How much does it really cost...

to have wheels imported? I'm not looking for exact per-location numbers but I'm just curious because I'm seeing these wheels for a few hundred on Yahoo! Japan and I'm thinking to myself "why don't I just get this?". I know shipping is the biggest cost and all that, but is there something I'm missing? I mean, this looks like a "too good to be true" kind of thing, you know?

Its more about the difficulty factor. There are companies that specialize in bidding on and shipping products from Yahoo! Japan. Your better off searching them and asking them for information. Try searching Yahoo Japan auctions on google.

I use [url]www.rinkya.com[/url] to bid on Yahoo Japan. A set of 16" TE37's (rims only, no tires) cost me $295 to ship to SoCal.  I am awaiting arrival of a set of 18" work euroline dl's which only cost $189.00 to ship.  I think it also depends on how far the seller is from the Rinkya Japan warehouse.  

Hum, okay. How is it for scam-proofness? (Rinkya)

Never had a problem with them. I am not recommending them, just saying who I have use myself. I'm sure there are also other sources to bring wheels from Japan.

Thanks. I'm a bit excited because I always find what look like really good deals at the auctions, I just want to make sure I'm not gonna get screwed.

hey i feel the same way. i've never bought anything off the net over $100

If you have wheels shipped for that cheap from Japan to the US then that is the most amazing thing i have ever heard of... that's like barely more than the cost of shipping wheels within this same country... which is strange. I think last time a friend went through rinkya for some wheels, it ran him closer to 600 all said and done for the fees/shipping...

Both rims were shipped via SEA which is the cheapest but takes longer. Maybe your friend had his rims shipped via EMS? Faster but almost double the price.

Okay, thanks for the replies guys. I'm basically just trying to set a budget for wheels. Most of the good stuff on Yahoo! seems to be in the 600 dollar range, but I wanted to keep the total cost ~1200 dollars or less if I'm going to get them this summer.

I bought a set of 18 x 10.5, 18 x 13 Work Meister Sp1 from Upgarage and had them shipped for 100 to my door. No tires just wheels. I did it through a guy i know over there. You should look at places like Upgarage, i like them way better than the yahoo auctions and you can find dirt cheap wheels. It's all about finding someone in the area of the store that has your wheels.

i did this once a long time ago, but i was fortunate to have a friend who was stationed in japan for his tour of duty and bid for me on yahoo.jp. he shipped to me in canada from his base using usps and after duties/taxes it ended up being around $300usd shipped (+cost of the wheels/tires themselves)... total delivery time was about 3 weeks.

So Unlike a newb I searched and found this thread. :)

So I am a little lost here I am seeing high shipping prices and in other cases too good to be true low shipping prices.

To ship a trunk to LA was about 300 so I would assume wheels being heavier would cost alot more. Not sure what area Japan the Trunk is in though. Also you guys with friends in the military they get mean discounts on shipping. so Probably better not to quote those prices unless your friends want to offer service to other board members.

I would assume the avg price is some where around 400 to ship wheels to atleast LA?

wheelchoice charges $125 to ship a complete bumper I believe....but once you add up all the other fees and it turns into $300. Still better than rikya.

personally when i went to japan to buy wheels, i looked into shipping and everything.
for an average joe to go and buy wheels and ship them by sea cargo, it would roughly cost you $110 per wheel if you calculate it.
I bought my eurolines brand new really cheap even if after i pay $400+ for shipping. 
I checked out how much it would cost to take them with me on the plane ride back. it was free. so i went that route and sent my suspension by sea cargo for $100

Those are the option for someone who might want to purchase wheels if you are in japan.