Thoughts on South African cars

[richiep]

I think buying from abroad without first hand knowledge of the car and buyer is a risky proposition.. if it looks too good to be true it probably is....

The same can be true of cars already in the UK - I've seen people buying into Z ownership with enthusiasm but little background knowledge and getting very expensively burnt as they discover how much is actually wrong with the cars they've purchased. This is particularly the case with RHD UK cars (given the often long repair histories) but also previously imported US cars. It's all about the research.

 

[uk66fastback]

No excuse for not doing as much due diligence as you can … sometimes difficult with cars bought from overseas …

 

[51mes]

The same can be true of cars already in the UK - I've seen people buying into Z ownership with enthusiasm but little background knowledge and getting very expensively burnt as they discover how much is actually wrong with the cars they've purchased. This is particularly the case with RHD UK cars (given the often long repair histories) but also previously imported US cars. It's all about the research.

I agree, but at least in the UK if buying from a dealer you have "some" level of protection and can actually get to see the car before purchasing.

I'm in the learning phase at the moment, heading rapidly for the trough of dissolusion not helped by YouTube videos of rusty z's, but equally drooling over completed cars... It's all good fun...

 

[uk66fastback]

I’d never buy a car in this country without seeing it in the flesh, whether it’s costing me £1000 or £20,000.

My mate bought a car on ebay recently - only 70 miles away, but didn’t see it first. When we went to pick it up, it looked honest, but he’s had a bit of trouble since. Okay, he could have seen it first and had the same experience, but he chose not to …

 

[microg]

Look at my vin location thread to see the difficulty in registering a SA car. On the plus side it is largely rust free ,rhd and manual but would I do it again no.

 

[microg]

Oh and just to add I previously personally imported an aristo from Japan and that went perfectly!