This one is probably for the Canadians on the forum, but comments from anyone are welcomed.

Just wondering what the experience has been on ordering parts from the US for the 928. IN general, I tend to stick with Canadian-based parts suppliers (Porsche and OEM stuff mostly) to reduce the hassle factor on shipment and duty at the border. Proble is that the prices seems a bit higher than US imported goods are anticipated to be and I do need a few things that will be much easier for the "Big Three" to supply readily.

So, what's the experience of others in this regard? What should I expect to pay in duty on us and Germany parts at the border (if any thing)?

Lastly, any good Canadian Based parts suppliers that you could recommend. Easter Canada based ones are of most interest, given my location, but any would be appreciated.

Regards,
SteveCo in St. John's

 

I am in Vancouver and have purchased from the big three with good success. I have not been levied any duties. However, I have been charged customs clearance fees, GST & PST. Try at all costs to avoid UPS they charge very high customs clearance fees.
Recently, have found that by specifying USPS Express or FedEx Express I have been able to avoid any clearance fees or taxes. It appears that USPS ground and FedEx ground hand off to Canada Post who then charge $5.00 customs clearance + PST & GST on the value of the order.
USPS Express or FedEx Express seem to hand off to Purolator (owned by Canada Post) who havn't charges me anything over and above the freight costs.

Good Luck

 

Sean is right, UPS will grab you a minimum of $25.00, regardless of value. Then you get PST,GST, and it all adds up in a hurry. On a recent shipment, the goods were worth $400.00 US, and I paid UPS another $160.00 CAD for doing clearance, then the taxes. Friggin' ridiculous.
Two ways that I have had some success, is 1) the USPS if you can afford the wait, usually about 3 weeks, and 2) if you can get a supplier to agree to "under declare" the value, then you pay tax etc on the lesser amount.
In Eastern Canada, the guy to buy from is "Whale Tail" in Waterloo, search the archives and you will find his number. They have new parts,usually available overnight, and a Porsche wrecking yard so sometimes you can get a good used part.
I've had no luck dealing with Germany, suggest you stick with the Big 3,especially when you are fairly new at this (like me) and need some advice.

 

Thanks for the info...very helpful and informative. Your experience mirrors my own from non-auto related trans-border shipments. I'll try to stick with USPS and FedEx as you suggest.

I'll lookup Whale Tail as well.

BTW;
The "Germany" reference was wrt to parts of german origin shipped from a US distributor. Normally this is not a problem, as the parts have been imported into the US and any duties paid on them...essentially they become "US" parts at that point. From there, they should be treated like any other US-made parts on import into Canada. If NAFTA is working correctly, there should be no duty assessed at the border...but you never know. Gotta love this free trade stuff!

Regards and thanks again,
SteveCo in St. John's

 

Hello SteveCo,

Whale Tail has 2 locations. The "new parts" store is in Milton, ON. The number is (905) 876-0429, you will talk to Bren.

The "used parts" location is in Waterloo, ON. The number is (519) 699-4911, or (800) 770-6945, you will talk to John, or Randy the owner.

Randy and Bren are great to deal with (I have for years), and a lot of their business is mail order so postage should be no trouble, even body panels.

I would also have to agree with the above posts on UPS. Avoid them as if they were the plague! USPS is faster and half the price of UPS, and the parcel will go directly to your mailbox or post office.

In the past I have had quite a few UPS parcels and asked the guy "is that all the charges?". They always said "yes" and then about a month later I would receive a nasty letter stating that I owed them a litany of charges and fees and if I did not pay them immediately they would send a letter to the credit beurow(sp). This happened 3 or 4 times! I finally called USPS and demanded a letter of apology to be sent to me apologizing for their incompetence, which they actually did.

I have never had a problem with FedEx.

Best regards Steve,

Mike
<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" /> Fellow Townie!

 

Similar experience out here in Alberta. I have found that Andrew, at Weissach Performance, in Vancouver is a great fellow to deal with. He can get parts that they don't stock within days, and the price seems to be about 1.3 X the advertised prices seen in the BIG-3 web-sites, so you save some on the exchange rate, and a bit more on ducking the Customs Brokerage rip-off.

Having said that, there is no replacing the expertise and kind consideration for us amateurs that is shown by the fellows like Jim at 928-Int'l.

As for shipping, UPS and GreyHound Freight seem roughly equivalent for price and speed "in country". For ANY cross-border shipping "Mail" is by far the best "deal", FedEx is faster and not ridiculously expensive, and UPS is the biggest rip-off on the planet.

 

Many thanks in this info... just what I was looking for. I too agree that if there is any reasonable way to support those busineses specializing in the 928, I would be happy to do so. The reality is, however, for many run-of-the-mill and commonly available parts, it is less hassle to procure "in country"...and the total cost of procurement is about the same as importing from the US. For those more difficult parts and specialty items, the best place will always be the Big Three.

Regards,
SteveCo in St. John's

 

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Originally posted by SteveCo:
<strong>The "Germany" reference was wrt to parts of german origin shipped from a US distributor. Normally this is not a problem, as the parts have been imported into the US and any duties paid on them...essentially they become "US" parts at that point. From there, they should be treated like any other US-made parts on import into Canada. If NAFTA is working correctly, there should be no duty assessed at the border...but you never know. Gotta love this free trade stuff!</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">This depends on who the Canada Customs person is handling YOUR shipment on any given day.... be aware that as far as NAFTA "rulebook" is concerned, it is the origin of MANUFACTURE and *not* the origin of the shipment that matters. The Canadian "border bandits" could care less that someone in the US of A has previously paid any duties or taxes to get this item onto the North American continent!
(any more so than the feds care how many times they collect GST on the SAME used car as it is repetatively sold through used car dealer after used car dealer.... )
A Canada Customs processor who happens to be in a casual mood the day he handles your package may do what is simply easiest for him - charge you the GST. But if you get a "stickler for the rules" who happens to see "Porsche" anywhere on the paperwork, he is fully entitled to charge you duty on components manufactured in Germany.... and may just do that!
I've had both scenarios happen personally on 928 parts sent from the USA.

I totally agree that USPS is the best carrier, Fed-Ex Ground can be used for items too bulky for USPS to accept, and UPS is to be ABSOLUTELY AVOIDED at all costs.
Again, lots of personal experience on this one.

If you are buying out of the states, 928 International is *THE* place to shop!!! Their service excells, plain and simple.
And yes, I've tried all "three".

Brad

 

Coming from a different perspective, I've just had a part delivered here to Melbourne Australia from 928 International, and the whole process took
one week!! Fantastic. Also I thought shipping was very reasonable going through USPS. Great job!!

 

I had to chime in to add, "UPS sucks"...If a retailer ships only by UPS I shop elsewhere.

 

The approximate duty is 6.1%. GST and PST is cascaded on top, I believe. I recently had some Stroske wheels shipped from New Jersey but, since they are made in Italy by OZ, it costs me another 6.1%. I made the mistake of having UPS pick them up on my company's account and forgot to mention groud shipping. They arrived in 2 days, spent another 5 in a customs warehouse while they assessed duty, and then spent a day in a UPS truck before arriving at my office. So much for Express shipment! I would have expected faster delivery for that $600 mistake!