Shipping companies? UK To Brisbane - For Car Import.

[chubbsr1]

Hi all,

i'm wanting to get some quotes to have my car imported from the UK to Brisbane.

I have import approval from DOTARS and I want the car to come in a 20ft container so it's not damaged or touched, i'm not interested in RORO.

I'm wanting either exclusive use of a 20ft or 40ft container - I have a friend whom is also bringing a pre 89 car, so it might be better to bring both at the same time.

I have a car transporter in the UK so i can drop the car anywhere in the UK.

If you can give me some suggestions on companies that would be great.

I've just email karmann shipping, but i'm open to others to get the best quotes.

cheers.

[james280779]

chubbsr1 said:

Hi all,

i'm wanting to get some quotes to have my car imported from the UK to Brisbane.

I have import approval from DOTARS and I want the car to come in a 20ft container so it's not damaged or touched, i'm not interested in RORO.

I'm wanting either exclusive use of a 20ft or 40ft container - I have a friend whom is also bringing a pre 89 car, so it might be better to bring both at the same time.

I have a car transporter in the UK so i can drop the car anywhere in the UK.

If you can give me some suggestions on companies that would be great.

I've just email karmann shipping, but i'm open to others to get the best quotes.

cheers.

As I keep saying to people, I used to work in the trade, I ship 2-4 cars a year (high end sports such as Porsche, Ferrari and Lotus) and I will never ever put one in a container! Roll on Roll of is not only the SAFEST and BEST option, its also half the price of a container!
Don't discount it until you know all the facts -

Containers-
piled high, many have holes or develop holes/ dents whilst being moved around.
people operating machinery often bang them together.
Exposed to the elements- imagine yours is on top, small holes and doors are not properly sealed (still gaps around). Its raining heavily and salt everywhere!!
Possibility (although rarer lately) of going over the side - this does happen.
Packing charges
unpacking charges
container movement charges to and from packing/ unpacking

Roll on Roll Off

stored under deck in a custom made state of art vessel with thousands of other cars.
Strapped in specially designed booths to said deck.
Climate controlled
no rain
no salt
no extra charges.
Ask Audi/ BMW/ FORD/ Lambourghini, Ferrari etc etc how they transport theirs?? Its not in a container.


I expect all in all to be paying about $3500-$4500 all in for a container to brissy?
I reckon about $1700 for RO/RO.

[chubbsr1]

James,

I understand what you are saying, but from experience of shipping my motorhome on RORO, which turned up with every draw having been emptied of all contents, the TV ripped off the wall, stereo missing and 3 dents. I do not want to ship the car on a RORO.

the car is a classic car which was never produced in Australia, so parts are hard to get hold of and I do not want to have to repair or worry about the car whilst it's sat on a dock somewhere open whilst there is also valuable contents in the car too.

I'd rather just ship it in a locked container from A to B, and pay a premium.

it's not the added cost that is a problem, it's finding a good shipping company that isn't going to rip you off.

[ariddell]

We used Elite Shipping (www.eliteshipping.co.uk) when we moved, 40ft container with my TVR at one end and all the household stuff at the other.

No issues, they were well priced and everything was secured very well inside the container.

[james280779]

chubbsr1 said:

James,

I understand what you are saying, but from experience of shipping my motorhome on RORO, which turned up with every draw having been emptied of all contents, the TV ripped off the wall, stereo missing and 3 dents. I do not want to ship the car on a RORO.

the car is a classic car which was never produced in Australia, so parts are hard to get hold of and I do not want to have to repair or worry about the car whilst it's sat on a dock somewhere open whilst there is also valuable contents in the car too.

I'd rather just ship it in a locked container from A to B, and pay a premium.

it's not the added cost that is a problem, it's finding a good shipping company that isn't going to rip you off.

then you were ripped off by your shipping agent. they didnt put it onto a specialist vessel and just chucked it on the deck of a normal freighter. This is cheapest way and guaranteed to destroy anything you love.

I would recommend www.autoshippers.co.uk , nice guys and not rip off merchants.

This end I would use World Wide Customs and Forwarding - based in Victoria but will be able to do the necessary for you.

www.wwcf.com.au

[Mc F]

james280779 said:

chubbsr1 said:

Hi all,

i'm wanting to get some quotes to have my car imported from the UK to Brisbane.

I have import approval from DOTARS and I want the car to come in a 20ft container so it's not damaged or touched, i'm not interested in RORO.

I'm wanting either exclusive use of a 20ft or 40ft container - I have a friend whom is also bringing a pre 89 car, so it might be better to bring both at the same time.

I have a car transporter in the UK so i can drop the car anywhere in the UK.

If you can give me some suggestions on companies that would be great.

I've just email karmann shipping, but i'm open to others to get the best quotes.

cheers.

As I keep saying to people, I used to work in the trade, I ship 2-4 cars a year (high end sports such as Porsche, Ferrari and Lotus) and I will never ever put one in a container! Roll on Roll of is not only the SAFEST and BEST option, its also half the price of a container!
Don't discount it until you know all the facts -

Containers-
piled high, many have holes or develop holes/ dents whilst being moved around.
people operating machinery often bang them together.
Exposed to the elements- imagine yours is on top, small holes and doors are not properly sealed (still gaps around). Its raining heavily and salt everywhere!!
Possibility (although rarer lately) of going over the side - this does happen.
Packing charges
unpacking charges
container movement charges to and from packing/ unpacking

Roll on Roll Off

stored under deck in a custom made state of art vessel with thousands of other cars.
Strapped in specially designed booths to said deck.
Climate controlled
no rain
no salt
no extra charges.
Ask Audi/ BMW/ FORD/ Lambourghini, Ferrari etc etc how they transport theirs?? Its not in a container.


I expect all in all to be paying about $3500-$4500 all in for a container to brissy?
I reckon about $1700 for RO/RO.

Interesting comments.

I write sitting poolside in the US enroute to Oz having recently shipped 3 vehicles to OZ.

I used an Oz based import agent, based on it simplifying things..

Opted to put my two cars in a 40' container & a Motorhome by RORO.


1 - Motorhome - was RORO with 2W's - William Willemsomethinghuseen

I went to the docks in Southampton where it was left in line on the port ready for loading the next day.

Seemed very professional & was surrounded by other high end manufacturers cars.

Confidence factor 8/10 ( never done before so reserve final judgement as still apprehensive of what state it arrives in.)


2 Cars by 40' container

I assumed they would be put straight in a container.

I was asked to drop off in a freight yard 5 miles from the port, the smallest busiest place i have seen with foreign truck drivers in and out reversing, turning etc.

asked to leave my cars up tight to the fence.

I insisted at least the Porsche was put inside, which was done.

No inspection while I was there!

Received pics of 2 cars while here in states which shows my Porsche has front end scratches to bumper area!

My Porsche which was fully resprayed & all wheels refurbed just prior to shipping and was immaculate!

The shippers currently dispute the damage was in there yard!

I picked my Porsche from a well known specialist in Surrey an hour & a half before leaving the car with the shipper.

It was in getting uprated intercoolers to assist engine cooling in that Ozzie heat. :-)

The car had been valeted at the porsche garage & I looked around it with the mechanic before I set off.

I will see what happens, not sure best way to deal with this as I cancelled all my UK polices once i left the Uk.

I suppose I can still claim off my UK insurer? but they might say it was on the shippers property....not sure

anyway....


I may now agree with what James says about a 40' not necessarily being the safe option.

Just a thought for those yet to make the choice, as I was surprised also about the RORO comments James made & so far is backed up by my experience to date.

Confidence factor for Container so far - 4/10.

Worst of all - because I assumed straight into a 40' container I did not take out additional insurance.....you take your chances I suppose :-)

[justnotsure]

I have my car in a 20ft container as we post, tad worried now following the above comments but it is too late now.

I used / am using John Mason International movers as my agent, I will comment on the condition of my car upon arrival.

[james280779]

quite a few porsches here, none seem to particularly struggle with the heat- Even my air cooled 3.2 is more than happy.
When I shipped my MG it suffered a little, I found that simply replacing the coolant with a more efficient Oz designed one solved the issue. I presume the same can also be done with intercoolers?

I am also in the hottest part of Oz

[james280779]

Mc F said:

Interesting comments.

I write sitting poolside in the US enroute to Oz having recently shipped 3 vehicles to OZ.

I used an Oz based import agent, based on it simplifying things..

Opted to put my two cars in a 40' container & a Motorhome by RORO.


1 - Motorhome - was RORO with 2W's - William Willemsomethinghuseen

I went to the docks in Southampton where it was left in line on the port ready for loading the next day.

Seemed very professional & was surrounded by other high end manufacturers cars.

Confidence factor 8/10 ( never done before so reserve final judgement as still apprehensive of what state it arrives in.)


2 Cars by 40' container

I assumed they would be put straight in a container.

I was asked to drop off in a freight yard 5 miles from the port, the smallest busiest place i have seen with foreign truck drivers in and out reversing, turning etc.

asked to leave my cars up tight to the fence.

I insisted at least the Porsche was put inside, which was done.

No inspection while I was there!

Received pics of 2 cars while here in states which shows my Porsche has front end scratches to bumper area!

My Porsche which was fully resprayed & all wheels refurbed just prior to shipping and was immaculate!

The shippers currently dispute the damage was in there yard!

I picked my Porsche from a well known specialist in Surrey an hour & a half before leaving the car with the shipper.

It was in getting uprated intercoolers to assist engine cooling in that Ozzie heat. :-)

The car had been valeted at the porsche garage & I looked around it with the mechanic before I set off.

I will see what happens, not sure best way to deal with this as I cancelled all my UK polices once i left the Uk.

I suppose I can still claim off my UK insurer? but they might say it was on the shippers property....not sure

anyway....


I may now agree with what James says about a 40' not necessarily being the safe option.

Just a thought for those yet to make the choice, as I was surprised also about the RORO comments James made & so far is backed up by my experience to date.

Confidence factor for Container so far - 4/10.

Worst of all - because I assumed straight into a 40' container I did not take out additional insurance.....you take your chances I suppose :-)

Speak to the garage and explain it to them. They will probably remember as not many go to Oz and see if you can get a condition report filled out and the time you left. This will put you in good stead for arguing with the shippers.
I cannot advocate enough about getting a decent insurance policy. It might cost 700 quid but it could easily save you 7 grand.

[Mc F]

james280779 said:

quite a few porsches here, none seem to particularly struggle with the heat- Even my air cooled 3.2 is more than happy.
When I shipped my MG it suffered a little, I found that simply replacing the coolant with a more efficient Oz designed one solved the issue. I presume the same can also be done with intercoolers?

I am also in the hottest part of Oz

Having done a couple of Vmax days at Bruntingthorpe,I like to keep the IAT's down on the old lady!

I wouldn't want my twin turbo beast pulling horsepower because of high temps, just when playing with those V8 beasts.

One of my last extravagances before leaving the UK.... agree not necessary...but nice to have..same as twin turbo's!!!

maybe I should have got some additional insurance as well :-)

Shippers seem to be coming around now & asking for a quote at the other end for repairs & pics..

Be interested to know if there are any track days around the Noosa / Brisbane area.

[james280779]

Mc F said:

Having done a couple of Vmax days at Bruntingthorpe,I like to keep the IAT's down on the old lady!

I wouldn't want my twin turbo beast pulling horsepower because of high temps, just when playing with those V8 beasts.

One of my last extravagances before leaving the UK.... agree not necessary...but nice to have..same as twin turbo's!!!

maybe I should have got some additional insurance as well :-)

Shippers seem to be coming around now & asking for a quote at the other end for repairs & pics..

Be interested to know if there are any track days around the Noosa / Brisbane area.

dont worry about the V8's here - most are under powered and gearing is too long.
I have no trouble seeing them off in the esprit 2.2 low boost turbo. The Maloo's are quicker higher in the range but nothing compared to a 911 tt. you wont even have to double clutch lol

[Mc F]

james280779 said:

dont worry about the V8's here - most are under powered and gearing is too long.
I have no trouble seeing them off in the esprit 2.2 low boost turbo. The Maloo's are quicker higher in the range but nothing compared to a 911 tt. you wont even have to double clutch lol

Look forward to playing! :-)

[chubbsr1]

There are a few tracks close to Brisbane, Lakeside is probably my favourite, imagine a small cadwell park.. we are up there this weekend doing some historic racing, so that should be good fun.

there is also queensland raceway and warwick all within a few hours drive, and the trackdays are a lot cheaper than in the UK. at QR, there is the drag's as well as the track, so plenty of opportunity to fry your clutch out down the strip..

I'm just about there with the shipping now, hopefully the car will be ready to be moved next week, so will be here in a couple of months.

Mc F said:

Having done a couple of Vmax days at Bruntingthorpe,I like to keep the IAT's down on the old lady!

I wouldn't want my twin turbo beast pulling horsepower because of high temps, just when playing with those V8 beasts.

One of my last extravagances before leaving the UK.... agree not necessary...but nice to have..same as twin turbo's!!!

maybe I should have got some additional insurance as well :-)

Shippers seem to be coming around now & asking for a quote at the other end for repairs & pics..

Be interested to know if there are any track days around the Noosa / Brisbane area.

[pikey]

I have a car on its way at the moment, due to arrive in a few weeks. I used http://www.karmanshipping.co.uk as they came recommended to me by a few sources. The cost was about £1800 from UK to Sydney in its own 20ft container.

Understand James' point of view, but I had spoken to people who'd experienced problems with a RORO transportation and preferred to pay extra for the peace of mind.

I'll let you know the condition it arrives in once it has

[chubbsr1]

Is that 1800 just for the container?

not to include unloading and all associated charges?

[pikey]

These are the additional charges (excluding GST/Duty) that I am expecting to pay on landing:

The cost to land the vehicle in a container is as follows:
Port charges $705
Transport to depot and return empty container $380
Depot charges, lifts and dispose of dunnage $390
AQIS fees $229
Customs/AQIS/DEWR Clearance $475
Steam clean if AQIS deem it necessary $295
Local Valuation $550
Clearance of Personal effects $225
plus 10% GST

[james280779]

Ok remember - if you owned the car less than six years and have a receipt- Local valuation is not necessary. The clearing agent will tell you it is (as the actual cost is far less than the quoted $550) but its not.

As I tell people on here - the cost overseas + conversion rate is usually considerably less than local valuation and the cost of getting it.

The steam clean is a given - 99% of all vehicle imports have to have it, that is a cheap price, I am presuming thats not including the re-inspection fee?

Also if the vehicle has Aircon - make sure you get the degas paperwork submitted well in advance - in my experience that dept takes the longest to get it cleared.

Also query the AQIS charge as its also included again in the clearance paperwork???? The AQIS charge is for the vehicle/ container to be inspected by customs. They then give it the OK electronically for it to be cleared. This is part of the clearance paperwork so make sure your not paying twice for the same thing?? I had this with a previous import company who were adding over 1k of uneccessary charges onto my shipment. Luckily I know what I am doing but I hate to think how many people they charge over the top.


Oh and you have also missed the 5% duty. this is worked out on all the above charges including the 10% GST plus the freight itself so despite being 5% its usually nearly the same as the GST amount.

Personal effects usually take longer to clear so be prepared you might get some storage but this is usually minimal.

Edited by james280779 on Tuesday 7th August 00:47

Edited by james280779 on Tuesday 7th August 00:50

[custardtart]

Thanks James, useful advice.

[XB70]

james280779 said:

Ok remember - if you owned the car less than six years and have a receipt- Local valuation is not necessary. The clearing agent will tell you it is (as the actual cost is far less than the quoted $550) but its not.

As I tell people on here - the cost overseas + conversion rate is usually considerably less than local valuation and the cost of getting it.

The steam clean is a given - 99% of all vehicle imports have to have it, that is a cheap price, I am presuming thats not including the re-inspection fee?

Also if the vehicle has Aircon - make sure you get the degas paperwork submitted well in advance - in my experience that dept takes the longest to get it cleared.

Also query the AQIS charge as its also included again in the clearance paperwork???? The AQIS charge is for the vehicle/ container to be inspected by customs. They then give it the OK electronically for it to be cleared. This is part of the clearance paperwork so make sure your not paying twice for the same thing?? I had this with a previous import company who were adding over 1k of uneccessary charges onto my shipment. Luckily I know what I am doing but I hate to think how many people they charge over the top.


Oh and you have also missed the 5% duty. this is worked out on all the above charges including the 10% GST plus the freight itself so despite being 5% its usually nearly the same as the GST amount.

Personal effects usually take longer to clear so be prepared you might get some storage but this is usually minimal.

Edited by james280779 on Tuesday 7th August 00:47

Edited by james280779 on Tuesday 7th August 00:50

Is degassing necessary?

I am reading conflicting information on this. Also, surely a degassed aircon system for 8-12 weeks would not be good?

I am keen to take my car back, however, it is appearing to be a bit of a PITA notwithstanding the silly prices the cars are back in Oz.

[pikey]

XB70 said:

Is degassing necessary?

I am reading conflicting information on this. Also, surely a degassed aircon system for 8-12 weeks would not be good?

In my experience, from going through the process this week, no. Degassing is not necessary (nor is providing a signed statement that the car's for personal use).

I also read a huge amount of conflicting information. New tyres, mirror glass, degassed a/c, certificate of conformity, removing fuel. removing windscreen washer fluid - all not correct (again, in my experience - which is dated this week!)

XB70 said:

I am keen to take my car back, however, it is appearing to be a bit of a PITA notwithstanding the silly prices the cars are back in Oz.

No, it's not a pain in the arse at all, it's very easy and once here is quite fast. The only difficult thing is obtaining the permission to bring it in, but as long as you have the correct paperwork that's fine.

The chap who did the road registration for me says that the rules do change regularly so that could be where the misinformation comes from.

My timelines and costs, updated from an import *this week* :
http://pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f...


PS. Also, I loaded the car up with personal possessions (lots of baby stuff as it's so expensive over here) and they charged an extra $225 to clear it, but did it 2 days after it arrived.