Importing low mileage 500SL from Isle of Man

[wongl]

Spotted this low mileage 500SL on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mercedes-500S...92QQihZ003QQcategoryZ9855QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

So has any one experienced importing a used car from the Isle of Man? Do I need the Certificate of Conformity to register a car of this age in England? Also will HMCE hit me with any duty or VAT on such an import?

 

[BTB 500]

IOM is a normal part of the UK, surely?

As far as I can see the wheels are standard 8-hole ones .. not "brand new AMG". 3 owners and 15 years old and only done 29K miles, sounds a bit weird. And only 1 month's MOT ... hmmm.

 

[nick mercedes]

Spotted this low mileage 500SL on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mercedes-500S...92QQihZ003QQcategoryZ9855QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

So has any one experienced importing a used car from the Isle of Man? Do I need the Certificate of Conformity to register a car of this age in England? Also will HMCE hit me with any duty or VAT on such an import?

"usual extras including matching hard top"

Ever seen one that didn't come with a hardtop?

 

[stats007]

Certainly not a special car by any means. You can find quite a few R129s with lower mileage. Those photos aren't any use at all really - way too small to check details and the IOM is a long way to go to be disappointed. Not the best colour combination either.

 

[sagalout]

We lived in the isle of man for 5 years and brought our manx car back with us.

The isle of man is NOT part of the UK and is not governed by UK road laws. They do not have any MOT system, so I have no idea why it has an expiry date on the listing, so take that into account before looking at it. Importing is simple enough - You will get a manx V5 type document which you send off with a form from the post office. Then you need to make sure you get an MOT and they will give you a wierd plate (I got P*** PPP) although I dont know if that was just chance. Theres no import duty to pay. Just drive it home and send the forms off.

It is a long way to go to look at a car, but its an incredibly beautiful place at this time of year, so maybe justify it as a weekend away. Flights are cheap enough from Liverpool (about £60 return) or foot passenger on the ferry is about £30 from memory. Expect to pay the best part of £200 to bring the car back on the ferry though.

edit - 3 owners and 29K isnt unusual for the isle of man. Theres nowhere to drive! We brought our 6 year old car back with just 12k on it.

 

[pammy]

Does the fact the the IoM have a lot of coastal weather - ie salt affect the bodywork? Is that something else to look out for.

It could be worth asking just how long he has had the car on the IoM it might be that he's had it for less than a year and prior to that it was on the mainland and subjetc to MoTs etc. Just a thought. This might also help justify the milage too as I agree 29k if it's only been on the IoM would not be uncharacteristically low - but if it's been on the mainland then it might warrant closer scrutiny.

 

[sagalout]

coastal weather? the Isle of Man? Its positively tropical!

Seriously though - its fair to say that between November and about March its one of the most miserable places on earth (highest suicide rate in Europe apparently for those months!) mostly due to high winds and constant rain, but I'd expect that car to be garaged in winter. On the plus side it is in the Gulf stream so it doesnt get frosts and therefore the roads are never gritted (I think in 5 years we had 3 frosty mornings and one brief flurry of snow)