Hi guys! My brother is coming to visit Tokyo in a week and he was planning to go on a tour to USS (a used car auction in Tokyo) Thursday, April 19. However, the guide unfortunately had to cancel. As the tour was a present for his birthday and he was really looking forward to it, I was wondering whether there is anyone else here who is going? He has never been to Japan and I think it would be a nicer experience for him to go with other car-lovers. I know nothing about cars so I wasn’t planning on accompanying him. Of course, if anyone has gone before and could give some more information about the accessibility of the venue or stuff like that, we’d be very grateful 🙂 Thank you!!
5 comments
As an alternative you could maybe try USS Yokohama on Tuesdays too. Quick shuttle bus from Yokohama station. Can’t remember if you need an account for access or if you can register on the day…
I bought a car from there recently.
It is extremely fucking far by train and you need to cab from the station.
IIRC you need to be a member to enter USS Tokyo auctions and to become a member you have to have some legal trade permits etc. I’d love to go as well so if you get it figured out please post an update!
As others have stated, USS Tokyo is for members only. You need to be a registered business in the car industry and have a guarantor and then they need to approve you.
USS tries not to be a tourist venue because their focus is on business. They won’t like you taking pictures or acting like a tourist (though many do).
Your best bet is to email any car exporters in the area and ask if they will take you. I suspect it will be harder to get a yes if you don’t already know the company. USS Tokyo is a busy day for most exporters and taking care of guests is not someone many members want to do if it’s not a buying customer. To top it off, this is busy season for exporters. We usually make about 50% more sales in March/April than the average month.
Otherwise you could try the Facebook group “I Got Screwed by Shady JDM Importers”. It’s become a place where many startup exporters are hoping to spread their names. Many of those exporters are new and have the time in their day for something like this.
If your friend goes, please know that the exporter that brings then can get into trouble if he publicly posts the images on Facebook or videos on YouTube. USS is not happy that it happens and seems to be out for blood these days.
USS auctions are private events that are not open to the public. They require a membership card to access. Though the security isn’t super strict, It’s not a great idea to try and go there without someone who is a member. There’s a chance you could get in trouble for trespassing on private property.