Imported car query?

[E46lover26]

Hi guys,
I have my eye set on a 2001 bmw 330ci thats for sale. On autotrader, the basic hpi check shows the car has been imported. The car, however is right hand drive and was registered in 2001, so I don't get how its imported? When I check insurance quotes, entering the registration plate, it automatically says no to the question "Has the car been imported?" I am going to see the car this week some point, and I am wondering whether the V5 will show its imported or not?
Thank you so much in advance guys

[dibblecorse]

Australia and Japan and large parts of Sub Saharan Africa are all fairly large RHD markets, possibly from one of those regions.

[E46lover26]

dibblecorse said:

Australia and Japan and large parts of Sub Saharan Africa are all fairly large RHD markets, possibly from one of those regions.

Thanks for the quick reply. How come for quote it automatically recognises the car as not being imported?

[blue_haddock]

Also around that time it was common to order RHD cars from european dealers due to the euro exchange rate so it may have come from the continent.

[Tyre Smoke]

It also counts as an 'import' if it was first registered in the Channel Islands or IOM.

Both would presumably have full UK spec cars, but there would have been some sort of tax implication when it was brought over.

[Captain_Morgan]

Isn’t 2001 still in the timeframe where UK servicemen stationed in Germany could buy tax free cars and import them back home?

[dibblecorse]

blue_haddock said:

Also around that time it was common to order RHD cars from european dealers due to the euro exchange rate so it may have come from the continent.

Of course, forgot about that, loads of stuff brought in from grey dealers in the Netherlands etc.

[E46lover26]

Tyre Smoke said:

It also counts as an 'import' if it was first registered in the Channel Islands or IOM.

Both would presumably have full UK spec cars, but there would have been some sort of tax implication when it was brought over.

blue_haddock said:

Also around that time it was common to order RHD cars from european dealers due to the euro exchange rate so it may have come from the continent.

Thanks for the quick replies guys, really appreciate it
Would I have to declare it to insurance tho, because during quotations, entering the reg, the system automatically states the car as not being imported

[Just Dirk]

It won't always say on the logbook, had a KA in 2002 from a main dealer, was an Irish import but didn't say anything on the logbook.. when we chopped it in we got a great trade in price as it didn't show up as an import.. if I remember the v5 says date first registered and date first registered in the UK, if these are the same crack on.. make sure you get money off for it being imported mind

[E46lover26]

Just Dirk said:

It won't always say on the logbook, had a KA in 2002 from a main dealer, was an Irish import but didn't say anything on the logbook.. when we chopped it in we got a great trade in price as it didn't show up as an import.. if I remember the v5 says date first registered and date first registered in the UK, if these are the same crack on.. make sure you get money off for it being imported mind

Thank you, if it aint declared on the logbook; I don't have to tell insurance right?

[Just Dirk]

How would you know 😉😉

E46lover26 said:

Just Dirk said:

It won't always say on the logbook, had a KA in 2002 from a main dealer, was an Irish import but didn't say anything on the logbook.. when we chopped it in we got a great trade in price as it didn't show up as an import.. if I remember the v5 says date first registered and date first registered in the UK, if these are the same crack on.. make sure you get money off for it being imported mind

Thank you, if it aint declared on the logbook; I don't have to tell insurance right?

[Tyre Smoke]

If it's UK spec, and no mention on the V5, then no.

[Rozzers]

Motorpoint used to bring a load if grey imports in. If they got the specs right to mirror the UK ones, usually the only difference was with brands that etched the windows or had a dealer/ importer warranty that topped up the manufacturer one.

Once out of warranty, no problem, assuming it was an EU spec car and not one destined for Malaysia or the likes.

[Just Dirk]

Motorpoint were parallel imports not grey

Rozzers said:

Motorpoint used to bring a load if grey imports in. If they got the specs right to mirror the UK ones, usually the only difference was with brands that etched the windows or had a dealer/ importer warranty that topped up the manufacturer one.

Once out of warranty, no problem, assuming it was an EU spec car and not one destined for Malaysia or the likes.

[Tophatron]

Any RHD car imported from mainland EU via an official dealer would be a parallel import, not a grey import. Might be worth a look in the service book to see if the PDI stamp is from a dealer in somewhere like the Netherlands, Germany etc.

Should be zero difference between that and a UK car assuming the car has been ordered to the correct UK spec. I don't believe it would count as an "Import" for insurance purposes.

Don't think asking for money off at this point is worth it, tbh - the car should be identical.

[Deep Thought]

A load of cars were imported from the Republic of Ireland around that time. It was an easy and common thing to do.

I would say it is almost certainly from there.

[E46lover26]

Once again, you guys have been so helpful and kind. I really appreciate that. I am going to see the car tomorrow and I will update the forum on how it went

[Just Dirk]

Well?

E46lover26 said:

Once again, you guys have been so helpful and kind. I really appreciate that. I am going to see the car tomorrow and I will update the forum on how it went

[sawman]

Deep Thought said:

A load of cars were imported from the Republic of Ireland around that time. It was an easy and common thing to do.

I would say it is almost certainly from there.

Could well be a mainland euro sourced car - we bought 2 cars from belgium in the late 90's. Both were completely UK spec. one of them was a ford puma, - the list price was cheaper than ford dealers could get them for in the UK - we ran it for 18months, put 20k miles on it and still sold it for more than we paid. no issues with insurance or warranty items at the time.
The other car was a renault - it was laughably cheap compared to the UK cost, we we even got a discount on the belgian list price due to it being a RHD!

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd say it's a european car from the times where you could spec a UK car from European dealers & save yourself £££'s.