Hmmm... this is news to me. I've been told by both the head office and the dealership that the maintenance plan isn't offered. Maybe the plan is a new service offered on the 2008 models? Either way, I can't imagine they'd honour an American plan in Canada.

To update everybody on my progress, it turns out that you DO need the "admissibility letter" from BMW in order to cross the border. BMW seems to have actually convinced the RIV to disallow any cars to cross the border without their expressed permission, and to make things even more annoying, they've actually convinced the RIV to only approve cars that have been modded my a BMW Canada dealer directly. You actually need to present the Canadian Tire RIV inspector with both a recall clearance letter AND a sales receipt from an authorized BMW dealer where you performed the mods.

The good news to come out of this is that it doesn't appear that any modifications need to be made to the instrument panel OR the bumper for approval. If you check out the RIV admissibility list:

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/impor...list/VAFUS.pdf

... you'll notice that cars requiring the bumper modification are marked with a "**", while vehicles requiring a child anchoring device are marked with a ">". It doesn't seem that the Minis require either of those, according to the list.

After talking to the BMW dealership in Toronto, it seems as though the only mods required on the car are:

1. Daytime running lights -- apparently this only requires a flash of the onboard computer to activate them.

2. Metric readout -- according to BMW, the digital speedometer does NOT display in metric off the bat (I'll confirm this once I actually drive the car). They once again need to flash the computer so the digital gauge reads in km/h. Also, Mini does NOT sell faceplates for the central speedometer... you'd need to purchase the entire instrument panel to upgrade the analogue readout to metric. Fortunately, as long as the metric readout is *somewhere* in view of the driver, this should be sufficient to pass inspection. Stefx: I did see the link you sent before on the $90 faceplates, but I believe they would only fit the 2006 model or earlier. I guess until a third party comes out with the new faceplates, I'm stuck with the digital readout only.

3. French airbag sticker -- BMW claims that the RIV will provide this as part of the inspection, so there shouldn't be a worry. Failing that, I've read other posts saying you can purchase the sticker by itself from a GM dealership for $3.

I've done the math, and even WITH all of these crazy extra costs and BMW Canada gouging its customers, I'm still saving upwards of $8000 on this car versus buying domestically. It's a huge pain, but hopefully it'll be worth it in the end.

 

This is a great find.

There is no ** or > symbol, the text says to contact Mini Canada to obtain the modification requirements. So did the Toronto dealer you contacted confirm that the US bumpers don't need to be changed?

Wow that is awesome. I'll have the speedometer changed anyway, like you said I didn't find a 3rd party faceplate that fits the 2008 Mini. To save on the cost of the new one, I'll sell the US speedometer on eBay or something.

I'll make the changes on my post, with new calculations.

 

Do you have a link for this?

 

Confirmed. In the warranty info link, BMW Canada highlighted that they won't honor US free maintenance plans.

Wow you got a Canadian dealer to be informative and collaborative. That's much better than the resistance I encountered here when I called a local dealer.

Which Toronto dealer did you contact?

 

Well, yeah, the BMW Service department said that the bumpers shouldn't a problem, and that the RIV inspection at Canadian Tire would confirm that. On the other hand, this is the same service department that didn't think to convert the speedo to metric until I asked them about it.

The good news is that according to the admissibility list, it seems like the RIV will approve the car as long as BMW gives them the clearance (which it looks like they're going to do after performing the metric and DRL additions).

If everything goes according to plan, I'm going to pick up the car on Dec. 8th. The only two issues I have left are:

1. Insurance (people have said this shouldn't be a problem... as long as you have the VIN #, they're happy to take your money).
2. Licensing. THIS could be a major issue. It sounds like I'm either going to have to get a temporary permit from New Jersey (where the dealership is located) or Ontario. I'm not sure what I should be doing here, so if anybody has extra info, I'd be glad to hear it.

 

I've been dealing with the Downtown Toronto dealership located @ Broadview & Eastern. But like I said before, they're helpful, but it doesn't mean they know exactly what they're doing. I think once you tell them that you've already bought a car in the US (like I have), they drop the whole "you're making a mistake" facade and try to win your business in the service department.

 

About buying new vs. used... I spoke to a salesman at a US MINI dealership; apparently they "aren't allowed" to sell new cars to Canadians, but they have some "very slightly used" ones!

Also, if you know a nearby American, I think you could have them buy it for you, in trust, to transfer to you as a private sale for $1. (Of course, it's lots of money, so you really would need to be able to trust this person.)

I spoke to someone who thought this would also avoid the GST, since it would be a "secondhand" vehicle -- but is that right? Isn't there GST on used cars???

 

So, how much would that be worth? Have to figure that into the mix - rather cuts into my 8000 savings!

 

2 oil changes per year? 2 x 60$ x 3 years = 360$

 

Contact the APA in Toronto (www.apa.ca). They will refer you to one of their approved import brokers who can can take care of your purchase in the US, transport to Canada, customs papers. From what I hear you can even have your car traded in to reduce the value of your purchase (therefore reducing the taxes and the 6% duty). Also, maybe financing from a Canadian bank would be available if we buy from him?

I'm waiting to see the official 2008 Canada pricing before contacting him and working out those last details.

 

Yes, there is both GST and PST on all cars less than 15 years old when coming into Canada. Regarding having an American friend buy the car for you, it's probably not worth it due to the state taxes. Tax law varies with each state, but in New Jersey, I'm exempt from paying sales tax as the car is destined for out-of-state. Note that I'm buying a "slightly used" 2007 Mini as you mentioned. Since I bought my car from a Honda dealership, I'd wonder if an American Mini Dealer would be willing to write the recall clearance letter for you if you bought the car directly from them (probably not.... American Mini dealers seem to be pretty well informed).

And if you're thinking of having a friend from New York buy a car from New Jersey for you, no dice. Your friend would likely have to pay the 8% NY state tax when he registers the car in his name.

 

Not quite the same thing, but I brought a vehicle back from another province, because the car was not registered yet in my home province I could not get insurance or temporary permit for it, I had to get it from the Province (or state in this case) that I purchased the car in, but I just went to an insurance agent and they issed me a temp permit no probs.

I'm very interested in this thread also as I'm considering bringing in an 05 or 06 MCS from the USA. My question is regarding this "admissibility Letter" and "Recall clearance Letter" stuff! If I was to buy an 06 Privately does this mean I would need a "admissibility Letter" from BMW Canada? So I would have to provide them with the Vin#? Is that all they need. I could then bring the car over the border, get the inspection ( Crappy tire) DRL's hooked up etc and then get the "Recall clearance Letter" from BMW Canada, who needs to see this letter if I've already brought it over? If I can't bring it over without this letter then who is going to hold a vehicle that supposedly I now in the USA while I wait up to 40 days? Please enlighten me!

I can see this becoming a Canada sticky once all the facts are straightened out, that's why I wanted to include used Mini's, thanks

 

Buying used import cars in the states will cost you more in the long run. If you buy in province you just pay one tax, if you buy out of country you will pay both taxes and also have to pay duty on it.

 

As an example -- I checked Washington State - state retail sales tax is 6.5%, and sales of personal-use vehicles to foreign residents are apparently not exempt.

MM

 

Yeah, tax law definitely varies by state. I've already done some digging, and from what I've found so far, NY, NJ, and MA tax law exempts people from out of state from paying sales tax. Keep in mind that in order to qualify for the exemption, you must prove that you're going to pay tax in your home state (or in the case of us Canadians, our home province). I can't quite remember, but I'm pretty sure either NH or RI doesn't have sales tax at all, so you could save yourself the hassle by buying from there.

I can tell you that the NJ dealer I've been working with did NOT charge me sales tax. I'm a bit worried that I'll get into some trouble when trying to obtain my temporary permit in NJ, but I guess time will tell. Plan B would be to try and get a temporary permit from NY state (as I'll be driving the car through there en route to Toronto). The backup plan is to bite the bullet and pay the $1500 to ship the car, but I'd rather avoid that.

 

I don't entirely agree with this. It is true that Mini dealerships in the US will not sell cars to Canadians, but you can easily buy a "barely used" car or demo model. In the case of the Mini, the sticker price of the US cars (especially after you figure in the much lower "PDI/freight" fees south of the border), can easily be $10-$12K cheaper as compared to Canada. With my car, after factoring in ALL of the crazy red tape, I'm still in line to save around $7,000. The actual savings will end up being dependent on the mods required to certify the car in Canada, but if you look at the RIV website, the ABSOLUTE worst case scenario for any car is $3000 worth of mods -- the Mini looks like it will only cost around $500 (plus the stupid $850 BMW surcharge).

 

Official pricing

All right, now that I have the Canadian 2008 pricing (see the thread in the Canada section), I can compare apples with apples.

My car - Canadian version

24 800 base price Mini Cooper
1 500 Comfort package
500 Convenience package
490 Metallic paint (Night fire red)
130 white bonnet stripes
190 front window defroster
390 auto climate control
750 hi-fi system
1 595 transport and preparation
249 admin fee
100 air tax (air conditioning I guess)
12 tire tax
-------
30 706 Total Canadian price

By playing with the US 2008 Mini configurator, I get 23 900 USD.
It's missing the front window defroster, as it is not an option at all in the US. The rest is pretty much equivalent.

I updated my calculation US vs Canada post, earlier in this thread.

My next steps:
Contact the APA auto import broker
Visit a US Mini dealer next week during a business trip in the Boston area.

 

More news from the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. I'm not sure if this applies to other provinces, but if the title of an American imported car is in your name and you wait 30 days before obtaining a license plate, you are exempt from paying PST. This was told to me by a customer service person from the Ministry.

 

Can anyone answer this:

I'm very interested in this thread also as I'm considering bringing in an 05 or 06 MCS from the USA. My question is regarding this "admissibility Letter" and "Recall clearance Letter" stuff! If I was to buy an 06 Privately does this mean I would need a "admissibility Letter" from BMW Canada? So I would have to provide them with the Vin#? Is that all they need. I could then bring the car over the border, get the inspection ( Crappy tire) DRL's hooked up etc and then get the "Recall clearance Letter" from BMW Canada, who needs to see this letter if I've already brought it over? If I can't bring it over without this letter then who is going to hold a vehicle that supposedly I now own in the USA while I wait up to 40 days? Please enlighten me!

 

http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/s...d.php?t=477998

this posting should help alot of you out.

 

it depends.

Example. From my short research on the MINIs

A used 2005 MINI MCS will run you about 25000 $ with low Km's and you have to pay PST.

a used 2005 MINI MCS from the states is about 18 to 20k with similar miles and similar setup. but i pay 6%+ 15% (import gst and pst) almost the same price, plus i have to ship the mini to the border, take time from work to deal with all the paper work. it comes out to the same thing almost.

On the other hand, used STis are about 38K here and 34k in the states, but in i have pay import and two taxes on the us car.

new cars are worth it, used cars not so much. I am sure there are examples that show the opposite. But it is not so cut and dry.

 

My info (from the WA state website) was that state tax applies to "furriners" buying personal-use vehicles. But Bhatch's link included a link to a Toyota website that had lots of info for Canadians. It says no tax for Canadians:

"First, we'll need three forms of proof that you live outside Washington State. Acceptable forms include a Driver's License, Voter's registration card, hunting and/or fishing license, or a utility bill. This will exempt you from Washington State Sales Tax."

The redflagdeals link also had some complicated stuff about buying through an American relative. I know I'm the one who first mentioned this, but it sounds way too complicated to be a good idea!

 

Great write up thanks very much!

 

Not sure if everyone is clear on this, sorry if you are.

You do not pay US taxes, if you do you get credit for it when you go the boarder and will get it back.

You do pay import fee and gst at the boarder cash. You will pay PST upon registration of the vesicle in your province.

 

Let me add to what was said above:

1) Tax law varies by state. Although it looks like those people buying in NJ, NY, MA, RI, and WA are exempt as long as they're exporting the car; do not take this to mean that EVERY state has an exemption.

2) You MUST get the $350 admissibility letter from BMW Canada before bringing the car across the border, regardless of whether you bought from a private person or a dealership.

3) All mods for the Mini MUST be completed by an authorized BMW dealer (see the RIV admissibility page and look at the notes under BMW/Mini). This means you CANNOT get the DRL mod completed at Canadian Tire. After getting the mods completed at a BMW dealer, they will then release the recall clearance letter to you (for a $500 fee). The RIV inspection centre (Canadian Tire) will then request both a BMW sales receipt and the recall clearance letter before approving the car.

4) You do not necessarily have to pay PST on the car if you live in Ontario. If you wait 30 days between the title of the car being transferred to your name (completed at the time of sale) and getting an Ontario plate for the car, you will be exempt. Again, this was told to me by the customer service rep from the ministry, but I would appreciate a confirmation on this.

I have also since called the New Jersey DMV to enquire about temporary licensing. I can only speak for NJ, but it looks like all you have to do is present the title of the car, your Canadian license, and $5 to obtain a 20 day permit. Ontario will NOT issue any permit or license until the car has been registered in the province (ie - after you've crossed the border).