Which Car Should You Bring?

In our last article we laid to rest, hopefully once and for all, any idea that you should buy a used car here in Costa Rica.

Should you still have any doubts, just go to the port at Limon and watch the garbage come off the ships. A thousand junkers a month, probably more, land here destined for a future life on the used car lots. They’re illegal to sell in the U.S. Do you really want to go driving one on the twisting hills around this country? Do you want to send your visiting children or grandchildren on a nice trip to the beach?

This leaves you bringing your car with you when you come. In our next article we’ll talk more specifically about the process of shipping the car but before you get to that point you have a decision to make. Which car should you bring?

Many people agonize unnecessarily over the mystery and uncertainty of how much it will cost to import their car. There’s a simple solution to this. Just ask us. Give us the details on your car and we can figure it out for you. The key here is we can figure the entire price for you, the real price.

Although you read repeatedly about the “import duty” on cars, that’s not the only cost. There are others and our goal is to give you the full information you need so there won’t be surprises when your car gets here.

We understand that most people have a set budget so that the cost of bringing your car to Costa Rica is an important factor. It is far from the only consideration, though, and in fact may not even be the most important one. Some other qualities to think about when deciding whether to bring your existing car are its age and condition, its suitability to your life in Costa Rica, and any specific attributes that make it distinctly useful to you.

The value of the car for taxation is officially determined by the Ministerio de Hacienda for that make, model, and year, not by the actual condition of the car.

So rule number one about bringing a car is that it should be in good shape, really good shape. Part of the process of getting your car nationalized is passing RTV (Riteve), which is a safety and technical inspection. Our upcoming article about Riteve will give you a thorough checklist and some helpful advice, but for now trust us when we say you want the car to be in good condition.

Take your car to your local mechanic and have it thoroughly checked out. If you need extensive repairs talk to us to see if it might be worth doing them here. Sometimes this is the least expensive way to do it. The key is for you to KNOW what sort of work needs to be done so you don’t get blindsided once you’re here.

At Riteve they also take an especially close look at older cars, so if you want to bring an old car it should be in especially good health. We recently brought in a Ford minivan that was 12 years old, but had remarkably low mileage and was in excellent shape. So its value for taxation was comparatively low due to its age and this combined with its good condition and particular ease of use for the owners made it a good choice to bring.

We’re always amazed when we read (and all too often, unfortunately) that you can’t bring in cars more than a certain number of years old. It’s just not true. It might not be smart, but it’s certainly allowed and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! And if your pride and joy is a classic older car, and you just love to tinker with it and admire it out in the driveway, by all means bring it. It may well be worth the few thousand dollars it’ll cost just for the years of happiness it will bring. (But then you probably want to be sure you have something else more reliable for your day-to-day driving!)

Suitability to your life in Costa is another factor. Is your house here in Costa Rica going to be a kilometer up a long and bumpy unpaved road? You might find that 4-wheel drive is not an option, but a necessity, especially in the rainy season. And even aside from the 4-wheel drive, you might well find the larger tires on most SUVs help to smooth out Costa Rica’s bumpy roads.

On the other hand, will you be living in the city? Something smaller and more maneuverable may fit the bill better. Despite the attitude often held by gringos that 4-wheel drive is an absolute necessity, you’ll see huge numbers of Ticos happily driving their Toyota Camrys, Hyundai Elantras, and other compact 2-wheel drive sedans. They can’t all be crazy. It just depends on where you plan to live and how you plan to live. Choose accordingly.

If your existing car doesn’t seem right, another option is to sell it and buy one that’s better suited to your life in Costa Rica. Maybe your current car is old enough that you’d planned to replace it anyway. Buying a 3 year old car can be a great choice since you get the most benefit of the car depreciating in value, while still fitting within the lowest taxation level. A car that’s 3 years old will also have had any initial bugs worked out and yet still have many years of life ahead of it, especially when you shop for one with low mileage and a good, clean bill of health.

Another situation would be if your want to switch over to diesel fuel, a popular choice in a country where gasoline costs $4.58 a gallon. If you’re retired and find that some days you never take your car out of the driveway, small differences in fuel costs or efficiency aren’t such a big deal. If you will still have a regular commute of some distance, however, or plan frequent trips to the beach or other faraway location, that relatively small difference can really add up.

Are there makes and models of cars that are particularly good or bad to bring to Costa Rica? Certainly the first choices will be your Toyotas and Hondas with Subaru, Nissan, and others also offering good value. And while we probably wouldn’t encourage you to rush out and buy an older Ford or Chevy to bring, if you already own a Ford or Chevy that otherwise is going to suit you well, don’t feel like you have to get rid of it. There are lots of good automobile mechanics throughout Costa Rica and plenty of them know how to work on American cars – despite what you’ll read in other places.

If you’re buying a car to ship, rather than shipping a car you already own, you might want to consider buying a car from a dealer near the port you’ll be shipping from, particularly if you live far away.

Now, we understand that even in this age of internet car shopping some folks still feel like they wouldn’t dream of buying a car without “test driving” it first. But what was your last test drive like? Didn’t you probably get in the car, adjust the mirrors, play with the seats and the console overhead, and then drive around a few blocks.

Go test drive the same type of car at your local dealer if you want, just to be sure that you don’t hate the way the side view mirrors adjust or the sculpted shape of the driver’s seat. But then don’t be afraid to buy a car long distance if that’s going to be the best solution for you. We can actually help you find a car and have it shipped directly here to be waiting for you when you arrive!

And as we close this article, we feel compelled to suggest one last factor for you to consider. Are you certain that you need a car here in Costa Rica? Depending on where you live and your lifestyle, it’s entirely possible that you could live very comfortably without a car.

The bus system is amazing throughout the country, taxis are comparatively cheap and plentiful, and rental cars readily available for that semi-annual jaunt to the beach or to visit Arenal or whatever your occasional long-distance trips might be. So one of your final considerations about which car to bring just might be, do you need to have a car at all?

Get Your Costa Rica Online Magazine Here!

[custom_script adID=97]

Written by Barry Wilson and Arden Brink.

If you are serious about buying a home, apartment or land in Santa Ana or Escazu, then please contact us using the simple form below:

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.