Site Vehicle Viewing |
|---|---|---|
| Is it still for sale? What's the total price, with the dealer's fees? When does the shaken run out? | We ask the dealer | Ask it as one of your five questions |
| What does the dealer say about repair history, accident damage and flood damage? | We ask, and mark the answer Reported | Ask it as one of your five questions |
| What do the auction sheet and maintenance records say? | We translate what the dealer sends | Not part of a viewing. Start with a Remote Check |
| What does the underside or the engine bay look like? | We ask the dealer for photos or video. They're the dealer's photos | We photograph them ourselves, the underside from ground level |
| Are there shallow dents, hail damage or paint that doesn't match? | Often not visible in the dealer's photos | We look in person, and photograph what we find |
| Is there rust on the strut tops, the rear arches or the underside? | Only if the dealer's photos show it | Tell us the spots, and we photograph them closest |
| How does the cabin smell? How does the engine sound when it starts? | No | Yes: we note the smell, and film the engine starting when the dealer starts it |
| Where in Japan? | Anywhere | Mainly the Tokai region (Aichi, Gifu and Mie). Further away, travel is charged by distance |
| Price | ¥20,000 | ¥55,000, plus travel |
The full prices, travel and extra charges are on each service's page.
When a Remote Check is usually enough
- Your questions are about the paperwork and the dealer's answers. Repair history, maintenance records, the shaken date, the total price. Japanese listings usually say so when a car has flood damage, so a Remote Check can start from what the listing already states.
- The car is far from us. A Remote Check works anywhere in Japan. A viewing far away adds travel.
- You want to narrow down before you spend more. Every Remote Check report ends with a list of what photos and phone calls can't show for that car.
When it's worth someone going to look
- The things you care about don't show in photos. A shallow dent can disappear completely, depending on how the photo was taken. Hail-damaged cars are mixed in with other cars for sale, and hail dents often don't show in photos at all.
- You care about the underside and the strut tops. On many cars, rust on the strut tops and underneath matters far more than how the outside looks. You can tell us the spots you want photographed closest. Every car is different, so we ask before we go.
- You want to hear the engine start and know how the cabin smells. A phone call can't tell you either.
What neither can tell you
- Whether to buy. We tell you what we saw, what the dealer said and what we couldn't check. The decision is yours.
- Rust under rustproofing. If the underside has been coated with rustproofing, rust under the coating can't be seen in photos or in person.
- Flood damage after a thorough clean. If the car has been cleaned thoroughly, the signs are hard to find even in person.
- How the car drives. Neither service includes a test drive, diagnostic equipment or taking parts off.
Still not sure which one your car needs? Send us the listing and tell us what worries you about it. We reply in English within 2 Japanese business days.
Starting with one, then the other
You don't always need both. If you start with a Remote Check and then decide you want the car looked at, book an On-Site Vehicle Viewing of the same car within 14 days and we deduct the ¥20,000 from the viewing price.
Whichever you choose, the report uses the same four marks: Observed, Reported, Not verified and Not applicable.
If you have a car in mind, send us the link. Tell us where you live and the spots that matter to you.