Pricing on new car purchases

[Meff]

Originally Posted by sparkyg

The 6.1% is unavoidable. It is a Fed tax on imported cars.

The tax is only applicable to non North American built cars of which the M3 is one (Germany)

[rsg]

Originally Posted by Meff

The tax is only applicable to non North American built cars of which the M3 is one (Germany)

BMW is even more strict now. You need a letter of permission from them for the car you wish to purchase even before you show up at the border...$500.

Then you have to pay duty of 6.1%

Then in order to get the documentation you need, you will have to perform all "mods" BMW deems necessary to make the car up to canadian "standards". This is where they really shaft you. Can range from 1k to a reported 8k in some cases. I would never import a BMW unless the dealer I am purchasing from would issue me a free and clear recall letter (which they are technically not allowed to do). That would allow one to bypass the BS at the BMW dealer in Canada.

[EA51 LAY]

Meff, have you still not bought a car yet??

Want an MCE??

[rsg]

mce?

[Meff]

Originally Posted by rsg

BMW is even more strict now. You need a letter of permission from them for the car you wish to purchase even before you show up at the border...$500.

Is this a recent addition? RIV fee + inspection on top of the 6.1% is all you need last time I checked. There are other threads/posts of guys importing without this fee - what did BMW call the letter?

Then in order to get the documentation you need, you will have to perform all "mods" BMW deems necessary to make the car up to canadian "standards". This is where they really shaft you. Can range from 1k to a reported 8k in some cases.

The E9X does not require any modifications though. The DTRL can be programmed to stay on through the iDrive, and the cluster displays both kms and miles so no replacement is required. Other items are standard equip ie: restraints, etc.

I would never import a BMW unless the dealer I am purchasing from would issue me a free and clear recall letter (which they are technically not allowed to do). That would allow one to bypass the BS at the BMW dealer in Canada.

The recall letter is another non issue - US dealer will issue one for the car at no charge and can be done whether you buy from a BMW dealer or other

It's a pain yes, but not as bad as you've been led to believe

[Meff]

Originally Posted by EA51 LAY

Meff, have you still not bought a car yet?

Sadly no - I've had 2 deals fall through and have yet to find a 3rd to make an offer on as I have a pretty narrow criteria for the car I want. Absolutely nothing in Canada, so I'm forced to look stateside.

Originally Posted by EA51 LAY

Want an MCE??

With more of the Editions left across the country than I'm sure BMW Canada would like to see, they are just too overpriced. The $9900 premium can't be justified and even with the current $3k incentive it's still a $7k premium (plus the incentive is on all remaining 2010s so it's still a delta of $9.9k) Even the residuals are 2% lower than the regular models - that shows even BMW Canada does not believe they will hold their value on par with the standard models

For a guy who hates depreciation, the Editions are the poster children for it

Too bad they are so damn sexy....

[cap_freez]

Meff - they just received a frozen black at BMW laval. Black 220's, black interior with red stiching, carbon leather, carbon roof, dct, red brake calipers.

I saw it yesterday and it looks pretty cool. Not necessarily my cup of tea but I'm sure many people on this board would love it.

[Meff]

Originally Posted by rockrboy

Meff - they just received a frozen black at BMW laval. Black 220's, black interior with red stiching, carbon leather, carbon roof, dct, red brake calipers.

I saw it yesterday and it looks pretty cool. Not necessarily my cup of tea but I'm sure many people on this board would love it.

Thanks - not quite what I'm looking for though. I'm assuming this is a new 2011 ?

[cap_freez]

yes 2011 frozen black ... apparently only a handful produced.

[rsg]

Originally Posted by Meff

Is this a recent addition? RIV fee + inspection on top of the 6.1% is all you need last time I checked. There are other threads/posts of guys importing without this fee - what did BMW call the letter?



The E9X does not require any modifications though. The DTRL can be programmed to stay on through the iDrive, and the cluster displays both kms and miles so no replacement is required. Other items are standard equip ie: restraints, etc.



The recall letter is another non issue - US dealer will issue one for the car at no charge and can be done whether you buy from a BMW dealer or other

It's a pain yes, but not as bad as you've been led to believe

The letter of permission to import is a recent phenomenon. Cost varies from 300-500. I know the DRL's can be programmed through the iDrive but people have had bs thrown at them from the dealer saying that is not sufficient (I don't see how it would be insufficient if the DRL's are active). I have also heard of people having to swap the cluster anyway despite the fact that is displays both. This is the BS that you can potentially encounter if you don't get the recall letter from BMW USA.

The only hang-up that I can foresee is that the RIV will not accept a recall letter from a "non-canadian" dealership. My cousin imported a bentley and that is exactly what they did to him.

I have imported MANY vehicles (honda, lexus, acura, toyota, nissan). The process is almost seamless. The BMW will be a nightmare if the recall letter from the US doesn't hold up.