Importing a DeLorean from US to UK.

[the_watcher87]

Thought I'd come here to ask as I'm sure some of you guys have done or indeed know how to go about it.

I've always been interested in DeLoreans and would love to eventually own one, what is the cheapest way to go about it? Should I buy one in the US and import (although I would have to do this basically by looking at pictures). Or buy one from within the UK? I also would consider a restoration job as I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty, would just be a little dubious as to what's the best way to go about restoring the interior if I have to.

If I do import what sort of costs are involved in doing so?

Hope some of you can help me out and sorry if the questions are a bit dumb.

Regards

[bozzzydmc]

7 years ago I imported my first one ... the difference back then was that a 'good' one could be had for $15k and at over $2 to the £

Im not seeing that over the last couple of years ...

You can pick a nice one up over here these days for 14k + if you hunt around long enough but very nice examples are above the £20k threshold these days

We are always willing to help new owners on here with impartial advice on any car and you will find the most experienced owners on here

Last thing you want to buy is a shed

Regards

Mike

[jerzybondov]

what is the cheapest way to go about it? Should I buy one in the US and import (although I would have to do this basically by looking at pictures). Or buy one from within the UK? I also would consider a restoration job as I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty, would just be a little dubious as to what's the best way to go about restoring the interior if I have to.

If I do import what sort of costs are involved in doing so?

Cheapest way to go about it - buy a basket case for $5-7k in the States and ship it over.

Should you import or buy from here? Plenty of reasons to recommend either course of action. Import pros - more choice, potentially cheaper if you buy a restoration vehicle / Import cons - riskier in terms of getting what you expect, takes a lot of time, energy and faff.
UK car pros - know what you're getting, much less hassle, good cars less expensive overall (due to 20% VAT on imports) / UK car cons - not many for sale at any one given time.

Restoring the interior isn't an issue. Seat covers are readily available, carpets clean up nicely, and are readily available should they not, new dashes are kicking about these days too.

As for import costs - depends whether you ship from west or east coast, whether you container it or RO/RO (only for runners). For east coast RO/RO, could be less than £1k. For west coast container up to £4k. Also factor in haulage costs too to get your car to the port.

Then at this end you've got VAT at 20%, dock fees and £100 import tax (I think). You can get round the 10% import duty by sending them a letter saying the car was originally manufactured in the UK. A rough old rule of thumb used to be to convert the sale price in $ into £ and that would be a rough guide to how much it would cost to get it over here.

One thing I'd say is that don't think that you'll necessarily save money by getting a restoration job - even if you do the work yourself, you'll end up spending as much to get it shipshape as you'd have spent buying a good car - so only go down this route if you'll enjoy the process!

Hope that helps.

[MikeWard]

There are pro's and con's to both - obviously with a UK car you can go to look at what you are buying/test drive etc, most car's are known within the club so someone would be able to give you an opinion on it. However there aren't always too many for sale within the UK, there is only 1 car currently advertised for sale at £19.500 http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C311389# (but isn't known within the club) - there is also 1 other that hasn't been formally advertised. Both grey interior, manual transmission cars from late '81.

It depends on what sort of car you are after, manual/auto, grey/black interior/ gas flap hood, pleated hood, flat hood etc - since they don't come up for sale too often in the UK when they do your choice is limited.

Importing on the other hand does open up the above options as there is nearly always half a dozen or more cars for sale within the US - drawbacks are you would be relying on pictures the seller provides to you (unless you fly out to visit in person) and/or someone from a DMC club within the US is willing to take a look at the car for you.

Import costs will vary depending on the location you are shipping from, east is cheaper than west. My car came from the west and shipping came in at around the £1200 mark, you would also need to factor in haulage from the current owner to port of departure.

Import charges when it hits the UK, import duty is normally waived provided you have a letter from the DOC stating the car was built in the UK, and as the cars are now over 30 years old they are classified as historic, as such VAT is reduced from 20% down to 5%.

You would also need to factor in if you would be willing to do the import paperwork yourself, some of us elected to use an agent to take care of this. Other costs, haulage from the UK port, essential repairs/MOT prep (uk spec headlights and rear fog light) - registering the car with the DVLA £60, first years road tax £215.

Edit - Gez bet me to it

[the_watcher87]

Am not really fused on interior, gas flap etc. Although I would prefer a manual. Just want to own one and be sure it's in decent shape. Have seen that one in Shropshire online on a couple of sites. Any links to the other one you said about?

How much do you reckon a "cheap" restoration job would fetch and how often would these come up in the UK?

[MikeWard]

What sort of budget are you looking at? The other one I mentioned isn't formally advertised as for sale but the owner is thinking of selling.

I think the answer is that they don't come up in the UK, for a restoration project you'd need to look to the US.

[jerzybondov]

Import charges when it hits the UK, import duty is normally waived provided you have a letter from the DOC stating the car was built in the UK, and as the cars are now over 30 years old they are classified as historic, as such VAT is reduced from 20% down to 5%.

Ah, news to me... Good one Mike! Makes buying a nice one from the States less of a shocker than it used to be...

I think the answer is that they don't come up in the UK, for a restoration project you'd need to look to the US.

Agreed. You do see the odd one in the UK but it's a once in a blue moon type event.

[the_watcher87]

I'm looking at 6 months to maybe a year down the line so that'll give me plenty of time to look and see what sells and for how much. Am also hoping to make a few friends here that can hopefully point me in the right direction.

[the_watcher87]

You would also need to factor in if you would be willing to do the import paperwork yourself, some of us elected to use an agent to take care of this. Other costs, haulage from the UK port, essential repairs/MOT prep (uk spec headlights and rear fog light) - registering the car with the DVLA £60, first years road tax £215.

How much would the import paperwork normally cost?

What sort of budget are you looking at? The other one I mentioned isn't formally advertised as for sale but the owner is thinking of selling.

I think the answer is that they don't come up in the UK, for a restoration project you'd need to look to the US.

Would hope to pick one up for around £15k eventually.

[MikeWard]

If I recall correctly it was around £190 - £200 - plus the applicable import VAT on the car.

£15k could get you a project, possibly average condition D from the states, including import fee's etc - just make sure to budget for any essential repairs, plus DVLA registration etc etc.

It's just a shame the exchange rate isn't as good as it was a few years ago - on the plus side though it's now only 5% VAT.