Opinion on importing car from Ireland?

[Danny Boy]

Hi guys I know there are a few Irish members on here and just wanted a general opinion on the Teg's over there.
I've seen various for sale on DoneDeal ranging from €6000-€9000 and when you take into consideration the exchange rate from GBP that's a very reasonable price compared to the UK.
I know they don't spread salt on the roads there either so rust shouldn't be as much as an issue on the cars there either?
My Dad lives there so I was seriously contemplating purchasing one in Ireland and importing it back to the UK in June/July.
For example this car looks in great condition and the price is low

http://cars.donedeal.co.uk/cars-for-sale/honda-integra-dc-5/6816675

Is it just the case that there are simply more integra's over there, like most JDM cars, so the prices are cheaper?

 

[Ek9.]

One thing to note, irish cars are generally in much worse condition compared to UK car. They're not minded as much and pass through alot of hands with little or no care. Alot of the cars on donedeal are heaps of scap but if you're lucky you might come across a good one.That's from my experience.

 

[k20-outlaw]

That one is for sale, in my own local town, the word "m i n t" does not mean anything when it comes to cars for sale on done deal,

when you consider that all irish cars have 39 percent tax added on to the market value when imported from the uk or japan, then It makes them even cheaper.

9 out of 10 irish dc5's won't be in as good of condition as dc5's in the uk, So be very careful when buying one, I bought a cheap 04 arctic blue and have spent over 3k on it since fixing it up and respraying it, I would not do it again thats for sure.

 

[stwteg]

Nothing wrong with an Irish dc5 as long as its been looked after. I personally will be travelling to the uk or will be importing a fresh Japanese one when I buy again. I sold mine without even putting it up for sale. Word of mouth from friends sold her. Done deal examples from what ive seen are rough and driven by people who don't care for them- adds saying mint, burns no oil, unreal fast- the list goes on-That's not to say all are rough but be careful- there are some rough ones out there. I've only seen one good example in the last year.

 

[Danny Boy]

Thanks a lot for all the replies guys. I think that as I'm going over to see family anyway I might as well kill two birds with one stone and go and view a few whilst I'm there. You've not filled me with to much confidence though lol but as you say there are rough ones and then there may be some rough diamonds just have to see what's up for sale whilst I'm there.
I may strike it lucky and I might find a nice clean one. I'm going to japfest and will definetly be coming and having a good old druel over your cars so I can try and compare any perspective purchase to a well looked after members car.
Again thanks for the replies Guys 😉

 

[Rom]

Wow, i had never heard this before.

I briefly thought about this, after seeing what looked to be a nice one for sale. But ruled it out purely on time and cost involved in getting there and back.

 

[Danny Boy]

The costs aren't that bad Ryanair there maybe get a bargain early booked seat £20 😉 the ferry back around £80-£120 then the price of 6 months or a years tax and an mot. I'm not 100% sure but would the insurance be cheaper as it would then be classed as a European import and not a jap import??

 

[Rom]

For me, it was Bristol to Antrim. No ferries go anywhere near, best was Holyhead, which is probably 4-5 hrs at a guess.

Think it was like 9-10 hours to get from Antrim, to Bristol. And if your going all that way, your buying the car arent you. Unless you plan to book a ferry, and not even buy it! Id feel almost obliged to buy it, unless it was a shed.

Do imports still make much odds ? If they do, sure they would just look at it as a grey import, came from Japan regardless of how it got here.

 

[stwteg]

I think it would still be classed as a Japanese import for insurance purposes. Its the cost of parts replacements on
Japanese imports that raise the insurance (or so the insurance companies tell say) But good luck finding a good one. They have to be out there somewhere!

As regards distance- I would travel anywhere for the right car. I went from Ireland to the Uk last year for my S2000. Totally worth it. It only takes a day and the drive home is great fun!!!

 

[wombles]

I'd be very careful with cars on Donedeal, as previously said a lot of the cars aren't looked after and change hands a lot! I viewed 9 DC5's around Ireland and wouldnt have even considered buying any of them, I went across to wales for mine, like a lot of others from around here, theres a reason a lot of us cross the water to gets ours

Im sure a few guys on here would help you out if you find any cars local enough to them, If you find any around the Antrim/Armagh area feel free to PM me and i might get to view it for you !

 

[Chris-141]

Alot of cars with southern reg's are hanging together... Rough as f**k!!

Saying this my mate brought an altezza up from the south and it was pretty clean. Just needed a good polish.

I'm in belfast

 

[Danny Boy]

Haha well you haven't filled me with any confidence in finding one there. I'm not going to pin my hopes on finding one there. I'm going over for a week to see some family anyway. So the plan is to view a few here in the uk prior to going and then view a few there and see what happens. @wombles really appreciate the offer mate 😉 I suppose it's like a lot of things really some of it is luck but believe me if I don't think it's a good clean example Im not going to all the effort of bringing it all the way over on the ferry and registering it 😉. Somebody must be able to confirm the point I made about the rust and no salt on Irish roads though?
Again lads thanks for all the replies and advice. I've been on a few forums and you lot are a really friendly knowledgable bunch of owners.

 

[wombles]

No problem mate, about the salt on the roads, they are definitely salted up here in the north, I would assume the same goes for the south, I've never heard that before if im honest!

 

[Danny Boy]

Yeh it's just my dad says he'd never buy a northern car I assume he means Northern Ireland as they salt the roads and all the cars get rusty. He's adamant they dont salt the roads in southern Ireland at all. I'm sure someone on here who lives in the south will clarify but if it's true at least the underside of the cars should be in good nick if nothing else 😉.

 

[shane_blueteg]

We do salt the roads down the south but it's rare enough we get a hard freeze so salt isn't a huge problem with cars here. A lot of the cars can be rough but that's not to say you still can't find a decent car

 

[Danny Boy]

Thanks for clearing that up @shane_blueteg

 

[AaronDc5]

Iam from Ireland, there are plenty of cars here for good prices but most of them reflect condition. I looked at 7 dc5's to find mine and took 9 months to find one. It's very hard to find a clean car over here but anyone that has one would rather keep it than go threw the hassle of people on donedeal comparing them to other on the site. I would like to sell my dc5 and move onto a FD2 or FN2 but I just can't put myself to advertise it over here. People like to compare them to anther so called "mint" example. Iam thinking of advertising mine on pistinheads as there are great examples on that site and seem genuine people.

 

[AaronDc5]

Here's my dc5. If you'd like a look when you come over give me a pm

 

[Nickyyy]

Just to make you aware, if you buy a car from Northern Ireland it won't need re registered and MOT'd as it's part of the UK so our MOT and tax is the same as the mainland.

Buying a car in southern ireland means you will need to register, mot and tax it.

If there's any cars in northern ireland you're considering give me a shout and if i've time I'll go and have a look at it for you.

Cheers

 

[MissMyDC2]

Handy thread this thanks all.

I gather besides the registration and MOT costs from ROE to UK there are no other hidden charges? Also how would I arrange insurance and is there a grace period to get the car into the UK and the above sorted?
Also how would it be best to arrange funds? Would it be best converted into Euro and taken over in cash?

Loads of questions but would appreciate the input thanks.