Vrt question

ash2020

I have a Northern Irish audi a4 estate and would like to know if this could be vrt's as a commercial., It would save me going out having to buy a van, Obviously I would remove the rear seats and rear seat belts ect.
If i ring the vrt office would they request me to show them the car already converted or do i just arrange a booking with the local DOE centre?

I have seen plenty of small car type commercial vans through the years but dont think iv ever seen an estate car commercial.

Any toughts on this matter would be greatfully appricated!

Bumpstop

Years ago it was possible to tax an estate here on commercial tax. As far as I know, these days no windows are allowed behind the drivers window, and no seats or fittings as you mention.

I remember being in Harris Hino many moons ago and seeing Isuzu seats and fittings being burned and new metal panels welded in place of the windows. As the trooper was only available at the time as a four door car type. A huge amount of work went into making them satisfy commercial status.
If I remember rightly even the rear doors were welded up ( might be wrong there )

R.O.R

ash2020 wrote: »

I have a Northern Irish audi a4 estate and would like to know if this could be vrt's as a commercial., It would save me going out having to buy a van, Obviously I would remove the rear seats and rear seat belts ect.
If i ring the vrt office would they request me to show them the car already converted or do i just arrange a booking with the local DOE centre?

I have seen plenty of small car type commercial vans through the years but dont think iv ever seen an estate car commercial.

Any toughts on this matter would be greatfully appricated!

Last year we supplier a Passat Estate Commercial and I've just priced one up for someone. VRT amount all depends on the load lenght, but the A4 Avant should qualify for €50 VRT (rather than 13.3% for hatchbacks).

There have been a few threads on what to do to convert a car to a commercial. Usually written about a 4x4 but same applies for Estates.

You'd need to double check, but I'm pretty sure the following are required.

Rear seats need to be removed.
Rear seat belts need to be removed and all mounting points filled.
Rear Window regulators need to be removed (not 100% on this).
Flat load floor installed.

I think you can get away with just tinting the rear windows rather than panelling them off.

To get a pro to do it would cost around €2000 + VAT so it's worth having a go yourself. Apparently Crofton Motors of Kimmage did the Passat we supplied last year. They probably used to do the ones Belgard Motors Commercials used to sell.

Max Headroom

I think theres something about the rear load area being a flat floor and more than 60% of the interior space..

-Chris-

I hope the car is old enough that you intend to keep it until it croaks - you'll find it hard to sell on an A4 van (not a massive market for them), if you re-convert it to passenger you'll be liable for VRT, and the final option would be re-converting and selling it in NI.

As for re-converting, I'd also be wary of that (me, personally) - you're welding over seat belt points and then unwelding and reinstalling the seat belt mounting points. If it's not done properly, it's possibly a safety issue for the next owner. You'd need to know it's done properly.

Max Headroom

You've a 05 Audi..nordy plates..living in Longford...Why have'nt you re-reg'd the car up to now.??....sounds like you've been scamming the vrt man...;)

ash2020

Thanks max for been a nosey posey

My '05 A4 is 100% irish car!!

This car I talk about is a '03.. picked up on adverts 6 months ago > LiNKY

ash2020

Cheers lads for your help! I will call the vrt office tomorrow and get the cons and pro's.,

Car will be kept for the foreseeable future, especialy if it can be taxed as commercial rather than the 590 I pay on my other A4, If it cannot be done i will buy a van

Thanks everyone, you to max