finding a dealer that will sell to a canadian?

I would think if you have an address in the state you want to buy in, that would be all you need... well, that plus money.

Getting a bank to lend you the money, or a dealer to arrange the bank to lend you the money, that might be a whole lot harder. I think your best bet for financing would be to pay cash (whether saved-up, or taken out on a loan or card without using the car as collateral).

Sales tax is easy: you pay it in the state you bought it in, then you pay it again in Canada when you import the car. I would not expect to get any back. I ran into the same thing in WA when considering buying a Prius in California (CA): pay CA sales tax, then pay WA sales tax, then get none of it back. WA would only charge me "use tax" (aka "WA sales tax on vehicle you already own") based on the lesser of resale value or MSRP; CA would charge based on sale price. Unfortunately resale value was higher than MSRP at the time.

Duties might be waived due to NAFTA, but it might not because it's not a made-in-USA car. When I bought a home theater's worth of hi-end Paradigm speakers (filled a Prius and a station wagon) in Vancouver, US Customs really wanted to hit us with duty charges... we were saved by the big print on every box: "Made in Canada From 100% Canadian Parts".

Importing can also be a bit tricky because the US prius may not be up to snuff for Canada. When I was looking into the '01 Prius I discovered the Canada prius had better headlights and heavier-gauge wiring for them, and that the US headlights were too dim, with wiring under-gauge, to meet Canada standards.

The good news for me back then: Canada '01 prius had cruise, an option introduced in '02 USA. I got a Canadian steering wheel in '01 and it gave me cruise with no problem.

 

If you do a search, there are a few people that have imported them. The biggest issue is the DRLs, and of course the odometer is in miles. I don't know about the sales tax, in BC, you get the sales tax back, since it's a rebate for the hybrid. Of course the Federal rebate hasn't kicked in yet. I wonder if they'll ever adjust the price for our stronger Canadian dollar, seems unlikely, since the prices in Europe and Australia are even higher.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cyrus69 @ Jul 4 2007, 07:11 PM) [snapback]473202[/snapback]</div>

I'm hoping to buy a slightly used Prius in BC, Canada next week. One of the ones I'm considering is a former US car. I assume the BC dealer that has it has changed the headlight system to comply, but my question is::
Dealer says it is easy to change the US-origin Prius to start showing odomoeter Kilometres. Is that true?
I've done a carfax search to see if any US accidents turned up...nothing, mind you the miles are low on the car.
Any other suggestions from past importers of US Priuses?
thanks.

 

There are quite a few members here who have imported from the US, and others (myself included) who are in the process of doing so (see my recent blog post: http://abouttime.wordpress.com/2007/07/02/...brid-to-canada/ )

The #1 challenge is finding a dealer who'll deal with you. Just shop around. You can't hide the fact you're looking to export the car - the dealer needs to provide you with documents for US Customs. Also, a US address will mean paying US sales tax (if applicable). If a car is to be exported, and is not titled, you don't pay sales tax.

Also, if the car is titled in the US, and you bring is across the border, you won't get the PST refund (in BC) or the federal rebate, as the car is technically not a new vehicle.

So shop around until you come across a dealer who's willing to take your money. Make it clear to them that you're ready to close the deal with cash on hand. Don't expect to go below MSRP though.

Good luck!

I'll post more entries on the blog as I move through the process.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ranmandx @ Jul 4 2007, 05:51 PM) [snapback]473171[/snapback]</div>

 

I just recently purchased an Arizona car here in Winnipeg because they are so hard to find. There is one dealer here that buys them from a Toyota Dealer in Phoenix and they all have low miles on them. They are all Certified Used Toyotas that were leased for Executives. Just ensure you get a Carfax print out so you know the entire history of the vehicle before you buy it.

To answer the question above about changing the odometer to KM from MPH is not necessary. The car has a button to change your driving speed from MPH to KM. Your odometer will always stay in miles and your Multi Function Dispaly will show average miles per gallon instead of Litre per 100 KM. I like this better than the litres per 100 km.

I would have had to wait 4 to 5 months if I had purchased a new Prius from a dealer here. My car has 20 000 miles on it and I got a great deal. It is like it is brand new and the car is mint. The other good factor is the Arizona car has probably never seen snow like a typical Canadian vehicle. Hope this helps because I love my car. We also have a Highlander, but I love the Prius better.

Cheers Mike

 

xxx

 

I bought a used 06 Prius so I could enjoy it right away instead of waiting 4-5 months from a dealer on a new one here in Canada.

To me the choice was right because I am now getting an average of 50.5 miles per gallon on my daily commute of 120 miles. Also with every tank my MPG is increasing due to hypermiling and P&G learned from this website.


I have also made my own Prius binder with the vaulable information not in the owner's manual found on this website.

Cheers Mike

 

i was on vacation for a few weeks,
where is the discussion on Canadian GST rebates found?
BTW since i am am american living in canada i think i get
the US rebate as well.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jdsmith @ Jul 20 2007, 12:48 PM) [snapback]482280[/snapback]</div>

here's a link to the most recent posts on the canadian federal rebate. Basically, there is a revised rule set that states the vehicles must be bought in Canada.
http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=32855&st=20
As a technicality, its not a GST rebate so it makes it tougher to argue for getting the cash grab.

Good to see more people importing cars from the States, hopefully all this cross border action will make the manufacterers stop their price fixing tactics and actually create a fair market