diesels????
 

In preparation of us descending on NZ, we have been looking at buying a car but looking at websites we have noticed that there are lots of 4x4 diesels around & we had heard that diesel carries a tax, but don't really understand much about it, can anyone enlighten us. Can you also give us any advice on cars in general, for example is insurance compulsory & any other info you think we need to know. Cheers

Re: diesels????
 

Hi Poppets
the tax you are referring to for diesels is the road user charge (RUC) - diesel doesn't have the same tax levied on it at source so this is the govts way of getting the levy - the charge is based on distance travelled, so you buy units of 1000km at about $30 per unit and it is linked to your odometer reading. The RUC should always be current - so if you buy a diesel check and see how many km's are left - there should be a little card on the bottom lefthand side of the windscreen, seperate to the registration card (tax disc!) There is an admin fee as well - we've just bought 5 units (5000km) and it cost us $166. The more units you buy, the cheaper it is per unit.
Re: insurance - it is optional but more and more people are now insured. We've got fully comp on a car and a 4x4, for both of us to drive (both over 25) and it cost us about $500 for the year total - you get discount for paying annually and discount for package (ie more than 1 insurance) - we went with ASB - very easy to arrange over phone.
There has been a discussion on here before about things to look out for when buying cars, especially japanese imports so you might want to search for those.
When buying through a dealer, there is quite a lot put in place to protect the consumer - the vehicle has to be sold with a WOF (MOT) that is less than 28days old, you get the window card as proof of what they told you about the vehicle so you get some comeback, they are generally all sold with a 3 month warranty.
Oh - and remember to haggle - they expect it!!!!
Vicki

Re: diesels????
 

Hi Vicki ,
Thanks for all of that. With 6 weeks to go we are trying to get our heads around the NZ way, so we have a rough idea of how things work when we arrive.
Could you also tell me how much does the registration card & the WOF cost
Cheers

Re: diesels????
 

Hi Poppets
My hubby is a mechanic and does WOF - his garage charges $35 and you have to have one done 6 monthly if you car is over 6 years old, up to 6 years old its annually.
re: registration (relicensing) you can choose what time period you want so it varies but I think a years licence is about $200 - got to do 1 of our cars next week so can confirm price after that.
Where you headed? You must be getting so excited - it all gets a bit surreal doesn't it - we only arrived in Oct so I can remember the stage you're at!
and fear not - things over here are really easy to get sorted and everyone is really helpful so you'll find your way really quickly I'm sure.
Vicki

Re: diesels????
 

Thanks for that Vicki that's really helpful. Yes we are really excited but time seems to be running away from us. I'm not worried about the move at all, we're doing as much research as we can to prepare ourselves but there's only so much you can do from the UK. We're heading for Wellington area but really like the look of the Kapiti coast. Having a toss up between living in that area mortgage free, & hubby freelancing, or going nearer wellie having a mortgage & hubby finding a job. Depends on what happens when we get there. How have you found your first few months?

Re: diesels????
 

Are vehicles that run on alternative fuels, such as LPG, Bio-diesel, electricity exempt from tax? And whats the availability of these fuels in NZ?

Re: diesels????
 

Asiatic - LPG is certainly available here - not sure about the others. As far as I'm aware there's no additional taxes for the LPG and it is cheaper, but not sure how much - can check out for you if you wanna know.

Poppets - we've really enjoyed our first few months - we think we were pretty well informed before we came (mainly through this website) so the negatives have not come as any great surprise (wages etc) and the positives have been more than we expected. Hope your first few months go as smoothly and are as enjoyable as ours have been
Good luck with it all
Vicki

Re: diesels????
 

Thanks for the LPG info - all I need to do now is find a car that runs on LPG or may be there is a garage that do conversions? I'm looking at buying a HiluxSURF, so I think I'll contact ToyotaNZ. Cheers :)

Re: diesels????
 

Hi Poppets
We've been living in the Wellington area since december, so if you'd like any info on anything let me know, I'll try my best to help you.

Re: diesels????
 

;)
That would be fantastic. We arrive in Levin (staying with friends) at Easter, so if it's ok i'll pm you around then when we are trying to settle ourselves. If anything crops up before then i'll be in touch. Many thanks

Re: diesels????
 

No problems. You'll be here in no time. Look forward to hearing from you. Good luck with your travels. :D

Re: diesels????
 

Hi asiatic, message from OH (mechanic) - assuming you are looking at a 2nd hand surf, be warned - go for 3.0litre diesel or if looking at 2.4 litre then check it's history as they are prone to cracking the cylinder head caused by radiator blocking - really common on these. Re: LPG costs - can't do like for like comparison but it works out at about 1/3rd cheaper - conversions are evidently expensive!
Vicki

Re: diesels????
 

Wow! I know who to contact when I'm looking for my surf. thnx