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Reference was made herein to “black book” value. “Black Book” is a U.S. registered trade name for a publication of used vehicle values that is used almost exclusively by licensed dealers. Some banks and insurance companies may also reference it, but it is primarily a trade publication.
You can get the Costa Rica government’s value of a vehicle (if you know what you’re doing) from http://www.hacienda.go.cr/autohacienda/autovalor.aspx. It is true that the government’s value may not accurately reflect the market value, but it will tell you how they value it for tax purposes. Just be careful, as almost everyone I know who uses this site does something wrong the first 50 times they try to use it.
Now all you need is an accurate representation of the tax schedule (the percentage of value based on number of years of age) which I have absolutely never – not once – seen reported online. Many will tell you what the tax rates are, but those I have seen have been wrong 100% of the time. If I had the chart from CR Aduana, I’d be glad to share it here, but I can’t find it. Call and they’ll gladly tell you. Just don’t trust the so-called experts you’ll find online who are ostensibly knowledgeable. Many (all that I have found) are just repeating information they have heard from some other inaccurate source.
I’m continually amazed that nobody here seems to grasp the value of safety when discussing transportation, be it new or used. I love Costa Rica, but the condition of the roads is a national embarrassment, and the skill of the drivers… did I just say “skill” and “drivers” in one statement about Ticos?
U.S. safety requirements can save your life in the event of an accident. YOU, of course, will NEVER have an accident. Right?
It costs a little more to buy a U.S. spec vehicle. Most people don’t want to pay it. Think about this when you see that you are in the path of a bus or semi which you know is not going to be able to stop before hitting you. Will you be thinking, “I maybe about to die, but at least my heirs will get an extra $2000?”
Beg. Borrow. Steal. Buy U.S. spec. Read Scott’s pages on the pros and cons of importing vs. buying a Tico car.
I agree with you, David. A three year old U.S. vehicle is the best buy generally speaking. The duty on a 2005 model is the same as that on a new vehicle, but because it has depreciated for 3 years you are paying the lowest percentage on the least value. Most cars of this age have current safety and convenience equipment, so there is little if any sacrifice.
Lease vehicles can be wonderful, but there is one downside. If a person (or company) leases a car and has a major accident in that car, they are not penalized for the negative impact the accident had on its value as long as it is repaired. While most individual owners and car dealers will discount the vehicle accordingly, a lease company may attempt a retail sale because they own it at the residual.
Unless you know cars very well, have your car inspected by a professional like Lemon Busters. Negative information in a CarFax report is pretty reliable, but not all negative information gets reported to them for a variety of reasons. In other words, trust them if they say it’s bad and verify if they don’t.
Leasing companies aren’t really any more likely to sell a vehicle any cheaper than any other type of dealer. They typically take the bulk of their inventory to dealer-only auctions to turn it fast, but some have very well run retail outlets for their steady flow of prime returns. They are going to try to get as much as they can for those vehicles just as would a dealer or an individual owner. There are only three ways that you can buy a vehicle for much less than it’s worth. 1. The seller is stupid/doesn’t know the value of his possession (possible, but hard to find), 2. The seller is desperate (Those people usually drive straight to CarMax for a check on the spot), or 3. The vehicle has problems (Almost always readily available).
One thing is for sure, though… Your odds of getting a good used vehicle in Costa Rica are far below the risk threshold of most Gringos. Still I see lots of people who learn the hard way after being tempted by a savings of $2500 which ended up costing them $7000, or made them hate getting in their car.
There is no question that Hyundai is the number one selling make of car in Costa Rica. Suzuki is indeed strong here, but they are not number two. Peugeot has made incredible headway here, and there are lots of them in the city. Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota, Honda, Chevrolet, Kia, Mazda and Fiat are all strong sellers here.
As for quality, you’ll want to investigate the individual models for reliability, but overall the Asian vehicles (Hyundai included) have the best reputations. The Peugeot service department appears to be more active than any other I have seen. That does not inspire confidence. Fiat’s record is less than inspiring, too. I spent 30+ years in the car business in Texas, so I probably have a better take on this than some others.
I’m a very strong believer in buying (or bringing) only fresh imports from the USA. The safety standards there are much, much better than that which is standard or even optional here. I did some shopping, for example, trying to buy one of the little econoboxes that you see around here. There was no option for an airbag even for the driver. In an era when even Hyundai Accents sold in the USA have 6 airbags standard, I find it totally unacceptable to drive a car with no side impact standards to meet, no front and rear bumper standards to live up to and no air bags to deploy. All of this while driving on some of the world’s most dangerous roads and you have a recipe for disaster.
There are some good articles on this site which were written by Arden Brink. They will explain the advantages to US version vehicles. You’ll also find excellent information at http://www.bestcostaricacars.com. That’s a site where they sell some cars, but also give some good, sound advice no matter where you end up buying.
Be careful and… Pura Vida!
Wow, editer! Me too! 🙂
I sure didn’t mean to imply that anyone shouldn’t buy one. Just that we have to be extra cautious when we do. I really think the advice given by Arden and on that bestcostaricacars website are the best you’ll find. There are ways to make sure you get the safety features you want (and NEED here!) and the quality you expect and deserve. You just can’t go down and buy a Certified PreOwned Lexus here like you can up north. It takes work.
Sitting here looking at parrots in the tree outside my window makes a little extra effort seem like such a bargain. Gosh I love living here!
Buying a used car is one of the easiest ways in Costa Rica to get a free ride to the cleaners. Cars that have spent their lives here aren’t equipped with the things you want. Some of those things you can see and some you can’t. They don’t have all the safety features you are used to and they have been driven on these bad roads since they were new.
Arden Brink has written some excellent articles on this topic which are in the archives and I think would be easy to find. There is also a website I have seen recommended here before which talks about the pitfalls. See http://www.bestcostaricacars.com
Whatever you do, you can’t be too careful. The majority of cars sold here are made to “look” like new. They do a good job of that in most cases, but you have no way of knowing if the vehicle was wrecked (chocado) or flooded or whatever. Let the buyer (YOU!) beware. When it comes to used vehicles, this place is like the US in the 50’s and 60’s… No consumer protection laws and plenty of people waiting in line to take advantage of that fact.
From my personal experience and the tales of others, Scott is right. Contact Arden at shipcostarica.com for the smoothest possible move to Costa Rica form the US or Canada.
DON’T call your local mover, as they have probably never moved anyone from there to here. You may use their services to load you container, but that will be determined after Arden’s assessment of your situation.
There may be other good people doing moves here, but I’ve never heard of one. Everyone I know who used other companies got surprise charges on this end, thus making their bargain quote less than a bargain. Arden Brink and Barry Wilson both have stellar reputations for quoting accurately and fully. Moving across the planet is a big enough headache when it’s done right.
If you’re bringing almost anything, it’s usually worth it to bring almost everything. You’ll either need a 20′ or 40′ container, so pack it full. I can’t tell you how comforting it was at first to have MY bed, MY sofa, MY pictures, MY… STUFF! Everything around me here was new, but my belongings gave me a sense of “home.” Try putting a value on that and I think you’ll need to throw away the calculator.
Wow! OK Fredo… After reading that list I think you better lock that Jeep up tight in the USA while you’re down here enjoying yourself. That thing is a thief magnet wherever you take it. I certainly think you made the right decision not to bring it here for a vacation. It might be different if you lived here and had a really safe place to lock it up every night, but even then it would be risky. It would NEVER survive a vacation here.
The bad thing about renting a Tracker is that it’s not your Jeep. The good thing about renting a Tracker is that it’s not your Jeep! Hope you have a great time here.
Hi Fred,
You’ll buy the INS policy just before you go pick up your Jeep. Costa Rica will allow you to drive it with your NY plates, but be sure to carry your proof of INS insurance, the tourist visa for the Jeep, your driver’s license and your passport with you at all times. I have done this several times and always carry a copy of my title with me, too, but the Policia have never asked to see that, and I’ve been stopped several times just because I have foreign plates.
It’s hard to time things just right, but it is good advice to try to get the vehicle to arrive here just before you do. You don’t want to be waiting around for it, nor do you want the risk of having it exposed at Limon. If I were you, I would contact Barry at ShipCostaRica.com and have him bring it to San Jose from Limon. That way it will be secured in a warehouse until you arrive, and far more accessible. I don’t think it will cost too much, and it sure would make your arrival more convenient.
Hi James ~ You are going to get a lot of information about which vehicle to buy or bring here. While there is no malicious intent in that advice, the vast majority of writers are under-informed.
First, 163,000 miles on a Jeep 4.0 liter 6 cylinder is not bad as long as it has been well cared for. That’s a great motor that will run a loooong time if you treat it right. A hardtop Jeep is a GREAT vehicle to have here, and the taxes won’t be too unreasonable on an 11 year old unit.
Second, many talk about the gap between gas and diesel pricing here. While that is true, I’ve yet to see anyone do the math. Personally, I drive less than one third the distance each month that I drove in the US, so if fuel prices are double, I’m still saving a third. It’s not possible to drive great distances here because of the roads and traffic, so take that into consideration when making your choice.
Third, Terracan is a wonderfully reliable vehicle, and there are others, but… Cars sold new here do not meet the safety standards of their US equivalents. Ever wonder why Hyundai never sold the Terracan in the USA? Even identical vehicles don’t have identical features. I drove a Kia rental in FL this week with 6 airbags. Its local equivalent has one.
The roads here are more dangerous. Why do so many people think it’s OK to drive a vehicle that is less safe? Not to mention that anything used has spent its life on these roads, thus has considerably more wear per mile/kilometer.
My advice? Bring that Jeep!
Buying a car in Costa Rica is risky business. If you’re buying a car that was sold here new, well… don’t. To find out why, read the articles archived on this site about buying a car here vs. bringing one.
Your best bet is to buy a car recently imported from the US which has a clean CarFax or AutoCheck report showing that the mileage is correct and that it has no salvage, flood, lemon history, etc. There are lots of reasons, but the short story is that you could easily buy a disaster without knowing it and that you don’t want to be driving a dangerous car on these streets with these drivers. It happens to people all the time, but now you know in advance so you don’t have to be one of them.
As for the paperwork and insurance, you can probably get someone who knows the system to do it for you for a small fee. Anyone at shipcostarica.com can recommend someone for you if you need the help. INS is the only insurer of vehicles, so the price is etched in stone for whatever vehicle you buy. The good news is that it’s reasonable. The bad news is that collecting (hope you don’t need to) can be quite challenging.
Buena Suerte!
Wow!!! I love my fellow expats, and respect opposing views, but I could not disagree more with the advice of buying a car here. There are many, many reasons to bring or buy a fresh import from the United States or Canada – read Scott’s links above – but the only reason to buy a local car is to spend less money. There is a reason that cars originally imported here are cheaper… They aren’t as good. A good example is the 2006.5 Kia Optima I recently bought in Miami to bring here. Although mechanically identical to the Tico version, mine has 4 airbags while theirs has two. Mine has US collision protection while theirs is unregulated. Why would anyone want to drive a car which is less safe on roads that are more dangerous? You may save a few hundred bucks, but what good will that do you when you’re dead?
The Chinese are selling lots of vehicles here. They can’t meet US safety standards, but they are legal here. I saw one at the auto show yesterday which had in imprint of an airbag on the dash, but no airbag available even as an option. Funny, until you’re killed in it.
It’s not just the Chinese, by the way. There are many vehicles of various origin sold here without airbags. Please do your homework. I really enjoy reading your posts here and hope to continue doing so for the rest of your natural life.
