Buying a car

[mercen]

Hi Folks,

Any advice on buying a car? I see a lot of American cars for sale, but is that smart to buy one? How is it buying a German car with the weak dollar? Any new or used dealerships you could suggest?

Thanks all.

[JOFTAA]

Call Gary Ashmore at Pentagon Car Sales

Kindsbacher Strasse 47
Ramstein-Miesenbach, 66877

Phone: 06371-6139910

Aside from being an advertiser at this site, he has some very good prices.

Also, check into car dealerships in The U.S. See what kind of prices you can find on a new car. You may be entitled to having a car shipped here on Uncle Sam's dime. You should check into that.

[Native]

Cars in Germany and USA have different light installations, so when you sell your US car here it might need some conversions for the new owner to registrate it in germany (=minus 1000$/€ when selling).


Check out www.mobile.de for an overview of used cars in germany. www.quoka.de has regional offers.

[mercen]

Thank you for the reply.

I am going to be in Germany for a long time - maybe a decade. I won't be shipping it back.

Would you buy German? American? Japanese?

I see the AFEES car sales carries Hondas.

How are German cars with the weak dollar? I see $20,000 used cars with 50,000 miles being sold. For just a bit more I could have a new Honda Accord or a Dodge Caravan.

Any problems with finding parts for non-German cars?

Thanks for your time. Much appreciated.

[Native]

New cars sold in germany are generally 10-20-30% more expensive than in the countries around. Sometimes they have better interior (interior trim, dashboard, seats, etc), sometimes not...

No problem with car parts of any makes. Compare prices for spare parts! Could save you load of $/€ if you don`t need original parts (like 250 instead of 700 for catalysator).

Would you buy German? American? Japanese?

I would buy a japanese rice cooker.

I would buy an american car if gas prices would be like half of a third of what they are now. A huge one. Big Block that sounds like thunder

[mercen]

Okay, thanks again.

Gas prices? You do buy from AAFES, right? About $4, correct?

Yeah, the BX new car sales has some Hondas which I would favor as long as there is a place to get them repaired. Can't go wrong with an Accord. That will last forever. They seem to have a lot of cars on base in stock.

I need something decent for the autobahn!

Thanks again,

- David

[JOFTAA]

Gas is about $4.18 per gallon now. Honda is not a problem here. I am pretty sure that the Honda my friend across the street got came from The U.S. because he was able to get it shipped here for less than the price on base. Don't let the advertising fool you. Pricing on base is not always the best pricing.

As for the autobahn... Don't sweat it. 80MPH is the maximum speed on many parts of the autobahn around here. There are only very short areas of lifted speed restrictions.

[Native]

You can have a cheap employee`s car (=Jahreswagen) for example. I guess car prices in Mannheim/ Frankfurt/ Karlsruhe should be way cheaper than in Kaiserslautern...

Gas is 8,78$ / gallon right now.

[JOFTAA]

Originally Posted by Native

You can have a cheap employee`s car (=Jahreswagen) for example. I guess car prices in Mannheim/ Frankfurt/ Karlsruhe should be way cheaper than in Kaiserslautern...

Gas is 8,78$ / gallon right now.

Gas in this area is €1.65 per liter. This x 3.8 is €6.27 per gallon. In U.S. Dollars, using DoD bank rate of exchange, this is US$9.70 per gallon.

[mercen]

Wow! That is hefty. $8-9 a gallon. Do you have ration cards you travel with? What is your limit?

What is a Jahreswagen?

I would rather not buy an American car, but as I look around that is the only thing that makes sense given the exchange rate. For the same as a used European car I can almost get a new Ford or Dodge. The difference between a new American car and a new VW is close to $10,000.

I guess I better shop in dollars.

- David

[JOFTAA]

Originally Posted by mercen

Wow! That is hefty. $8-9 a gallon. Do you have ration cards you travel with? What is your limit?

.....

No... We pay $4.xx per gallon right now. I was comparing to the economy. If we had to buy fuel on the German economy, that would be the price.

[mercen]

Right, I got you, but if you are traveling can you buy German gas at American prices with a ration card?

- David

[DcCow]

Originally Posted by mercen

Right, I got you, but if you are traveling can you buy German gas at American prices with a ration card?

- David

David, you can use the ration card to purchase gas at most Esso Stations in Germany for the same price as offered at AAFEEs gas station on base. You can find more info here on the Germany Fuel Ration Card Program.

[Native]

What is a Jahreswagen?

1-2 year old cars that have been "loaned" to employes like representatives etc. by their employers.

[mercen]

Okay - A Jahreswagen would be perfect then. If I were in the states I would shop for a former rental car or a certified pre-owned. Skip that off the lot instant depreciation.

What is German sales tax? If I bought a $20,000 car from a used lot, what would I pay in tax?

Also, what do you guys use for insurance?

Thanks Native and Joftaa and anyone else who chimes in.

- David

[Native]

If the car is for sale for 20.000$ you do not need to pay any (further) tax. Tax is included in the price (VAT (=Umsatzsteuer) is 19%).

If you buy the car from a private person there are no further taxes (for the buyer).


You can have your car checked at the DEKRA or TÜV, those are the folks that do the 2 year check for car safety to get the stamp on the license plates. DEKRA used car ckeck costs 78.50, TÜV should have about the same price. Should be a good investment...

http://www.dekra.de/de/standorte

[mercen]

Wow, you are a real KMC pro!

Okay, are there a lot of used car dealers outside the gate?

What did you buy?

[Native]

As a native I was born here...I mean there...some 50km away...

My car is a VW.......has about 150 000 km and needs 7l / 100km (=11.20€ if you have to pay german taxes). Hope it makes 500 000km

You can have a look here or here (english) and navigate through the car models and compare the consumption (if you care lol) etc.

[JOFTAA]

Regarding insurance:
http://www.everythingkmc.com/showthread.php?t=13607