Hello from a car mad Aussie moving to Aberdeen

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Hi Aqua,

Love the roads around Aberdeen, we are probably going to settle around Banchory so there are not shortage of windy roads. Reckon l need a Evo IX FQ360 MR as my second car for the blast to the office each day.

But getting back on the AMG, dont think l can go past the facelifted c63 with Performance pack, its just a great looking car and l dont think l could go an e63 over it. Sounds like the local dealer has some stock so might pay them a visit over the weekend

Cheers,
firthy
 
Hi LTD,

Its interesting that you raise the VXR8 aka HSV Clubsport. I am a mild HSV fan and liked their cars up until the VX/VY wheen the styling started to get too loud and try hard. The current models simply look ridiculous, I would have to be blind to drive one! In Oz the Clubsport costs ~75k on the road and a new c63 ~ 170k and the c63 still sells very well. A 3 yr old c63 is still pulling close to 100k so the resale and demand are strong.

In the UK a c63 seems like a bargain!

Cheers,
firthy

Sounds like there could be money to be made exporting used cars out to there !
 
Hi Aqua,

Love the roads around Aberdeen, we are probably going to settle around Banchory so there are not shortage of windy roads. Reckon l need a Evo IX FQ360 MR as my second car for the blast to the office each day.

But getting back on the AMG, dont think l can go past the facelifted c63 with Performance pack, its just a great looking car and l dont think l could go an e63 over it. Sounds like the local dealer has some stock so might pay them a visit over the weekend

Cheers,
firthy

Great roads and lovely countryside ; the outlaws live in Westhill , so I'm up there half a dozen times a year . Just watch out for the boy racers on the esplanade ; some nutters down there .
 
Welcome to jockland Firthy.

Banchory eh? An S1 Landrover is what you really need.
 
Are you a Banchory lad Druk?

I have got a test drive of a c63 coupe lined up at the local dealers on Sat morning. Cannot wait!

MB have what seems like a pretty good deal going at the moment. 6k deposit, 36 months at 600pm and at the end of 3 yrs the option to buy the car for 27k. I would like a few options including PPP so I have requested a revised quote, problem is delivery is late year.

Cheers,
firthy.
 
Hi firthy, house hunting myself at mo. with banchory one of the places on the aspc search. Like u i have a test drive of the coupe this morn so will see what figures they come up with. The deposit to low and monthly to high on current offer. Prefer saloon to coupe though so would go for that.
 
Hi Aqua,

Its a small world, perhaps we need to do a group buy :) In regrads to your ocmments on the current offer, would you like to pay a higher deposit to get lower payments or are you saying the current offer should be sharper?

Let us know how the drive goes.

Cheers,
firthy
 
Sounds like there could be money to be made exporting used cars out to there !

Ha, if only it was that simple!

I have just gone the other way. Scotland to Perth WA! I have shipped my C55 over, and thank god I did as car prices are sky high as alreay said!

Trust me though, there is no way of getting a car over here from UK to cash in on it!
 
Hi Firthy and welcome to the forum.
 
Are you a Banchory lad Druk?

Naw Firthy, I'm an Edinburgh bairn. so you might say a 'Firthy of Forthy' ;) but now stay in West Lothian. I was just thinking...Aberdeenshire, winter, C63, yup..that should work fine. :wallbash: :D:D

Welcome to the forum anyhow and I do like your present choice of car.
 
Last edited:
Ha, if only it was that simple!

I have just gone the other way. Scotland to Perth WA! I have shipped my C55 over, and thank god I did as car prices are sky high as alreay said!

Trust me though, there is no way of getting a car over here from UK to cash in on it!

Yes , I have a couple of friends who have emigrated ( funnily enough my GF's cousin and her partner have just gone to Perth too ) and taken cherished cars with them .

Does that mean if you take your car out , you can never sell it ? I'd have thought there would simply be some rules about how long you had owned them here before export , and maybe having to keep them so long out there before selling ?
 
Ha Trust me though, there is no way of getting a car over here from UK to cash in on it!

No there sure isn't, the government has that locked up tightly. I can take a car home if l have owned it for a minimum of 12 months but l must have been a resident of the UK to do so and even then there is no end of proof and paperwork required. I will make sure we always own at least one car worth taking home for 12 months so if we decide to return to Oz l can take advantage of this concession.

Druk - I haven't had the pleasure of an Aberdeenshire winter yet, the c63 could be a challenge but whatever l buy will have LSD and our second car will be AWD too, probably an RS4 or Evo IX.
 
Yes , I have a couple of friends who have emigrated ( funnily enough my GF's cousin and her partner have just gone to Perth too ) and taken cherished cars with them .

Does that mean if you take your car out , you can never sell it ? I'd have thought there would simply be some rules about how long you had owned them here before export , and maybe having to keep them so long out there before selling ?

No I could sell it the next day after I pay the GST TAX etc on it. I would be up by about the tune of $30000 AUD. However I would have to replace it with something!

As Firthy said, its so sewn up. Basically you have to:

1. Own the car in your name for 12 months.
2. Prove that you have been able to drive it for 12 months.(You have to send a copy of every single page of your passport for the 12 month period. To prove you were in the country and able to drive it. Any period of absence in the UK longer the 2 weeks in your 12 month qualifying period gets added onto the qualifying period)
3. You can only import 1 car in your name in a 5 year period. So If I wanted to do another I would have to move back to UK in 5 years time, for a year, then move back to Australia and import the car.

So pretty much aint happening!!

Then there is the expense of getting it into Australia. £2k Shipping and insurnace. And I am looking at about another $10k in taxes and all the other gumf to get it on the road.
 
Druk - I haven't had the pleasure of an Aberdeenshire winter yet, the c63 could be a challenge but whatever l buy will have LSD and our second car will be AWD too, probably an RS4 or Evo IX.

The C63 on broad low profile summer tyres will be literally undriveable in snow or ice [ LSD or not]. If you do buy one get a set of winter tyres and rims at the same time for peace of mind if you want to use it in a daily commute. don't wait for the first flakes of snow there won't be any to be had then. The Michelin factory in Dundee which makes winter tyre for the UK and continental markets has gone on to reduced production= expect a scarcity of winter tyres next year! Bosses shut down production at Michelin factory in Dundee - The Daily Record Limiting the supply of winter tyres helps keep prices "firm" :rolleyes:
 
Hi Firthy, test drive this morn was great. Lovely car with fantastic sound. Bit of town driving then out to drumoak and back on sth deeside. Felt the deposit was too low so no probs increasing it and lowering the monthly payments. Looks like i will be putting an order in for the saloon. Enjoy tomorrow. John weir also have their own deals as well which might be woth asking about.
Cheers
 
Hi Terry, how is life in Perth? Great roads for a C55 out there, especially the drive to Margaret river and Albany. Stayed in Shenton Park 12 years ago.
Si
 
Hi Aqua,

Good stuff, sounds like it lived up to expectations. What options are you considering if any? Thanks for the tip on asking about dealer offers, l wouldn't have thought to do that.

The C63 on broad low profile summer tyres will be literally undriveable in snow or ice [ LSD or not]. If you do buy one get a set of winter tyres and rims at the same time for peace of mind if you want to use it in a daily commute. don't wait for the first flakes of snow there won't be any to be had then. The Michelin factory in Dundee which makes winter tyre for the UK and continental markets has gone on to reduced production= expect a scarcity of winter tyres next year! Bosses shut down production at Michelin factory in Dundee - The Daily Record Limiting the supply of winter tyres helps keep prices "firm"
rolleyes.gif

Grober,

Is that because of the torque of the V8? There are way more 2WD than AWD cars around here, would most of them switch to winter tyres. Thanks for the tip on these, l will do some looking into options here, it was something l had thought about but need to look into the cost. The rims will be the expensive bit l guess

Cheers
firthy.
 
Enjoy the drive today firthy. The options i have specced are mainly sound system really. Have left everything as is. The ride on the 18" is very similar to my C55 so happy with that. I think the 19's with performance sus would make it harsh. Not going for ppp as you only get a 35bhp increase. If i want more will get a cheaper remap! Anyway, enjoy the drive!
 
Hi Aqua,

Good stuff, sounds like it lived up to expectations. What options are you considering if any? Thanks for the tip on asking about dealer offers, l wouldn't have thought to do that.



Grober,

Is that because of the torque of the V8? There are way more 2WD than AWD cars around here, would most of them switch to winter tyres. Thanks for the tip on these, l will do some looking into options here, it was something l had thought about but need to look into the cost. The rims will be the expensive bit l guess

Cheers
firthy.


A mixture of torque and wide low profile tyres which tend to " float" rather than bite into the surface. Its pretty standard to downgrade a wheel diameter size/ up the the profile and reduce rim width to same all round front and back =no staggered rim sizes. this tends to reduce costs a bit. Unfortunately the limiting factor of changing wheel diameter is often brake caliper clearance which may well be an issue on the AMG. The wheel and tyre size recommendations are all covered in the C class owners manual online Mercedes-Benz UK - Car Care - Interactive Owner's Manual

Of primary importance however is the specialist tread compound and pattern to be found on winter tyres which promotes grip at low temperatures. [ they are compulsory in Germany below certain temperatures by the way ] The jury is out on whether its worth fitting them in the South of England but staying in Banchory in the North East of Scotland I WOULD STRONGLY RECOMMEND THEM FOR A DAILY COMMUTE in winter.
 
Last edited:
Hi Aqua - I am dead keen on the PPP and possibly 19's but would pass on the performance suspension, l reckon that would just be too much on the roads around here. How do you think the c63 will go in the winter?

Off to the dealer shortly for a spin!
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom