How to request a specialist auction sheet search

Step 1 — Get the full frame number

Use the export / deregistration certificate first — it is usually the cleanest copy. Otherwise read the firewall plate under the bonnet or the driver’s door-jamb stamp. Copy the code, the dash, and the serial. A short code like NZE141 or JB64W is not a car. A 17-character VIN is not automatically a Japanese frame; do not invent a dash format.

If spaces or slashes appear on the plate (SV30 0169266), SheetJP will normalise them toward SV30-0169266. Still type what you see and keep the serial. Where to look: chassis number guide and the free find-chassis tool.

Step 2 — Run the instant lookup

Enter the chassis on sheetjp.com (the same form appears on the specialist page). Wait for the result. Four outcomes matter:

• Strong (green) match — confirm the photo and buy the $10 instant report. Do not use specialist search for a car the automatic path can already sell.
• No sheet found on a complete frame — you are not charged $10. The specialist offer can appear.
• Only weak matches on a complete frame — $10 checkout stays off. The specialist offer can appear.
• Invalid format or lookup down — fix the string or retry. No $75 offer. That is not an archive miss.

Step 3 — Confirm it is an eligible miss

Eligible means the lookup finished, the chassis still looks like a complete Japanese frame, and we have either no rows or no green match we will sell. Checkout re-runs that check. A bookmarked checkout link for a green-match car or a model code will be rejected — you will not be charged.

Step 4 — Read the conditions and pay $75

On specialist checkout you tick once that you understand: this buys a search, not a guaranteed sheet; find chance varies by model and age; a partial record is still a find (no refund); a complete miss refunds 95% of the amount charged ($71.25 of a $75 list price; $3.75 kept). Checkout will not start Stripe without that tick.

Then enter name, email (required — results go there), and optional phone. Stripe Embedded Checkout takes the card or wallet. Promo codes are entered in Stripe’s form, not ours. There is no year / auction-house / export-cert upload in this version — chassis plus email is enough to start.

Step 5 — What happens after you pay

1. You land on an “order received” page. There is no instant report link.
2. We email the same confirmation: chassis, 24–48 hour target, reminder of find / partial / 95% rules.
3. A specialist searches beyond the instant database.
4. You receive a second email with whatever was found, or a 95% refund notice if the search is blank.

24–48 hours is typical, not a penalty SLA. If the search will run past 48 hours we should email you. Reply to the confirmation thread if you need status — do not open a second $75 order for the same chassis unless we ask.

If you typed the wrong chassis

A search on the number you paid for is not “not found” if that number was a typo. We may re-run once on a corrected complete frame at our discretion. Otherwise you buy again. Check the plate before paying. Policy: refund policy.

If you change your mind

After payment the search is queued. There is no cooling-off refund for change of mind. If we decline the search before work starts, the specialist fee is refunded in full.