Why used cars in Canada cheaper than USA?

debrak2008

10 years ago

I live near the border and am currently looking for a used car for my daughter. On craigslist I notice that many of the cars are so much cheaper in Canada. Why is this? I would love to be able to take advantage of this but worry it would be a nightmare with customs, taxes, inspections, etc.

Anyone have any info on this? I tried to google it but didn't find anything.

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Comments (9)

mitchdesj
10 years ago
Indeed you should look at all aspects before going that route, your savings might not be all that good.

I came across this ezborder site that explains the steps.

Here is a link that might be useful: ezborder
debrak2008
Original Author
10 years ago
mitchdesj, I started reading the link, ugh!
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doodledog_gw
10 years ago
That's unusual - typically it's the opposite. I've imported a US car into Canada - it is kind of a pain. I wouldn't bother if savings werent significant.
debrak2008
Original Author
10 years ago
We are talking about saving about $1500 give or take. This is on cars selling for less than $6000. After reading that article I don't think it is worth the hassle. Maybe if the car was very expensive. I don't even has an enhanced license or passport so DH and DD would have to go see and get the car. I'm not a convicted felon just refusing to pay the extra to get an enhanced license, LOL.

BUT I still wonder why would they be cheaper? I don't think these cars sold for less when new so why are they selling for so much less when they are used?

This post was edited by debrak2008 on Thu, Mar 20, 14 at 8:03
gsciencechick
10 years ago
Because Americans can pay more for everything, right? Or maybe because they know they pretty much have to sell within Canada, which is a smaller population, so they price it lower.

I don't think this would be worth the hassle unless it was some sort of collector car. Yikes.
debrak2008
Original Author
10 years ago
Many of these cars are in or around Toronto so I would think they have a big market.

Its interesting too that certain areas of the US have cheaper prices on cars. One is Rochester, Ny not far from us. Miami is another good city to buy used cars. PA tends to have cheaper cars then other states.

When you have to travel its just a PITA as you would have to make a trip just to look at the car, then another to buy it. I've heard that some people will take a day off work and really plan it so that if they like the car they can do everything in one day.

I spoke to some dealers in PA who said they sell to out of staters all the time and will help you sort it all out.

I'm not sure what is worse buying a house or a car.
maddielee
10 years ago
Just a thought. Are the cars in Canada priced using the Canadian dollar? Not sure what the current value is compared to the US $.

ML
debrak2008
Original Author
10 years ago
maddielee, I think you nailed it. I am not searching in Canada but in cities like buffalo and rochester ny. Often the listings that come up are in Canada. Sounds dumb but I never thought about it being in Canadian dollars instead of US. Not sure though it that is the difference. Lots of Canadian shoppers are in my town everyday to shop here to save money. They come here to buy things like clothes, groceries, tvs, anything. Why would all that be cheaper here but cars be cheaper there? I guess I will never know.....
dawnbc
10 years ago
Prices vary greatly from place to place. It's not that all cars are cheaper in Canada, it's that the cars in the GTA area are cheaper than your area.

I see many things featured on the decorating side from Craig's list and there's no way my Craig's list has those low prices. You win some, you lose some.

This post was edited by dawn8b on Sat, Mar 22, 14 at 18:23

Why used cars in Canada cheaper than USA?

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Why used cars in Canada cheaper than USA?

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