EU Supplied Imports - A good buy??

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New Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2005
Messages
7
Location
Fareham, Hants
Car
E200K Estate
I'm currently searching for a 2003-ish SL350 or SL500 and keep seeing new and secondhand eu-supplied imports for sale at markedly below the uk supplied equivalent. For example Hondas-uk are selling brand new SL350s at £9k below list! Is this the bargain it seems or does the old saying "if it looks to good to be true, it probably is" apply here?!!! Don't want to make a BIG mistake :eek:

Grateful for any advice

Cheers
Roger
 
I used to run a car import company. Nothing wrong with the cars at all - provided they are built to UK spec, have an EU certificate of conformity, and most importantly (from your point of view) have the VAT paid. It should also be UK registered.

Be careful and look for LOTS of paperwork.

As for the price difference - doesn't sound unreasonable. I've saved over 15K on a car half the price as an SL, but that was a long time ago. SL's are still at least 5-10k cheaper new (for the AMG version) if you import from the right place - ie, direct.

Clarky.
 
What do the MB dealerships think of imports, or perhaps more importantly, the owners of imports?!!!

Understandably goodwill gestures might be few and far between but is there any difference in the warranty?

Cheers
 
Warranty is two years, compared with 3 in the Uk.

I've never had a problem with UK dealers and servicing TBH.
 
I thought that had changed now and the warranty was also three years for imports.

For servicing etc you shouldn't be treated any differently to anyone else who bought their car elsewhere (another dealer or lease company). I've never had any tourble.
 
saorbust said:
Warranty is two years, compared with 3 in the Uk.

I've never had a problem with UK dealers and servicing TBH.

I understand what you are saying and no doubt there might be dealers that treat everyone as equal, but........

I have heard of higher insurance premiums for imported vehicles, although I have never been asked, "Is your car imported?" when getting a quote. Is this just an urban myth?

When selling the vehicle a dealer will know the car is imported even without asking. They usually then adjust the trade in price accordingly, therefore you might be better eventually selling your import privately. No doubt some folks have NOT had a problem selling their imported vehicle though.

I would not fancy selling a fairly newish vehicle privately, and tend to negotiate for the best deal, but this is down to the individual.

Finally, why is it that these discounts are not uniform throughout the brand? You can get good discounts on quite a few Mercedes-Benz, but when I purchased my 211 the very best deal I got was from my local dealer?

The cheapest 211 with the exact same specifications as what I wanted was from an organization in Lancashire that obtained a very good price from a main Mercedes-Benz dealer in Lincolnshire. This price was cheaper than any european import, however I was not offered a decent price for my trade in.

A £9000 discount on an SL is not to be dismissed and can subsidise a lot of inconvienance at dealerships that might not treat you in the same way as there 'loyal' customers.

Good luck with your decision,
John
 
glojo said:
The cheapest 211 with the exact same specifications as what I wanted was from an organization in Lancashire that obtained a very good price from a main Mercedes-Benz dealer in Lincolnshire. This price was cheaper than any european import, however I was not offered a decent price for my trade in.
John
Can you remember the name of the place ? Any contact details, web site ? ;)
 
Aletank said:
Can you remember the name of the place ? Any contact details, web site ? ;)

Hi Aletank,
I have had a quick look but unfortunately I cannot find any of the correspondance.

They were a set-up that allegedly bought in bulk and negotiated deals on your behalf.

They were very helpful (and persistant ;) ) and I located them by searching the Internet.

The physiotherapist is due soon, but when she has finished abusing my body I will ask the 'boss' to have a look for my old correspondance files and I will search the Internet.

Take care,
John
 
glojo said:
I understand what you are saying and no doubt there might be dealers that treat everyone as equal, but........

I have heard of higher insurance premiums for imported vehicles, although I have never been asked, "Is your car imported?" when getting a quote. Is this just an urban myth?

When selling the vehicle a dealer will know the car is imported even without asking. They usually then adjust the trade in price accordingly, therefore you might be better eventually selling your import privately. No doubt some folks have NOT had a problem selling their imported vehicle though.

I would not fancy selling a fairly newish vehicle privately, and tend to negotiate for the best deal, but this is down to the individual.

Finally, why is it that these discounts are not uniform throughout the brand? You can get good discounts on quite a few Mercedes-Benz, but when I purchased my 211 the very best deal I got was from my local dealer?

The cheapest 211 with the exact same specifications as what I wanted was from an organization in Lancashire that obtained a very good price from a main Mercedes-Benz dealer in Lincolnshire. This price was cheaper than any european import, however I was not offered a decent price for my trade in.

A £9000 discount on an SL is not to be dismissed and can subsidise a lot of inconvienance at dealerships that might not treat you in the same way as there 'loyal' customers.

Good luck with your decision,
John

John,

A lot of questions.

1; Yes its a myth re insurance. I've been quoted / used Admiral, Privilege and Mercedes Own Insurance with no problems. Admiral even insured me on the basis of a chassis number (ie, no UK reg). Lets be clear here though - I directly advised them it was an import, which had an EU Certificate of Conformity (ie, its been type certified as per cars via a dealer). I didn't wait for the question - I specifically told them.

2; As for selling, yes its very very easy to find out. Put the VIN of an imported car into any MB system - and it will show its order location code as something other than the UK (which from memory is 575 on the order number - 3rd to 5th digit). If a dealer chooses to penalise you - fine, it happens. But remember you got the car cheaper in the first place. I would never advise importing to make money, rather to save money on the initial outlay.

Of course you are right re imports - you can't trade in your old car, you must have the money (or have the finance ready), and you have to deal possibly in German. The language is easy to overcome. Ask anyone who's done a factory visit to Bremen - they all speak English. Goto Berlin, same is also true.

I never imported from anyone other than German main dealers, who also gave a discount straight off, and just quoted list prices plus the RHD surcharge. Sure the price wasn't always competitive, but as a general rule of thumb, the more options and the more expensive the car, the likelihood of a worthwhile saving increases. Hence, 9k off an SL.

Finally I'd say that the service I've had in a German dealership is superb - buying or not buying a car. The UK is in the dark ages, and they still haven't improved much.

Clarky.
 
Last edited:
glojo said:
Hi Aletank,
I have had a quick look but unfortunately I cannot find any of the correspondance.

They were a set-up that allegedly bought in bulk and negotiated deals on your behalf.

They were very helpful (and persistant ;) ) and I located them by searching the Internet.

The physiotherapist is due soon, but when she has finished abusing my body I will ask the 'boss' to have a look for my old correspondance files and I will search the Internet.

Take care,
John
Hi John
Don't go to no trouble, I was only interested for "browse value" lol If ya know what I mean ;)
I normally browse prices/specs on these sites
www.autobytel.co.uk
www.autoebid.com
www.broker4cars.co.uk
Thanks Anyway ;)
 
saorbust said:
John,
I never imported from anyone other than German main dealers, who also gave a discount straight off, and just quoted list prices plus the RHD surcharge. Sure the price wasn't always competitive, but as a general rule of thumb, the more options and the more expensive the car, the likelihood of a worthwhile saving increases. Hence, 9k off an SL. Clarky.


Thanks very much indeed for taking the time to reply.

I must confess I never tried Germany for the E-class. If memory serves me correctly I tried both Holland and Belgium.

Language was never a problem, but I was told everytime that I could make much better savings on the C-class or S. Unfortunately the S-class do not make an estate, and the savings they offered for the high spec E-class were simply not worth the inconvience.

This was approximately 18 months to 2 years ago and things might have changed, but after a quick 'surf' whilst trying to answer aletanks query I am of the opinion that they are still similar.

aletank said:
Hi John
Don't go to no trouble, I was only interested for "browse value" lol If ya know what I mean
I normally browse prices/specs on these sites

Hi aletank,
I have had a quick look and unfortunately none of the sites 'kick my memory into gear'

The autoebid site certainly talks the talk of the people I spoke to, but it certainly was not the actual site.

Thanks for an interesting set of messages,
John
 

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