Shipping car and household goods EU->US

[OfficialGreenT 0]

Dear people of VJ,

 

I own a 2015 BMW M135i xDrive with about 80k miles on it. It's quite a rare one (3 door, red leather interior, full options, and it was a BMW press vehicle). I absolutely adore it and would love to take it to the U.S. However, given current container prices and potential costs of import etc., I'm wondering if it's even close to worth it.

 

Does anyone here have any experience with taking their car from Europe to the U.S. for immigration? Additionally, anyone taking a considerable amount of household goods by sea freight who can share experiences?

 

Cheers,

 

T

[millefleur 5,046]

Not sure about cars but I've heard prices for freight shipping have gone up a lot due to Covid. Also there could be slower shipping times given the whole ports and general logistics disaster going on here. Whether it is "worth it" is of course a personal question and depends on your budget.

 

Alternative options for bringing your personal items over are shipping via air mail and shipping via airline. @Crazy Cat's wife had a first class ticket and she was able to bring a bunch of stuff with her via the airline.

[JeanneAdil 6,514]

How much does it cost to ship a car from Netherlands to us?

https://cfrrinkens.com/international-car-shipping/car-shipping-from-netherlands-to-usa/

 

Car Shipping from the Netherlands to the USA starts at a cost of $1,850 USD with an estimated turnaround time of 14 – 28 days, depending on make and model of the vehicle, your current location, the nearest departure port in the Netherlands, your shipping method of choice, availability of your chosen services 

I would agree the prices have gone up and the above may not be true any longer

 

Several companies online give online quotes

make sure the company will insure for damage 

 

but don't forget the import tax You can expect to pay 2.5% for a car   blue book price in US

 

also need to know if car has US emissions control as that cab be expensive to convert

[Boiler 45,575]

You might be able to drive it for 6 months, can you register it in the US, did not think they were sold in the US?

 

Not old enough to be a classic.

[Timona 4,207]

Don't people in Netherlands drive on the left? (Steering wheel on the right). That car might not be useful in US, unless you want to be cranning your neck. 

[P055UM 281]

7 minutes ago, Timona said:

Don't people in Netherlands drive on the left? (Steering wheel on the right). That car might not be useful in US, unless you want to be cranning your neck. 

Nope. UK/Ireland is basically alone in Europe in that regard.

[OfficialGreenT 0]

 

 

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

Not sure about cars but I've heard prices for freight shipping have gone up a lot due to Covid. Also there could be slower shipping times given the whole ports and general logistics disaster going on here. Whether it is "worth it" is of course a personal question and depends on your budget.

 

Alternative options for bringing your personal items over are shipping via air mail and shipping via airline. @Crazy Cat's wife had a first class ticket and she was able to bring a bunch of stuff with her via the airline.

That is indeed a major consideration for me, as is potential resale price. And just like the person you mentioned I've been flying back and forth business class a bit to bring a multitude of suitcases over. There's just some stuff (like computer displays, more fragile items) that I don't trust the airlines with. Thanks for the insight!

 

1 hour ago, JeanneAdil said:

but don't forget the import tax You can expect to pay 2.5% for a car   blue book price in US

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

You might be able to drive it for 6 months, can you register it in the US, did not think they were sold in the US?

 

Not old enough to be a classic.

Last I checked there is no KBB registration of my vehicle since they were never made or sold in the U.S. (I think they were discontinued after the 2008 model). Any idea how it would go in that case; how would customs determine maket value? This is also a consideration for eventual resale: does its rarity make it easy to get a good price for, or will it not sell because nobody knows about them...

 

Thanks again, people!

 

[JeanneAdil 6,514]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

You might be able to drive it for 6 months, can you register it in the US, did not think they were sold in the US?

 

Not old enough to be a classic.

Correct 

i missed that one

 

 BMW. The 1-series hatchback, sold all over the globe but not in the States, is still available with a straight-six. It's called the M135i, 

 

In a nutshell (because there are exceptions), you can’t take a car into America that wasn’t built with the US market in mind – unless it’s at least 25 years old. 

 

Don't bring it and if anyone says they will ship it and its legal ,  watch for it to disappear 

[OfficialGreenT 0]

1 minute ago, JeanneAdil said:

In a nutshell (because there are exceptions), you can’t take a car into America that wasn’t built with the US market in mind – unless it’s at least 25 years old. 

Whoah, I had no clue that was the case! Thanks for mentioning it, because that pretty much settles the question for me. 😅

[SteveInBostonI130 3,465]

4 minutes ago, OfficialGreenT said:

Whoah, I had no clue that was the case! Thanks for mentioning it, because that pretty much settles the question for me. 😅

 

A car not made for the US market can still be imported, but it has to meet EPA and manufacturing safety standards.  If you really want to bring that car over, make sure to follow guidelines here (and there is a chance you would not be able to)

 

https://www.cbp.gov/trade/basic-import-export/importing-car

 

[Boiler 45,575]

Assuming it can be qualified may cost more than the car is worth.

 

You can bring it in temporarily, might find it tricky to insure.

[Adventine 3,196]

31 minutes ago, OfficialGreenT said:

 

 

That is indeed a major consideration for me, as is potential resale price. And just like the person you mentioned I've been flying back and forth business class a bit to bring a multitude of suitcases over. There's just some stuff (like computer displays, more fragile items) that I don't trust the airlines with. Thanks for the insight!

 

 

FYI, my husband packed a gaming computer (the display and the disasembled innards of the CPU) in his check in luggage. He used his clothes to cushion all the delicate parts inside the suitcase. All the parts made it through a total of four long-haul flights in 2020 without any damage. He's still using the same PC today without any issues.

 

 

Edited January 3, 2022 by Adventine

[JeanneAdil 6,514]

3 hours ago, SteveInBostonI130 said:

 

A car not made for the US market can still be imported, but it has to meet EPA and manufacturing safety standards.  If you really want to bring that car over, make sure to follow guidelines here (and there is a chance you would not be able to)

 

https://www.cbp.gov/trade/basic-import-export/importing-car

 

As mentioned in my post earlier,  it has to be able to pass US emissions standards 

and prior to 2019 they did not meet US standards 

 

Volkswagen and BMW are fined nearly $1 billion for colluding on emissions technology. Germany's three largest carmakers colluded illegally to limit the effectiveness of their emissions technology, leading to higher levels of harmful diesel pollution,

[milimelo 4,487]

You won’t be able to get that car to the US. Keep it or sell it in your home country. 

I shipped my Jeep back to the US (US spec) this summer and it was about $4500 total from Slovenia (Koper) to Baltimore and then they trucked it to Illinois. This was for ro-ro service so not containerized. 

[Thunderbolt 172]

13 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

 

In a nutshell (because there are exceptions), you can’t take a car into America that wasn’t built with the US market in mind – unless it’s at least 25 years old. 

 

Don't bring it and if anyone says they will ship it and its legal ,  watch for it to disappear 

Of course you can bring any car to the US. Some of them will require little bit of work. I know people who were doing it for a living. Buying cars around the Europe, and actually sending them off to US from the port in Netherlands. 

Also, I see in the area Skoda Octavia (by look 2010-2015 model). That is pretty rare car in Virginia.

As for the tax, there should be some law that you don't pay the tax or it's just something nominal. You need to search for it.

I know that if I wanted to take my car to Europe (while moving there as a resident) I wouldn't have to pay the tax there. I guess there is something similar for people from EU moving to US. Search for it.