exc911ence

I'm sure this has been discussed many times before but I couldn't find exactly the information I was looking for through searching.

There is a car in California that I am interested in and although it's not really that far to go down and drive it home to BC, the time involved doesn't fit into my schedule. So, can anyone recommend a good shipper/broker to make this easy and painless? Is there anything that I would need to do regarding importation or do most shippers/brokers take care of this for you? I'm sure that there's a fee for this service, is it considerably less expensive to broker the car yourself as opposed to letting a company do it for you? What about having the shipper deliver the car to the border as opposed to bringing it all the way into Canada for you?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

SToronto

Interested in what you find out as well. TFX is a highly regarded Mississauga based transport company, I looked into them years back on bringing a BC car to ON. Didn't use because I didn't buy the car after inspection.

Agree it would be simplest if somebody did it all for you. Depending on the fee however.

yorkemike

I had mine shipped up from Florida to a holding yard at the border then drove down with a trailer and picked it up. Cleared it through a customs broker for about $250. It's apparently pretty easy to do yourself but I just didn't want the aggravation of driving down three hours and having problems at the border. It was super easy as they took care of everything and gave me instructions to follow for when I arrived at the Canadian border crossing plus what to tell the American side when I was on my way down.
Mike

JGB

vern1

I used TFX to ship a car from CA to ON. Painless. You may save a few bucks clearing the car yourself but cant imagine its worth the hassle. They dropped the car at my front door

exc911ence

Thank you for all of the good information guys, I really appreciate it.

And Jim, I had no idea that Dana provided that service, very good to know. I need to take my SC down to Gary to get some annoying oil leaks sorted so will chat up Dana while I'm there.

Cheers!

JimV8

TFX brought my car up from CA and did all the work. You have to supply them with the bill of sale, Title, etc of course. They are very good at what they do.

kreeshp

If the vehicle is 15 years old or older, it's RIV exempt and a piece of cake to import. I had an older vehicle transported from California to Blaine, WA and completed all the paperwork myself before taking it across the border. Cannot over-emphasize how easy this was.

If the vehicle is newer than 15 years old, it becomes worth it to pay someone. I hired TFX International to bring another vehicle from Alberta to BC and had a good experience with them. If I were importing another vehicle from the US, they would be on my short list.

SlntSam

When you do it, you'll also get a cool RIV sticker inside your driver's side door where the Porsche stickers are.

exc911ence

The car in question is a '79 SC so well over the 15 year mark.

Damon88

Plus 2 on Dana. Great guy to deal with. He can definitely take care of it for you.

Christien

I've imported more cars than I care to count. I would definitely advise hiring a brokerage service - it'll save you a couple hours at the border, well worth the $200. I did it once without a broker, and never since then. Because it's RIV exempt, if you hire a broker there's no reason not to do everything else yourself - it's really simple. It's a fair amount of paperwork, but nothing ridiculous. My experience with transport companies here in ON (including TFX) is that the difference in cost of having them ship it to the border then you taking it from there vs. bringing it across the border and dropping it off to you is about $400-$500. But that's to the Toronto area, which is only an hour and half from the port of entry. I have no idea what the situation is for you in Victoria, but I'd imagine it would have to come in somewhere near Vancouver, so you might be looking at higher transport fees from there to your door. Last time I checked they charged I think around $250 to complete the border paperwork.

Turbodan

either way it is a simple process. I have done it myself and had TFX bring a car in for me. It is kinda fun to do it yourself, but also fun to have it delivered to you. Since it is over 25 years old, no duty....you have to tell them this as most border workers won't think of this themselves. My advice is to be sure to see the car yourself first.

Matt Lane

Aside from the F/X conversion, and assuming a newer used car (European), what are the current costs/fees to import to Canada from the US?

Just curious, if someone knows offhand.

Cheers

Matt

hillsdonsmith