importing a Cerbera to the USA - Sept/Oct 2022

[unrepentant]

I'm so tempted to look into doing this. One of the things that hurt when I left the UK was parting with my Sagaris. I've always loved the Cerbie and now they have reached the magic age....

I live in Indiana where there are no vehicle emission tests / inspections etc.. and I know several people who have imported older Land Rovers an other vehicles from the UK. Food for thought.

[goo-goo-gjoob]

Well, I have some news…I am going to be auctioning my Cerbera for sale very soon. I recently imported the car and have put only about 300 miles on it. I bought the car and went through all the trouble of importing it because it has been my long-time dream car since I was a kid. Unfortunately, changes in some personal circumstances are forcing a reluctant sale.

I’m posting this because the entire TVR community knows that I just got this car over here in Texas and also I want to give a heads-up notice.

I am very confident in the overall condition of the car, because the car had a body-off chassis restoration, an engine rebuild and transmission rebuild in the past, and then both the dealership and Powers Performance did a lot of work to this car to prepare it prior to leaving for the USA, including some engine-out maintenance. I am also confident that I am going to present the car very well in the auction. The car overall is in great condition but does have some small issues, mostly typical TVR stuff, and everything will be disclosed in the advert.

Just putting this out there as a heads-up notice in case anyone is seriously looking for a Cerbera and would like one that is already here in the USA. The car will be available soon via Bring A Trailer auction, and I will be listing it at No Reserve! If anyone would like to come see the car and test drive it prior to the auction, it is ready to go at any moment. I believe the auction will go live within the next week or so. Just to be clear, the car will be sold through the auction, not through PMs, so this is just advance notice that the auction is coming soon.

[LucyP]

All that hassle, cost, excitement and 300 miles later and such a specialist, rare and difficult to maintain car in the USA is for sale, (and at no no reserve!) with next to no explanation as to why, which doesn't inspire confidence.

And maybe you should read the posts on here:

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/bring-a...

I think "Tony of Schaumburg" dated 12 April 23 sums up the no reserve issue, and "Bob of Columbus" dated 1 November 22 sums up the potential problems.

And any buyers shouldn't forget the 5% commission.

[unrepentant]

I don’t understand why anyone would list a vehicle without reserve in an online auction. It is fraught with danger. And with a car like a Cerbera that is relatively unknown over here and is likely to have a minuscule potential market I would have thought it was suicidal.

I’m in the new and used luxury / sports car business in the US and our pre owned manager spends half his life buying cars at auction online. These are trade auctions and there is always a reserve. We are regularly the top bidder but don’t get the car because it fails to hit reserve.

I would have thought it would be better to place the car on consignment with someone like https://www.wirewheel.com/ who actually sell cars like this.

[goo-goo-gjoob]

LucyP said:

All that hassle, cost, excitement and 300 miles later and such a specialist, rare and difficult to maintain car in the USA is for sale, (and at no no reserve!) with next to no explanation as to why, which doesn't inspire confidence.

And maybe you should read the posts on here:

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/bring-a...

I think "Tony of Schaumburg" dated 12 April 23 sums up the no reserve issue, and "Bob of Columbus" dated 1 November 22 sums up the potential problems.

And any buyers shouldn't forget the 5% commission.

Thank you for the info, LucyP.

I read through the first page of consumer complaints on that link. I get the impression that a lot of those people giving BaT bad reviews either don't have the correct type of car or think their car is more than what it will sell for or simply don't understand how BaT works. That's why their cars are getting rejected or BaT is asking them to lower their reserve. It's supposed to be for special, collector, or exotic cars. If people try to post a normal car there and are asking premium prices for it then BaT is going to reject it or stop trying to convince people of the price that it will sell at on the market. They can only handle so many cars at one time.

I have already sold one of my cars through BaT and had a great experience, and my experience working with them so far with the TVR has been great as well.

Some of the complaints about the buyer/seller communicating are valid but those are the same issues that might happen with any person to person sale. BaT connects a seller with a buyer but it's on them to complete the transaction. The advantage of using BaT is the nation-wide reach.

Yes, buyers pay a 5% fee to BaT and they know that. But this is still a private person to person sale which means I have the potential to get more money than I would if I were to trade it in or sell to a dealership or something and only get wholesale or trade-in value, even if the buyer may have to subtract the 5% fee out of what they can afford to bid.

[goo-goo-gjoob]

unrepentant said:

I don’t understand why anyone would list a vehicle without reserve in an online auction. It is fraught with danger. And with a car like a Cerbera that is relatively unknown over here and is likely to have a minuscule potential market I would have thought it was suicidal.

I’m in the new and used luxury / sports car business in the US and our pre owned manager spends half his life buying cars at auction online. These are trade auctions and there is always a reserve. We are regularly the top bidder but don’t get the car because it fails to hit reserve.

I would have thought it would be better to place the car on consignment with someone like https://www.wirewheel.com/ who actually sell cars like this.

I'm listing it with no reserve because I fully believe it will go well, meaning I think the bidding will go at least as high as the reserve that I would have set, so therefore why even set one? With no reserve, everyone knows if they bid they can win it. This attracts more bidders. BaT No Reserve listings do attract more views than the other listings.
I did originally think about a reserve, but I was thinking what would the car actually sell for, not what price would I really want, and the number that the car would actually sell for I think the bidding would go that high whether there is a reserve or not. So, what's the point of setting a reserve? Lots of cars listed have no reserves because the seller knows the car is going to sell for at least what they want.
Plus, I think that putting a reserve scares some people away because they will not bid because they are guessing what the reserve is and they don't think they can afford it.
Putting no reserve takes all the guessing and doubting out. The highest bidder wins.

I understand what you're saying, about how the market for a Cerbera is tiny over here, and I know that the very person who is looking for one might not be out there right now or may not have the funds or may not be ready, etc. But, I also think that there are at least a few people out there who do want one and who are looking for one, and I only need one of them. Plus, even if the number of potential buyers is small, the people who do want a Cerbera are actively looking for one. I know when I was looking I was checking every website regularly. To whoever is actively looking for one, the fact that my car is already here and already registered could cause my car to be "the one".
So yes, I agree with you that the market is small. But I think it is worth the risk. And there is no reward without risk.

I'm not interested in putting it on consignment because then I would have ship it somewhere, like to Florida for that British car dealer that you suggested, and then wait for who knows how long for them to sell it while being worried about the car while it is not in my possession. I really don't want some random dealership to have their hands on my personal car while it still belongs to me.

I could possibly sell it to a dealership, but I also have no interest in doing that over here because they're going to give me trade-in value. I even thought about selling it to a dealership in the UK, since the market there is larger, but then I would have the same problem with trade-in value plus the cost of shipping.

I think selling it privately on BaT would probably at least get me what a dealership would offer and probably a whole lot more. So, for me it just makes sense to sell it at auction on BaT. That's pretty much how I arrived at my decision.

[sixor8]

Searching on BaT, there isn't a single TVR listed at present. So anybody in North America interested in a TVR may well be interested.

[GTRene]

sixor8 said:

Searching on BaT, there isn't a single TVR listed at present. So anybody in North America interested in a TVR may well be interested.

say what?

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1997-tvr-cerbera...

[unrepentant]

goo-goo-gjoob said:

I understand what you're saying, about how the market for a Cerbera is tiny over here, and I know that the very person who is looking for one might not be out there right now or may not have the funds or may not be ready, etc. But, I also think that there are at least a few people out there who do want one and who are looking for one, and I only need one of them.

No, you need 2 of them.

Anyhow, good luck. I hope it makes what you are hoping for.

[sixor8]

GTRene said:

sixor8 said:

Searching on BaT, there isn't a single TVR listed at present. So anybody in North America interested in a TVR may well be interested.

say what?

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1997-tvr-cerbera...

6 hours later it is..... You're allowed to submit an impressive no of photos!

Edited by sixor8 on Friday 21st April 15:39

[TwinKam]

unrepentant said:

goo-goo-gjoob said:

I understand what you're saying, about how the market for a Cerbera is tiny over here, and I know that the very person who is looking for one might not be out there right now or may not have the funds or may not be ready, etc. But, I also think that there are at least a few people out there who do want one and who are looking for one, and I only need one of them.

No, you need 2 of them.

Anyhow, good luck. I hope it makes what you are hoping for.

My thoughts exactly.
Without the second bidder.... well, that's precisely why you set a reserve.

[goo-goo-gjoob]

TwinKam said:

My thoughts exactly.
Without the second bidder.... well, that's precisely why you set a reserve.

hey, you two, quit scaring me

me hoping that a second bidder shows up

[unrepentant]

Wow! $50k! Well done, I think that's a great price.

[GTRene]

unrepentant said:

Wow! $50k! Well done, I think that's a great price.

indeed, its almost worth the hassle to buy one in the UK and sell it in the USA, but a lot of work, trust in and paperwork.

[Cerb420James]

That’s a great result.

I went to MOT mine today but the heavens opened so it’s postponed! Gave it a clean and put it back under its covers 😂

I’m quite clued up with the importing exporting requirements, was doing quite a bit before covid. Mainly bringing cars the other way but if anyone wants any help in the UK or are sat in the USA needing someone with knowledge they can trust, I’m happy to help.

[Jeremiah1223]

Sorry to hear that you had to sell, but hopefully now you can breakdown exactly what it all cost, on top of the original purchase price of the car. I’ve been wanting to import a Tuscan for nearly 25 years now and am just about a year away from being eligible and am more than a bit curious about how much I should expect to have tack on, both in the UK and here in the US.

Also, does anyone know what date(s) the 25 year rule is based on? For example, a 2023 model vehicle could presumably have been built anytime from the middle of 2022 to the middle of 2023. Does the 25 year rule take into account when each specific vehicle came off the assembly line or is it just any model year 1998 vehicle is allowable 1/1 of ‘23?

[andrewbr]

It's based on either the build date, if you can prove that somehow, or the date of first registration.

[Loach1]

Jeremiah1223 said:

Sorry to hear that you had to sell, but hopefully now you can breakdown exactly what it all cost, on top of the original purchase price of the car. I’ve been wanting to import a Tuscan for nearly 25 years now and am just about a year away from being eligible and am more than a bit curious about how much I should expect to have tack on, both in the UK and here in the US.

Also, does anyone know what date(s) the 25 year rule is based on? For example, a 2023 model vehicle could presumably have been built anytime from the middle of 2022 to the middle of 2023. Does the 25 year rule take into account when each specific vehicle came off the assembly line or is it just any model year 1998 vehicle is allowable 1/1 of ‘23?

Hi Jeremiah, CBP will look at the V5C date of first registration, unless you can show an earlier build date (with TVR often the build date is AFTER the registration date so that may not help!). I've imported dozens of TVRs from the UK to the USA over the years and would be happy to help you do the same. The costs are very reasonable, probably around $3K all in for a Tuscan. PM for more info.
David (robinhoodmotorsnc.com)