Randy1960

Hi, My wife and I are quite likely moving from Vancouver, Canada to France for a couple of years. After waiting for decades to get my 911 the last thing I want is to lose the experience for a couple of years while I'm there. Also, who doesn't want to drive a 911 on the Autobahn. So I'm looking for some advice and recommendations on what I feel there are a couple of options on doing this. First, I ship my car there and back. Has anyone done that? What were the shipping charges like and do you have to register it and go through an inspection in France and when you return? If so what type of an experience was that? The second option is selling my current car here and buying another one over there. I really love the one I have and even though it's an 08 it's got very low mileage on it. So I guess my quesiton is how are the prices in Europe vs NA? Would I save money selling here and buying there and then shipping home or would it just make more sense to ship my current car both ways?

Thanks

captainbaker

I think you are gonna get slapped with a 30% VAT tax right off the bat. Shipping in a container......$5,000?

https://franceintheus.org/spip.php?article782

Here is a more in depth review of the process broken down by EU countries. Scroll down for the France section.

https://www.currencyfair.com/blog/ex...with-your-car/

Flat_Six_

FZP

Why not sell your car, but a new one here, and then search for a replacement car on your return?
Autoscout 24 is a good app to download and search like for like replacement car to yours.
Being in the EU, you can search for cars in any EU country without getting slapped cross border taxes, etc.
Much bigger pool to choose from

Zoefhaus

You do realize that there is no Autobahn in France I hope?

semicycler

True, but it's easy enough to drive over to Germany from France. To Germany from Canada is harder though with an ocean in between.

Zoefhaus

Depends a bit on the location in France.
It may still be a 600+ mile drive to the nearest Autobahn.

But, granted, from Vancouver it is even further
I have a slight advantage, as the Autobahn is only 15 miles away

yvesvidal

Yes, and it gets even worse: most roads are now limited to 80 KM/H. That is not a lot.
French Highways are 130 KM/H with zero tolerance.
City is 50 KM/H (35 MPH) all around.
Most time is spent in jams.
Most Highways in Germany are limited to 130 KM/H except for a few sections of so called Autobhan.

Honestly, to drive occasionally on the Autobahn, your best approach would be to rent a Porsche in Germany and enjoy it fully. I am not talking of the risks of getting your car stolen in France or vandalized.

Yves