So as usual I was doing a quick search on Yahoo Auctions the other day. And found (and got) this.
The buy it now price was about the same for a normal R33 GT-R key at 5700 yen, so I was of course suspicious. Very suspicious. The seller did not say it was real, but he also did not say it was a fake either. Although I think the fact it came in this felt bag is somewhat suspicious too.
The title of the auction, translated from Japanese was "Nissan Skyline GT-R R33 BCNR33 400R Limited production model Blank key Nismo old logo."
Perhaps it is a replica - but if so, I would think that I would have come across others ones out there on Yahoo, because people usually make replicas to make money. The seller has only 40+ reviews (all 100% satisfaction) and he isn't selling anything else at the moment so... has anyone seen anything like this on any auction site?
Given the price, I thought it could just be a cheap fake as well. But the look, feel and weight of the key feels very real. Maybe it is a bit shinier than it should be, given that a real one would be about 25 years old.
And again, if a fake why sell for less than 6000 yen, then, given that real ones are currently going for 600,000 yen?
Any key experts out there? How much would it cost to make something like this, if you wanted to replicate the real thing?
For comparison with the genuine item - here is a photo I pulled off of Yahoo Auctions for a 400R that is suggested to be genuine (seller does not say "genuine" or "real" in the description).
The seller of this particular one is asking 600,000 yen! Says he got it from a relative who owned a 400R, but stops short of actually claiming it to be the real thing. Condition of his sale is No Claim, No Return. He also warns that there are fake keys on Yahoo Auction, the way to tell is that the tip that gets inserted is "rough" and so to be careful.
So... what do you guys think? Personally, genuine or not I would never spend 600,000 yen on a key, unless it came with the car. I am secretly hoping my seller was clueless and just trying to offload something he had got from someone, but even if it is a fake/replica I think it is very well done (looks like one of the legs of the R is thinner than the 600,000 yen one?) so I think I will take it to Nismo Omori next time I am there and see what they think.