dub

hi

I'm in the process of buying a car in Dubai. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to stretch to something nice but like many people I'm not sure how long I'm going to be here. Could be 1 year it could be 5! Just taking things as they come.

Common sense tells me I should get something mid-range but if I got a pricey motor would it be easy/pricey to export to the UK when I leave these shores? I'm assuming the duty I'd have to pay in the UK would make it prohibitively expensive?

I've had a look at previous car related threads but can't seem to find the answer. If anyone can shed some light on this it would be greatly appreciated.

Inselaffen

would be a waste of money. You'd have to pay duty and hipping and then you'd be lumbered with a left hand drive car in the UK which would have a low resale value.

Coxy the Bear

Not necessarily, if you buy the right model, ie a yank motor that isn't imported to the UK, you could drive it for a year or two, import it back and still make a profit. Also, Lhd is only a problem if it's a car that is sold as a UK model, a Hummer for example is only brought over in very limited numbers and as they start at under 20K here, you'd have no rpoblem selling it for a tidy profit back home.

Inselaffen

after getting all the lights (rear indicators etc) changed!
even then it base price here is more than buying the same car in the US and the Ocean Freight will be a lot more.

Coxy the Bear

I've been quoted 4000Dhm to take a car back through a friend. To Transport a car back from the states, you're looking at 1500 sterling plus. Light conversions are easy if you go through the right company in the UK. The only other issue would be getting a Mph Speedo. Still works out cheaper than buying in the US. For instance, you can buy a Charger Hemi here for 115,000Dhm(17K sterling). There is a 2006 model Hemi for sale in the UK at the moment for 26,500 Sterling. You work out 2 years motoring, 4000Dhm freight costs, factor 2K sterling to convert to UK spec and you've effecticely driven for nothing for 2 years and may make a profit. The most you would get knocked from Rhd to Lhd on one of these is a couple of K.

Coxy the Bear

Just found a 2 year old Lhd Hummer H3 in the UK for 21,000 Sterling. You can buy a new one for that here. Again, I rest my case!

Coxy the Bear

Or a 2007 Lhd H3 with 4000 miles for 34K! How much more is that than here?

Coxy the Bear

Have a look at the price of 2 and 3 year old Mustangs in the UK, all Lhd, it'll make you feel better!

Inselaffen

it does mean having to own a Hummer though! Chavtastic!

username 34

my dad brought back an Audi A6 - fully loaded model. Paid about half what it would cost in the UK, had to change over the lights, petrol filler nozzle, pay the duty and off he went.

In all he was up about 15,000 pounds even after he paid the duty and having a leftie car is no problem - I always used his car when we were back in the UK. The high spec he got on the car you couldnt even order in the UK and the Audi dealership drooled over it for years!

he sold it this year. Got 2k less than a right hand drive model so I think that with the original money he saved plus the much higher spec he got he did well and had a car he loved for 7 years.

Coxy the Bear

Your right, you don't have to buy a Hummer, but if you buy the right car, you can effectively have free motoring for a couple of years in something a little bit different and possibly make a profit. I had a Lhd BMW M5 in the UK, had no problems driving or registering it. Drove it for a while sold it for more than comparative UK Rhd models because of the condition. People may take the piss out of your Mustang, but if you take it back, you won't lose. There are enthusiasts who will buy that sort of thing in the UK for a premium regardless of Petrol and tax prices.

Eeyore

You can actually avoid the duty and VAT as long as you provide proof that you have owned the car for at least 6 months outside the EU, and keep it for at least one year after bringing it into the UK.

Inselaffen

only problem with that plan is that there is no f##king way I'm moving back to the UK. I doubt i'll be in Dubai too long but after that I plan to head to Singapore or Hong Kong. Where I'll probably end up driving a bloody yaris!

NedKelly63

I've been looking into this too.

I'm thinking of buying a Porsche Cayman S (mid life crisis - WTF). I've been told that I need to own it and drive it in Dubai for at least 6 months before I think about shipping it back to the UK.

When you do ship it back - it is then classed as 'Household Goods' and doesn't attract import duty. The thinking behind this is that you are not importing the car to sell on - it is something you have owned and used in UAE.

The catch is that when back in the UK, you can't sell the car within the 1st 12 months.

As mentioned previosuly, there will be issues with lights (need to be changed).

Depending on the type of car you buy, there may also be issues with the fuel system (The Porsche dealer here reckons that the Caymen would need some work done in this area when back in the UK. ). I'm not convinced about this, as 95 and 98 RON petrol are available both here and in the UK.

Maybe it's something to do with differences in fuel additives. Does anyone know?

Coxy the Bear

I did hear an issue to do with cars a few years ago where the emmissions systems were different. Although this was a South African car that didn't have a cat. Best thing to do would be to contact Porsche GB in Reading or even Stuttgart and ask if there are any differences. I don't think there will be in fairness, and lets face it, the fuel in the UK will be better quality not worse, so shouldn't be an issue.