Does anyone know what are the fees to get an NSX from US over to Canada? I'm interested in buying a used NSX but not sure of what I have to go through when I bring it to Canada. Can I avoid taxes somehow?
Thanks
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Getting an NSX from the States
- Thread starter Boris_DBD
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Why not buy an NSX in Canada ? What is your reasoning for buying a U.S. car ? There are excellent used NSX's for sale in Canada. If you are in B.C., there are a few for sale right now in Vancouver. What is your budget ? If you want to import a U.S. car, it can be done and you will have to pay duty as the NSX is not old enough to be tax exempt. Contact Canada customs for the finer details and costs of importing, also some cars are not eligible at all.
Thanks LUV2REV. It would be nicer to get an nsx from here in Canada of course but the selection is quite limited. I guess the best way is to wait for the right NSX to come up but I'm not sure where to look for used NSX in BC. I looked in the selling forum here and they are mostly from the states.
There are 14 listings of NSXs in BC for sale on http://www.canadatrader.comBoris_DBD said:
However, just like in the States, I would look nationwide, and if you find one in eastern Canada, have it inspected by a local owner and/or dealer (preferably both) before committing to the purchase.
what year, color, condition and price are you looking for...?
Boris_DBD said:
As someone who has done this personally, I think I can offer some advice. All other things being equal, I normally buy locally but like you, I went the US route on my NSX because I was looking for a particular year(s), color and other attributes and found the market very restrictive in Western Canada. However, let me be the first to say that buying a car from several thousand miles away brings it's own challenges such as how to get it checked out; how to arrange a deposit; arranging transportation; etc.
On the other hand, I bought in fall 2001 when the exchange rate was 1.60 and I found that when all was said and done, the cost to import was about the same as the cost to buy in Canada. With the exchange rate today more in the 1.35-1.40 range, I presume it's much more favorable to go south unless Canadian prices have dropped a lot.
In answer to your question, you'll find lots of useful information at the Federal Gov't site here: http://www.riv.ca/
Basically, because the car is made in Japan not the US, you have to pay duty of about 6% (if I recall correctly) of the purchase price plus about $175-200 to RIV which covers paperwork but more importantly, the cost of the inspection that confirms you've brought it up to Canadian standards. In addition to the RIV fee and duty, you also get to pay GST, all of which I did at the border crossing since I was driving it back myself. If you ship it, you may want to get a broker involved .. I can't comment about that.
To bring it up to Canadian standards you have to add daytime running lights and buy a child infant restraint anchor (but you don't need to install the anchor). The factory Canadian DRLs are ridiculously expensive .. I just bought some driving lights at Canadian Tire and installed them myself. If you're not electrically inclined, the tricky part might be splicing a relay into the right spot. BTW, the speedometer has both miles and km's on it but you can hardly read the kms so you'll have to get used to converting if you don't want to replace the markings.
Once you do that, you're off to Canadian Tire who is the authorized RIV inspection agent. Once they fill out the paperwork and approve you, you then need to have it provincially inspected (at your expense) before you can get plates/insurance. In my province, you also get to pay the PST at this point. Depending on your province, you may also need to have it smog checked.
In comparison, if you buy an NSX in Canada but from out of province, you'll also have to pay PST and if you buy from a dealer, I think you also have to pay GST, so the difference in buying from the US may only be the duty, RIV fee, upgrade costs, transportation, etc.
Once you do a little research and know what to expect, it's really not a big deal. I don't think I spent any more than 20 mins at the border to complete paperwork and pay. You'll also need a letter from Acura Canada verifying that all recalls have been done. You can just phone them with the VIN and they'll mail you the letter.
If you're driving it back, you'll also need temp insurance from your province and likely a 'drive-out' permit (about $15US in Az) because you won't have plates at this point. I expected to be stopped hourly by the cops but wasn't stopped once in 2000 miles (I also didn't speed).
In terms of buying advice, there have been numerous posts on Prime lately re: eBay fraud... just don't wire money to anyone under any circumstances until you've seen the car. Do not trust electronic pics of any sort .. it's just too easy to hide flaws by manipulating light conditions, picture angles, etc. What you really need is some kind of surrogate you can trust. Ask Prime members if there's anyone close that can check it out for you. Also do a Carfax report and search Prime for the VIN .. lots of time people post VINs of cars that they've looked at or know they have shady pasts.
My personal buying strategy was to look for a high highway mileage car with no snap-ring issues and that had had the 90K tuneup done (timing belt and sometimes clutch and water pump) and a good maint record. The price on high mileage cars is considerably lower but if the 90K has been done, the car can be very reliable (many stories of over 150K miles) although the paint will likely have suffered. Automatics also are lower priced and lower HP but can be easier to live with if your commute has a lot of stop and go, bumper-to-bumper stuff.
Good luck in your search
Wow thanks Ian for the a detail explanation. The reason why I thought buying from US might be good is because the currency at the moment. It was sitting at around 1.34 or something but now it's rising again (1.385) It sounds like it might be easier to buy an NSX from within Canada so I won't have to go thru all the inspections and bringing it back. I did a search on canadatrader.com and it looks like most of the them are in dealership so the prices are much higher. There is one in Burnaby with a pretty decend price tho.
There are more questions I wanted to ask also. Which one is suppose to be better between a 5 sp and 6 sp? Are there any interior difference between each year model? How do I know if an nsx will have the ring problem? And is there a big difference in noise between the T and the hardtop?
Anyways I think it'll be at least another 8 months b4 I can look into getting an x but I just want to find out all the info now.
NCC-1701D: I'm looking for a 91-94 (don't really care about milage as long as the car runs well) My color preference would probably be blue > silver > black. I like red/black also but red is kinda feminine. I don't mind if it's modified but as long as it's not use for track that much. And I think my budget is sitting around 25k-30k.
There are more questions I wanted to ask also. Which one is suppose to be better between a 5 sp and 6 sp? Are there any interior difference between each year model? How do I know if an nsx will have the ring problem? And is there a big difference in noise between the T and the hardtop?
Anyways I think it'll be at least another 8 months b4 I can look into getting an x but I just want to find out all the info now.
NCC-1701D: I'm looking for a 91-94 (don't really care about milage as long as the car runs well) My color preference would probably be blue > silver > black. I like red/black also but red is kinda feminine. I don't mind if it's modified but as long as it's not use for track that much. And I think my budget is sitting around 25k-30k.
6-speed is better and was introduced in '97.Boris_DBD said:
No.Boris_DBD said:
Look in the FAQ under Troubleshooting - Transmission.Boris_DBD said:
Only with the top down.Boris_DBD said:
I've never heard that before. Pink, maybe, but not red (especially not a red sports car)...Boris_DBD said:
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Send the NSX to Canadian Tire? LOL!
I second nsxtasy's comment on RED. Feminine ???? 
Red NSXes are about as un-feminine as they get (possibly next to black).
Ian, excellent advice. Only thing I'd add to that is that you take a risk in flying out to get a car that may not be exactly as advertised. If you can, get someone you know or a fellow NSX'er to look at the car for you. That applies just as much to buying a car from out-of-province within Canada. The travel costs can add up in a hurry too... add between $500-1000 depending on how far away you go for airfare/hotel/rental and then either a few days expenses for driving it back or flying home empty-handed for another few hundred bucks -- and you have to be ready to walk away if things look the slightest bit shady. My experience was pretty good overall but if I were to do it again, I believe I would have skipped this car and waited for one to appear closer to home.
Boris_DBD, regarding avoiding the taxes, that's a risky endeavor. When I inquired at a Registries office about what paperwork I needed to register an out-of-province car, they were very clear that they require the customs import certificate before they'd issue me the provincial inspection form (which you then take to Cambodian Tire or other certified location like Ian explained). You could end up in the unconfortable position of having to then go back and explain to customs just how you got an NSX into Canada without paying your tax at the border... sticky situation...
I passed on importing one car from the States because I thought it would be pretty much equal or even slightly MORE expensive than if the car were local, and that was when the loonie was at around US$0.735. It's 7% GST and 6.1% duty levied at the border (no PST in Alberta), plus just under $300 in fees and inspections, plus the DRL's, plus the travel costs.... etc etc etc.
Ian, excellent advice. Only thing I'd add to that is that you take a risk in flying out to get a car that may not be exactly as advertised. If you can, get someone you know or a fellow NSX'er to look at the car for you. That applies just as much to buying a car from out-of-province within Canada. The travel costs can add up in a hurry too... add between $500-1000 depending on how far away you go for airfare/hotel/rental and then either a few days expenses for driving it back or flying home empty-handed for another few hundred bucks -- and you have to be ready to walk away if things look the slightest bit shady. My experience was pretty good overall but if I were to do it again, I believe I would have skipped this car and waited for one to appear closer to home.
Boris_DBD, regarding avoiding the taxes, that's a risky endeavor. When I inquired at a Registries office about what paperwork I needed to register an out-of-province car, they were very clear that they require the customs import certificate before they'd issue me the provincial inspection form (which you then take to Cambodian Tire or other certified location like Ian explained). You could end up in the unconfortable position of having to then go back and explain to customs just how you got an NSX into Canada without paying your tax at the border... sticky situation...
I passed on importing one car from the States because I thought it would be pretty much equal or even slightly MORE expensive than if the car were local, and that was when the loonie was at around US$0.735. It's 7% GST and 6.1% duty levied at the border (no PST in Alberta), plus just under $300 in fees and inspections, plus the DRL's, plus the travel costs.... etc etc etc.
When i purchased my NSX i was looking into getting one from the states cause there aren't that many to chose from in Canada..after checking the prices and all the extra paperwork costs i found that the price was about the same...so i was patient and look hard for a real good NSX to be on the market..took more than a year to find it...most of ones i found in BC were repainted and repaired. there were a few in alberta that we in real nice shape..but for a NSX in good condition and reality low km eg 50,000 km they were still all in the $50,000 - $60,000 CND for 91-92 s
And I think my budget is sitting around 25k-30k. [/B][/QUOTE]
25-30kcdn.????? Nener find a legit one like that. There are some good ones here in BC. The ones at the iffy dealers are rebuilds. Buyer beware.
There is a red/black in Abbotsford that I have seen and driven. The car is beyond mint, 42,xxx km on it.
Get the car checked first, do an ICBC damage/lien report first. Good luck
25-30kcdn.????? Nener find a legit one like that. There are some good ones here in BC. The ones at the iffy dealers are rebuilds. Buyer beware.
There is a red/black in Abbotsford that I have seen and driven. The car is beyond mint, 42,xxx km on it.
Get the car checked first, do an ICBC damage/lien report first. Good luck
Thanks guys for all the input. I think I'm going to keep searching for a good one to pop up in Western Canada since I have to wait at least 8 months anyways, and I don't really want to go thru all the trouble bringing it back. Oh and by the way, when I noted down my price range, I was using USD. I guess I should have wrote $25k-30k USD to make it clear.
Hehe, I see all the red nsx owners started to comment about me saying that red nsx are feminine.
Don't worry I'm not offencing you guys. It's just my preference in colors. Red NSX are pretty sexy. It's probably the best color I like with a black top. I guess most of the red cars I see are driven by female so it makes me feel that way. Or maybe I'm just impressed by how so many girls are attract to single_samurai's blue nxs
So if you guys find a decent nsx in Canada, please let me know. I am such a n00b when it comes to buying a car.
Hehe, I see all the red nsx owners started to comment about me saying that red nsx are feminine.
Don't worry I'm not offencing you guys. It's just my preference in colors. Red NSX are pretty sexy. It's probably the best color I like with a black top. I guess most of the red cars I see are driven by female so it makes me feel that way. Or maybe I'm just impressed by how so many girls are attract to single_samurai's blue nxs So if you guys find a decent nsx in Canada, please let me know. I am such a n00b when it comes to buying a car.
Tony, just to clarify . . as the designated inspection agent for RIV, all Canadian Tire does is the paperwork and checks to make sure that you have the infant seat anchor and that the DRLs come on when you start the car. The car doesn't even need to enter the shop.Tony Montoya said:
Bringing this back from the dead. I read through the websites mentioned above but im curious if anyone knows if we will have to pay duty on the car after it is 15 years old. Example buying it in 2006 or 2007, which is when i plan on buying my nsx.
Impossible to predict what Customs will do 2-3 years out. But for the sake of argument, let's say that 2-3 years from now a '91 will have dropped to $24K US and let's say the exchange rate is still at 1.33 like today .. so the car is worth $32K Cdn. If the duty stays at 6%, then that's about $2K Cdn which in the big scheme of things is not worth waiting for, IMO... especially if you trade that off against the cost of flying down to check it out .. or having it shipped back. If you're just looking to save money, you could save yourself 7% GST by just buying from a local independent instead of from a dealer. The reason I did it was not to save money but because I wanted a specific year and color combo (blk/blk) and high miles and at the time, the selection was very limited.
Would be buying one now but unfortunately thats not how it goes sometimes. I was just curious what the rules were for importing a car over 15 years. I know some guys that have imported 15 year old cars from japan and didnt hear them say anything about a duty on it.
