Yahoo Auctions Japan - Need help with searching!

[ScottNicolas]

Hey!

As you might know, Yahoo Auctions JP only lets you search number of bolts, not the bolt pattern. So if you choose 18" 5 lug, you end up with 5x114,3 5x100 and so on..

Does anyone have any workaround or tips regarding searching with for a certain bolt pattern? Typing "100" in the search title only gives you auction with 100 in the title, so only a fraction of what is available.

I guess the only way would be to search in the description and not just titles, so far I haven't found this option, but if anyone knows please tell!

Thanks,
Scott

[firelizard3]

5H100

5H114

4H100

etc.

[ScottNicolas]

Ok? Didn't make much sense. If you read 1st post I'm already mentioning title searches are not a solution as they are mostly mentioned in description.

[3rotore30]

Are you able to sign up for an account? It's what I did and it made browsing a hell of a lot easier.

Was there any specific wheel you were after?

[firelizard3]

Ah, I thought you were having issues with irrelevant results (100 in the model name, or price, etc).

[ScottNicolas]

If anyone can sign up I can't see why not. Are you able to search decriptions or anything to help find wheels with specific bolt patterns?

I run a resale business in Norway based on Streeter, got a customer wanting wheels only based on basic design, had to be 5x100. The 5 lug 18" search provides perhaps 90% 5x114,3 and 10% others, so very time consuming trying to find 5x100's.

[180roman]

I pretty much live on YJ, always hunting for wheels and parts

if your customer wants 18" 5 lug wheels, then what are the wheel widths he is after

once you search the width it narows down the result range and you can just browse through them by looking within the customer's price range and style

you haven't browsed YJ if you havent gone through 140pages lol

[ScottNicolas]

I pretty much live on YJ, always hunting for wheels and parts

if your customer wants 18" 5 lug wheels, then what are the wheel widths he is after

once you search the width it narows down the result range and you can just browse through them by looking within the customer's price range and style

you haven't browsed YJ if you havent gone through 140pages lol

It's the most detailed search that limits to 18" 5 lug, nothing to do with what the customer wants.

How would you solve this: Customer e-mails you, he wants 5x100 18" wheels 5 spoke with chrome lip. Brand or width doesn't matter. Budget 80k JPY. What would be your efficient search finding several decent wheels to e-mail back to him?

I can already make a search with most what I just said, except for the 5x100 in particular which then ends up giving you 90% 5x114,3 that you don't want. I run a business and don't have all day browsing the YJ site for one customer. To put it in another way; You wouldn't give Streeter a 4000 item search and ask him to pick out a few wheels you might like, and those wheels are already narrowed down to maybe 5% of the entire search due to wrong bolt patterns, but he would still have to go through them all as bolt patterns are mostly in decription.

There might not be a solution to this, but if there is, I would definitely regret not asking around finding out, as a solution would save me a lot of time! That's why this thread exists.

[180roman]

you should get more details from your customer

"width doesn't matter" does not fly with wheels

he most likely wouldn't want something like 18x6.5 would he? or neither would he want something ridiculous like 18x12

he would most likely have a range of width in his mind +/-2"

so if you find that out you can help make your job easier

[ScottNicolas]

I would understand it if he didn't know if he prefered either 17" or 18", but being given a width or not doesn't make that much difference, if anything, it would be easier without a width as then maybe 200 items would go with what he wants compared to a 100 if he wanted specific width, increasing chances finding a design that the customer likes and wants to buy.

Let's pretend the customer would like between 7" and 8.5", depending on amount offset.. it's still maybe 90% of a 4000 item search as they're almost all within 7-8.5".

[180roman]

As a business the searching part is kinda what the customer pays you for..

if it was that simple that you could do it in 5 mins, then the customer could probably do it themselves

Not having a dig or anything, but just saying

You won't always find what the customer wants on YJ either, it is a limmited resource

this fit's your customer's parameters

http://page15.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/t245318413

[180roman]

and these

http://page6.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/f105845041

and these

http://page9.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/k148565265

and these

http://page6.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/f83105860

that is like a 5min search right there

[ScottNicolas]

I completely understand that. There is a lot more process between receiving an e-mail of what the customer would like, to having the wheels delivered at their door here in Norway. So not only searching. I should mention I run this company between a full time job w/overhours, that's why I'm specific about being efficient.

I'm more interested in the search it self, rather than the specific auctions you are linking to. I find the ratio of 5x100's is still too low and hidden compared to the other patterns taking up most of the search. You end up going into 30 auctions of 114,3 for each 100 pattern.

[180roman]

there is realy no simple way of doing it

if you dont have time for an indepth search now, maybe just do a surface search with using search terms like this "7.5j 100"

usually this will show up 99% of the 18x7.5j 5x100 wheels

you can then select the ones that match the customer's parameters and email them some options saying something like "this is all i could find in the meanwhile, if none of them suit you needs i will keep a look out for you and let you know when new options pop up"

and when you have some spare time you can sit and browse through the 100s of pages of 5 stud wheels, trying to find the 5x100 ones