Car Buyers' Guide: Importing your new set of wheels

Make sure your import is prepared for an inspection upon arrival in New Zealand.

KEY POINTS:

• Bringing a used car into the country can be a bit of a dramaundefined

The importation and sale of used motor vehicles into New Zealand is a well-oiled and long-established business.

Used imports provide potential buyers with choices and also help ensure New Zealand-new used vehicles remain competitively priced.

Sounds like an easy business - head offshore and buy up large, ship the vehicles back here and on-sell with a reasonable profit. Well, things are never quite that simple.

Maybe once it was easy money, but today it's a different ball game, played out under strict government rules and regulations. Second-hand vehicles are not just selected offshore on price or popularity.

On arrival, they must comply with set standards based on structural integrity, vehicle safety and emission standards.

For those who live and breathe the business of importing used vehicles, it becomes second nature. They know exactly what can cross our borders.

The same can be said for private enthusiasts who want to import something special. They often know people in the industry aware of the latest regulations, ensuring what is landed can be legally driven here.

They also know the importance of a thorough pre-purchase check before committing to purchase.

Another group is owners who are planning a permanent move to New Zealand and want to import their own street legal vehicle they have owned overseas. This group faces the biggest risk of rejection during the compliance inspection.

A vehicle may tick all the right compliance boxes, but it's the structural condition that can catch owners out. Part of the compliance check is an invasive structural inspection, to ensure there are no major corrosion issues or sub-standard repairs.

Used vehicles imported from the United Kingdom for example can arrive with major corrosion issues due to salt used to de-ice roads, while in Australia there is no regular roadworthiness inspection to check for body deterioration or accident damage.

The invasive inspection on arrival involves the removal of some interior trim to check structural areas such as seatbelt mounting points, while the chassis is inspected for structural weaknesses. Failure in these areas usually means major repair involving sign-off by an approved certifier.

Repairs must be done to extremely high standards, and sign off is required in stages.
I recently spoke to the owner and panel beater repairing a 1967 Mustang imported from Australia.The car had been legally driven on public roads for 10 years before being shipped.

The car qualified for entry, subject to the invasive inspection.

The car failed the inspection due to both corrosion and chassis issues. The result was a costly rebuild, requiring major repairs to almost every exterior panel.

For owners, costs can spiral out of control. To make matters worse, because the vehicle had been converted to right-hand drive, and the windscreen wiper sweep had never been changed, it meant a new firewall panel had to be fabricated before compliance was signed off.

Kiwis returning home or new immigrants often have a personal attachment to their vehicles, or believe they are better importing what they know rather than purchasing on arrival.

The reality is the used-car market here is extremely competitive and specification levels are high.

That personal attachment would have to be very strong if a model was equal to what could be bought locally.

So if you are thinking of importing that dream machine, make sure all the checks are done and seek advice from a professional who knows the pitfalls.

And don't forget about that full underbody and structural inspection before shipping.
Buying local can be a lot less stressful for the inexperienced in this field.