Irish imports - harder to sell one?

[Harry Flashman]

Hi chaps, I looked at a car over the weekend that is an import from Ireland. It was in good condition., and at a fair price if it were a UK car - in fact probably about 10% cheaper. But it is an import from Eire - the dealer was very clear on that, but did not mention that he had priced it to account for this.

If I go for it want to attempt to knock him down a bit. The only way you can tell the car is an import is because the digital mileometer is in kms (the Speedo is dual scale). The spec is identical to that of a UK car otherwise.

Is resale affected by the car being Irish and imported? What paperwork should I be asking for. Presumably it needs to be re-registered etc: what should I be getting by way of paperwork - and how much hassle is it for me to do this myself if he has not? It was wearing a UK registration plate, so presumably re-registration has occurred...

Any help appreciated.

[PositronicRay]

If it's on UK plates it'll already be re-registered.

Used cars are more expensive in Eire so cars aren't imported for financial gain, probably the owner relocated and bought his car with him.

It will affect the resale value, people are naturally suspicious.

[74merc]

The road tax system there is punitive for older large engined cars, so the car may have been exported due to there being no local market for it.

[TooMany2cvs]

What sort of car, what sort of value are we talking about?

If it's something a bit unusual and older, then the fact it was imported will take second place to the condition when determining the value.
If it's something new (especially if it's within manufacturer warranty) or utterly generic, then it may well make a difference.

Really, the only actual practical difference is if there's (or would be) some original new car warranty, which might not be the same as an originally-UK car.

[SteBrown91]

You will probably find the car was imported from ROI when new (registered over there then brought over on a transporter) and then sold at a car supermarket (was common 10 or so years ago)

[Harry Flashman]

Sadly all academic now. Was a 2008 model Bentley Arnage T, but Lady Flashgun feels it would be too ostentatious, so back to looking at AMG Mercs! Thanks for the help though, chaps - appreciated.

I saw the car at the weekend - it is absolutely immaculate, and I daresay a bargain at £45k.