The subject of parts availability for imported bikes seems to be a prime area of discussion, always. How many times do you hear people say, found this part in UK, Holland, USA and so on. Can anyone explain to me why we source these parts from around the world, when geographically Japan is on our door step, so to speak. After all they manufactured these machines, why can't we have a supplier based in Japan that could procure said parts ??? I feel certain that if such a venture were in place, the contact/ supplier in Japan would have his hands full. Could be a very lucrative venture one would think? Does anyone know the answer? I certainly would like to hear peoples thoughts and answer these questions.
There probably is such a supplier in Japan, but I do not know of one. Another reason may be cost. I don't know the intimate details of how this works, but when restoring my Yamaha YB100 it was often cheaper to get the parts from Thailand through a supplier in UK (who got them from Thailand) posted to Aus than to get them direct from Thailand. Bit like growing soya beans in Argentina, shipping them to Norway to feed pigs to make bacon, then sending the bacon to Aus to end up cheaper than growing pigs here??? Maybe someone getting paid more than me can figure that one out.
It is often the volume of sales that the supplier sells rather than their location that determines price. Webike in Japan are worth checking. Put in an order with a friend and if you buy enough you get free postage. CMS in Holland can often get you OEM parts for your Grey Import Japanese bike that no-one else will. I am quite happy to fit upgraded parts to my bikes particularly if they are cheaper and also higher spec. My Brembo disks came from Italy. Brembo calipers and master cylinders from Bevell Heaven in USA. Brake lines and fittings, cables, grips and throttles from Venhill UK. Magura levers from Bear Sports USA. Wilbers shocks from Zietech Germany. Tyga from Tyga Thialand. A shorter supply chain may have less markup. e.g. Buy direct from Venhill and maybe pay a third the price of your local bike shop, get better service and get it delivered direct to you in under a week. I still buy stuff from excellent Australian suppliers. All my road tyres I buy from Whites Racing Products. For dirt bike tyres I wait for Torpedo7 to have one of their many specials.
Yes ? someone call me? I think Australians just want to charge more .... maybe its taxes ,import taxes ...... dont know too much about that kinda thing. The Yammy dealer here has the same Japanese parts catalogue on his computer that we have ..... he always seems to be able to get anything I ask for. Most genuine parts I purchased off a UK bike shop dealing on ebay.....his prices seemed reasonable and freight was cheap ...... he told me he had to "order some things in" but not sure if they were coming from Japan or Thailand. A good example of buying overseas is parts for my Honda Accord ..... I needed 2 internal filters and the flimsy plastic frames that holds them for the in cabin air conditioning filter system 2 basic filter + 2 frames from Honda Aust. $700+ 4 carbonated filters + 2 frames from the USA approx $50 including shipping. As Mark says above ..... its just horses for courses ...... with the net opening up the worldwide market giving us much greater choice and when our dollar is strong and u can get decent shipping rates , its a no brainer. I have pretty much bought all my Triumph parts from a NZ supplier ..... extremely efficient and have everything on hand and always very good at filling and shipping orders. (http://www.britishspares.com/) Maybe Omar (xcite bikes) can comment on this issue as he imports Honda parts in "bulk"
As mboddy mentioned, it's about the level of demand for parts, rather than proximity. Honda alone produces around 13+ million motorbikes a year, plus units produced overseas. They will only supplier parts for those countries where they sold those specific models. Although Australia has heaps of MC19, it does not warrant Honda Australia to invest in a large MC19 stock due to the "small" number of customers. With cars, things get more complicated. Each model (for example the Honda Accord) will have Jap spec, Australia spec, US spec, maybe a California spec, and so on. This is necessary to comply with local laws. That means the different specs will have different parts, so when you need to buy parts for a grey import, the manufacturer will only supply that part if it is the same as the Aussie model. Otherwise, they will be officially supplying you with parts for a vehicle that they can't confirm complies with Australia laws, and might be legally liable for future consequences. Basically, if you bought a grey import that was never had an Australian model, you will have to source parts from overseas. Now, importing parts in bulk... another complex subject. Honda in Japan sells parts a bit cheaper than Honda Australia. But after you add postage, the price goes up quickly. The only way to make it worthwhile is buying a large quantity. This way the postage per unit will be reasonable. But if the cost is $1,000 or over, you have to add 5% stamp duty, and then 10% GST on the top of it. In the case of Honda parts, I would have to spend $7,000 to save around $500. If I buy from Honda Australia, I buy only as needed, without investing huge amounts. Sorry for the long post. Can't make it short and clear at the same time.
