scott3th

hi, im moving to australia within the next two weeks to go to uni, and im looking for a replacement for my bmw mini which im unable to import, i have approx £11,000 which here in england easily buys you a nice second hand car. the problem is i cant seem to find anything reasonably priced, for example i fancied having an audi tt roadster, (lol sunshine and top down an all that haha) but the only one i can find for sale in WA is a year 2000 and $32000 which is approx £14000 and back here in the UK i could easily pick up a similar one for £9000. why is it soooo dear??? can anyone enlighten me?so looking for info for were i can get a nice pref convertible within my price range such as an mercedes slk, audi tt, honda s2000, also interested in cars such as a bmw 3 series E46 coupe or another mini!!! so if anyones got one for sale which i can afford or can help?any help would be much appreciated!thanks, scott

Oscar

www.carsguide.com.au

Flamethrower

I doubt very much that you will get any of those cars for that price. Unlike in other countries, used cars retain their value a lot more in Australia - especially prestige cars and convertibles. For that sort of price, you would be better off looking at a late model Mazda MX5 or the like.The Carsales website is a very good place to start.

ChloeM

the cars that YOU like are european cars. if they are shipped to the uk i imagine the shipping and transport costs are much cheaper to go there with a larger demand, than to australia - much farther to be sent and with a lower demand. the reason the demand is so low for euro cars is that the australian car market is flooded with cheap thow away asian vehicles. if it's not from asia and it comes from europe - you can forget about it being cheap. hence i imagine the price comes down for asian vehicles due to the amount we import and the price of euro imports are relatively higher, due to the relative lack of demand.euro cars are far dearer to maintain, service and hence, insure in australia than asian vehicles.in addition, there may be different import taxes applicable, depedent on the country of origin??? that's a guess, i've really got no idea.ps. why on earth do you want to buy half a car (convertible)? in Perth? you'll end up with skin cancer on your head and neck!

BigRaymond4995

European cars cost a lot to import to Australia due to the distance, these cars also attract a luxury car tax in Aust when new.So as the car is sold it still carries some of the costs from new. Therefore our european cars cost a sh!t load more than they should, but hey thats life buy an Aussie built car if you dont want to pay the big bucks!As for buying a convetible..... Australia is not that sunny place you see in the magazines every day. We have some of the extremest weather in different parts of the country. I would buy one with a sun roof only, not soft top. Rememer 40 degrees Celcius is not the temperature to have a flimsy rag top folded back. you will want full protection and a good airconditioner.