Urgent help needed - Buying a car from interstate

[Guni_GuGu]

Hi, I think I've finanly found the car I want... FINANLY!!!

Just quickly, it's 95 gpx manual, 60,000 no mods or anything, only a kenwood cd player. $18750, nearly a years rego.. I'm actually annoyed a bit, because there was one sold last week, for 18, it was 96 manual gpx, with SUNROOF and momo wheel. I missed out, because I was getting this manual silver modified fto inspected, which turned out to be a real lemon..

Anyways

I had it inspected, and it's been the best report I've had for an FTO, it's like the 6th one I had inspected, only real problem, was there might have been a bit of a leak at the slave cylinder causing a bit of problems with the clutch...

and the ones that scare me...

The front had been in a "minor" accident, the bonnet was replaced, the radiator support I think had been replaced, and the front bumper repaired...

that and the quater pannels had been resprayed..

Do you guys think this accident was too serious? The inspector said, the car was overall good, I don't have a copy of the report on me yet, it's being sent in the mail, I hope to have it in a few days... Still I think i'm going to buy this one... With that said though, my problems are..

HOW THE HELL DO I GET HER TO MELBOURNE? She's in sydney right now..

I'm thinking about flying up, and driving back, but what do I need? Are they're any good freight companies you guys can recomend? What about rego papers and stuff? Do I need to do anything in sydney?

Please, any help, just to get me started would be nice...

[FTO338]

What about rego papers and stuff? Do I need to do anything in sydney?

Please, any help, just to get me started would be nice...

Make sure u transfer the vehicle under your name in Sydney, then go 2 VicRoad in Melbourne & swap it to Vic plate/rego.

[smorison]

HOW THE HELL DO I GET HER TO MELBOURNE? She's in sydney right now..

drive

or patrick autocare (a division of Patricks) they'll freight it down for you


driving it will give you a chance to knwo your new baby

[Guni_GuGu]

How much do you think the freight will cost?

Do I need to get like a sydney rwc before I can transfer the rego in my name? I'm planing to go down on the weeking, so I imagine, they would be closed too?

What scares me the most, is the fact that one of the quater pannels had been re-sprayed, and the accident to the front requiring the bonnet to be replaced...

the inspector didn't make it sound too bad, but I dunno.. what do you guys think about it?

Oh and the said, it was missing the underbody thingies, that help prevent water from coming in underneather...

[FTOluv]

due to the fact of it being located in Sydney, i personally wouldnt even bother with it. then again thats my own opnion but i wouldnt go to all that trouble to buy a car from interstate unless it was a real gem.

this car seems to be really knocked about. im not too sure how long u've been looking for , but keep on looking. Its actually not a great time to buy a FTO because there arent too many for sale. It would've been better to leave it till after winter.

sadly, many FTOs have been in accidents. this more important thing is how well the have been repaired. U wouldnt want to get one that shows evident signs of resprayed and not well aligned panels.
wish u well in yr quest.

[Boris]

Well, knowing how hard you have been looking, my suggestion to you is to fly up and get it. I'll explain.

You say that you are conserned with the repair of it, if you fly up, you can see for your self if the job has been carried out properly. You could also look at other things and so on... BEFORE you commit to the full price. As by the time you recieve your car by freigh, the cooling off period would of expired.

In the case that the car does turn out that bad, you probably loose some money on the ticket, and the deposit, depending on you situation.

It's all a game of statistics, if you want a car that hasn't been crashed, it greatly lowers you chances of getting an fto, my fto has had a minor ding to the front bar. It's very hard to find an fto nowdays without any accident history, as long as the mechanical side is in good condition, and it has been properly looked after.

If you want a decent fto, then you probably will have to broaden your options to interstate. I bought my one from interstate.

FTOluv, it doesn't really matter if he waits till after winter, it will most likely be the same, as no one is compliancing them now, or in the distant future atlest. If he likes this one, then he should get it. I think Guni_GuGu is an expert of looking for fto's by now

[smorison]

FTO bonnet's crumple (and are designed to) at about 20km/h or less all modern cars are designed to absord impact and save occupants....

assuming it wasn't inspected by the NRMA and by a more thorough inspection agency they would have identified if the car was in a major accident.

if you are concerned i can arrange for the car to be inspected by trained mechanics on import cars, unfortunately probably not this weekend... cost is about 150.

at the end of the day...

minor accidents are not a problem

stretch / crumples / welding of the chassis is a problem....

[RichardH]

Looking at the FTOs in Perth, the overwhelming majority were bought in Japan accident-damaged, patched up and then sold on the car lots here. The old import scheme didn't protect the consumer from this, and there were dollars to be made by the importers/dealers in doing so.

Very few indeed were undamaged vehicles. Only three spring to mind... one was owned by an Aussie working in Japan who imported it when he moved back, and two others were specifically chosen pre-auction by FTOWA ppl and then imported. All the buy-off-the-lot examples had front/side/rear patch-up work - mine included.

I just drove it (and felt that the chassis was straight and it drove dead-on perfectly), inspected it and was happy.

Stuff that came out over the subsequent 4 years included:

- Small dent in front of power steering reservoir. No doubt in the frontal collision that took it off the road in Japan.
- Part of one side skirt's clear finish started peeling. Eventually got it fixed as part of another respray job, and no big deal.
- Left front camber and right front camber had different extreme limits when camber adjustment bolts fitted. Managed to get 1.2 degrees out of it, but that's all.

None of these were show-stoppers at all. But evidence of a less-than-pristine history.

But now the car gets fired around a motorkhana course like a kamikaze fighter plane every month, occasionally hits trackside dirt when I mess up (only once in 2 yrs, touch wood and sees all sorts of unnatural forces from competition tyres that it was never designed for. And still it keeps on keeping on. So you gotta keep a sense of perspective!!

If you want perfection, look for an FTO that's been imported under the *new* scheme. No accident damage allowed - at last. Or find a car that you know was privately selected and imported, with auction grade paperwork to match. Otherwise, if you're on a budget, drive a lot (as you have), use inspectors (ditto) and make your best call.

Enjoy the FTO shopping experience!!

- Rich

[RichardH]

You can see I'm going mad sitting at home for a week waiting for my fractured rib to knit up... My posts are turning from 'wordy' to 'epic'.

Sorry...

- Rich

[Boris]

You can see I'm going mad sitting at home for a week waiting for my fractured rib to knit up... My posts are turning from 'wordy' to 'epic'.

Sorry...

- Rich

Your great! A wealth of knowledge you are... keep em coming.
I learn something everyday from these forums

[Guni_GuGu]

Your right, I've been shopping for an FTO for like 6months now, and this one, is probably in the best condition yet...

I really would've liked the sunroof, but, I can go without for now... maybe I can add one later...

Stateroads inspector guy said, it was probably a minor accident, does anyone think, and the actual mechanic of the car all seemed very very good... not a leak anywhere really, except for that small tiny thing from the slave cylinder, and power steering thing, both we're really minor, the interior is supposdly perfect..

Does anyone think, the impact from the front could've caused damage to the quater panel as well?

I'm still much more confident in this FTO, then any I've ever looked at... Almost all have been involved in a SERIOUS accident, this one seems minor...

and although I would much rather buy one locally, who wouldn't really? I have my heart set on a manual FTO in good condition, and well, good luck finding one in melbourne!

So, who knows how I go about the registration transfer stuff??

[GPXXX]

considering that a car is going to be one of the biggest purchases in your life, i will not take my chances with accident-repaired cars, because you never know what sort of problems lie beneath the new paintjob...

and as for the sunroof, i'd say it will be pretty difficult to fit one on because there are grooves on the factory roof, which means you will have gaps when it's fitted...

[RichardH]

and as for the sunroof, i'd say it will be pretty difficult to fit one on because there are grooves on the factory roof, which means you will have gaps when it's fitted...

Yeah, I've seen non-factory-sunroof FTOs fitted with them parked alongside factory-sunroof versions. The ones with original sunroofs do *not* have those front-to-back grooves in the roof, so the sunroof looks smooth and sits flush.

The aftermarket ones look a little odd.

Personally, I've never felt like I wanted a sunroof, so I don't feel like I've missed out. But I live it WA - more sun than you could possibly want!!!!!!!!!

- Rich

[TheSentry]

The previous owner of my car was involved in an accident. Apparntly the poor bastard hit a kangaroo!

Any way, as Mikey said there is a risk in buying an accident repaired car but if you get it checked out properly you should be right. But then again over $18000 is a bit of cash so give it some thought.

[FTO338]

How much do you think the freight will cost?

Do I need to get like a sydney rwc before I can transfer the rego in my name? I'm planing to go down on the weeking, so I imagine, they would be closed too?

Last time it cost me around $350 to bring the car down from Syd, but that was 3yrs ago, so it might be less or more now.

RWC should be the seller responsibilty. So all you need is the rego/name transfer. Make sure the seller's driver licence is current with correct details, & also VIN/engine numbers are correctly match letter by letter. i've seen some dodgy licence & VIN/engine number before, where they use the 3 & 8 tricks.

[EURO]

i know 6 months seems like ages, but like some of the fellow members have mentioned i would wait for something in your own state.

(a) you get to drive it maybe a couple of times before you buy
(b) save buying an air ticket and transport
(c) it seems your not totally convince on this car......

I was looking for one for 6 months or so, test drove numersous cars to get an understanding of a "good one vs bad one" before deciding to import one myself.

I was kinda fussy and my specs were it has to be
- white,
- manual,
- gpx,
- rating 4
- no more then 60 on the clock

It was worth the wait... i am sure something just as good if not better will turn up in your home state soon.

just my 2 cents....

[Supplanter]

When I bought my car I had it inspected by state roads, they said it had been in an accident, but the repairs were top notch.

Almost a year later a panel beater friend found rust under the paint work and replaced quater panels the weren't welded together properly.

I waited almost a year before buying my car, and I still feel I rushed it.
If you have any doubts, don't buy the car.

And I would recomend against using state roads to inspect in Sydney, try Sydney Vehicle Check instead, search for their number on the forums.

[Boris]

And I would recomend against using state roads to inspect in Sydney, try Sydney Vehicle Check instead, search for their number on the forums.

SVC, don't inspect cars at dealer yards though, not that I think Guni_GuGu has said where it's being sold from.

In the end it's up to you, i'm still sticking with my advice, for you to fly up and drive and inspect the car your self if you are very keen.

Remember, there will always by doubts in every second hand car purchase, listening to bad stories doesn't help, as you never hear the good stories of fto purchases.

[Guni_GuGu]

Well of a raiting from poor to good, this car came back almost good from stateroads, he still has a copy of his original NRMA inspection, which came back almost perfect too. His mechaninc has also commented on how good the car's condition is...

I've seen very very few manual fto's in melbourne for the past 6months... I am annoyed, because I did miss out on a stock standard 96 GPX with sunroof, last week, whilst I was getting this silver piece of sh*t fto in sydney inspected, and in that time, the black one was sold... but the sunroof, is something I can go without... Manual is the most important thing.

All engine test came back perfect, and the car was running very very good, the insepctor couldn't find any signs of an accident to the side of the car, only said it was re-sprayed... Perhaps, the re-spray could've been blended in better, but I think thats about it. It does sound like it was only a minor accident to the front, and with that said, I think most FTO owners in Australia, are kidding themselves if they think their car has never been involved in an accident... As all 6 fto's I've had inspected, have all been involved in some serious accidents, this one, espically in comparison to some...

I would've used SVC, but they said, it was going to be late next week, before they could get to the inspection, so I went ahead with Stateroads, who I've used a few times in Melbourne, and have found them to be extremely good in Melbourne... The actual report on paper, is more detailed then the one by SVC, however SVC do a very good job, in listing the problems.
Both are head and shoulders better then RACV/NRMA without a question.

I think, this is my car.. it is a bit more expensive, but, I do feel much safer, knowing the car is in good condition, espically compared to most fto's out there... I'll keep it, in top notch too, and do it up slowly over time...

As far as the rego stuff is concerened, I called up vicroads, and all I really need, is a receipt of sale, and apparent I can send off for a refund for the remaing sydney rego.

So I think I'm fairly safe with it all...

My biggest problems now, are, getting around in Sydney, I was hoping to pick up an air filter and front strut bar, since I would be down there in Sydney, saves me paying to get them shipped over, and the front strut reall helps, I think... where abouts is unique located from the airport?

[Teania]

UAS is about 40mins - 1hr away from airport.... depending on Syd traffic... if you go via Eastern Dist/ Harbour Tunnel & then the M2 motorway. Are you going straight from airport to pick up car and then driving?? Where abouts is the car....?? UAS is in Castle Hill...