US imported car values?

[JVR1]

so i've been shopping around for another ride for a while and have noticed many people on/off this forum selling US vehicles. I'm curious what the consensus is on car value..

- should a US imported car retain the same value of a canadian vehicle especially since things like warrenty aren't valid (if applicable)?

- is it fair to compare it to another US vehicle and and tack on the potential duty that would be paid to import it as an purchase offer?

those are just a few questions .. anyone?

[rage2]

It's entirely up to you to decide if it's worth it to buy an already imported US car. The process certainly isn't easy, some ppl have had no problems, while others find it to be a PITA. I've seen US cars posted for sale at the same price as Canadian cars, and they take longer to sell, but they do sell. Sometimes you'll be lucky to find a US car that's priced significantly lower than Canadian cars, those sell quick, and saves u a lot of hassle in terms of all the import BS.

[Team_Mclaren]

To me a US car is just as good as a Canadian one, if not better (without driving through our amazing calgary winter/roads). Value wise its about the same, if you want to pay the price of a US car you are better off importing one yourself.

[GTS Jeff]

Some people might feel jipped paying Canadian prices on a US imported car, but really, the importing process is not an easy one. If you feel like you are up to the task of importing, then all the power to you. If not, then buying a pre-imported one at fair Canadian market value in Canada in completely legitimate.

BTW, I am in the process of importing a car right now. And though I am saving a few thousand dollars, the hassle really isn't worth it. Even though I did all my homework beforehand, I have still faced all these new and unexpected beaurocratic problems at every turn. It gets pretty stressful when you have a lot of money sunken into a car that might not make it across the border! These past few days have been pretty tough for me. I probably wouldn't import again, and I'd say there's no reason why a US car is worth any less than a Canadian car.

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by Team_Mclaren
if you want to pay the price of a US car you are better off importing one yourself. :werd: :werd: It's not exactly a walk in the park to import a car. Whether it's a few thousand bucks or a few of the most stressful days of your life, you gotta pay somehow.

Jaymez's thread makes it seem easy, but as someone pointed out, even he had to abandon his car at the border.

[Ekliptix]

I'd find that if the speedo was primarily in mph, the car's value is a little lower, and of course if the warrenty is more limited then a Canadian car.

I had no problems importing my car (now sold). I plan to to it again.

I'd really like to see Jaymez first post cleaned up. I had to read through most of that thread to understand what to do, and I still made an error by sending documentation to the wrong boarder location.

[modded46]

Originally posted by GTS Jeff
Some people might feel jipped paying Canadian prices on a US imported car, but really, the importing process is not an easy one. If you feel like you are up to the task of importing, then all the power to you. If not, then buying a pre-imported one at fair Canadian market value in Canada in completely legitimate.

BTW, I am in the process of importing a car right now. And though I am saving a few thousand dollars, the hassle really isn't worth it. Even though I did all my homework beforehand, I have still faced all these new and unexpected beaurocratic problems at every turn. It gets pretty stressful when you have a lot of money sunken into a car that might not make it across the border! These past few days have been pretty tough for me. I probably wouldn't import again, and I'd say there's no reason why a US car is worth any less than a Canadian car.

What is happening with your car?? It seems pretty cut and dry on how to import a car and if you follow the guidelines and rules I can't really see where any issues should come up?

[modded46]

I'm not done my import process on the SRT-4 but all I can say is for the price I paid including my flight/hotel and gas estimates I still couldn't pick up the same car here for double the cost.

Also a guy at work has done 3 cars now.. All European and hasn't had any problems whatsoever.. So I'm basing my "follow the guidelines" on his recommendations.

[Ekliptix]

^
Is he bringing in Porsche?

I believe Jeffs trouble are around Cali taxes...?

[BigMass]

i would definitely pay more for an already imported car that has passed OOP and is registered here for the time and effort, but i would not pay the same as a Canadian car. There is a middle ground and most US cars fall in that range. People that want to pay the same for a car as in the US have no respect for the adage “time is money”

[4doorj]

Originally posted by Team_Mclaren
To me a US car is just as good as a Canadian one, if not better (without driving through our amazing calgary winter/roads).

word!!!!!
my car had absolutly no rock chips on it, no the bumper or the front windshield....
then i started to change my exhaust, the underneath of the car was soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo mint!
almost like a brand new car :thumbsup:

[BigMass]

Originally posted by modded46


What is happening with your car?? It seems pretty cut and dry on how to import a car and if you follow the guidelines and rules I can't really see where any issues should come up?

when you realize that a lot of boarder guards DONT follow guidelines and can sometimes be rogue assholes that purposely want to make your life a bitch then you realize that things rarely ever goes according to plan. This is especially true at the boarder where you're not close to any real city or authority outside of these uneducated boarder guards on power trips. And this is from personal experience I’m talking here.

I would definitely look at importing a car, but I’d probably pay someone to do it for me. There are companies that charge $2000 to import a car for you and that includes all the fees and paperwork. I’d go that route.

[rc2002]

If I was torn between a Canadian car versus a similar US car, I'd buy the Canadian car. US cars have a bad reputation because they're cheaper. Even if you pay good money for one, people will assume you got the car for next to nothing so you'll have loads of lowballs if/when you decide to sell it. That and the non-transferrable warranty would be grounds enough to justify higher Canadian prices.

[arian_ma]

Originally posted by GTS Jeff
:werd: :werd: It's not exactly a walk in the park to import a car. Whether it's a few thousand bucks or a few of the most stressful days of your life, you gotta pay somehow.

Jaymez's thread makes it seem easy, but as someone pointed out, even he had to abandon his car at the border.

In between your words, welcome to Honda!
:D
No one can resist!

[Ekliptix]

Originally posted by arian_ma


In between your words, welcome to Honda!
:D
No one can resist!
:rofl:

[Weapon_R]

Being one whose imported half a dozen U.S. cars and sold them all, I think you'll have no problem selling your vehicle once you're ready. I don't think i've ever had anyone come and look at a car, and then leave because it had miles on the odometer.

I've seen U.S. cars priced a little cheaper than Canadian cars, and thats okay as I do the same. That probably has less to do with the actual car itself and more to do with attracting potential buyers.

[coteesh]

For importing into Alberta, what insurance company will do "special coverage" for me transporting a Ducati motorcycle by trailer into Alberta from the USA? Many companies will not ensure high performance motorcycles (such as TD Meloche Monex, Blue Circle, etc). ICBC does "special coverage" for residents of BC but I can't find anything for residents of ALberta.

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by modded46


What is happening with your car?? It seems pretty cut and dry on how to import a car and if you follow the guidelines and rules I can't really see where any issues should come up?


So far, I've had troubles with a few things:

-paying for the car. There is no gaurantee on how long a wire transfer takes to clear, so I used my Visa. But of course the banks here won't help you unless you have an account with them, so I opened an account up at Wells Fargo, then the retards there couldn't get authorization for the Visa transaction. I pretty much had to do the work for them by talking the Visa LP dept. myself.
-having to pay Cali use tax (whatever, the drive up on the CA-1 made it all worth it.) The only way around this is to ship the car to a state with no sales tax.
-having to obtain Cali registration and license plates, which requires a Cali address (luckily I have relatives in Cali, but if I didn't, I'd be totally fucked)
-not being able to get a recall clearance letter. American Honda only gives them out to US residents, which you prove by faxing them a copy of your US license, US registration, and US insurance. I already had the registration, getting the insurance would be a hassle but not impossible, then getting the license from the DMV would have taken weeks. Luckily the RIV is accepting Hondas without recall clearance letters at the present.
-a new car doesn't have a vehicle title. The title takes several weeks for the DMV to produce and mail to the CALIFORNIA address you supply them. In lieu of a title, you can use the Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin, which the dealer can order for you, but that takes a few days as well. Then this document needs to be signed over to the buyer and properly notarized, another task that can only be done on weekdays.

It sounds simple, but trust me it was a hassle dealing with all this stuff for the first time. None of this was ever mentioned in the importing thread. All these hassles and I haven't even reached the border yet...:banghead:

[spec c]

^ Is your car a private sale?

[gpomp]

Originally posted by spec c
^ Is your car a private sale?
it's a new car from the dealer.

[Mckenzie]

I think that if a US car does not have warranty, then that is a significant impairment of vehicle value and it should be taken into the price.

I think that to tack on just duty to a car as an indication of an offer does not take into consideration many things, such as- Exchange (4-10% depending on when it was bought), GST (6%), RIV fees (~$200), Out of province inspection ($150+), getting the car up to federal standards (infiniti DRLs from the dealership will run you over $400- BMW recall letter is $500 now apparently), travel costs ($300-$600 for the flight, plus lodging, food, etc.) and the purchaser's time. Not to mention the cars are likely being bought from places where there are no winters.

To me I would have no problem buying a US car that was imported into Canada but I would not expect to get it for free as I know the hassles involved. I also do think that they should sell for nearly the same price as the Canadian ones but possibly a bit lower for obvious reasons. I dont see why they would sell for much lower though because they are the same cars and probably in better shape.

my .02

[heavyD]

I see people driving to california, colorado, etc to pick up used cars, wouldn't it be less of a hassle to pay a shipping company $1500 to have the car shipped to your door? They usually have a broker handle all the brokerage documents and all you have to do is pay and wait. Or you can have it shipped via a customs bonded carrier and they will drop it off in the N.E. and you then go over there and do the importing at the bonded warehouse. I'd rather pay a bit more for less hassle and the chance of being stuck at the border.

[SunniSunShine]

Originally posted by heavyD
I see people driving to california, colorado, etc to pick up used cars, wouldn't it be less of a hassle to pay a shipping company $1500 to have the car shipped to your door? They usually have a broker handle all the brokerage documents and all you have to do is pay and wait. Or you can have it shipped via a customs bonded carrier and they will drop it off in the N.E. and you then go over there and do the importing at the bonded warehouse. I'd rather pay a bit more for less hassle and the chance of being stuck at the border.

uhh - $1500 to the door? maybe if you are shipping from montana, expect $2500-$4000 for shipping depending on where you are getting it sent from.. also remember that after you decide to purchase the vehicle you will have to send the money to the seller, and then arrange for the shipping and hope the seller co-operates. Also expect to wait a month or longer for shipping.. the best thing about shipping is that they handle the brokerage documents so you dont have to worry about the paperwork.

i have been looking around the states for the past month or two for a vehicle, but the truth of the matter is, how much savings is the hassle worth?... now im going to find locally.. heres hoping :whipped:

[rage2]

Originally posted by heavyD
I see people driving to california, colorado, etc to pick up used cars, wouldn't it be less of a hassle to pay a shipping company $1500 to have the car shipped to your door? They usually have a broker handle all the brokerage documents and all you have to do is pay and wait. Or you can have it shipped via a customs bonded carrier and they will drop it off in the N.E. and you then go over there and do the importing at the bonded warehouse. I'd rather pay a bit more for less hassle and the chance of being stuck at the border.
For me, it was like european delivery haha. I took it as a vacation... chilled with my bro for a few days, and went sightseeing across the midwest!

[spec c]

Originally posted by SunniSunShine


maybe if you are shipping from montana, expect $2500-$4000

False, my STi shipped from Costa Mesa was 1267. It was Shipped by hansons. HeavyD is right, they do handle alot of the BS for you.


Originally posted by gpomp


it's a new car from the dealer.

The reason i asked is cuz the dealer should have taken care of most of Jeffs problems for him. i guess the dealer he chose wasnt to familiar with the importing process. With a few simple things done on their behalf, alot of this would be diffrent.

If you buy a car from any city in the US that is not doing to well in car sales, they will always help you and get everything they can do for you done. buying from cali is a bad idea cuz that state has so much money that if you dont buy the car, they know others will. if you buy your car from montana or spokane, they will fight hard for your business and do whatever they can to get this done as easily as possible to get you back for more business or reffer others. Not to mention its a closer trip so cheaper shipping and easier to get to if you went down yourself.

[rage2]

^^^ not anymore... dealers are being warned not to sell new vehicles to Canadians, they'll get fined or lose their dealership if they keep doing it.

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by heavyD
I see people driving to california, colorado, etc to pick up used cars, wouldn't it be less of a hassle to pay a shipping company $1500 to have the car shipped to your door? They usually have a broker handle all the brokerage documents and all you have to do is pay and wait. Or you can have it shipped via a customs bonded carrier and they will drop it off in the N.E. and you then go over there and do the importing at the bonded warehouse. I'd rather pay a bit more for less hassle and the chance of being stuck at the border.

Rates are no longer that cheap anymore. And if you have the luxury of taking a few days off work and going to see the car yourself, it's not a bad drive at all. Couple days from most places (Vegas, Chicago, Cali, etc) and you get to see so much shit you don't normally.

Cheapest rates i've found lately are around 1900+. That's with Searail, but they suck balls for shipping :barf: Hansons is always more.

[modded46]

Well!! Finally got back and able to give my experience on the whole imported car thing...

I definitely wouldn't be trying to buy a new car from a dealer and importing it.. If you want a new car just go to a dealer here and buy one..

Now with that being said.. In TX & Cali you pay tax no matter what if you buy a car from a dealer. So looking for private sales is the way to go.. TX tax isn't as bad but it's still tax..

now for my personal experience..

On Monday this past week I had the owner of the car fax me the title and sign that he was transferring it to me so that I could fax it into the US Customs.. THIS IS VERY VERY IMPORTANT.. two people at the border trying to import cars when I was going through didn't have this and they got denied.. fined 500.00.. 72 hours is what they tell you before you cross, I would do it as soon as possible..

So, I went into the US customs and presented why I was there and they asked me for the bill of sale and title and my ID. He looked it all up and within about 10 min I had it stamped and on my way.. Very easy..

After that.. I went through the Canadian side.. She asked me what my citizenship was, I had the title and everything in my hand so she knew right away that I was importing the car. etc.. Then she asked a question I wasn't expecting.. She asked me if the car was modified in anyway.. Of course I said no and in hindsight I realized she was asking if I had anything done to it after I bought it.. DO NOT tell them you modified it if you bought it with modifications, this is NOT what they are asking.. So I went inside with my yellow slip.. again asked me for the title, bill of sale & ID.. Filled out this long form, told me how much I owned for tax (American built cars only get charged GST).

If you are importing a car from anywhere other than North America, you have to pay duty.. Now what I was told is that you never know how much you're going to ahve to pay for duty as they base it on the retail cost of the car here, percentages. etc.. etc.. Really seems annoying to me to say the least..

100.00 excise tax is also added.. At that point he explained that I would be getting a letter within 7 days to take into Canadian tire for inspection and gave me a website to pay the RIV import fee of 206.xx..

That was it.. All said and done on that end..

The previous owner of the car left his plate on there so I had all that but you do not need to register a car in the US to be able to drive it back.. As long as you have the title with you stating that it is signed over to you registering is not necessary.. at least not with a used car, new cars could be different. For insurance all you need is "in transit" insurance and you'll be fine on that end too.. Again the previous owner kept his insurance on there so at least liability would be covered for my drive back.

So I'm extremely excited.. Got a great car that I'm definitely loving very much.. All that i can tell it will definitely need is daytime running lights. But apparently there is a relay that can be put in the car to make this work.. Either way there are universal kits you can get for like 50 bucks..

Let's see.. moral of this story is don't buy a car from a dealer in Cali.. Find a person that is willing to work with you no matter what and have them understand that it is more work for us to buy cars and import them.. So they have to understand this during the buying process.

I did a autocheck also on the car and everything was as told.. This is important.. I have the account for at least another month so if anyone needs a VIN run just PM me and I'll get you the details..

If anyone else would like more information on my experience etc.. just ask away.. knowledge is power. :) hehe

Finally, after the flight, gas, hotel for a night and time.. Based on the average of the same car if I were to buy it here, I still saved MUCH money.. definitely worth it...

[spec c]

Originally posted by rage2
^^^ not anymore... dealers are being warned not to sell new vehicles to Canadians, they'll get fined or lose their dealership if they keep doing it.

Is this actual fact now? cuz i've herd a bunch of he said she said crap but not any facts. Only herd real proof of warranty issues with importing, nothing about the sale itself.

[spec c]

looks like alot has changed...

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by spec c
The reason i asked is cuz the dealer should have taken care of most of Jeffs problems for him. i guess the dealer he chose wasnt to familiar with the importing process. With a few simple things done on their behalf, alot of this would be diffrent.

If you buy a car from any city in the US that is not doing to well in car sales, they will always help you and get everything they can do for you done. buying from cali is a bad idea cuz that state has so much money that if you dont buy the car, they know others will. if you buy your car from montana or spokane, they will fight hard for your business and do whatever they can to get this done as easily as possible to get you back for more business or reffer others. Not to mention its a closer trip so cheaper shipping and easier to get to if you went down yourself. Oh you're right. I am an idiot after all. :rolleyes: What sort of things could the dealer do to make things easier? The law is the law - every single dealership I went to respected that and all my own research on the internet confirmed everything they said. I did go to one chinese dealership that had some "special" way of saving me the sales tax on a used car, but that was just because they weren't familiar with state law...

[GTS Jeff]

Oh yeah, I went through the border today. That was pretty easy EXCEPT that I missed the turn off for the US customs side (it was marked with an authorized vehicle only sign, so I didn't go in) and I ended having to go through Canada, then double back to the US, and go through Canada again. Otherwise the whole process of getting your shit stamped and then getting the Form 1 was easy. Really, there's no need for anyone to even start a thread about THAT part - it's easy and it's described clearly on the US gov. website and on riv.ca. The real hassle is in all the stuff I listed before.

[TrailBlazerSS]

Originally posted by spec c


Is this actual fact now? cuz i've herd a bunch of he said she said crap but not any facts. Only herd real proof of warranty issues with importing, nothing about the sale itself.


I'm not sure about other new car dealers, but I have called numerous Chev dealers in WA, OR, CA, MT, ID, AZ and NE and not one of them said they would sell me a new Chev. A dealer in Nevada said they "used to sell new cars to CDNs, but they're not allowed anymore".

I called RIV and asked them if new Chev vehicles can be sold directly to Canadians and they said 'yes'... well this hasn't been my experience.

I called the US GM customer service line to ask if a warranty would be honored in Canada on a new car purchased in the US and they said I would need to check with the dealer. This answer seemed to be very wishy-washy to me.

Unfortunately it would appear that for me, in order to buy a new Chey Trailblazer SS, I will need to lay out at least $10,000 extra bucks to have the same vehicle as my southern neighbors.

:bullshit:

**** If anyone has been able to import a new Chev from the US, please let me know when you did this, which dealer you used and if your warranty is still in place here in Canada. THANKS!!

;)

[gofastmerc]

Originally posted by TrailBlazerSS



I'm not sure about other new car dealers, but I have called numerous Chev dealers in WA, OR, CA, MT, ID, AZ and NE and not one of them said they would sell me a new Chev. A dealer in Nevada said they "used to sell new cars to CDNs, but they're not allowed anymore".

I called RIV and asked them if new Chev vehicles can be sold directly to Canadians and they said 'yes'... well this hasn't been my experience.

I called the US GM customer service line to ask if a warranty would be honored in Canada on a new car purchased in the US and they said I would need to check with the dealer. This answer seemed to be very wishy-washy to me.

Unfortunately it would appear that for me, in order to buy a new Chey Trailblazer SS, I will need to lay out at least $10,000 extra bucks to have the same vehicle as my southern neighbors.

:bullshit:

**** If anyone has been able to import a new Chev from the US, please let me know when you did this, which dealer you used and if your warranty is still in place here in Canada. THANKS!!

;)

My folks just came back last week with a new Chev truck, from Guaranty Chev in Junction City, Oregon.

They had a different circumstances though. They were RVing and the truck they had caught fire. So, they bought a new one. From what I heard the dealer was quite helpful in getting the paper work needed to get them on their way. Although it did take a long time, I think they were stuck in that town for about ten days.

They have been checking out prices here, and I guess they saved about 14K, even after the exchange and paper work.

They just found out that the warrenty will start in six months and 12000kms. So I guess they have to drive it easy till then. They wern't told that when they bought it.

[Khyron]

A few US Subaru dealers are doing a booming business selling to Canadians, they are doing most of the work/forms. The only catch is you have to pay any warranty work out of pocket then file for a refund from Subaru of USA which is apparently pretty smooth.

Also rumors are that Porsche is going to drop CDN prices by 6-10K to curb the importing. More new Cdn porsches have come across the border than bought locally.