Help!!! Do I buy a car in England or France

[chicken]

I have just sold my vehicle and am considering my next move. Do I buy a car in the uk - (seem much cheaper)second hand and bring it over or do I buy one here in France (seem very expensive)? I'm really not bothered about RHD/LHD as I am used to both. I have Euros.

Any advice, experience etc... very, very much appreciated as I know nothing about cars at all. Thanks

[Iceni]

If you buy in UK you must remember to include the following for genuine cost comparison

1. Cost of getting to point of purchase
2. Cost of getting car home
3. UK tax and insurance though you can get some tax refunded
4. Cost of LHD headlights
5. Possibly cost of fitting LHD headlights
6. Cost of CT but only if car virtually new i.e. less than 4
7. Cost of CofC

Then of course there will be the aggro factor of Quittus Fiscale and CofC

I have done/am re-registering a Fiat and a Smart. As regards CofC

1. Fiat UK was v helpful and CofC was free
2. Mercedes FR was a pain in the wotsit and v unhelpful, CofC costs EUR 140
3. Mercedes GB v helpful but CofC costs £120

Then there is re-sale value but be like the French and run it forever so re-sale does not matter.

HTH

John

[chicken]

Thanks for that.

Yes, I think the CofC are a rip off. Fancy having to pay a vehicle manufacturer a lot of money to say their vehicle (especially a French one) conforms!

Yes, I realize it's a hassle and that there are other expenses to take into account but is it worth it for the saving?

[cooperlola]

Another option to consider is to buy in another EU country such as Belgium. 

Do you change your cars every few years or run them until they drop? Which is more valuable to you - your time and effort or your cash? How much difference in cost would it take to make the hassle worthwhile?  You need to decide a few things for yourself before anybody can know the answer to your question.

[chicken]

I suppose I wonder if people thing the financial saving is significant or not. I'll already be in the UK - so have to get back anyway.

Thanks

[chicken]

I think my tendency would be to run a car as long as possible. Buying cars is not my strong point.

[Bobk]

Hi Chicken,

This is my experience

After checking prices in France, I went back to the UK, re-registered the car I brought over 3 years previously and traded it in for a 6 month old car and even after paying for new LHD lights and a new speedo unit (It is a Merc and there are no KPH markings on the speedo on UK cars) and paying €1000 to register it in France I saved about €8000!

[chicken]

thanks

that's the sort of response I'm lookinf for

[AnOther]

Saving £8000 puts your car buying preferences a galaxy away from mine Bob, that's more than I've ever spent on a car - or ever will !

If you tend to run a car to near death (like me) then any extra cost of purchase in France is likely to be compensated for both by time itself plus the cost of servicing and repairs where parts for a RHD car might be less readily available and possibly more expensive to boot. Second hand parts are also less likely to be available. Also, even if still roadworthy and driveable when replacement time does come, an ancient miley RHD will be near impossible to sell and probably end up at the scrappies whereas you can nearly always get €500-€1000 for usable French car whatever it's age or mileage.

You should also consider the insurance angle, most companies will down value a RHD car so in the case of an accident you could well find it being written off sooner than a French car might and being offered less in settlement.

Even if in the habit of changing on a more frequent basis the resale or trade in value of a French car will be proportionally higher so the initial outlay in getting a foot in will be fairly quickly forgotten in time.

[tinabee]

Another option is to buy a LHD car in the UK - you can sometimes get French registered ones from specialist places like this

http://www.lhdplace.co.uk/car-details/11761/RENAULT-LAGUNA-18--16V-EXPRESSION.aspx

If you google "LHD cars" I am sure you will find other places

[cooperlola]

The other thing to bear in mind is guarantee.  I bought a three year old car from a forecourt here and got a 12 month warranty on it (Nissan Note, 25k on the clock 8k€).  If I'd bought in the UK I'd have had to return there for any major repairs - how problematic would that have been?

On balance, I reckon that if you want a small, relatively cheap car that's not too old then buy in France (because cheap to run cars hold their value pretty well in the UK too) from a garage and get a warranty.  If you want a more expensive, luxurious second  hand car, especially if you don't mind its being a few years old, then you're probably better off buying in Britain.

EDIT : Also, keep an eye on the ads on other expat fora which carry classifieds and look for cars from people returning to the UK.  They are often in a hurry to sell and are more realistic about the price!

[Alex H]

[quote user="tinabee"]

Another option is to buy a LHD car in the UK - you can sometimes get French registered ones from specialist places like this

http://www.lhdplace.co.uk/car-details/11761/RENAULT-LAGUNA-18--16V-EXPRESSION.aspx

If you google "LHD cars" I am sure you will find other places

[/quote]

They will register the car for you  - I bought a Spanish one from there and had it registered in the UK until I was ready for the final move, but they will do French registration if you are going straight there.

[chicken]

Thank you everyone for your help.

I have decided to buy in France. Mainly to avoid hassle but also because I believe cars retain their value here so whilst I'll pay more I think I'll get a greater percentage back of what I paid when I sell.

So thanks again

[crossy67]

Good luck with it.

I have been looking for 5 weeks trying to find a specific car.  Today we did a 360 mile round trip to see a car, as we arrived there were people in the sales office.  You guessed it, they had just bought the car we went to see.  I could get round the swear filer here bit I shall refrain[:@]

I have been scouring the net for 5 weeks looking in Germany, NL and Belgium and France.  Apart from the distance there is the huge issue of the language barrier, believe me that one can be very difficult in France with a little French but the other countries I dare not think. 

Just as an example the car we are after, a Grand Scenic (1.5dci ideally) the cheapest in France I can find without buying a car that's been to the moon and back start at €6k, the same car in the UK can be had for 1/2 that.  I really don't want a rhd car but, I don't think they are as safe as they could be but I can't justify days away from work and 1000's of k's driving round on fruitless searches to buy a car for double what I could get one for if I am prepared to sit on the wrong side.

[AnOther]

That will happen if you paint yourself into a corner by being too model specific, especially if £3000 is your budget.

Good luck with the hunt.

PS: It might help if you said which Aubeterre are you in, Google maps reports at least 8 all in different departments !

[Anton Redman II]

I think it depends on budget and is worth doing a lot of research before choosing a particular model.

Costs of headlamp change do vary between nothing, Jaguar X-type headlamps can be adjusted to pass CT to alledgedly over € 3000 Euros Range Rover with Xenon.

Certificate of conformity zero from Jaguar UK to a UK address but € 200 from Jaguar France.

Malus – surcharge of polluting cars is complex to calculate but should also be taken into account.

If you are spending serious money and intend to sell rather than run into the ground keep UK headlamps and plates and sell in UK.

I did buy in UK and spent € 10700 all in on a car which was not available in France in similar condition or mileage for less than € 23000. I intend to keep it for at least ten years.

We viewed flights to UK, car hire to look at cars etc as part of costs of holiday rather than expenses of car purchase.

[crossy67]

I do realise I am making things a little difficult by wanting a Grand Scenic, I am flexible on engine size but don't want one with 200k on it.  My budget is up to €7k for the right car but here you will be lucky to find a 2004 1.9dci with 180k for that amount where as in the UK £3500 would get the exact model with 60000 miles on it and it would probably be 2 ears younger. 

Even more importantly though, I would not be spending days and days on wild goose chases and returning empty handed.  Same goes with building materials, many miles and several hours driving for nothing.  This is often made much worse by the lunch break punctuating the day and the huge distances you often travel meaning you can only fit in one visit in the morning and one in the afternoon, not complaining about this, this is the way it is, I knew this coming here.

I am thinking of buying in the UK simply to save the endless days work lost and 1000's of K's driving for nothing, and I can save several €1000's into the bargain.

Oh by the way, Aubeterre-sur-dronne in 16.

[Iceni]

Then bite the bullet, go to UK and buy your car. At your present rate of no-progress you will need a hearse not a Grand Scenic.

John

[Jo]

Went through the same sort of options when we were moving over, wanted a small run-around found a Citroen C2 in UK for £4500, same car in France with a much higher mileage, was 8000 euros, it has cost me approx 500 euros to change it to french plates, well worth sitting on the wrong side of the road!![:D]

[just john]

[quote user="crossy67"] I do realise I am making things a little difficult by wanting a Scenic,  [/quote]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2022052/Family-escapes-car-fireball-M42-Worcestershire.html

Time for rethink perhaps[:D]

[crossy67]

Well I have arrived back home from the UK with our shiny new toy[:D]

I got given a 54 Scenic 1.5dci at cost price by a big Renault dealer I have looked after for many years.  It's not very fast but it did return 62mpg at 70mph for most of the way home, 580 miles and it is very comfy with AC.  Luxury.  It's got 65k miles and has been serviced every 6k miles instead of the recommended 18k.

I would have loved a French lhd car but I would have never got that car at that price even with unlimited running round.

Ps.

Not a sniff of smoke either lol