Importing from the US
Discussion
Viper Larry has put a posting on the Viper forum about importing from the US....
www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,588-1035636,00.html
....the most interesting bit is this....
http://images.thetimes.co.uk/TGD/picture/0,,114339,00.jpg
...and they say we aren't being ripped off.....
www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,588-1035636,00.html
....the most interesting bit is this....
http://images.thetimes.co.uk/TGD/picture/0,,114339,00.jpg
...and they say we aren't being ripped off.....
By my calculations, a $50000 C6 would be £27000 at today's favourable 1.85 rate. Adding shipping and import duty and VAT takes it to about £35600 plus any SVA work and registration. The rest on a single import is pure profit but I wonder what profit a dealer makes on a normal UK car like a Porsche?
Given that a lot of the cars previously and currently advertised were probably imported at a much lower exchange rate, some dealers must be left with a few liabilities on their hands.
To actually sell US cars officially in Europe, most of the car has to be changed. It's different to a single car SVA test. The codes on my Camaro show that the entire glass has to be changed to E marked glass, different bumper assemblies and plate mountings, door mirrors and so forth all have to be changed. Even the exhaust has to be changed to a quieter one. No wonder they don't bother. The only amazing thing was that they managed to sell the Camaro in the UK for such a cheap price. No, I tell a lie, the second amazing thing was that no-one bought it.
Given that a lot of the cars previously and currently advertised were probably imported at a much lower exchange rate, some dealers must be left with a few liabilities on their hands.
To actually sell US cars officially in Europe, most of the car has to be changed. It's different to a single car SVA test. The codes on my Camaro show that the entire glass has to be changed to E marked glass, different bumper assemblies and plate mountings, door mirrors and so forth all have to be changed. Even the exhaust has to be changed to a quieter one. No wonder they don't bother. The only amazing thing was that they managed to sell the Camaro in the UK for such a cheap price. No, I tell a lie, the second amazing thing was that no-one bought it.
My guestimate for a $50k car is closer to £36.5k plus SVA and registration, which'd run at around £1k-£1.5k (let's take the higher), so £38k. The dealers are going to be charging significantly more (oh, at least £50k I'm sure and more likely £60k+)
My problem as a single importer would be all the additional costs that they'll try and throw at you... transportation to and from docks etc, handling charges. Stuff that probably doesn't exist, but how do you know? The alternative is that you do all the driving yourself, but then you have air-fare, too. With mine, they left the battery either hooked up or the cables touching and knackered it. There's another £70-100...
Personally, I doubt I'd have bothered importing my 'vette if I hadn't owned her and been resident long enough to avoid paying the 27.5% tax+duty. Just the sheer worry that it'd get trashed during the crossing gave me several sleepless nights, and yes, the container did go missing for 3 days, too, which didn't help!!! Buying a new car under those conditions... erm... I doubt it. I'd probably just bite the bullet and haggle with the dealers until I got a reasonable deal for a car that I could walk round (mentally) kick the tyres and possibly even test drive (which is a hard thing to do in the States).
One note, though, for those considering it... don't, whatever you do, pay by debit card without checking with your bank first. They'll often charge 2.5-3.0% transaction fee for the privilege without telling you. That's around £700-£800 straight out of your pocket and into the bank's! I found that one out the hard way when making the final payment on my car from a UK account.
Having said all the above, buying a vintage vette or a '69 Camaro or a '68 Firebird etc then way-hay! You can get cars that owners have spent a fortune restoring for what we'd consider next to nothing in the UK due to the exchange rate. If my exit from the States hadn't been as quick as I'd expected I'd definitely have been tempted to pick up a couple of 'mint' classics and sat on them for 6 months before returning.
-kenski
My problem as a single importer would be all the additional costs that they'll try and throw at you... transportation to and from docks etc, handling charges. Stuff that probably doesn't exist, but how do you know? The alternative is that you do all the driving yourself, but then you have air-fare, too. With mine, they left the battery either hooked up or the cables touching and knackered it. There's another £70-100...
Personally, I doubt I'd have bothered importing my 'vette if I hadn't owned her and been resident long enough to avoid paying the 27.5% tax+duty. Just the sheer worry that it'd get trashed during the crossing gave me several sleepless nights, and yes, the container did go missing for 3 days, too, which didn't help!!! Buying a new car under those conditions... erm... I doubt it. I'd probably just bite the bullet and haggle with the dealers until I got a reasonable deal for a car that I could walk round (mentally) kick the tyres and possibly even test drive (which is a hard thing to do in the States).
One note, though, for those considering it... don't, whatever you do, pay by debit card without checking with your bank first. They'll often charge 2.5-3.0% transaction fee for the privilege without telling you. That's around £700-£800 straight out of your pocket and into the bank's! I found that one out the hard way when making the final payment on my car from a UK account.
Having said all the above, buying a vintage vette or a '69 Camaro or a '68 Firebird etc then way-hay! You can get cars that owners have spent a fortune restoring for what we'd consider next to nothing in the UK due to the exchange rate. If my exit from the States hadn't been as quick as I'd expected I'd definitely have been tempted to pick up a couple of 'mint' classics and sat on them for 6 months before returning.
-kenski
kenski said:
I'd probably just bite the bullet and haggle with the dealers until I got a reasonable deal for a car that I could walk round (mentally) kick the tyres and possibly even test drive.
Me too, unless the car you want's just not available over here. I've had the C5 five years (third MOT yesterday) and feel people in UK are getting to know their way around the car. Whether I'll be willing to commit to a C6 unless there's a proper dealer network is far from certain.
Gassing Station | Corvettes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff