Buying a car.

1

Take a look at the prices of diesel and compare that to the prices of unleaded & leaded petrol.

Also, if you have the funds to buy a 4wd, you might as well use the money to buy a better a bit more $$$ car.

As you mention, you are not sure if you are going to go offroad. If your plan is to go off road every weekend, then, get the 4wd.

Ultimately its your choice.

www.tradingpost.com.au
www.carsguide.com.au
www.redbook.com.au not for buying cars, but to see how much cars are selling
Newspapers, they do have ads for both car yards and private sales.

Be a bit weary about private sales, the car could have been stolen and plan to be sold, or reborn, or has been in an accident and has been touched up.

There are some mechanics who will have a look at the mechanical soundness of the car for a fee. You might have to register for it, with the nearest mechanic auto shop.

If I were wanting a car, I would set a bare min of AUD$4,000. I would not consider anything less, reasoning, cheaper the car, the more it could break down. Not good when going to a job interview.

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2

In all states except NSW, when you register the car you pay a component of insurance, the bare min to protect other driver. Not you. This is called compulsory third party insurance.

After you have registered the car, you have an option to get comprehensive insurance, $$$ more, to cover you.

You pay road tax, in the registration fees for the car. Paid to the state govt. When you buy the car, there would be GST on it, but this is a once only consideration.

Registration fees are different for the different states.

www.rta.nsw.gov.au
www.vicroads.vic.gov.au
www.transportsa.com.au
www.transport.qld.gov.au

That cute grey thing in my avatar, is not me, nor does the grey thing belong to me!

3

Regarding your choice of car, I would grab a Ford Falcon or a Holden Commodore. They are both Aussie-built (which means plenty of spare parts in smaller towns, as well as parts being cheaper than for Euro cars). They are also large-engine cars and so are good for long trips around Oz.

Regarding having a mechanic check your car, you can get the NRMA in NSW or the RACV in Victoria (other bodies exist in other states and territories) to come to wherever the car is and do a thorough inspection for you. I had this done when I bought my car. The inspection was $200 AUD at that time (2 years ago).

Regarding your driver's licence, your UK one will be fine (any licence written in the English language is accepted in Australia).

Hope this helps,

Cheers,

Ronnie

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4

I think a 4WD is probably excessive - much of attractive Australia is either sealed roads or reasonable gravel. If you plan to travel a fair bit, a simple van (eg Hiace, 4 cylinder, etc) would be a much better alternative. Failing that, a Holden Commodore or a Ford Falcon station wagon (6 cyl) would be good - both for reliability and storage/sleeping space on the road. However it is likely that fuel is not going to get any cheaper, so I would buy a 4 cyl vehicle (van or wagon) at about 2000-2500cc or so max. Or you can look at the small 4WDs - Forester etc - in about that range.

I agree that about $AUD4,000 is the right amount to invest, and it would be good to register it for the full year of your ownership, to save complications interstate. Compulsory third party insurance is included in rego (except in NSW, as daycat notes above). On top of that, all you really need is Third Party Property Damage Only (TPPDO) insurance, to cover damage to other cars and property, caused by you. There is no GST tax on the private re-sale of second-hand cars. Also worth joining an automobile association for the year - state-based but national coverage with reciprocal arrangements. I think your UK DL will be valid for the whole period. Overall, buying a car and making it legal is fairly straightforward.

Apart from the links provided above, the major newspaper companies (News Ltd and Fairfax) have large online car sale sites, as well as in the papers themselves. I share the wariness of buying privately - car dealers are required to meet a much stricter set of conditions when they sell vehicles, but there is a price premium built in. Alternative is to look at the travellers car market in Kings Cross, or notice boards in the major hostels - where you might find a bargain.

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5

Quote

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i saw at car market many good cars under $2000 and cars usually registered already and if used car dealers here like in ireland hah! for warranty and you be more than 1000 kilometeres away hah! again for warranty jokes.

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I have no idea what this means..... anyone care to translate ????

I would also suggest (for NSW) you check the Registry of Encumbered Vehiles site or the other state equivalents to see if the Vehicle owes money...

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