Are you having problems with your Nissan Elgrand? Let our team of motoring experts keep you up to date with all of the latest Nissan Elgrand issues & faults. We have gathered all of the most frequently asked questions and problems relating to the Nissan Elgrand in one spot to help you decide if it's a smart buy.
What is a grey importIt’s a vehicle – new or used — that is legally imported outside the manufacturer’s official import channels.HistoryIn the mid 90’s the various state motoring regulatory authorities and the federal government agreed that a scheme — should be put in place to allow Australians to buy used vehicles from overseas that were never sold in Australia. The initial focus of the scheme was performance vehicles such as the Toyota Supra Twin Turbo, and Nissan Silvia Turbo. The cars became known as grey imports due to the vast number of grey-coloured cars arriving here as they were often the cheapest available in the auction houses of Japan. The scheme now also covers any car manufactured before 1989 as well as many people movers, and various diesel models.The rulesCars brought in using the grey import scheme must go through a compliance process on arrival in Australia to conform with ADR requirements, including changing to Australian standard tyres, emissions control gear, and AC gas.Only certain models that are in some way different to any locally delivered example are allowed to be imported under the scheme. Any other models are hard to comply as the car must go through full ADR testing including a full crash test process. Some regulations have been relaxed in recent years – for example, the forced replacement of every seatbelt.Why buy a grey import?Most of the models available through the grey import scheme are heavily optioned compared to comparable models in Australia. High performance turbo engines, rear wheel steering, all wheel drive, and multi-zone climate control air were all common as early as the 90s on even basic models in Japan. Basically, if you could buy a comparable model in Australia you would have paid more-for-less. The cult status of many grey imports also makes them appealing. The current plethora of Nissan Skylines on Australia’s roads attests to grey imports popularity. Choice of turbodiesel powerplants has also driven the grey market when looking at 4WDs and people-movers in car yards.Owning a grey importBack in the early days of the scheme, when grey import dealers were few and far between, it was extremely difficult to acquire spare parts for many of the plenty of spare parts dealers and many manufacturers such as Nissan are able to bring in brand new parts from Japan to suit. There are also a multitude of specialty vehicle clubs and web forums devoted to these cars with members who are only too happy to help out with parts — or even help with entire engine swaps — for a very reasonable price.The true costsMany people fall for grey imports due to the bang-for-bucks factor. Cars such as the Nissan 180SX offer great looks and performance for a bargain basement price in comparison to say a Subaru WRX of the same year. The trade-off comes when you look at the lack of any service history, and possibly wound back odometers. A full mechanical check (pre-purchase) is a must!Most non-diesel grey imports coming from Japan will require premium unleaded as the quality of fuel in Japan is higher than Australia. And like any performance car they will also need love and attention in the service department too with frequent oil changes.One of the biggest turnoffs for people looking to buy a grey import is the cost of insurance. There have been a lot of insurers who simply cannot insure them due to their underwriters refusing them. In recent years the situation has relaxed with even heavily modified performance grey imports being insured by several big name insurers. You should expect a slightly higher premium, or excess at least, than an Australian delivered model, especially if the ‘T’ word – turbo — is added to the end of the model name…SummaryDue to the number of grey imports in the country now and the cult status they have gained no one should be turned off buying an import. Do your research, trawl the information, get a proper inspection and you could be driving away with a unique, and extremely well-equipped car at bargain price.Top 10 grey importsNissan 180SX and Silvia variantsNissan Skyline and Nissan Stagea Wagon variantsNissan Elgrand People MoverToyota SupraToyota Hilux SurfMitsubishi FTOMitsubishi DelicaMistubishi Evo IV and VHonda Civic Type R EP3Toyota Soarer / Lexus SC400
Buying a grey import is always a gamble. As a car it's decent enough, but I would want to know whom it is I'm dealing with when I'm buying one. I would ask who imported the car, what is its history before it was imported, when it was imported, does the dealer support it with spare parts and servicing.
Nissan told us that "like a number of overseas models, Nissan Australia has studied the possibility of introducing the Elgrand people-mover but, at present, local market demand for this model and its overall business case are insufficient to make the Elgrand a full-volume-compliance model in our brand's local vehicle range. It should be noted that the government requirements, processes and overall costs for a small local second-hand car importer to bring some used vehicles from Japan are different to those for an official full-volume vehicle importer like Nissan Australia."
Because the Elgrand was not officially imported into Australia by Nissan, parts can be a bit difficult to obtain. Mechanical bits are not such a problem as the Elgrand used mostly Nissan Maxima or Altima mechanical parts. But body panels and trim pieces can be more difficult to obtain.
That said, there are specialist parts recyclers that deal in these vehicles. A quick internet search might turn up what you’re after or at least give you a few clues on where to look next. The companies that import these vehicles for sale here also sometimes import spares parts as well, so they’d be worth a call, too. While not terribly thick on the ground here, the Elgrand is popular enough that there will be a part supply industry that has built up around it.
BUYING a grey import requires a lot of homework before you commit. You need to start by checking the bona fides of the so-called dealer and how long he has been in business, how long he has been importing this vehicle, if he stocks spares, how he takes care of customers after they've bought a car from him. Talk to other people who have dealt with him and perhaps even bought one of the Nissan vans from him in the past. If he ticks all of the boxes on that check, do your homework on the vehicle itself. It's important to understand that you know virtually nothing about the history of the vehicle and you won't be able to take it to your nearest Nissan dealer to have it serviced and to buy spares. If you do your homework and satisfy yourself the person you are dealing with is reliable, you can buy with confidence. On the other hand, you can buy a van such as a VW Transporter 4Motion that will do exactly what you want without the potential problems of buying a grey import.
No one seems to be prepared to say what the maximum towing capacity of the Elgrand is; the best we could find is that the tow bar available for the Elgrand is rated at a maximum towing load of 1400 kg. That effectively limits the towing capacity of the vehicle to 1400 kg.
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