Buying a new auto

[BadMan]

I think Moore hit the nail on the head,.

Cash transactions mean less taxes paid on the sellers earnings. Wherever I go in BA, whether I am buying a couch or a car, I am always quoted a higher price for credit card transactions, Cash is king in BA.

Bad

[Moore]

Interesting 10% for a 30k purchase is not chump change. This is hard to believe. In US the dealer doesn't care if its cash or finance. In fact they prefer finance to make a bit of money in addition to the sale. How are the locals buying if not for cash then? 3k is more profit then most dealers make. Can someone explain this to me? Thanks

I'd guess that the finance price is inflated by around 10%.

Cash is king in Argentina for various reasons. Whenever you do anything but take cash on the spot for a material transaction in Argentina you are taking a big risk. Maybe your buyer won't pay you at all and, if he doesn't, you have very little recourse regardless of what the law is. Maybe hyperinflation will render loan repayments essentially worthless a few years from now. Maybe the government will "Peso-fy" all obligations that may be denominated in a hard currency.

Additionally, collecting 10% lower sales price is far outweighed by the 30%+ in income taxes not paid on a cash transaction that is much easier to conceal/falsify for everybody.

[BundaLover]

Interesting 10% for a 30k purchase is not chump change. This is hard to believe. In US the dealer doesn't care if its cash or finance. In fact they prefer finance to make a bit of money in addition to the sale. How are the locals buying if not for cash then? 3k is more profit then most dealers make. Can someone explain this to me? Thanks

[Facundo]

Badboy, have you considered buying the VW Bora instead of the Vento. I considered buying the Vento, however I think it's a little too big and a little too flashy for Argentina. What I don't like about the Bora is the lack of side airbags. The way los Argentinos zoom through these side streets the posibility of side hits and head injuries are high. Also, the Bora fits in my garage in Las Cañitas a little better than the Vento. By the way, last time I checked the VW dealer on Libertador (around the 8000 block) had one or two Ventos available. I'm sure you already know this, if you pay in cash you should be able to get around a 10% discount. Suerte.

[Moore]

Are any Honda models even made in Argentina? Fairly sure no. Cars assembled abroad are very expensive, rare, and usually too big.

I recall seeing a very few Accords which I believe are a US$40k+ enormous luxury car for Argentina.

Go for a Peugeot 307 (207 smaller/cheaper) or maybe a Renault Megane. Even the Fiat Siena isn't bad for tight and rough BsAs city driving. Or a base VW.

If you want a Saab or a Pontiac Grand Prix in Argentina you will also wait several months.

[BadMan]

I was going to post my experience, so I am glad you brought it up.

Basically Argentina doesn't have the cars I want. I am looking for either a 2007 Honda Civic EXS, which sells for $27,500 US, or a Volkswagen Vento 2007 2.5 Luxury Tiptronic that sells for $31,000. Now here is the kicker, I went to about 4 VW dealers and 3 Honda dealers, the Honda dealer told me there is a 3-4 month " Entrega " or wait on the Civic, seems the car is very popular and it is very hard to get a hold of. They told me to put a $500 peso sena on it and I can have it in August, they are fucking insane. Wait til August? The same thing happened in the US, when I bought a Prius, They asked me for a $500 dollar deposit and the car would be available in 2-4 months. I did it back then because I really wanted the Prius but for a Civic? They are smoking some seriously big rocks.

As far as the Vento, they told me the same, pay the reserva and wait 30-45 days for the entrega. Now I have been to see them both and the Vento is clearly a better vehicle. Right now I am waiting for the Vento entrega. I was told 30-45 days. Til then I am still taking taxis.

Bad

[BundaLover]

Great info guys. Badboy I noticed from the 'taxiscams' post that you are still taking taxis. What did you do with your buy vs. Rent decision?

[BadMan]

Thanks man,

That is exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks for the info,

Bad

[Rainot]

You can get a free garmin compatible map at proyectomapear.com.ar Just register and take a look at the help files and forum. You'll then know what device to purchase and how to upload the map.

I've a Pocket PC Phone w / GPS, and I use that map with Garmin Que and GPS Proxy or GPS Gate to fool the device into thinking I own a Garmin GPS 10. The map's VERY detailed, and it covers all of Argentina, routable.

Hope that helps.

Cheers.

[Seaman]

You need software to tell you at which street you are.

Since the locals do not have enough money to invest in systems like you mentioned before, there are few companies willing to invest money in producing a product (map)

[BadMan]

So does that mean automobile navigation systems don't work in South America? A Map isn't really what I'm looking for. But thanks for the suggestion though.

Bad

[Jaimito Cartero]

Not to sound like a smart ass, but have you considered a map?

[BadMan]

Allright, I think this will be my last question on the subject.

I have been checking online with the two top portable car navigation systems in the US, the Garmin 330 and the TOMTOM 910, I have checked online and neither have support software for South America. And only Garmin has city maps for Brazil only.

I would like to purchase a good navigation system, but the dealers don't offer this and I can't find a portable system with South Am support. Does anyone have any suggestions or alternatives?

Thanks in advance,

Bad

[BadMan]

I appreciate the time you took to try to disuade me Hunt, and you don't make a half bad argument. I would put the number at about 3000 US in expenses a year. Around, like I had said 250 US a month, just about what I spend on taxis these days.

And the suggestion from Bunda about renting a car for a month makes alot of sense also. That might be the deal maker or breaker for me. I will look into that.

Thanks again guys for all the great info.

Bad

[Hunt99]

If BB13 is spending 600-700 pesos (U$S 200-250) a month on taxis, as he says, it is still a much better deal than would owning a car be.

Add up:

Price of car - U$S20,000 at a minimum for a cheap new one.

Price of insurance - At least U$S1,000 per year.

Price of parking - U$S1,000 per year for secured parking.

Price of gasoline - Let's be conservative and say 600 gallons a year - about $1,500

Price of maintenance and repairs - For the first year, maybe 200 dollars. Much more after that.

So for the first year, the cost to own is U$S23,700 at a bare minimum. I think I'd prefer spending 250 dollars a month on taxis. 3000 dollars favorably compares with 23,700 in my ledger.