Alright Expats: I've found two cars that I'm interested in. Any feedback or suggestions would be appreciated. One car is in Italy, it is newer and has fewer kms on it. I'm hesitant to go with this one because
A) I get the impression that importing a car from Italy is a hassle,
B) It's a private seller as far as I can tell, and
C) I've gotten the impression from other boards that Italian roads are terrible and can cause additional wear and tare on the cars as well as the Italians do not require/perform maintenance to the same standards as the Swiss.

The second car is coming from a Swiss dealer so even though it's a year older with a few more kms, higher maintenance standards and the ease of not having to import may outweigh the difference. Thoughts?

Italian car: http://www.autoscout24.eu/details.aspx…

Swiss Car: http://www.autoscout24.ch/…/mercedes...230-cabriolet…

Total nonsense.

Tom

Basel is a very long way from Ialy.
Buy local and drive a hard bargain.

Might help if you provided valid links...

Oops, maybe these will work.

The Italian car is just outside of Milan, so not so bad, also it could be fun to drive back. http://www.autoscout24.eu/details.as...S&id=263059330

The Swiss car is close to Geneva: http://www.autoscout24.ch/de/d/merce...?vehid=2730479

Both cars are the same age (1 month)

Nope, you'd have to trailer it.

Tom

Yikes, that knocks out the Italian. There's a bunch available in Germany, can I drive back from there?

No.

Tom

So, the only cars that I don't have to trailer are those that I'd buy in Switzerland? Many people have suggested that I buy in Germany but none have mentioned trailering.
Thank you!

Well, technically the "no" is simply not correct.
But the OP would need to take out insurance for Germany and Switzerland for the day(s) he drives to Switzerland.
Also, if (or better: when) he takes the car to the Strassenverkehrsamt, he'll also have to take out insurance for that day (or several days, if it fails the test and repairs have to be done and he has to appear at the Strassenverkehrsamt again...).

http://www.stva.zh.ch/internet/siche...s/KStages.html

http://www.autoscout24.ch/Cms/Article.aspx?cmsaid=5152

http://www.ezv.admin.ch/zollinfo_pri...x.html?lang=de


I've not done this myself but my boss and a few friends of him imported a couple of Porsches from the US some years ago and drove them from Hamburg (or Bermerhaven, wherever the port is that these cars ship to) to Switzerland.

All tax and duty has to be paid at customs on the spot (don't know if they only take cash or also accept plastic).

To drive it, it has to be registered.

To register it in Italy, you have to live in Italy.

To register it in Switzerland, you have to import it, have it inspected, insure it, then register it.

I bought a bike in Italy, I had to trailer it, same for cars.

Tom

Cash (at least that was still the case in 2007).

Tom

you can pay also with a card (debit and credit). did it three months ago

the car in Italy is registered at the moment but the seller won't let you drive it to Switzerland in his name. You should find yourself transport plates. They are only valid for a few days and any garage would be happy to organise them for you if you buy a car from them.

Yes, but the seller is a private person, not a garage.

Hence, big problems, especially if you don't speak the local language.

Hell, not only did I take a trailer, but I dragged my girlfriend (now wife) along to deal with any language issues (my Italian was OK at the time, but far from the level it is now)

Tom

thats what I was implying... big problems indeed

As foreigner you can buy export plates in Germany valid for a few days.

Anyway, back to the OPS search.

Italian one is the newer SLK which was much better than the original.
Swiss one is frickin miles away from Basel - and looks tatty.

Autoscout search reveals slim pickings in Switzerland - starting from around 10k upwards - and not much in Basel.

Why not just get to ABT in Liestal and buy your namesake?

1) Italian roads on the most part are great

2) the "Swiss" standards is bollocks. The technical inspection doesn't differ in anything from the standard EU one that happens in every other country. OK they want the car washed, big woop...



Hello, export plates anyone? That's exactly the reason they're being issued.

In some cases it can be a process- for example in Greece you have to go to a customs clearance guy and he will issue them for you through the Ministry of Finance after de-registering the car in the country. The plates include tax, registration in your name wherever you reside, and insurance by whatever company the guy wants (or you want) for a month and for most of continental Europe and UK+Ireland.

For a German car you can get the plates online and the temp reg+ins can be from a few days up to a year. They send them by post, you put them in your car when you receive it and you drive it wherever you want. I would suspect that for most european countries a similar process would apply.

__________________
Nothing is fool-proof to a sufficiently talented fool

I am also searching around for a cheap car at the moment something less thirsty for some regular commuting. A quick comparison reveals very little price difference between Germany and Switzerland - within a tolerable radius of where I am.

Sure I can save a few hundred chf going to Germany - but that would be chewed up in times/costs to view/collect/test.