February 2nd, 2023 - Some Internet Sleuthing to Uncover Project PRO.2's past in Japan (JDM CR-X SiR EF8)

February 2nd, 2023 - Some Internet Sleuthing to Uncover Project PRO.2's past in Japan

Introduction

I've said I before on this blog that a big part of what I love about this hobby are all the stories. Stories about a couple friends jumping in a car after work on a Friday and driving all night to look at and potentially buy a car or a part that they'd been looking for, or back in the day, Ed Bergenholtz's CRX with SAP Lives on the bumper and the tragic story behind it... These stories have always intrigued and captivated me. 

Just as fascinating are the stories behind the cars themselves. Their history, their past lives. With a lot of imported Japanese vehicles most of that history is lost, sometimes forever. 

Where my car is concerned, I have a lot of fun playing Sherlock Holmes and trying to uncover the history of my car from various sources. Searching through and translating known records and looking for clues that, more often than not, raise more questions than they answer. Clues that, in their unique way, each become a small piece of the larger puzzle. 

So let's start at the beginning...

Importation Story (Japan to Canada)

As I said, my car came with all of the paperwork and information related to the importation.

The shop that sold my CR-X to me.

Company of Export: World Car Link
Headquarters: Nagoya-shi prefecture, Kita-Ku ward. 

Company of Import: Custom Auto
Headquarters: Calgary, Alberta

Purchase price: 240,000¥  ($2584.28 CAD declared value for duty/tax)
FOB: 80,000¥
Trucking to Yokohama: 26,500¥
K-Line Shipping (RO/RO - Roll On / Roll Off): 55,000¥
Total: 401,500¥ ($4721.24 CAD + $45 CAD for Bank Wire Transfer Fees)

Duty, Tax, Wharf, Soil Inspection Brokerage Fees: $919.85 CAD
Wharf Fees (Fraser Wharves): $199.50 CAD
Shipping from Vancouver to Calgary (L. Hansen's Forwarding): $352.74 CAD
Custom Auto Markup: $1000.00 CAD

Sale Price (Landed): $7038.82 CAD plus $492.72 GST (tax)

While I understand that this is definitely not typical of vehicles imported nowadays, I received the following paperwork with the car:

• Bill of Sale from Custom Auto
• Cargo Manifest (K-Line)
• Detailed invoice from A&A Contract Customs Brokers, Ltd.
• Tax breakdown paperwork (B3 report?) from A&A Contract Customs Brokers, Ltd.
• Copy of an email between A&A and Custom Auto
• Copy of the Bond paperwork from Fraser Wharves
• Copy of the invoice from Fraser Wharves to A&A Contract Customs Brokers, Ltd.
• Copy of the Japanese De-Registration certificate.
• Translated copy of the Japanese De-Registration certificate.
• K-Line shipping invoice
• L. Hansen's Forwarding paperwork
• Canadian Food Inspection Agency "Request for Release Approval" form.
• There was some paperwork in the car when it arrived, including one from Zero Group, auto transport company.
• Receipt from the wire transfer between Custom Auto and World Car Link for payment in full for the CR-X. 
• World Car Link Receipt for Vehicle, Shipping and related items.
• World Car Link Receipt actual value invoice for duty/tax purposes.
• Transport Canada Vehicle Import Form 1

What I found most surprising in all of this paperwork I have, is how many mistakes are in each one of these papers. Some list the car as an '89 CR-X, some have the date of manufacture as January 1989. It's no wonder these gray-market vehicles have added to the confusion over model year vs production date. 

So, here's what I've learned from each bit of this paperwork. Most of this information was date or price-related but there was some additional information from certain pieces.

Importation Timeline:

• February 16th, 2005 - Received first pictures of car
• February 16th, 2005 - Possible date of sale from U-Park Co., Ltd. to World Car Link
• February 16th, 2005 - Date of de-registration in Japan.
• February 21st, 2005 - Date on delivery slip from Zero Group, a vehicle transport company in Japan. Likely the car being shipped from Saitama to Nagoya since the export shipping wasn't finalized until April.
• February 25th, 2005 - Invoice from WCL to Custom Auto, who I purchased the car from.
• March 2nd, 2005 - Additional photos arrive (odometer in photos shows 97,290km)
• March 10th, 2005 - Put deposit down on CR-X through Custom Auto. 
• March 11th, 2005 - Custom Auto wire transferred payment in full to World Car Link.
• April 3rd, 2005 - WCL - Invoice to Custom Auto for duty/tax purposes.
• April 4th, 2005 - Paperwork from K-Line shipping prepared. 
• April 12th, 2005 - Bill of lading surrendered.
• April 15th, 2005 - Date of Arrival to Fraser Wharves in New Westminster, BC (Vancouver suburb)
• April 18th, 2005 - Agriculture Canada and/or Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspection in process of being booked through A&A Customs Brokerage.
• April 20th, 2005 - Canadian Food Inspection Agency release
• April 21st, 2005 - Transport Canada / Canada Revenue Agency cleared
• April 21st, 2005 - Release Date (per A&A paperwork)
• April 25th, 2005 - Picked up by 28 Towing, Ltd. (I assume to take to L. Hansen's Forwarding)
• April 27th, 2005 - Date of A&A Customs Brokerage invoice to Custom Auto.
• April 27th, 2005 - Purchased Car from Custom Auto
• April 30th, 2005 - L. Hansen's Forwarding paperwork for shipping to Calgary from Vancouver
• May 2nd, 2005 - Car loaded onto rail car for shipping.
• May 4th, 2005 - Car arrived at the Alyth Rail Yard in Calgary. 
• May 5th, 2005 - Unloaded from Rail Car.
• May 5th, 2005 - We spotted it in the parking lot at L. Hansen's Forwarding
• May 6th, 2005 - L. Hansen's Forwarding Paperwork was signed for final release
• May 6th, 2005 - Delivered

First picture I saw of my CR-X. I always thought this was an auction photo.

I'm starting to wonder now: what is this license plate?
It doesn't match any of the previous plates that I'm aware of.

Delivered to Custom Auto.

For the longest time, I wasn't able to locate U-Park on the web, due to the poorly translated de-registration paperwork, but based on the photos I was given on Feb 16th, I'd always assumed that the car was purchased by World Car Link from auction, and that "You-Park", as translated by WCL, was an auction house. Only recently, with the available tools now and some additional sleuthing which I'll talk about later on in this post, I've learned that it was sold to WCL from a used car lot, U-Park, and not at auction. 

Oldest picture I could find on Street View for the U-Park that sold my car to the exporter

The U-Park Co., Ltd. dealership in Saitama who sold my car to the exporter.

Cargo Manifest paperwork:

• Ship: Pacific Explorer
• Voyage number: v.10
• Nationality of Ship: Liberia
• Yokohama, Japan to New Westminster, BC, Canada (Vancouver suburb)

A photo of the actual car carrier who shipped my car from Yokohama, Japan to Canada

A&A Customs Broker invoice (breakdown of Duty/Tax calculation):

• Value in Yen to be converted for tax calculation: 228,900¥
• Declared value for Duty in Canadian dollars: $2584.28

Japanese De-Registration:

• The de-registration number was: (Omiya) 大宮５９９ て８６・６６ 
• The last registration number for my CR-X prior to de-registration was: (Akita)  秋田500 に 33・72 
• Car was sold from a used car dealership called U-Park Co., Ltd. at their lot located at:
  329-1 Kagiage Shinden, Iwatsuki Ward, Saitama, 339-0025, Japan
• Inspection status valid until August 22nd, 2005

Last known license plate from Japan, from deregistration.
Rendition from replica license plate replica shop

Last known license plate prior to de-registration. From Akita prefecture.
Rendition from replica license plate replica shop

As a side note: Something interesting I discovered recently, which was NOT done intentionally at all.

The license plate I bought back in 2005 is one digit higher than her last known license plate pre-deregistration. Doesn't mean anything really, but having the VIN be 1 digit higher than my old Project 88 and now this is quite the coincidence. 

Calling Honda Japan

So there was a LOT of information in this paperwork, and I know that I'm extremely fortunate to have been provided access to all of it. 

But I didn't stop there...

Back when I had my Canadian CRX Si, I had called Honda Canada customer service and had obtained a lot of additional information about her, like the day she was sold to her first owner, what dealership sold her, etc. I figured why not try that with my Japanese CR-X too and see what information Honda Japan might have?

So one night in December 2006, I stayed up late and called Honda Japan. Surprisingly, they didn't have an auto-attendant on their phone system, it was a real live person answering the phone. I asked if they spoke English and they did! I asked for Customer Service and they transferred me to an English-speaking agent right away. I provided my VIN and they said they had records they could share but that I'd have to send them some documentation to prove I was the proper owner. Since I had all the records, plus my Canadian registration I was able to provide all the paperwork they needed. 

Edit: Feb 20th, 2023 - I called Honda Japan today and was told that they no longer accept phone calls to Customer Service department. For any inquiries you must email: hm4service@spirit.honda.co.jp

A few days later they replied with the info:

Dear Mr. Andrew:

Thank you very much for calling and sending us an e-mail. We are very glad to hear that you are a Honda fun and use our product for a long time. However vehicle was manufactured for Japanese specification and we doesn’t recommend the car import, please understand that we are not able to provide with our full support.

With reference to your request, we have tried to find any information, however the following are the all what we can find.

VIN:    EF8-10xxxxx [redacted by me]

Model:   CRX

Year Model:  1990

Date of Production: 09/06/1989

Date of Registration: 09/28/1989

Name of Sales dealer: HONDA BERNO AOMORI (This dealer was closed.)

Regarding the repair history, we are not able to find any warranty repair without one recall to be applied. The repair order was to replace the igniter unit, which completed successfully.

We hope this is useful for you.

Thank you very much for this opportunity to reply.

A lot of great, and useful information there, adding some more pieces to the puzzle. But also, a couple more questions... Around this time in 2006, Honda had begun to transition from Honda Verno, Clio and Primo to the all-encompassing "Honda Cars" dealer network, Could this be why Honda Verno Aomori was closed? Did it go out of business?

Could the dealer have simply rebranded as Honda Cars?

Could one of these be the Honda Verno dealer that sold my CR-X in 1989?

When paired with the information from Honda Japan's website regarding archived press releases, we can see that the CR-X SiR was to begin retail sales on September 22nd, 1989. This gives some insight into the amount of time between the car being built, when it was released for sale to the public and when this car was bought by her first owner. 

It could be argued that the closer to the release date the retail sale is, the more motivated the buyer was to get this new model/variant. Was he/she on a waiting list? Was it just a coincidence that they bought the SiR a week or so after launch? Was the delay longer because they were waiting for inventory to arrive from Suzuka? Was the delay because of the particular set of options the customer wanted? Interesting things to ponder. 

 

I reached out to Honda Japan again, but they didn't have any information about why the store had closed, and obviously they wouldn't have information about what happened at the dealership level with regards to circumstances surrounding the date of retail sale and the reasons why.

This time, though, I asked them about information related to the engine and transmission numbers to see if they were original to the car, and I also wanted to ask for the above information again, but this time on Honda letterhead so that it was more official-looking and to their credit, they emailed it within a day or so. 

They confirmed that the engine was the original engine but they weren't able to confirm the transmission though. It wasn't clear whether that was because Honda doesn't keep those records or if the info was too old, or if the transmission was not original. Not sure.

So with this information we can add the following info to our timeline:

Life In Japan:

• September 6th, 1989: Date of Manufacture at the Suzuka factory.
• September 28th, 1989: Date of retail sale from Honda Verno Aomori

General Information:

• Retailing dealership was Honda Verno Aomori.
• This dealership is no longer operating - unsure if this was due to the move beginning in March 2006 to the "Honda Cars" branding network
• Aomori is a prefecture in northern Japan. It's also a city in Aomori prefecture. Not sure it the Aomori in Honda Verno Aomori is referencing the city or the prefecture. 
• Is it possible that this could be the re-branded dealership? Honda Cars 青森 浜田店
• There was an ignitor recall that was performed. 
• The engine in my car is the original engine from the factory.

So matching this up with the info we already have about the car's last registration (prior to deregistration) being in Akita, we can start to paint a broad-stroke picture of her previous life. Akita prefecture borders Aomori. The distance between Aomori City to Akita City is about 200km (or about 125mi). It's reasonable to assume that the car was sold to someone in Akita or that the owner moved to Akita from Aomori. Less likely but still possible is that someone from Akita purchased the car at the Verno dealer in Aomori. 

The trail of breadcrumbs continues...

Using Apps, Tools and Websites

GOOGLE TRANSLATE APP FOR iPHONE

As I alluded to earlier this this post, a lot of websites, apps and tools that today seem somewhat ubiquitous, 15-18 years ago just simply weren't available or as widely known. Remember, when I started trying to get more info about this car, the iPhone hadn't even been released yet. In technology terms, it might as well have been 100 years ago. But as time went on, I was able leverage tools like Google Translate on my phone to translate photos from my computer and to real-time translate images from the camera. Some of those were the service labels found under the hood my CR-X, and I was able to use it to get a better translation of the Japanese de-registration certificate from World Car Link.

From these translations, I was able to determine the following information

Service History:

• October 30, 2002 - Power steering fluid service at 73,840km.
• The date on this sticker is using the Heisei date, where 14 for the year is not actually 2014 (since the car was in Canada), but H14 which is 2002. 
• Service was performed at Kamei Co, Ltd. Possibly by someone named Hiromasa.
• August 13th, 2003 - Oil filter and oil change. Next service was to be 88,500km.  
• The oil change sticker is from an Autobacs location in Akita. The service was performed by someone named Takahashi. 
• The date on this sticker is using the Heisei date, where 15 for the year is not actually 2015 (since the car was in Canada), but H15 which is 2003. 
• The oil used was BP Strata. 
• During those 28 months between the end of Oct, 2002 and February 2005, the car was driven 23,450kms, or on average 837.5km per month. 
• The car was in Akita since August 13th, 2003.

Power Steering Fluid Change

Oil Change at Autobacs

CARVX REPORT

Another tool previously unavailable in 2006 was CarVX.jp, a site offering services similar to CarFax in North America. I wrote a post about it on this blog, and you can read more about that here.

To summarize, here is the information I learned from CarVX:

• According to the CarVX report the accident and repair history is excellent. Not sure exactly where they get this info from, whether it's the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure & Transportation or elsewhere but the following data shows Not Reported with a green checkmark:
• Collision
• Malfunction
• Theft
• Fire Damage
• Water Damage
• Hail Damage
• There was a recall, which we knew about from Honda Japan previously. (Note: For those who remember, it's funny that there was no mention about the Takata seat belt recall that happened in North America in early to mid 1990s. Wonder if it applied to Japan? Perhaps not since my seatbelt buckles do not have the guides installed like Project 88 did)
• CarVX states that the average market price in Japan is ¥830,000 (CarVX was performed in 2020)
• Oddly enough, there was a section for odometer readings with some dates, but the value for the KMs is listed as N/A. These same dates are listed under the Detailed History section as MLIT insection. Since they are two years apart, I believe these would be the dates for the Shaken inspections. Too bad there's no mileage listed. That would have been interesting. 
• August 23, 2001
• August 6th, 2003
• May 24th, 1994 - The Igniter recall was performed. 
• Car was de-registered in Omiya, a ward in Saitama. This was also in the de-registration document. 
• The car was never used as a commercial vehicle.
• The car was not used in a radioactive area and has never failed a radiation test. Not surprising since it left prior to the March 2011 earthquake and disaster, but it's nice that this is included in the report.
• If I'm reading the Detailed History section correctly, it would appear there's a strong possibility that my CR-X was a one-owner car during its time in Japan! 

What I found most interesting is that there were no records from the auction house. No auction sheet, no mention of what Grade they gave the car... nothing. I asked some people involved in importing on several Facebook groups and they weren't able to locate this information either. 

Additional checks online finally led me to the website for U-Park Co., Ltd. where I discovered that they were not an auction house, but rather a used car lot. This was confirmed via a Google Street View search. It appears to be an ordinary used car lot, and not at all like the videos and photos I've seen online over the years of vehicle auction houses (like USS Tokyo etc, with their giant parking lot). This looks very much like a typical used car lot. 

So, based on all this information, I can safely say that my car wasn't sold at auction as I'd believed for all these years. 

JAPAN CAR HISTORY CHECK

I ordered the report from Japan Car History Check on February 5th, and I had the Japanese version of the report on the 7th and the translation of the 3 pages of history by the February 8th. Not too bad considering I've been trying to get this info since about 2006.

I requested the Owner History with no original documents mailed to me. It cost me about $255USD all tolled, and they threw in a copy of my registration document for free, which was nice. I know there were other, cheaper sites out there to get this info from, but I had a personal recommendation for JCHC so I decided to go with them.

I noticed something about Japanese registration info. There seems to be an Owner and a User for each transfer of registration. I assume the user is the driver or primary operator and the owner is listed separately for cases where a bank would own the car until it's paid off when taking a loan, or a parent who owns the car and their child would be the primary driver, things like that. Definitely something I'll need to discuss with someone more familiar with how the Japanese registration system works.

As for the report itself, I found a lot of surprising information in it, but now I have a much clearer picture of my car's history. Though, again, I do need to follow up with someone a little more familiar with Japan's registration process to answer some lingering questions... Mostly about the car's first registered owner showing up as the Owner being Honda Leasing and the User as Honda Verno Aomori. At first I thought the car may be a dealer loaner or demo car, but then a friend mentioned the same thing about his Japanese import. Definitely flagged this one for follow-up.

• 1989-09-28 - First Registration (1st Owner) 
• Owner: Honda Leasing
• User: Honda Verno Aomori
• Location: Hachinohe City, Aomori Prefecture
• License plate issued.
  
  
  
  
  
• 1991-11-08 - Registration Transfer (2nd Owner)
• Owner: Honda International Sales Co. Ltd. 
• User: Hideto [redacted by me]
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• License Plate Issued

                     

• 1995-07-31 - Registration Transfer (3rd Owner)
• Owner: Masayoshi [redacted by me]
• User: Shohei [redacted by me]
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• No new license plate issued.
• 1996-11-22 - Registration Transfer (4th Owner)
• Owner: Onari [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• No new license plate issued.
• 1998-04-15 - Registration altered.
• Address change for the owner.
• Address change for the user.
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• License plate issued.

                        

• 2001-08-30 - Registration Transfer (5th Owner)
• Owner: Toshio [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Kazuno City, Akita Prefecture.
• License Plate Issued

                        

• 2002-04-24 - Registration Transfer (6th Owner)
• Owner: Hiroshi [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Machida City, Tokyo 
• License Plate Issued

                        

• 2002-08-30 - Registration Transfer (7th Owner)
• Owner: Takumi [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Akita City, Akita prefecture.
• License Plate Issued

                        

• 2005-02-16 - Registration Transfer (I don't view this as the 8th owner. This is the registration for U-Park selling the car to World Car Link to be exported to Canada)
• Owner: U-Park Co., Ltd.
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Iwatsuki City, Saitama prefecture.
• License Plate Issued.
• De-registered the same day.

                        

Original Retail Purchase Price In Japan

While performing an inventory of my CRX collectibles/memorabilia recently I came across my CR-X Price Lists again. It's been a minute since I last tried to see how much my CR-X would have cost brand new in 1989, and I thought I should probably take another crack at it.

First off, I don't have a price list from the actual dealership that sold my CR-X; they've long since gone out of business, but I do have one for Honda Verno Fukushima - about 400kms away. I also have a price list from Honda Verno Maebashi, 700km from Aomori City and about 275km from Fukushima. Close enough for me. 

Fukushima Price Matrix

The next thing I wanted to confirm is that I have a price list for a 1990 model year EF8. I know from the letter from Honda Japan that my CR-X was retailed on September 28th, 1989 for the 1990 model year. From the press releases found on Honda Japan's website we know that the EF8 models began selling in Japan on September 22nd, 1989. My hope was that one of these price lists would be close to those dates.  Luckily, during translation, I found that the Fukushima price list was dated September 1989 and the Maebashi price list was dated September 22nd, 1989 -- the same day that the EF8 SiR models began selling in Japan! 

Maebashi Price Matrix

Maebashi Price Matrix

So, we have some somewhat accurate information to work with. 

I have several 1990 model year brochures so I can verify info if needed and I have the Honda Japan EPC loaded in a virtual machine on my server at home so I can look up some options by VIN if needed.

What I know about my CR-X:

• May or may not have come with alloy wheels from factory (according to the EPC it may have come with either).
• Came with Honda SuperSound from factory (EPC and brochure verified).
  
• Equipped with Auto Air Conditioning, glass top, bronze glass, power mirrors and power windows. 
• If the transmission I have is original to the car, which Honda Japan was not able to confirm, then the transmission is not stamped with LSD.
• Not equipped with Anti-Lock Brakes (ALB).
• Flint Black Metallic paint from factory.

From the look of the Fukushima price guide, it seems to be more straightforward than the Maebashi one, but they're both pretty much the same -- just laid out differently, and with a little bit of price variance likely due to the prefecture being different. I've chosen to use the Fukushima price matrix since it's closer geographically to Aomori. I'll supplement and verify my figures with the Maebashi matrix. 

Apparently, the way to use these is to find the engine/chassis you want, then decide on some core factory options to determine your FOP (Factory Optional Parts?) number and Order Number. The Order numbers are the same on both sheets so they're likely the same at all Honda Verno stores, and are likely used by Honda Japan and/or the factory to place inventory or custom orders.

The FOP options were:

• SuperSound (SS)
• Sunroof (SR)
• Glasstop / Bronze Glass (GT)
• Power Mirrors (PM)
• Power Windows (PW)
• Power Steering (PS)
• Auto Air Conditioning (AAC)
• Aluminum Wheels (AW)
• LSD
• ALB
• Fender Mirrors
• Speed Alarm

It looks like all the CR-X EF6/7/8s were Classification 3 according to the Maebashi price list, though the Fukushima only has a 3 on one FOP number. All five colors of the 1990 SiR were available with all of the option combinations:

• Polar White
• Torino Red Pearl
• Pewter Gray
• Blade Silver
• Flint Black Metallic

The Order numbers are:

• 37550 (FOP 1) - Speed Alarm // LSD
  
  
• 7551 (FOP 1) - Speed Alarm // Fender Mirrors
• 7551 (FOP 3) - PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7551 (FOP 4) - PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7551 (FOP 8) - PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7551 (FOP 9) - PS // PW // PM
  
  
• 7552 (FOP 1) - Speed Alarm // AAC
• 7552 (FOP 3) - AAC // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7552 (FOP 4) - AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7552 (FOP 8) - AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7552 (FOP 9) - AAC // PS // PW // PM
  
  
• 7553 (FOP 3) - ALB // AAC // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7553 (FOP 4) - ALB // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7553 (FOP 8) - ALB // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7553 (FOP 9) - ALB // AAC // PS // PW // PM 
  
  
• 7554 (FOP 3) - ALB // LSD // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7554 (FOP 4) - ALB // LSD // PS // PW // PM // GT 
• 7554 (FOP 8) - ALB // LSD // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7554 (FOP 9) - ALB // LSD // PS // PW // PM
  
  
• 7555 (FOP 1) - Speed Alarm // AW // AAC
• 7555 (FOP 3) - AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7555 (FOP 4) - AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7555 (FOP 8) - AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7555 (FOP 9) - AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM
  
  
• 7556 (FOP 3) - ALB // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7556 (FOP 4) - ALB // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7556 (FOP 8) - ALB // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7556 (FOP 9) - ALB // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM
  
  
• 7557 (FOP 3) - ALB // LSD // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // SR
• 7557 (FOP 4) - ALB // LSD // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT
• 7557 (FOP 8) - ALB // LSD // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7557 (FOP 9) - ALB // LSD // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM 

So, not fully understanding the Order Number system, I was left with the process of elimination... looking at the price matrix, the fewest EF8s on the list came with the SuperSound option. So choosing a car that had the SuperSound factory option eliminated a lot of the order numbers right off the top. 

This is what remained after choosing vehicles with the SuperSound option.

• 7551 (FOP 8) - PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7552 (FOP 8) - AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7554 (FOP 8) - ALB // LSD // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7555 (FOP 8) - AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7556 (FOP 8) - ALB // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS
• 7557 (FOP 8) - ALB // LSD // AW // AAC // PS // PW // PM // GT // SS

If my car came with steel wheels, and not the alloy wheels, then there was only one choice that had Auto Air Conditioning and no ALB. 

• 7552 (FOP 8) - Auto Air Conditioning // Power Steering // Power Windows // Power Mirrors // Glass Top // SuperSound

If my car came with factory-equipped alloy wheels, which my car was also shown to have according to the EPC, only one the option codes didn't have ALB listed.

• 7555 (FOP 8) - Alloy Wheels // Auto Air Conditioning // Power Steering // Power Windows // Power Mirrors // Glass Top // SuperSound

So that would have been the order number for a CR-X EF8 with the factory options my car was equipped with.

Using the Fukushima price matrix for a 7552 FOP 8 the price for my CR-X was:

2,011,000¥ (Vehicle Body) + 91,900¥ Acquisition Tax + 56,700¥ Weight Tax 

Using the Fukushima price matrix for a 7555 FOP 8 the price for my CR-X was:

2,056,000¥ (Vehicle Body) + 91,900¥ Acquisition Tax + 56,700¥ Weight Tax

According to both price matrices, that does not include a 6% Consumption Tax, a 3% Accessory Tax, and a 6% Tax on Equipment (eg: stereo, air conditioning, etc).

In addition there's an Automobile Tax of 39,500¥ which appears to be pro-rated in the table at the bottom of both matrices, and the numbers match between them. Purchased in September, the Automobile Tax would be 19,700¥ for a vehicle with an engine size of more than 1501cc. The B16A in the SiR is 1595cc. 

The Maebashi price list also included a table with a few additional prices not shown in the Fukushima price list. Google Translate didn't do a good job with some of them, but most seemed like they were mandatory taxes like the Garage Proof, so I feel comfortable that while the Fukushima price matrix didn't list them out separately, they would likely still apply as "other taxes" as indicated on the Fukushima matrix 'fine print'.

• Climbing Record Expense (?) 10,800¥
• Examination Fixed Fee (?) 4,000¥
• Garage Proof 9,600¥
• Car Delivery Cost 5,000¥
• Japan Automobile Federation Annual Enrollment Fee 6,000¥
• Compulsory Automobile Liability Insurance (37 Months) 60,450¥
• Trade-In Car Cost 5,000¥

And they also listed some common dealer accessory prices for the CR-X, where the Fukushima price list did not list any dealer accessory prices. 

• Floormats 16,000¥
• Visors 9,500¥
• Mud Guard 8,000¥
• License Plate Frame 2,600¥
• Tire Chains 18,500¥
• Favorite Car Kit 15,000¥ (Kit contains: Handy Brush, Meduim Chamois, Clean Wiper, Mini Fluff, Window Washer Fluid, Magnet Light, Emabuzzer (?), Storage Case)
• Total: 69,600¥

To summarize: 

Fukushima w/o Alloy Wheels

• 2,011,000¥ (Vehicle Body)
•     91,900¥ (Acquisition Tax)
•     56,700¥ (Weight Tax)
•   120,660¥ (6% Consumption Tax)
•     60,330¥ (3% Accessory Tax)
•   120,660¥ (6% Equipment Tax)
•     19,700¥ (Pro-rated September Automobile Tax)
•     10,800¥ (Climbing Record Expense)
•      4,000¥ (Examination Fixed Fee)
•      9,600¥ (Garage Proof)
•      5,000¥ (Car Delivery Cost)
•    60,450¥ (Compulsory Automobile Liability Insurance (37 Months))
• 2,570,800¥ Total

According to the historical exchange rate found here, the exchange rate on the day my car was sold, September 28th, 1989 was 140.65¥ per $1 USD. 

2,570,800¥ = $18,271.73 USD

According to the historical exchange rate found here, the exchange rate on the day my car was sold, September 28th, 1989 was $1.1791 CAD to $1.00 USD 

2,570,800¥ = $18,271.73 USD = $21,554.45 CAD

And, if we were to adjust that same $21,554.45 CAD value from 1989 to the equivalent in 2023 dollars using the Bank of Canada inflation calculator, would translate to:

$45,481.06 CAD

Fukushima w/Alloy Wheels

• 2,056,000¥ (Vehicle Body)
•     91,900¥ (Acquisition Tax)
•     56,700¥ (Weight Tax)
•   123,360¥ (6% Consumption Tax)
•     61,680¥ (3% Accessory Tax)
•   123,360¥ (6% Equipment Tax)
•    19,700¥ (Pro-rated September Automobile Tax)
•     10,800¥ (Climbing Record Expense)
•      4,000¥ (Examination Fixed Fee)
•      9,600¥ (Garage Proof)
•      5,000¥ (Car Delivery Cost)
•    60,450¥ (Compulsory Automobile Liability Insurance (37 Months))
• 2,622,550¥ Total

According to the historical exchange rate found here, the exchange rate on the day my car was sold, September 28th, 1989 was 140.65¥ per $1 USD. 

2,622,550¥ = $18,640.64 USD

According to the historical exchange rate found here, the exchange rate on the day my car was sold, September 28th, 1989 was $1.1791 CAD to $1.00 USD 

2,622,550¥ = $18,640.64 USD = $22,003.22 CAD

And, if we were to adjust that same $22,003.22 CAD value from 1989 to the equivalent in 2023 dollars using the Bank of Canada inflation calculator, would translate to 

$46,427.99 CAD

Note: I didn't include the JAF membership, any accessories, or the Trade-In Car Cost since I don't know if they were chosen when my car was purchased, I tried only to include the fees and tax(es) I felt would have been applied for certain. 

SUMMARY: Complete Timeline To Date

Life in Japan:

• September 6th, 1989: Date of Manufacture at the Suzuka factory.
• One of the first 70 CR-X EF8 models off the assembly line in Suzuka, Japan.
• September 16th, 1989 - According to Honda Japan's press releases, the Honda CR-X SiR began selling domestically at Honda Verno dealerships.
• September 28th, 1989: Date of retail sale from Honda Verno Aomori
• Approximate sale price, as equipped: 2,020,700Y
• On Sept. 28th, 1989 that would be the equivalent of $16,893 Canadian ($14,314 USD)
• Owner: Honda Leasing
• User: Honda Verno Aomori
• Location: Hachinohe City, Aomori Prefecture
• License plate issued (Hachinohe 55 ni 9940)
• November 8th, 1991 - Registration Transfer (2nd Owner)
• Owner: Honda International Sales Co. Ltd. 
• User: Hideto [redacted by me]
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• License Plate Issued (Aomori 55 ri 1620)
• July 31st, 1995 - Registration Transfer (3rd Owner)
• Owner: Masayoshi Osaka
• User: Shohei [redacted by me]
• Location: Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture
• No new license plate issued according to MLIT.
• November 22nd, 1996 - Registration Transfer (4th Owner)
• Owner: Onari [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• No new license plate issued according to MLIT
• April 15th, 1998 - Registration altered.
• Address change for the owner.
• Address change for the user.
• License plate issued (Aomori 56 fu 1385)
• August 23, 2001 - MLIT Inspection
• August 30, 2001 - Registration Transfer (5th Owner)
• Owner: Toshio [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Kazuno City, Akita Prefecture.
• License Plate Issued (Akita 500 te 2832)
• April 24, 2002 - Registration Transfer (6th Owner)
• Owner: Hiroshi [redacted by me]
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Machida City, Tokyo 
• License Plate Issued (Tama 500 mo 5201)
• October 30, 2002 - Power steering fluid service at 73,840km
• August 30, 2002 - Registration Transfer (7th Owner)
• Owner: Takumi Yamada
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Location: Akita City, Akita prefecture.
• License Plate Issued (Akita 500 ni 3372)
• August 6th, 2003 - MLIT Inspection 
• August 13th, 2003 - Oil Change at Autobacs Akita.
• February 16th, 2005 - Registration Transfer (I don't view this as the 8th owner. This is the registration for U-Park selling the car to World Car Link to be exported to Canada)
• Owner: U-Park Co., Ltd.
• User: Redacted for Privacy by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation.
• Iwatsuki City, Saitama prefecture.
• License Plate Issued (Omiya 599 te 8666)
• De-registered the same day.

Importation / Purchase:

• February 16th, 2005 - Received first pictures of car from Custom Auto
• February 16th, 2005 - Possible date of sale from U-Park Co., Ltd. to World Car Link
• February 16th, 2005 - Date of de-registration in Japan. 
• February 21st, 2005 - Date on delivery slip from Zero Group, a vehicle transport company in Japan. 
• Likely the car being shipped from Saitama to Nagoya since the export shipping to Canada wasn't finalized until April, so it wouldn't be the fee to ship from Nagoya to Yokohama where it left port.
• February 25th, 2005 - Invoice from WCL to Custom Auto, who I purchased the car from.
• March 2nd, 2005 - Additional photos arrive
• Odometer in photos shows 97,290km
• March 10th, 2005 - Put deposit down on CR-X through Custom Auto. 
• March 11th, 2005 - Custom Auto wire transferred payment in full to World Car Link.
• April 3rd, 2005 - WCL - Invoice to Custom Auto for duty/tax purposes.
• April 4th, 2005 - Paperwork from K-Line shipping prepared.
• Car scheduled to leave on ship Pacific Explorer on Voyage v.10 
• Port of export: Yokohama
• Shipping Method: Ro/Ro (Roll on / Roll off)
• Ship built in 1978 in Marugame, Japan.
• Was sailing under the flag of Liberia (North Trade Shipping) in 2005, but shows sailing under the Marshall Islands in 2022.
• Ship was decommissioned or lost, possible last voyage in September 2022.
• April 12th, 2005 - Bill of lading surrendered.
• August 6th, 2005 - Shaken inspection would have expired if the car hadn't been exported to Canada. 
• August 22nd, 2005 - Japanese registration would have expired if the car hadn't been exported to Canada. 
• Days spent in Japan (from Date of Manufacture to approx. date the ship left port): 
• No outstanding recalls in Japan
• Numbers-matching original B16A engine
• Approximately 97,314 KMs in Japan, averaging approximately 6081/yr 
• Days in Japan, not counting days at sea: 5689

• April 15th, 2005 - Date of Arrival to Fraser Wharves in New Westminster, BC (Vancouver suburb)
• Days at sea: 11
• April 18th, 2005 - Agriculture Canada and/or Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspection in process of being booked through A&A Customs Brokerage.
• April 20th, 2005 - Canadian Food Inspection Agency release
• April 21st, 2005 - Transport Canada / Canada Revenue Agency cleared
• April 21st, 2005 - Release Date (per A&A paperwork)
• April 25th, 2005 - Picked up by 28 Towing, Ltd. (I assume to take to L. Hansen's Forwarding)
• April 27th, 2005 - Date of A&A Customs Brokerage invoice to Custom Auto.
• April 27th, 2005 - Purchased Car from Custom Auto
• April 30th, 2005 - L. Hansen's Forwarding paperwork for shipping to Calgary from Vancouver
• May 2nd, 2005 - Car loaded onto rail car for shipping.
• May 4th, 2005 - Car arrived at the Alyth Rail Yard in Calgary. 
• May 5th, 2005 - Unloaded from Rail Car.
• May 5th, 2005 - We spotted it in the parking lot at L. Hansen's Forwarding
• May 6th, 2005 - L. Hansen's Forwarding Paperwork was signed for final release
• May 6th, 2005 - Delivered to Custom Auto. Picked her up and brought car home.

Life In Canada:

• June 3rd, 2005 - Out of Province Inspection (Alberta)
• 97, 377 km
• August 1st, 2005 - Milestone: 100,000km
• August 6th, 2005 - Shaken inspection would have expired if the car hadn't been exported to Canada. 
• August 22nd, 2005 - Japanese registration would have expired if the car hadn't been exported to Canada. 
• October 30th, 2005 - End of Season
• Odometer 101,641km
• 4,277km Driven
• June 7th, 2006 - End of Season
• Odometer: 101,995km
• 354km Driven
• July 27th, 2007
• Odometer: 102,514km
• 519km Driven
• 2008 - Not Driven
• 2009 - Not Driven
• September 2nd, 2010 - Oil Change
• 102,534km (approximate)
• September 3rd, 2010 - End of Season
• Odometer: 102,547km
• 33km Driven 
• April 28th, 2011 - Timing Belt 
• 102,554km
• Timing Belt
• Water Pump and tensioner
• Crank seal and Cam seals
• 2015-10-07 - End of Season
• Odometer: 103,584 km
• 1,037km Driven
• 2016-10-02 - End of Season
• Odometer: 103,808 km
• 224km Driven
• November 15th, 2020 the car has spent as many days in Canada as it did in Japan, not counting days at sea.
• May 30th, 2017 - Fluid Flushes Performed 
• 103,917 km
• Engine Oil and Filter
• Coolant Drain and Fill
• Drain and Fill Transmission
• Power Steering Fluid Drain and Fill
• Brake Fluid flush
• June 11th, 2022 - Oil and Filter Change
• 104,710 km
• 2017-10-22 - End of Season
• Odometer: 104,099 km
• 291km Driven
• 2018 - Not Driven
• 2019 - Not Driven
• 2020 - Not Driven
• 2021-10-09 - End of Season
• Odometer: 104,422 km
• 323km Driven
• 2022-10-19 - End of Season
• Odometer: 106,099 km
• 1,677km Driven
• 2023-10-19 - End of Season
• Odometer: 107,115 km
• 1,016km Driven
• June 25th, 2024 - Oil and Filter Change
• 107,115 km
• 2024-11-16 - End of Season
• 107,953 km
• 838km Driven
• Average KMs per year (2005 - 2023): 513km
• KMs in Canada (as of 2023): 9751km 
• Never winter driven in Canada and garage stored since delivery. 

As more things are uncovered I will come back and update this. 

 

Remember, this blog was written in chronological order so, you will need to click OLDER POSTS to move forward in time, and click NEWER POSTS to go backwards.