Induction units are so much cheaper over there and the selection is better I agree...I work for a German company so I have been to Germany often...my wife is from France so I'm there almost every year and in both countries I noticed the selection to be so good as well...

It was fairly common a few years ago for folks to import from Europe or New Zealand. Diva and Da Provence were common. Also AEG. You need to make sure to get your equipment from a country with the same electrical frequency (60hz) as the US, or one that is compatible.

I don't think anyone has ever mentioned importing gas modules. I don't know what the compatability issues might be, but I'd start with the regulators.

lip2000
Next time you go over to Germany or France, would you pick up one for me :)

I still don't get why there's such a huge price difference?

I am going to explore a little more this week before I call it a day and just get a US one.

Weed - thanks - my dad, the engineer, was just here and went over the whole voltage/frequency thing with me.

Price difference includes exchange rate, shipping, distribution, dealer markup, and, most importantly, what the market will bear.

A big difference is that most of our small urban units are rentals owned by a landlord who owns the whole building and land, and who provides basic appliances, though less and less the fridge. Apartment house appliances are pretty basic, and not what people usually choose for their homes. And we have a lot of basic "builder" kitchens put into housing developments.

In Europe the same small apartments are usually leaseholds, where someone owns the land and the skeleton of the building but people buy the use of the apartment, and there are also a lot of what's basically condominiums. They fit those out nicely because they have pride of ownership. So there's a bigger demand for higher end appliances for those. I don't know as much about the suburban developments, though my impression is that there aren't as many.

Plus, in the U.S. we still have a lingering attitude that kitchens should be basic, farm style simplicity, and get freaked out by the numbers. $300 in 1960 would be over $2100 today, but we forget that saving up for a $300 appliance was a big deal for our parents, and want to pay less than $1000 for the same thing now, even though there are lots of technological advancements. And we can! If we get the above, basic units.

Anyway, there's also the whole supply and demand thing. They have a higher demand for higher end appliances, so the price on them goes down. Add it all together, and you get different prices in different locations.

This sounds encouraging. I was wishing I could have an induction range but the prices are just not in my budget. I do have friends in France and Germany who could shop for me if I/we knew what to look for. Did you have a company/brand in mind?

Shipping a range from Europe to the states would probably cost as much as the range.

Pinch, a small cooktop can be FedEx'd. My 24" cost about $275 for shipping.

Shipping a range would cost a lot more. Since you're talking about saving money it would have to go in a mixed container by sea, which might not be good for the works, and you'd still have to have careful, specially electrical installation when it got here. And the timer wouldn't keep American time.

I think someone said that Lacanche ranges are brought over by air freight in order to have careful handling, etc., and an induction range has all those electronics that a more basic, gas range doesn't.

I really wouldn't suggest it!

I answered Ctreno's question previously in another thread. Even though I did sort of end up saving a little money importing my cooktop myself, I never would have done it if I could have gotten anything similar here.

I don't think I am going to do it, but there is a new Siemens 30" on UK eBay for about $750. He quoted me a shipping cost of about $130 (80 UK pounds.) I'm waiting to check the voltage and to hear back from Siemens to see about service in case of issues. I know it won't be covered by warranty.

This just in from AEG customer care - they will honor a warranty on import!

"Should you import an induction hob from abroad, the warranty would only be
valid for 1 year from the date of purchase as per the UK's standard
manufacturers guarantee. In the unlikely event your appliance would require
any repairs, our authorised Service Force agents for your local area should
be able to repair an Electrolux group product. However, there may be delays
in parts supply."

Very cool!

Are you going to do it?

The other thing to remember is taxes. There will be an import duty into the US, which really isn't that much. There may also be a VAT from the seller's side. This one you would have to find out how to get refunded since you don't live in the country with the VAT.

Another thing to consider is that the unit may not have a UL certification. Some electricians in the US may not want to install an appliance that does not have a UL certification (liability issues). This doesn't indicate that unit is not safe, rather, that the manufacturer hasn't bothered to spend the money required to get the certification in this country. But most certianly they have gotten the European (and/or Canadian) equivalent certification in order to sell the unit in the EU (or Canada). There could also be insurance issues should there be an accident (fire, etc) down the road.

None of these things would deter me from doing it. But since my full remodel is getting defered more and more, new units keep showing up here that I might just buy anyway when the time comes.

A friend in France says there's a used one for sale posted on the bulletin board at work. I'm presuming it's a cook top. But I'm going to pass this time. 150 Euro plus shipping. If I were an electrician I would know what to ask.