As you are aware im looking at moving to the Costa Blanca and wondered what you guys think is the best option regarding my uk vehicle.

I can either sell it in the uk before hand and arrive with approx ?2k to buy a cheap run around to start me off or I could take my uk car which is a lovely car if im honest (Volvo S40 sport diesel) to spain and either use it there till im established or sell it in spain after I arrive (if I sell in spain will I get more or less than in the uk considering its a RHD car, but the depreciation in spain is a lot lower than the UK)

If I kept the car and things didn’t work out at least I could return to the uk with a car I can use for work again, though it will cost me ?190/month until the remainder of the loan is paid off.
Obviously all paperwork, inc tax, mot and insurance would all be sorted out, but in a way im loathed to drive a rhd car in spain due to the problems it causes safety wise!

Have you guys already living over there got any advice on this? - also while im on the subkect does anyone know of the rules re having ladders overhang a car ( over front windscreen and the back of the car - allowable measurements etc)

Cheers Ste

Hi
I brought my UK car to Spain a few years ago.

I didn’t drive it myself but had it transported.

Now I am a brillant driver but even I found it difficult.  Along the little roads was Ok but it felt very dangerous to overtake along the motorways.  You just can’t see what’s behind you so well.

I now have a LHD spanish car which is better. 

It is best to drive a LHD car if you are able.  Second hand cars in Spain are so so expensive.  We actually bought our car in the UK and had it transported down.  Much much cheaper.  We looked around for a car in Spain and we found a car we wanted for 23K euros.  We bought a better one for 14K pounds in the UK.

If you are able, sell your UK car and buy a spanish reg LHD car.  If you look on forums on classifieds where people are returning back to the UK or ebay.  Or some dealers who sell LHD in the UK.  You will find it works out much cheaper and less hassle.

Good luck with it.

PS Don’t have a clue about the ladders.

If you spend more than 6 months in Spain then we recommend you register and insure your car here, ie. importing.” there link for that and i post up

http://www.spainexpat.com/spain/information/importing_cars_bringing_your_car_to_spain/

take look and ask more

jurdy

If selling a RHD car with British plates in Spain, you’ll almost certainly get a lot less for it than you would back in the UK.

Personally, I would sell it before you come and purchase another vehicle here. You’ll also be saved a lot of hassle later on having to make it fully legal and re-register it. Although prices for second hand cars and vans can seem more expensive on the surface, if you shop around, there are plenty of good deals out there.

I’ve just bought a 2007 Citroen Berlingo combi 1.9D for ?6,000 - it’s in mint condition and has very low mileage. This was from a dealer in Jaen province who stocks ex-fleet vehicles in volume. Looking on the internet, this was a good ?1,000 less than I’d seen the same model go for around Granada & Jaen. Compared to the UK, it was probably only slightly more than you would pay for the same vehicle.

The dealer organised all the documentation fully, as any good dealer should. I don’t need an ITV (MOT) for another 12 months and it comes with a 12 month guarantee.

Best bet, is to browse through a few Spanish second-hand sites, so that you can get a feel for prices. This is a good way to shop for vehicles, simply because a price is shown. You’ve got something you can print off and take to a dealer. Some dealers don’t display prices on vehicles, then make their prices up as they go along, so be wary of this.

A few websites I looked through whilst I was looking out for my van…

http://www.coches.net (This is the one I found my van through)
http://www.autoscout24.es
http://www.coches123.es
http://www.segundamano.es
http://www.cochesdeocasion.com
http://www.milanuncios.com/coches-de-segunda-mano/
http://www.autocasion.com/

Remember, the internet is your friend 😉

My advice: sell your RHD and get a Spanish plated car when you are over here.

The main reasons (other than the obvious one -road-safety) being

1/ You can’t get a MOT done on a UK plate car anywhere in Spain (or Gibraltar) once it expires, which means if you want to keep your car legal & insurance valid, an annual trip back to the UK to get the MOT done will be needed, not very practical I think you will agree.

2/ Without a current MOT you can not pay UK road-tax. The Guardia Civil are currently having a clamp down on UK plated cars not displaying UK tax discs, and should you get caught without a tax disc you can expect the car to be immidiately towed away, and a very large fine to boot.

3/ You can pay to import a UK car in to Spain, and get it on to Spanish plates, but the costs for doing so I believe to be quite high and are worked out as a % of the value when new of that model car. Not really worth doing unless its a car you really want to keep hold of, a classic etc.

4/ UK plate cars have very little resale value here, and 2nd hand car prices in Spain have come down a lot in the last few years, so it is now much easier to pick up a 2nd hand bargain for under 1000 Euros in Spain than it was a few years ago before the credit crisis

Hope that helps.