Buying a car in the USA on your own is possible, but it requires the buyer to actively participate in the transaction, prepare a whole package of documents, pay fees and taxes, and organize delivery to the country of destination. This requires time and experience, so we have prepared a small memo for those who have decided to bring a car from the U.S. on their own.
Buying a car in the USA is driven by two factors: price and quality. How difficult it is to do this on your own and what difficulties await you along the way – that’s what our article is about.
Why are people eager to purchase cars from the USA without intermediaries?
The secondary market of American cars has been attracting buyers for years. The main reason is the desire to buy a cheaper car. Cars from the USA have always been characterized by rich equipment and good condition even after many years of use, which is explained by the quality of roads and maintenance.
The pros of buying an auto in the US:
- Huge selection of cars. The U.S. secondary market offers buyers more than 45 million vehicles. No other market, including the European market, can match the volume and diversity of the U.S. market.
- Low cost. The American market offers cars at lower prices than the European market. There are plenty of attractive leasing offers and low customs rates, making cars from the US the most affordable in the world.
- Rich equipment. American manufacturers equip their cars according to the needs of local buyers, and they are very demanding for comfort. For example, cars from the USA are often equipped with power steering, air conditioning, alarm system, alloy wheels, leather interior, etc.
- Excellent technical condition. Regular maintenance and quality road surface keep the vehicle in excellent condition even after high mileage.
- Access to vehicle history.
Of the obvious disadvantages of buying cars in the USA: long delivery, which takes at least 6-8 weeks, which may be unacceptable for some buyers. Another disadvantage is the high probability of damage to the car during transportation, but insurance covers possible damage.
Where to find a used car in the USA
When buying cars on your own in the United States, the most common place to turn to is the car dealerships or catalogs. Both individuals and companies are involved in the sale of cars from stocks, and this affects the ways of interaction with them. If you are inexperienced in this area, various unforeseen problems and additional costs may arise.
Buying a used car at auctions
In the United States, used cars are sold and bought on specialized resources, where each car is presented as a lot, with value, visual content and brief information. There are many such sites, and auctions are divided into two types: dealer and public. Read more about each of them.
Copart
Copart is one of the largest companies in this field. It is a leading player in the sale of damaged cars that operates more than 200 sales sites across the country. The company works with many major insurance companies and also has the exclusive right to sell cars insured by Allstate. At Copart, you can buy cars for running and for dismantling.
PLC auction
PLC auction is a company with its headquarters in Lithuania, which has been successfully operating on the market for more than 10 years. In addition to a number of other areas, the company offers to buy a car from the USA, and you can do it and order its delivery directly on the site. Despite the abundance of functions, the platform has an intuitive interface, supports several languages, including English, French, Spanish, Ukrainian, Russian, Bulgarian, Polish and even Arabic, which is respectable.
Чтобы начать пользоваться платформой, необходимо зарегистрироваться на сайте. После этого вы получите возможность участвовать в аукционах и совершать другие действия в системе. Для доступа к аукциону необходимо внести залог в размере 10 % от стоимости автомобиля.
An important stage in buying a used car is its inspection. The platform provides two ways of checking: you can use the VIN code to study the car’s operating history, and you can order a “live” inspection of the selected car by the company’s inspectors.
The platform is an aggregator and provides access to lots from 55 different auctions around the world, including Canada, USA, South Korea, UAE and Europe. With a database of around 2 million bids, there is always something to choose from.
If there is no desire to bid, you can consider lots offered at a fixed price. Once registered, the user gets access to lots from dozens of different auctions, including the most interesting offers, such as “insurance” cars, the purchase of which can be particularly profitable.
Manheim
Manheim is another one of the long-standing companies, a leader among auctions in the United States. In existence for 74 years. Manheim has more than 120 sites for storing cars. Unlike Copart, Manheim only allows dealers to bid. Here cars are sold in perfect condition, without damage, which makes them attractive to many buyers.
Insurance Auto Auctions (IAAI) is a popular online auction site specializing in the sale of damaged cars. Here you will find a wide range of broken-down cars, mostly repossessed by banks for outstanding loans or by insurance companies after the owners’ insurance has been paid. Damage can range from minor to severe.
Adesa
Adesa – provides wholesale automobile auction solutions to professional buyers and sellers. The site’s customers include car manufacturers, rental companies, financial institutions, fleet managers, and independent dealers.
Shipping cars from the USA
So, you have found the car of your dreams, the only thing left is to get it from the USA to your home country. After all the mandatory payments have been made, an even more difficult stage begins. Those who decide to bring a car from across the ocean on their own face a number of difficulties:
- Obtaining an American visa, which seems to be a difficult task even if all the necessary conditions are in place. At the same time, air travel to North America is expensive, and any additional costs when ordering a car from across the ocean can significantly increase the cost of the vehicle.
- Self-checking the technical condition of the car and completing all the necessary documents. Despite the fact that some may see this as a plus, in fact, such work requires considerable time and experience. It is better to entrust this complex and responsible task to professionals.
- The need to organize transportation of the car to the destination. This process is also time-consuming, especially for inexperienced carriers, and requires coordination with the appropriate company.
PLC Auction not only organizes the delivery of your car to the destination point, but also assists in processing the necessary documents for export. Transportation is done by sea: in containers or on deck, if the car you purchased is intact.
When ordering a car from the USA, delivery time depends on the port of shipment and its workload. On average, the delivery time is 3 months.
The date of shipment and arrival at the port of destination, as well as the route, are available in the user’s personal account. It is very important that after each stage related to loading/unloading, photo logging is performed.
