Taking an old but good car down under ... good idea?

[ruflix]

Hi there. We're moving to Melbourne on 15 July, new employer is helping with relocation and allowed us a 40 foot container which we're hoping we can squeeze our car into along with the rest of the house. I'm not sure if there'll be an extra charge for that, waiting to hear. I'm trying though to get a handle on the other costs and struggling a bit. 

It's an old but good car, Peugeot 307 SW 56 plate. 94,000 miles. Auto Trader says 1500 quid now, we bought it for just over 5k in 2011. I'll get less if I have to sell it though as we need it till the last minute so I'll be taking it down a used car yard. I've seen that equivalent cars are much more expensive in Australia (circa £4000 / $6500) so we wanted to try to keep it as long as the costs aren't too great to take over. 

Taxes don't seem too bad as they are based on the value of the car so only 20% or so of the value at say £1500, so £300 or so. But are there other costs I need to be aware of to get it on the road down under, what are they typically? Registration, modification, roadworthy certificate? I know it'll need a steam clean before it goes ...

Thanks in advance for any advice .... 

[llessur]

One thing I have heard about bringing European cars into Oz (and I don’t know whether it’s true or not) is that Australian cars are fitted with glass which gives a higher level of UV protection. If you bring a European car over (especially an older one) then you might be more likely to be sunburnt just whilst out and about. Also the upholstery and dashboard etc can degrade more quickly.

Again, not sure if it’s true or an old wive’s tale but something to bear in mind. You might want to budget for getting the windows lightly tinted (I think most tinting films offer UV protection) if you choose to bring it over.

Also, does it have air con? If it doesn’t and you’re not moving to Tassie then you might want to reconsider.

I’m sure there are plenty of other considerations regarding taxes, roadworthy inspections, higher insurance premiums (if they’ll insure it at all) etc – I’ll leave that for someone more knowledgeable to advise on.

[Guest]

Factor in costs of hire car or whatever it is you'll be using till your car is available. That could add up.

Personally, I'd not want the hassle for such an old car and would buy once here. 

[calNgary]

I didnt think you could bring your household goods and car in the same container?

Cal x

[Cerberus1]

Have you posted on @Iron Chef's thread at

he should be able to answer any queries you have.

[ruflix]

Thanks for the quick replies . Crown Relocations who we're using have advised we can put the car in, but my new employer quoted for moving household goods only so they have to agree to the change of contents even though the volume works. I just drive the car to their depot in Ruislip. 

Yeah you're right about hire car costs snifter. Could run into several hundred quid plus the hassle. We're in Docklands for the first month though so less use for the car I guess. But we will move out to the country (commuting in from a little town called Woodend) so at that point we will def need wheels to get around although I will be training it into Southern Cross for work. So I guess there's a month or so while we wait for the container to arrive when we'd need to hire ... 

Any feel for costs beyond taxes at all? 

 

[ruflix]

 

7 minutes ago, Cerberus1 said:

Have you posted on @Iron Chef's thread at

he should be able to answer any queries you have.

Thanks for note re @Iron ChefI'll try that ?

 

[ScottieGirl]

You will have to register it. Check out this website

https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/registration/new-registration/register-an-imported-vehicle

And allow 3 months for the container to get there and clear customs. 

[paulswin]

We bought our 2010 Vauxhall Zafira it was pretty cheap to bring it over we did it rolo roll on roll off as we were told couldnt put car in container with household things.  

[Apollo]

We bought our 2010 Vauxhall Zafira it was pretty cheap to bring it over we did it rolo roll on roll off as we were told couldnt put car in container with household things.  

Hi Paul. If you don't mind me asking how much roughly was your total bill for shipping it over, checks and conversion to 'Aussie vehicle standards' eg. Curved side mirrors/KPH speedometer etc? Thinking of bringing my Jag XF over. Thanks Ap

[ArrowsEng]

Hi Ruflix,

I'm a VASS engineer in Melbourne so I do the compliance work on personally imported cars. The costs invoved once the car has been released by customs are:

transport by tow truck to compliance workshop: $220

Compliance inspection, compliance plate from Niddrie nameplates: $500

Road worthy inspection (similar to MOT): $132, any cost to get vehicle to RW condtion, such as tyres, wiper blades, etc is dependant on state of car.

Vicroads registration costs: about $800 per year for registration and TAC insurance. Basic number plate $36 (but there are options that can go up to $500+ if you like). 4.2% stamp duty which is payable at the value of the car (you pay this whether you bring your own car or if you buy someone elses car here, but as your car would be valued at around $3000 or less for import the you pay on $3k, so $126). Also about $47 for a Vicroads appointment to show them the car. If you register the car yourself you get an unregistered vehicle permit from Vicroads which costs between $40 for a day to about $80 for 28days, for a lot of customers, I register the car on their behalf but there is a fee for my time for that.

So expect you budget $2000 plus a little for RW items such as wiper blades or a couple of tyres, that would then have you on the road for 12 months before your next $800 bill arrives for registration and insurance.

remember though that if you buy someone elses car here, you still have to pay the 4.2% stamp duty and make sure the seller supplies the RWC and any registration remaining on the car.

Regards.

 

[ArrowsEng]

31 minutes ago, Apollo said:

Hi Paul. If you don't mind me asking how much roughly was your total bill for shipping it over, checks and conversion to 'Aussie vehicle standards' eg. Curved side mirrors/KPH speedometer etc? Thinking of bringing my Jag XF over. Thanks Ap

Hi Apollo,

if you bring the car as a personal import, there is no requirement for kph speedo or mirrors changed, these are only required if the car is brought in as a pre-89 or RAWS import. As a personal import, it is front seat headrests, seat belts, child retraint top anchor points, laminated windscreens, right hand drive, correct headlights, indicators and tail lights, correct exhaust system and the car being road worthy.

Regards,

[Apollo]

Hi Apollo,
if you bring the car as a personal import, there is no requirement for kph speedo or mirrors changed, these are only required if the car is brought in as a pre-89 or RAWS import. As a personal import, it is front seat headrests, seat belts, child retraint top anchor points, laminated windscreens, right hand drive, correct headlights, indicators and tail lights, correct exhaust system and the car being road worthy.
Regards,

Thanks a tonne Arrows. Out of interest you mentioned headrests there and I am jut wondering how different the UK spec models are from Oz regulations? Could I end up having to completely revamp seats, lights and indicators? From your own industry experience roughly how pricey am I looking at conversion of a standard UK Jag to Australia regs? Cheers

[ArrowsEng]

Hi Apollo,

headrests and lights are the same between UK and Australia so the only things that sometimes have to be done are the Child Restraint upper anchorages as not all UK cars have these and sometimes seatbelts as some of them don't have the right markings or no markings at all.

Regards

[Apollo]

19 hours ago, ArrowsEng said:

Hi Apollo,

headrests and lights are the same between UK and Australia so the only things that sometimes have to be done are the Child Restraint upper anchorages as not all UK cars have these and sometimes seatbelts as some of them don't have the right markings or no markings at all.

Regards

Thanks ArrowsEng. Looking like I will be taking the old lady. It's scary to just come over and buy a local motor without any verifiable history whilst leaving one here with full dealership one.