It used to be that buying a car in Holland and then importing it into France worked out cheaper than buying a car in France.
Does anyone know if that is still the case? Or to put it another way, what is the current approved method of buying a LHD car for use in France?
Could be I'll be moving to France full-time and won't need to keep a UK-registered RHD car in that circumstance.
Thanks!
There was a time, when the cheapest place to buy a new car, was Denmark. New car prices there are sky high, but it's mostly tax, which you don't pay, if car is exported. However, buying a car outside country of residence always involves extra paperwork and inconvenience, so if the French dealer can match or come close to other quotes, it's better to give the sale to them.
Nearly €17,000 for a Fiesta sounds a lot to me. Mind you, I do actually agree with you, if you’re looking for a new car a French dealer is the place to go; good discounts and a car that will hold its value.
Hi Mike, yes, it was a very good deal, but look at the UK list price first , £18,491 for the Car I purchased for my wife. Didnt buy a base unit though.
Hope this helps.
Regards.
Paul.
Hi Mike, yes, the final invoice shows all of the necessary taxes, TVA and Carte Grise. I had asked for an on the road price with no additions.
I think that you have to be very clear with them up front and leave no wriggle room.
In may case, I may have been able to do a little bit better, but by the time I had added on my travel and fuel costs to collect the car from further afield,I really do not think that I could have done much better. The French dealers definately managed to beat the other dealers from Holland, Belgium and Germany.
Regards.
Paul
Ford are currently advertising the Ford Fiesta on the road price for just £8,645 (must be ordered before 31 Dec 2015) so a saving of £6K would mean you only paid the equivalent of £2,645 for your car...that is some deal.
When you buy a new car in France does the price they quote for the car include the Tax that has to be paid for all new vehicles which can easily add a lot of money to the eventual price?
Rgds, Mike L
Hi, good morning Bill, Paul here. This advice will only be relevant if you are considering purchasing a new vehicle. I have just returned from France. My wife and I are moving there permanently in January. One of the reasons for my visit was to purchase a new car.
I had no French Bank Account or Permanent Address although I explainedthat at the time of collection, I would have both.
Before my visit I did a bit of research online and printed off quotes from the manufacturers sites that contained prices, including extras etc. I downloaded prices from dealers in Holland, Belgium and Germany and just kept the quotes that contained the lowest prices. I wrote a brief letter detailing exactly what i was looking for including warranty and after sales service, but not price (I used Google translate for this and it was pretty accurate). I printed off 4 copies and then, when if france visited 2 dealerships close to where we propose to live.
A salesman at each dealership took a look at the quotes and my written specification and on both occasions they beat the online quotes without me having to haggle. In addition, I was offered an extended 3 year manufacturers guarantee (5 years in total), 3 years free servicing and the price was on the road with no extras. The price quoted by the dealer was within 400 euros of what I wanted to pay, I asked for the additional discount and said that he could have his order immediately if he could meet my price, he even threw in a set of floor mats. 5 minutes later the deal was done. it took 35 minutes in total.
It was really easy. I have had to pay no deposit and my car is ready to collect mid Feb 2016.
If you are looking for a new car, i can think of no simpler way to present your case to a dealership, no language issues and the process is very easy. On this occasion my wife had wanted a small, economical car and chose a Ford Fiesta. if anyone else is thinking of doing the same and is interested in a Ford, then I can pass on the details of the dealership. They are based just outside Perigeaux. In total, we saved £6000.00 on a comparable car in the UK and just under 3000 euros on the French price. All I can say is that the deal was good for me.
Good luck and I hope that this helps.
Regards.
Paul
or try belgium also less than germany and most of the paperwork is in french, I have bought 4 now their and never had a problem, the last one which i owned for 18 mnths and then sold for more than it cost.
If I was looking for the best value/easiest to import LHD secondhand car market I think that I would look in Germany rather than Holland. Dutch prices tend to be higher and when buying in Germany you register the car on export plates that make moving it to and registering it in France very straightforward.