glenn_somers

Hi,

I am considering shipping car to Aus from U.K. Trouble is, I haven't had it long.

Is there a minimum "Length of Ownership" for shipping used cars to Aus????

Anyone with experience in this - Could you please help me!

Cheers,

Glenn

ndaltonb

Hi Glenn,

I don't think there is a minimum time, however time can be taken into account when they calculate import duty, however as you havn't had it long, that probably won't take effect. Look at http://www.customs.gov.au/site/index.cfm which has all the info under "importing a car" or something similar.

Nigel db

Michael Hoffman

ndaltonb <[email protected]> wrote in news:[email protected]:

    > I don't think there is a minimum time, however time can be taken into account when
    > they calculate import duty, however as you havn't had it long, that probably won't
    > take effect. Look at http://www.c-
    > ustoms.gov.au/site/index.cfm     which has all the info under "importing a car"
    > or something similar.

Can I add a stupid question here?

Is it possible and feasible to re-equip a car from left to right hand steering?

Or is it so prohibitively expensive, that it's would never be worth it?

Thanks Mike

onlyme

Yes it is possible to change the steering column from left to right. You would also have to get a new dashboard etc. and it all works out to be very expensive, approx $6-10000 AUD.

Only really worth it if your car is a classic.

I shipped my leftie over here. Very bad move indeeeeeedio.
Lots of paperwork and lots of LHD hassle. A very, very bad move on my part. Ahhhh...isn't hindsight a wonderful thing and unless you do get it converted, you can't sell it here and have to ship it back after a certain amount of time. I have to ship mine back when I leave the country as I am here on a 4-year temp visa. I could have sold it if it was RHD. They (the RTA) probably wouldn't let you ship a leftie here if you had PR. You might want to check it with someone in their office. Make sure you talk to someone who knows what they are talking about !! When my car eventually arrived (6 weeks), I was told by a bloke in a garage (I was filling it up after it came off the ship, as they take all the petrol out of your car before shipping), that I would never be able to register my LHD car here. And he was right !!! I had terrible problems trying to get it registered. They (the RTA) eventually changed the law in order for me to drive it in NSW. (The rules differ from one state to the other). I have to ship it back to the UK in 2 years. Mad bloody drivers over here !! It's a bit like bumper cars, without the bumping.:lecture:

Jaj

I can't understand why Australia has such a problem with LHD cars - you see a quite a
few of them on the roads in the UK.

You're right about the drivers - at best impatient, at worst insane. The craziest
are those with P plates, taxi drivers and drivers of old cars. General quality of
driving not good at all. The good thing is that the roads are wider, although in
many suburbs the street lighting on the roads is poor (often street lights on one
side only).

Jeremy

    >On Tue, 03 Sep 2002 06:52:30 +0000, onlyme <[email protected]> wrote:
    > that I would never be able to register my LHD car here. And he was right !!! I had
    > terrible problems trying to get it registered. They (the RTA) eventually changed
    > the law in order for me to drive it in NSW. (The rules differ from one state to the
    > other). I have to ship it back to the UK in 2 years. Mad bloody drivers over here
    > !! It's a bit like bumper cars, without the bumping.:lecture:
    >--
    >Posted via http://britishexpats.com

etlniwd

I've come across some a-holes on country roads but in the cities I reckon drivers are more polite than in the UK. None of my Australian friends agree with me but that's my observation.

Try cutting across three lanes on the North Circular or Hyde Park Corner cos you got in the wrong lane. You'll get a stream of abuse. Try it in central Sydney or Melbourne in the rush hour and you'll even find people who will let you in.

Flame me if you must, but that's my observation.

Jaj

You may be right - but then there's a difference between drivers in London and
provincial UK.

Jeremy

    >On Tue, 03 Sep 2002 13:59:24 +0000, etlniwd <[email protected]> wrote:
    >I've come across some a-holes on country roads but in the cities I reckon drivers
    >are more polite than in the UK. None of my Australian friends agree with me but
    >that's my observation.
    >Try cutting across three lanes on the North Circular or Hyde Park Corner cos you got
    >in the wrong lane. You'll get a stream of abuse. Try it in central Sydney or
    >Melbourne in the rush hour and you'll even find people who will let you in.
    >Flame me if you must, but that's my observation.
    >--
    >nick
    >Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Michael Hoffman

[email protected] (JAJ) wrote in -
news:[email protected]:

    > I can't understand why Australia has such a problem with LHD cars - you see a quite
    > a few of them on the roads in the UK.
    > You're right about the drivers - at best impatient, at worst insane. The craziest
    > are those with P plates, taxi drivers and drivers of old cars. General quality of
    > driving not good at all. The good thing is that the roads are wider, although in
    > many suburbs the street lighting on the roads is poor (often street lights on one
    > side only).

Wow, talking about eveyrthing being relative. I've driven in Australia on previous
trips, including Perth, which someone on this group commented, was the worst.

And compared to drivers in the US, they are as proficient as pros. Especially
compared to here in Denver, which has the hands-down worst drivers I have encountered
*anywhere* during years of driving on 3 continents.

Mike