buying rhd german car in Germany

dihedral8

Hi, im working in Hannover, Germany for the next month. Im playing around with idea of buying a rhd car here and driving to Ireland. I was told i could possibly find one in Celle where a british army barracks is located. The possibility of an army personal having brought one here looking to sell? My main reason of buying here would be to get a second car here for less than Ireland and roads better here so cleaner car ? Maybe an audi A3.
Can anybody please advise me if on how i should go about it, how to get car checked out properly, what to avoid etc? Or is it really worth it?

Atlantic Dawn

When you add the VRT and about €1000 in travel expenses, fuel, tolls etc to get it from Germany to Ireland it will not be worth it.

650Ginge

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

When you add the VRT and about €1000 in travel expenses, fuel, tolls etc to get it from Germany to Ireland it will not be worth it.

Give the guy a break, you can drive back from Germany in a very long day. The chunnel should be €100 max one way, the Holyhead dublin €180 max. Thats €280 and say €150 for a couple of tanks of fuel.

keithclancy

650Ginge wrote: »

Give the guy a break, you can drive back from Germany in a very long day. The chunnel should be €100 max one way, the Holyhead dublin €180 max. Thats €280 and say €150 for a couple of tanks of fuel.

With two people driving, yeh.

Tough going though, after doing it a month ago i'd prefer to go to Roscoff and kip on the Ferry, through the UK isn't worth the saving.

Those expat cars aren't the crazy bargains people think they are, the Americans aren't idiots selling off a car they bought two years ago for a major loss.

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

When you add the VRT and about €1000 in travel expenses, fuel, tolls etc to get it from Germany to Ireland it will not be worth it.

If you go through the North via The Netherlands and then onto France via Belgium there is no tolls. 1000 euro's me hole,

Think I paid around 100 euro return for the ferry france - uk and 220 euros uk - ireland, about 140 euros in fuel, to Ireland and back and I'm about an hour from Duesseldorf.

So about 450 all in, RETURN.

Guy:Incognito

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

-Corkie-

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

Definitley much cheaper here..

keithclancy

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

Yeh thats true, I'd happy import an Irish car here if the Steering wheel was on the other side

Lots of UK People chance driving cars on UK plates.

x in the city

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

quite, BMWs here being flogged for pittance cost miles more in the father land.

CiniO

keithclancy wrote: »

Yeh thats true, I'd happy import an Irish car here if the Steering wheel was on the other side

Lots of UK People chance driving cars on UK plates.

AFAIR it was allowed to drive a foreign car for 12 months before it need to be registered. I might be wrong though. Maybe it's 6 months.

CiniO

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

All over Continent used cars are way more expensive than in UK and Ireland.

UK seems to be the cheapest place for cars in EU.

CiniO

keithclancy wrote: »

With two people driving, yeh.

Depends from what part of Germany to what part of Ireland.
But generally it doesn't take that long.

I made a journey myself from Eastern Poland to Mayo (2600km) without stopping anywhere overnight. It took me 40 hours, including 26 hours driving. Remaining 14 hours, was eating, filling up petrol and sleeping (in the car and on the ferries).

If you go through the North via The Netherlands and then onto France via Belgium there is no tolls. 1000 euro's me hole,

Think I paid around 100 euro return for the ferry france - uk and 220 euros uk - ireland, about 140 euros in fuel, to Ireland and back and I'm about an hour from Duesseldorf.

So about 450 all in, RETURN.

Both ferries France-UK and UK-Ireland cost me 110 euros with Stenaline landbridge offer. Plus petrol and some food (for mentioned 2600km) - less than 400 euros. Total not more than 500 one way.
From Germany - especially western part, it's way closer and cheaper.

Monty Burnz

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

They have to give certain guarantees, which aren't worth a whole lot to you if you're in Ireland. Pushes up the price of second hand cars a lot.

Classic example of 'protecting the consumer' that means that everyone gets shafted, not just the stupid or the unlucky.

x in the city

CiniO wrote: »

All over Continent used cars are way more expensive than in UK and Ireland.

UK seems to be the cheapest place for cars in EU.

gotta love picking up a 2003 530i for a few grand...!

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201109381130246/sort/priceasc/usedcars/engine-size-cars/3l_to_3-9l/maximum-age/up_to_10_years_old/fuel-type/petrol/price-from/2000/body-type/saloon/price-to/3000/model/5_series/make/bmw/postcode/kw147dh/page/1/radius/1501?logcode=p

Esel

dihedral8 wrote: »

I was told i could possibly find one in Celle where a british army barracks is located. The possibility of an army personal having brought one here looking to sell?

More likely that they bought it over there under some armed forces deal but plans to return home have changed?

I know there were RHD bargains to be had in Berlin when the wall came down, but that was over 20 years ago... Are there many BA bases in Germany these days?

keithclancy

CiniO wrote: »

AFAIR it was allowed to drive a foreign car for 12 months before it need to be registered. I might be wrong though. Maybe it's 6 months.

Not if your resident in Germany.

You can bring your own car with you and you have 6 months to register it, it depends on a number of factors (such as where your Hauptwohnung is declared) in that case you have to prove you have left the country with the car and that your not normally resident in Germany.

You cannot however buy a car from another country and drive it when resident in Germany (Registered with the Landhauptstadt)

If your primary residence is elsewhere you have to be there for at least 183 days in the year. You might ask how you prove this, but you'll end up declaring it at the end of the year anyway when you do your tax return.

Depends from what part of Germany to what part of Ireland.
But generally it doesn't take that long.

I made a journey myself from Eastern Poland to Mayo (2600km) without stopping anywhere overnight. It took me 40 hours, including 26 hours driving. Remaining 14 hours, was eating, filling up petrol and sleeping (in the car and on the ferries).

See thats what I mean, I know a lad that drives from Utrecht to Ankara in Turkey 3 - 4 times a year, he does it all in one go, taking the odd nap, he's even pi^^ed into a bottle to avoid stopping in some places.

5/6 total hours driving a day is about the maximum that is comfortable/safe.

With regard to 'what part of germany' I was pointing out that you don't have to go via the south of france and pay the almighty tolls

munchkin_utd

Esel wrote: »

Are there many BA bases in Germany these days?

In the Paderborn, osnabruck, hannover direction theres still a few left.
All up that direction anyhow.

dihedral8

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Any time I've looked, 2nd hand cars in germany seem to be mad money.

Even unwanted right hand drive cars?

keithclancy

dihedral8 wrote: »

Even unwanted right hand drive cars?

The only RHD Cars left in Germany are usually ones that are extremely rare and were produced RHD only.

Or something is totally wrong with it that its not worth bringing back to the UK to sell it.

I had the same idea with buying a LHD car from the UK, bloody minefield.

krissovo

Buying an ex British forces car will be a bit of a challenge. UK registered cars need to be registered as "BFG" where they get a new plate and are BFG tested which is similar to an MOT. For a serviceman to sell it privately to a non servicemen involves a bit a work on their side and on your side its a challenge to register the car in Ireland unless the car has been de-registered from the "BFG" and registered again as a normal UK plate car.

Celle is a tiny barracks and you would better to look at Sennerlarger, Padaborne or Hohne which has proper car sales outlets.

If you do buy off a serviceman get them to sweeten the deal will a 100ltrs of fuels vouchers

munchkin_utd

OP
would something like this be what youre lookin for?

Volvo S60 with all the extras for 2590 and in Celle !!
http://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?id=149707535

For more options just google "Rechtslenker Celle" in advanced google search with mobile.de restricted as the domain.

Our man in Havana

The only cheap secondhand cars in Germany are those that have failed the TUV and are destined to be sold to places like Romania and Bulgaria where the local tests are a complete joke.

Esel

munchkin_utd wrote: »

OP
would something like this be what youre lookin for?

Volvo S60 with all the extras for 2590 and in Celle !!
http://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?id=149707535

For more options just google "Rechtslenker Celle" in advanced google search with mobile.de restricted as the domain.

The interior looks almost new - apart from the driver's seat (obviously) and a possible stain on the rear o/s seat. The other pics look good too!

Our man in Havana wrote: »

The only cheap secondhand cars in Germany are those that have failed the TUV and are destined to be sold to places like Romania and Bulgaria where the local tests are a complete joke.

Ja, in generaal, but ve are tokking about RHD wehicles currently owned by Britischers...

No offence meant to our fellow €uropeans, and I for one.... welcome our new Bundesbank Overlord>(s). Nice <Operation, btw. :pac:

Eleganza

TUV'd RHD car has LHD lamps.

bijapos

dihedral8 wrote: »

Hi, im working in Hannover, Germany for the next month. Im playing around with idea of buying a rhd car here and driving to Ireland. I was told i could possibly find one in Celle where a british army barracks is located. The possibility of an army personal having brought one here looking to sell? My main reason of buying here would be to get a second car here for less than Ireland and roads better here so cleaner car ? Maybe an audi A3.
Can anybody please advise me if on how i should go about it, how to get car checked out properly, what to avoid etc? Or is it really worth it?

If you are only going to be in Germany for a month you will be liable for full VRT when you come back here. You have to have been resident for more than 6 months and the owner of the car for more than 6 months to get a VRT exemption.

This is a link to all RHD cars for sale on the mobile.de website.

This is a link to all RHD cars for sale 100km from Hannover.

Mobile.de is easily the biggest car sales website in Germany but you can also try www.sperrmuell.de www.dhd24.de and www.autoscout24.de In the options list there will be the possibility to narrow it down to a RHD.

Our man in Havana

Eleganza wrote: »

TUV'd RHD car has LHD lamps.

Indeed, that is a point worth considering.

The NCT regs allow LHD lights so long as they have been masked for RHD driving.

petulko

Slovakian friend living here in ireland. bought 05 audi a4 2.0tdi fully loaded in germany last year( feb 2010) While similar cars were selling here for average 15k, total cost including ferry and diesel 2 days in germany, car, and vrt was 13.500€