How much did you pay for your ND MX5?

[taipan168]

So, pay a Government fee for a what? 7 day permit?
That is only cost in Victoria?
Then stump up all on roads in home state?

Are you allowed to drive the car back to home state?
Are their temporary number plates? or what.

I did this in March (bought in Vic unregistered, drove back to NSW and registered it here) and the process works like this:

- The dealership obtains a VicRoads unregistered vehicle permit (UVP) which is valid for 7 days and for the "most direct route" between the dealership and your home in NSW. I made the decision that the coast road (Princes Hwy) was the most direct route from Mornington to Sydney
- You buy the car net of any Victorian stamp duty, registration, number plates etc.
- You arrange your comprehensive insurance cover to be valid from the day you pick the car up. The UVP covers CTP insurance.
- You stick the UVP on the inside of your windscreen and drive the car away with no plates - this did attract a few comments but I didn't get stopped by any police
- When you get to NSW, you need to obtain a BLUE SLIP from a mechanic to enable the car to be registered - even though it's a brand new car, normally the dealer certifies on the application for registration form that the car is fit for registration. I am not sure whether the interstate dealer can sign the relevant part of the form, and if so, whether RMS will accept it. The blue slip costs about $62. I tried to register my car without the blue slip and was refused.
- You obtain a GREEN SLIP (CTP) and fill in the application for registration form
- You queue up at the RMS and pay stamp duty, registration and number plate fees. This was about $1,400 for me.
- The RMS then gives you your number plates, you fit them onto the car and you're done.

Whole process including the blue slip took me about 3 hours, much of which was because I didn't realise I needed the blue slip.

[davekmoore]

Hopefully the out of state dealer will reduce the price of the car by at least the $1465 you pay for on-roads in your own state and otherwise make it worth your while to travel for your car.

[taipan168]

Hopefully the out of state dealer will reduce the price of the car by at least the $1465 you pay for on-roads in your own state and otherwise make it worth your while to travel for your car.

Funny, I seem to remember that my dealer did all of that and quite a bit more

[charcoal]

As far as Queensland to NSW goes, the deal is that the unregistered vehicle permit will only apply as far as the border. You then need to obtain a blue slip in (say) Tweed Heads, plus a CTP green slip and take the car to the Tweed Heads registry.

When we sell a car, it is done without the registration fee/CTP and stamp duty and it is up to the purchaser to decide whether our deal is worth going through all of this hassle. As we do tend to sell quite a few cars into NSW, we must be pricing our cars pretty well.

I don't know whether the NSW charges are cheaper than those for Qld to make this a worthwhile exercise, but I always suggest that the salespeople recommend registering the car up here (need a Qld "garaging address") and then it would have number plates for the drive.
It's then the purchaser's decision as to whether they either use up the balance of the Qld rego before re-registering the car in NSW or change it over at their local registry on their return and get a rebate of the balance of the Qld rego/CTP. Usually you lose one month.
A couple of issues with this would be with regard to any red light or speed camera offences where the infringement would be sent to the "garaging address" which has been used to register the car - although a mailing address is also able to be specified on the registration application. The other problem if one were to continue to use an interstate registered car and be unfortunate enough to have an accident where there was personal injury would be that a CTP claim could be disallowed.

[davekmoore]

Much simpler if you buy from a Vic dealer, as already explained.

And it's not the buying from a different state that will save you money. The important thing, having realised it is easily possible to buy from out of state, is to find a dealer and a deal you're happy with.

[radar]

Thanks for all the replies - all very interesting. The various legalities.

I think Victoria once had the best third party injury compensation scheme. There was an order, at that stage Vic was superior and cascaded through the other states/territories where one ( dunno which) would have had a markedly inferior (than Vic's) compensation/treatment regime.

I put these scenarios to RACV in Melbourne here.

1. If a Melbourne person is injured as a pedestrian while holidaying on Gold Coast, by a Victorian driver in a Victorian registered car, does the superior Victorian Third Party benefits apply?

2. Conversley, if a Melbourne resident is injured in Melbourne by an out of state/driver/registered car, does the superior Victorian third party injury benefits apply.

Needless to say I never got a reply.

It has implications because what if a Melbourne resident hires a car from Avis say, in Melbourne and injures himself or someone else and the hire car is registered, but not Victorian registered?

I know it legalese, and technical, but none of the potential scenarios are out of this world unlikely.

Sorry, bit off topic.

[chops]

I recently bought a used MX5 from QLD and was amazed at the process getting it back. I had to go into QLD transport with the seller, he handed in the plates and de registered the car and then I showed proof of purchase got an unregistered permit and CTP to drive the car back to NSW. I had to detail the start and finish address and also the intended time of travel but then proceeded to drive over 1000 km's in QLD and NSW with no plates on the car at all. Felt like a green light to go through as many tolls and speed cameras as I could at twice the posted speed anonymously. I was sure I would be pulled over repeatedly driving through country towns with no plates but they left me alone completely. Got a blue slip when I got back and registered it.

We have sold plenty of new cars interstate and often it is easier to register it as a demo and sell it stamp duty exclusive. No issue with driving a car without plates and customer gets a rebate of NSW rego and CTP pro rata when they register it in their state

[Mr Morlock]

In the end it underlines all the problems in buying interstate. Its far easier to buy used or new cars from your own State. Taking time off to drive fly / drive interstate all comes with a cost. When I worked I would have had to get leave to do these things and also never had the time to take off even during the day to do private business unless it was really essential. If anything goes wrong with documentation and thats easy when the rules are different then it can be another headache. A mate who had a lot to do with legal things always says its all good until something goes wrong. It's States.

[pcmx5]

No problems,just challenges! You cannot dismiss the fact that buying a car is an experience and possibly an adventure for some people, while for others it is just a pain in the bum .I have bought a couple of cars interstate and have loved flying up and driving back.Horses for courses,if you wan't a quick hassle free purchase and don't have time , local may be the go,but I have done very well buying interstate.As always knowing what is the best deal taking everything into consideration is the key and that may be different for different people.!

Peter.

[Okibi]

For the right car (and/or savings) it can be worth it. My SE was a good example.

Cars in WA are usually more expensive because we paid more to begin with, savings can be had by buying interstate.

But if someone is looking for a rare car, chances are a WA car will be in better condition because of our climate and shipping Perth - Adelaide is really cheap.

[davekmoore]

I see what's happened to this thread: It's turned into a discussion about whether cars are cheaper in some Stares than others.

THEY ARE NOT, apart from a tiny variation in initial registration costs.

However, some dealers in a State other than your own or even at a distance within your own State, might be enterprising enough to make it worth your while to travel to collect your car.

[thehillsarecalling]

No problems,just challenges! You cannot dismiss the fact that buying a car is an experience and possibly an adventure for some people, while for others it is just a pain in the bum....Horses for courses,if you wan't a quick hassle free purchase and don't have time , local may be the go,but I have done very well buying interstate.As always knowing what is the best deal taking everything into consideration is the key and that may be different for different people.!

Peter.

This.

For car enthusiasts, the process of acquisition can be as enjoyable as the destination. If you just need a 4 wheeled vehicle to get you from A to B, a local 150,000km Getz can be had for <$5k and will provide you with all the comfort, reliability and functionality you need.

Contrast to item #4532 on the enthusiast bucket list: Buy a car in another state, sight unseen, that doesn't go. Road trip to drag home.

[davekmoore]

I've been lucky enough to buy two MX-5s sight unseen from Sydney and to discover they're in better condition than described when I went to collect them, and was collected from the airport. Can't say fairer than that.

[Rocky]

No problems,just challenges! You cannot dismiss the fact that buying a car is an experience and possibly an adventure for some people, while for others it is just a pain in the bum .

Yeah, good observation. A while ago I was looking at an is250 located in W.A. and it was interesting that some posters were excited at the prospect of a 5000klm road trip home and some were turned off by the idea. I was in the latter camp. The prospect of negotiating the rules for an interstate purchase was why I waited to find the right used Mazda6 in Qld rather than draw on a bigger interstate market.

[ND-MX5GT2.0]

Hi everyone.

New to the forums and wanted to appeal to the collective wisdom here. I'm quite keen on a 2.0L Roadster GT with a MT

Firstly, is it possible to aim for about 10% to 15% off the RRP as I would with say a German? Or is Mazda in Australia a bit tighter on discounting?

Secondly can anyone recommend the better dealers in Brisbane? I am planning on buying a CX-5 as well as the MX-5 and don't want to mess around with idiots if I can avoid it.

Thanks in advance and look forward to chatting more as time goes on.

Mike.

Hey Mike,

So when I orignaly made this post, I had ordered the GT 2.0 but circumstances had changed & had to council the order. 7 months later & I decided I was ready to purchase again!!

I just brought a 2016 GT 2.0 Manual in soul red & got carpet mats & tint for $40,000 drive away it docks next week into Brisbane so I'll get it first week of June! Quite excited again!!