Post: #1

I’m sitting at a café right beside a bus station. I just missed my bus. The next one leaves 4.5 hours from now. I had to haul ass from my hostel to here, my wheeled suitcase bouncing all over the cobblestone roads. I’ve backpacked Europe before, doing a one month Eurail pass for transport. This time, I’ve forsaken the pass and opted to buy individual tickets. So far I’ve taken a ferry and a bus - no trains yet.

As I sit here, with a month and a half more on my EE trip, I’m starting to doubt if taking public transportation is the smart thing to do for an extended European stay of several months. If I had a car, I don’t have to schlep my stuff to & from the bus/train station or pay taxi fare. I can also leave whenever I want to and go exactly where I want to, not to mention having a nice set of wheels to impress the ladies. I’ve heard of people who fly over here to take delivery of their new car from the factory (usually German car manufacturers like Porsche & BMW do this), drive around Europe for the summer, then ship the car back to the US as a used car, getting a sizable discount on the price that pretty much pays for the European trip.

This won’t be me however. I can’t afford paying cash outright for a brand new M3 or 911 and I don’t plan to spend much time in the US, so no sense in shipping a car back there. It does lead me to the one option that I am interested in - which is buying a used car here as soon as I arrive (which means doing all the research & legwork, contacting the sellers & making arrangements, etc. prior to leaving for the trip), driving it around, then selling it when I’m ready to leave for my next destination. I’m thinking this might even be the thing to do in other locations or destinations (Lat Am, Asia, Australia/NZ). I know there’s an initial full cash outlay as I would be buying a used car, but heck, I might even make some money on it if I get a good price when I buy it then do a primo sell job when I sell it.

Another option would be to ship a vehicle over from the States, ideally something that's highly sought after, like a classic car. I've heard of guys shipping over old Caddys and lowrider Impalas to Japan as there's actually a market for them there.

For you guys who have done this, looked into doing it, or know someone who has done it, do drop the knowledge. The info I’m looking for are:

1. How easily can this be done - red tape, bureaucracy, taxes, licenses, registration fees, etc.
2. Cost of gas, parking, toll roads, oil changes & other maintenance, etc.
3. An ideal vehicle for this
4. Ease of selling the car when I’m ready to move on

Looking forward to any ideas or info on how this is done.

Post: #2

Depends on where you live in Europe..

Post: #3

Solid idea. Having your own ride in Europe opens up all kinds of possibilities.

Post: #4

Since you mentioned Eastern Europe, let me alert you about the car thieves there - better carry solid insurance. They recently found the stolen Bentley of a soccer star crossing the Hungary-Slovenia border. But most aren't found - if yours gets stolen, it will likely end up as the new ride of some local mafia dude. Speaking about that, you would need a really expensive ride to impress the ladies, because it's very common, even in the poorest EE countries, to see black Benzes and BMW's lined up in front of the nicer clubs. In fact, the poorer the country, the more prevalent are expensive cars among the local elite.

Post: #5

its going to be more hassle then its worth. shipping cars takes forever. my friend who was in Bulgaria would have his stuff shipped back and it takes 1-2 months easy. remember, its on a boat, and it has to go through customs in several countries.

KMan - I was hanging with some FBI dudes in Sofia who were telling me how they'd buy luxe cars in the US, ship them to Bulgaria, and report them stolen in the states and keep them in BG for themselves or resell them.

Post: #6

(07-24-2010 01:11 PM)kindredspirit Wrote:  Solid idea. Having your own ride in Europe opens up all kinds of possibilities.

Yes it does. I've got several ideas/possibilities running thru my head. I'm pretty much set on having my own ride next summer.

Post: #7

(07-25-2010 10:02 AM)K-man Wrote:  Since you mentioned Eastern Europe, let me alert you about the car thieves there - better carry solid insurance. They recently found the stolen Bentley of a soccer star crossing the Hungary-Slovenia border. But most aren't found - if yours gets stolen, it will likely end up as the new ride of some local mafia dude. Speaking about that, you would need a really expensive ride to impress the ladies, because it's very common, even in the poorest EE countries, to see black Benzes and BMW's lined up in front of the nicer clubs. In fact, the poorer the country, the more prevalent are expensive cars among the local elite.

Should I get insurance that covers all of Europe? Is there such a thing? Or do I get one for each country? What are the coverages and gotchas I gotta watch out for?

Post: #8

(07-25-2010 10:13 AM)Brian Wrote:  its going to be more hassle then its worth. shipping cars takes forever. my friend who was in Bulgaria would have his stuff shipped back and it takes 1-2 months easy. remember, its on a boat, and it has to go through customs in several countries.

KMan - I was hanging with some FBI dudes in Sofia who were telling me how they'd buy luxe cars in the US, ship them to Bulgaria, and report them stolen in the states and keep them in BG for themselves or resell them.

Good point but I'm still considering it an option. Just have to get ready & make my move/decision 3-5 months before leaving. The customs part is definitely a big gray area for me. Any info or tips on this?

Post: #9

(08-23-2010 01:08 PM)exe Wrote:  

(07-25-2010 10:02 AM)K-man Wrote:  Since you mentioned Eastern Europe, let me alert you about the car thieves there - better carry solid insurance. They recently found the stolen Bentley of a soccer star crossing the Hungary-Slovenia border. But most aren't found - if yours gets stolen, it will likely end up as the new ride of some local mafia dude. Speaking about that, you would need a really expensive ride to impress the ladies, because it's very common, even in the poorest EE countries, to see black Benzes and BMW's lined up in front of the nicer clubs. In fact, the poorer the country, the more prevalent are expensive cars among the local elite.

Should I get insurance that covers all of Europe? Is there such a thing? Or do I get one for each country? What are the coverages and gotchas I gotta watch out for?

Did you register yourself in a city? If so, you can get travel insurance from the company you're registered in.

Post: #10

(08-23-2010 01:28 PM)Badstuber Wrote:  

(08-23-2010 01:08 PM)exe Wrote:  

(07-25-2010 10:02 AM)K-man Wrote:  Since you mentioned Eastern Europe, let me alert you about the car thieves there - better carry solid insurance. They recently found the stolen Bentley of a soccer star crossing the Hungary-Slovenia border. But most aren't found - if yours gets stolen, it will likely end up as the new ride of some local mafia dude. Speaking about that, you would need a really expensive ride to impress the ladies, because it's very common, even in the poorest EE countries, to see black Benzes and BMW's lined up in front of the nicer clubs. In fact, the poorer the country, the more prevalent are expensive cars among the local elite.

Should I get insurance that covers all of Europe? Is there such a thing? Or do I get one for each country? What are the coverages and gotchas I gotta watch out for?

Did you register yourself in a city? If so, you can get travel insurance from the company you're registered in.

Not sure what you mean by travel insurance. I was thinking auto insurance. I'm backpacking right now and I bought travel insurance.

Post: #11

Oh... It will be hard if you're not registered in a city in Europe... Just call up a car insurance company near you and explain your situation.