nadine0895

Hey everyone, just wondering if anyones ever sent a car over from the US to the UK and what price region would I be looking at. Ive seen so many classic cars over here and Ive seen a lovely little mustang, its something I always wanted, a car with a bit of character. And how much would it cost to register the car when it comes over? Im guessing its a tricky process but Id be made up if I pulled it off. Classic cars in the Uk are just too expensive

lansbury

Friend of mine had an ex police Crown Vic exported to the UK. I know when it got there it wasn't legal to drive on UK roads and he need to get work done. It wasn't just a case of doing paperwork to get it registered.

mikelincs

Basically you would need to change headlights, fog lights (if fitted), in fact anything that is designed for driving on the right so the lights will go in the correct direction for driving on the left, bring all paperwork with you. A relative wanting to re register a Spanish car was quoted arond £1500 for everything, so I suspect it might be in a similar range, Ensure that you have the paperwork to show that the car has been deregistered in the US, my relative didn't get that from Spain, so eventually had to take it back to Spain and sell to a dealer there.

ottotheboar

It is a very simple process to export there is no de-registration needed as in Spain or Italy for example.
You need a clear title in your name no liens etc.
Roll on Roll off is your best bet in most cases.
Before you ship the car to the docks have your agent submit the title to US Customs they will stamp it "Export Approved".
Do not take the car to the docks before this as it can take a few days and if you miss the sailing you can get charged demurrage.
In the UK as mentioned you will need some minor modifications there are companies who specialize in this.
After they are carried out you need an MOT, proof of insurance, the title and the NOVA certificate which shows proof of duties.
We export motorcycles and do it all the time it is very simple.

Pulaski

If you haven't owned a car outside the UK for long enough (6 months IIRC ) you will be liable for import taxes when you import it to the UK.

Steve_

I'm not sure I agree with that, it's better to put it in a container, especially for a collectible.

It's a bit of a paper chase but it can be done, I've done it once and a family member has done it er... several times.

First of all you have to have a security check on the VIN run by CBP and that has to be arranged with them, they've got a new system they just started using so the dealer can do it, but in reality what it means is you have to get a freight forwarder to do it, then the CBP thing is pretty automatic.

Anyway with that clearance you can put the vehicle on a vessel and have it shipped.

Once it gets to the other end, HMRC have to do an inspection to make sure it is what it is and it must fit a specific DVLA type classification. Then you take it to a place of registration (not sure how this works nowadays given the DVLA is all centralized and everything is on the web, there must be a way of getting the V7 though) and then you have a month I think it is to get the MoT done - which is when they start fiddling with the headlights, indicators and so on to bring them into compliance.

I stress the point that is on the CBP website - do not use your car as a shipping container. Anything inside the car will be stolen by a dock worker, almost guaranteed. Make sure you get good insurance, you may need it.

They may not be minor, and if it's a classic car the replacement parts may be pricey. Depends on the car in question. I'm guessing motorbikes don't need as much messing about with.

Steve_

Garage I used specialized in doing it and he told me that they'd had a H1 Hummer come in and it was too wide for the lift so they couldn't get it off the ground to do the inspection.

nadine0895

Thanks lansbury I hope the process will be as easy as that, Im willing to put in the money as its more than tripple to buy these cars in the UK so I will have a bit of cash to spare to fix it up, I think it'd be a nice project and would be well worth the money not investment wise but I've always wanted to have one. Hi Mike Lincs do you reckon it might be even more because it's long Haul from the US? Ottotheboar, that sounds promising, do your bikes go to the Portsmouth Port? Ill definitely not be putting anything in the car I just want it purely to have a beautiful little classic

Pulaski

The $3,000 you're expecting in your bank account by Saturday?

ottotheboar

If it is over thirty years old it can be brought in under the Historic Vehicle category with only 5% VAT to pay. It does not need to be owned by you for 6 months.

ottotheboar

If it goes in a container it needs to be blocked and braced by someone who knows how to do it. There can be a lot of rough handling in the docks and with a rough sea crossing. I have seen horrendous damage due to movement in the container.

Nutmegger

By the way, what happened to your Nadineuk name?

markonline1

Can't offer any advice, but wanna wish you luck. Great idea for a cool car!

ottotheboar

We ship from our zip code in the USA to our place in the West Midlands our agent uses different ports to get the best rate.

For Portsmouth the closest RORO may be Southampton. Wallenius Willhelmson sail into there their routes are on the website w2global.com . Last month for a Land Rover 110 it was around $1300 RORO Southhampton to Baltimore the USA to UK rates are similar.