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[Markjay]

Due to my continental connection I seem to get involved with LHD cars more often than your average motorist..

A few years ago a friend who moved away from the UK left me an LHD A-Reg Merc 280SEL with 110,000km (70k miles) to sell on his behalf. Not bad at all for what was then a 15 years old car. It was garaged and immaculate. I drove it for a few months waiting for the right buyer, and eventually sold it to an Iranian guy who took it out to Iran with him.

We now have an R-reg LHD Previa which we bought new in Europe and brought here with us almost 10 years ago. It is used for the school run and only covered around 30k miles. It has full Toyota main dealer history and is in excellent condition, but externally has a few dents and scratches. We will eventually be looking at selling it, though as before with the Merc I will need to find the right buyer. Interestingly it seems to attract attention from buyers from African countries, my understanding is that these cars are much loves in places like Nigeria, and the cost of a body repairs over there is practically nil (the Toyota dealer in North London quoted £4.5 just for a re-spray!).

We are also looking at buying a new car to replace the Previa (at which point the Previa will go on sale), but can’t make up our minds whether to buy it here or in Europe. Buying in Europe is cheaper, and the wife prefers the left-hand driving position anyway (the only problem really is with car parks barrier ticket machines), but I prefer a car that will be easy to sell – if we get another LHD car than I will again have to drive it around for a couple of months until the right buyer (probably from Africa or Middle East) is found, while an RHD car can be traded-in at any dealership.

Just wondered what where your thought on the subject... how difficult it would be to sell LHD cars here, and if you have any suggestions for a better/quicker way to sell the LHD Previa when the time comes, rather than drive it around trying to attract attention from foreigners...?

[TheBoy]

LHD will make it far more difficult to sell in this country. How much it will affect value, and how long it will take to sell I do not know.

[Markjay]

LHD will make it far more difficult to sell in this country. How much it will affect value, and how long it will take to sell I do not know.

I suppose I could trade-it-in in Europe, i.e. drive it to Italy and drive back with the new car... just trying to see if someone has an angle I didn't cover yet?

The other point is that the LHD cars I have/had were all remarkably low mileage and very well maintained, it seems a pity selling it on the cheap in the UK just because it is LHD.

And yes, if you are interested in the Previa you can register your interest   but no, it is not for sale yet and may not be for some time to come  . Probably next year....  :-/

[theolodian]

I could bring in cars for about half the price from the US, after shipping!  However, IMO it isn't worth it unless it's some sort of special weekend toy.  Don't get me wrong, I can't stand the ludicrous price of new and used cars here, but I'd rather drive Omegas, Octavias, etc., than LHD.

[Markjay]

LHD would make a perfect holiday cars for a retired couple moving to Spain  

But then retired couples not usually need 8-seaters....  

Unless there are 4 couples who wants to share car?  

...or camper conversion, anyone?  

OK, I am getting carried away...  

[tunnie]

LHD car will be worth a lot to someone who needs it.

Try advertising it as a holiday home commuter or something, maybe in a magazine for homes in the sun.

I think car prices here in the UK are about right now, they are of course a lot cheaper over the pond, but European cars are in a league of there own in terms of build to US cars  

[Jay w]

i have no problem with left hookers, i have been looking at a LHD car as a weekend toy that would most likely end up get used during the week as well.......

In some ways LHD cars are good value, 90% of the times they are built to a slightly better quality as they were designed for the LHD market, yes there are downsides to driving them in the UK but if you are spending time abroad then they are brilliant.

Insurance isn't an issues these days, most mainstram companies will charge no extra, and getting hold of LHD specific parts is no harder than getting home market cars (certainly with the european car companies)

PM me with an idea of what you are after for the Previa

[Markjay]

i have no problem with left hookers, i have been looking at a LHD car as a weekend toy that would most likely end up get used during the week as well.......

In some ways LHD cars are good value, 90% of the times they are built to a slightly better quality as they were designed for the LHD market, yes there are downsides to driving them in the UK but if you are spending time abroad then they are brilliant.

Insurance isn't an issues these days, most mainstram companies will charge no extra, and getting hold of LHD specific parts is no harder than getting home market cars (certainly with the european car companies)

PM me with an idea of what you are after for the Previa

no idea what to ask for it and it is not on sale just yet...   but I'll drop you a Pm when the time comes.

However as my wife's plan to get a new car is gaining momentum so it my be sooner than I thought  

One more thing which is indirectly related to the LHD issue, is that as I said it has dents and scratches and in the demanding UK market this will have a major effect on value, but in other countries where labour is cheap this is not an issue - you get a good metal beater to work on it for a day or two then give it a respray and its previous glory can be restored with next to on expense.

[Markjay]

My experience with driving left hookers in the UK is that it is not a problem at all. When you are driving the car you don't even take notice of it. I suppose it could get difficult when trying to overtake a lorry on a winding country lane, but in real life this almost never happened to me. As I said the biggest annoyance is car park ticket machines, especially as the Previa is very wide so you really have to move across to the passenger side, but even so if in many cases there would be someone else with me in the car who can help.


The other annoyance with the Previa is that the car has 8 seats (2+3+3) but the Congestion Charge exemption only applied to vehicles with 9 seats or more, and believe it or not you can also drive such vehicles in bus lanes! (in Westminster at least, didn't check other boroughs). In Italy we had a Fiat Scudo which is physically smaller than the Previa and it had 9 seats (3+3+3), I can't understand why Toyota didn't squeeze a 9th seat between the two front seats, all there is there now is a big gap.  

[theolodian]

I think car prices here in the UK are about right now, they are of course a lot cheaper over the pond, but European cars are in a league of there own in terms of build to US cars  

The Fiesta, Focus, and Mondeo are as well built as everything else over here, better than most actually.  A lot of American cars are bad, not all, but that's not what I was talking about.  Look up the UK and US prices of European cars: a 997TT, or a 3-series, or an A4, or a Golf GTI, etc.  Look at used cars too.

[Markjay]

LHD will make it far more difficult to sell in this country. How much it will affect value, and how long it will take to sell I do not know.

I suppose I could trade-it-in in Europe, i.e. drive it to Italy and drive back with the new car... just trying to see if someone has an angle I didn't cover yet?

The other point is that the LHD cars I have/had were all remarkably low mileage and very well maintained, it seems a pity selling it on the cheap in the UK just because it is LHD.

And yes, if you are interested in the Previa you can register your interest   but no, it is not for sale yet and may not be for some time to come  . Probably next year....  :-/

Bringing-up this old tread from over a year ago.... the time has now finally come to bid farewell to my wife's trusty old Previa, which gave us exemplary service over the past 10 years... Not sure where is the best place to try and sell a left-hooker, as there don't seem to be many takers for LHD cars (apart from the occasional Nigerian chap who stop me and ask if I am selling as they want to export the car to Nigeria... apparently they are well-liked over there).

So if anyone has any idea how to go about it, where is best to advertise LHD cars etc, your advice will be much appreciated.




 

[Markjay]

LHD will make it far more difficult to sell in this country. How much it will affect value, and how long it will take to sell I do not know.

I suppose I could trade-it-in in Europe, i.e. drive it to Italy and drive back with the new car... just trying to see if someone has an angle I didn't cover yet?

The other point is that the LHD cars I have/had were all remarkably low mileage and very well maintained, it seems a pity selling it on the cheap in the UK just because it is LHD.

And yes, if you are interested in the Previa you can register your interest   but no, it is not for sale yet and may not be for some time to come  . Probably next year....  :-/

Bringing-up this old tread from over a year ago.... the time has now finally come to bid farewell to my wife's trusty old Previa, which gave us exemplary service over the past 10 years... Not sure where is the best place to try and sell a left-hooker, as there don't seem to be many takers for LHD cars (apart from the occasional Nigerian chap who stop me and ask if I am selling as they want to export the car to Nigeria... apparently they are well-liked over there).

So if anyone has any idea how to go about it, where is best to advertise LHD cars etc, your advice will be much appreciated.

Of course is anyone here fancy a left-hooker then please PM me....  

[Danny]

Left hookers can also affect insurance, because of our roads/signs/blindspots that are easier to deal with in a RHD, LHD has a slightly increased risk

[Mr Skrunts]

Left Hookers on occasions have thier advantages.  I dont mind them at all, last time I had one the insurance wasnt bad.

Would have a annother yank left hooker tomorrow if something decent turned up.

[Danny]

Left Hookers on occasions have thier advantages.  I dont mind them at all, last time I had one the insurance wasnt bad.

Would have a annother yank left hooker tomorrow if something decent turned up.

I love proper american cars and would also love one... but not yet