Japanese auction sheet translator
Copy the details off the car’s Japanese auction sheet, or upload a photo of it. We explain the grade, mileage, chassis number, damage codes and inspector’s notes in plain English, and check them against the car’s UK record.
Try a sample sheet:
How to read a Japanese auction sheet
Every car sold at a Japanese auction is inspected first. The sheet is the inspector’s report, and it is the best record of the car’s condition and mileage before it was exported. Here is what its parts mean.
Overall grade
| Grade | Meaning |
|---|---|
| S, 6 and up | New or nearly new. Graded as new or nearly new: very low mileage and no visible marks. |
| 5 | Excellent. Excellent condition for its age, with low mileage and almost no marks. |
| 4.5 | Very good. Very good condition. Only small marks that most people would not notice. |
| 4 | Good. Good condition. A few small scratches or dents, normal for the age and mileage. |
| 3.5 | Average. Average condition. More marks than a grade 4 and some may need attention, but nothing major. |
| 3 | Below average. Below average. Noticeable dents, scratches, rust or wear that will need work. |
| 2 | Poor. Poor condition, often with heavy rust or corrosion. Expect significant work. |
| 1 | Very poor or heavily modified. Grade 1 is used for cars in very poor condition, heavily modified cars, or cars with flood or fire damage. Find out which. |
| R, RA, A, 0 | Repaired accident damage. The inspector found that the car has had accident damage repaired (repair history, 修復歴). RA usually means a smaller repair than R. Ask for photos and repair records, and have the structure checked. |
| *** | Not graded. Sold without a grade, usually because it is damaged, not running, or sold as seen. Treat it as a project until proven otherwise. |
Houses use slightly different scales, so the same car can grade half a point apart at two auctions.
Interior grade
| Grade | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A | Excellent. Interior like new. |
| B | Good. Clean interior with light wear. |
| C | Average. Some wear, marks, small stains or smells; may need a valet or minor repair. |
| D | Poor. Worn interior: tears, burns, stains or strong smells. |
| E | Very poor. Very worn or damaged interior that needs significant work. |
Damage map codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A | Scratch. A scratch. 1 is small enough to polish out; 3 is large. |
| E | Dimple. Small dimples or dings in the panel. |
| U | Dent. A dent. 1 is about the size of a thumb; 3 is large. |
| B | Dent with scratch. A dent with a scratch through the paint. |
| W | Repaired or repainted area. Signs of body repair or filler (a wave in the panel). 1 is hard to spot; 3 is an obvious repair that may need redoing. |
| S | Rust. Surface rust. Treat it before a UK winter makes it worse. |
| C | Corrosion. Corrosion that has started to eat into the metal, worse than surface rust. |
| P | Paint damage. Paint marks, chips or overspray. |
| H | Faded paint. Faded or deteriorated paint, common on reds and roofs. |
| Y | Crack or hole. A crack or hole, usually in a plastic bumper or trim. |
| G | Stone chip in glass. A stone chip in the glass. |
| R | Repaired glass chip. A chip in the glass that has been repaired. |
| X | Needs replacing. The inspector thinks this part needs replacing (for glass, usually a crack). Get it priced before you buy. |
| XX | Already replaced. This panel has been replaced. On a bolt-on part that can be harmless; on a welded panel it points to a bigger repair. Ask why. |
A number after the letter gives the size, as in A1, U2 or W3: 1 is small, 3 is large. Codes are written on the car outline where the mark is.
Words to look out for
| Japanese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 修復歴 (shūfukureki) | Repair history (accident repair). If marked あり (yes), the car has had structural accident damage repaired. |
| 走行距離 (sōkō kyori) | Mileage (distance travelled) |
| 走行不明 (sōkō fumei) | Mileage unknown. The true mileage cannot be confirmed. Treat every later reading with care. |
| メーター交換 (mētā kōkan) | Meter (instrument cluster) replaced. The odometer reading may not be the car’s total mileage. |
| メーター改ざん (mētā kaizan) | Meter tampered with. The mileage was altered. Walk away unless the price reflects it. |
| 冠水 (kansui) | Flood damage. Flood cars suffer electrical and corrosion problems for years. |
| 年式 (nenshiki) | Model year (first registration in Japan) |
| 型式 (katashiki) | Model code. Should match the start of the chassis number. |
| 車台番号 (shadai bangō) | Chassis (frame) number |
| 評価点 (hyōkaten) | Overall grade |
| 内装 (naisō) | Interior (grade) |
| 外装 (gaisō) | Exterior (grade) |
| 色 (iro) | Colour |
| 排気量 (haikiryō) | Engine size |
| 錆 (sabi) | Rust |
| 腐食 (fushoku) | Corrosion |
| 社外 (shagai) | Aftermarket (non-genuine) part |
| 改 (kai) | Modified |
| 禁煙車 (kin’en-sha) | Non-smoking car |
| 記録簿 (kirokubo) | Service record book. Ask for it: it carries dated mileage readings from Japan. |
| 取説 (torisetsu) | Owner’s manual included |
| ワンオーナー (wan ōnā) | One owner |
Questions
- What does a Japanese auction sheet tell you?
- It is the inspection report written when the car went through auction in Japan: the overall and interior grades, the mileage at the time, the chassis number, a diagram of every scratch, dent and repair, and the inspector’s notes.
- Is an auction grade 4 good?
- Yes. Grade 4 means good condition with a few small marks normal for the car’s age. 4.5 and 5 are better; 3.5 is average; R or RA means repaired accident damage.
- Can an auction sheet be faked?
- Copies can be edited, most often to raise the grade or lower the mileage. We check whether the grade fits the marks and whether the chassis, year and mileage agree with the UK record, but the safest sheet is one from the auction house or a verified exporter.
- How does it work?
- Type in the grade, mileage and codes, or upload a photo for an AI model to transcribe and translate. Either way, our own tables explain every grade and code, and our rules check the sheet against the car’s UK record. We don’t keep photos.
Got the chassis number too? Try the chassis decoder or run a free check. See our privacy notice for how uploads are handled.