It's been almost 1 month since I paid, but I still haven't seen my car

[Parvati]

We are in the same boat as you... not unheard of. I know people who have had to wait three months for their car. They always give you the same sales pitch, 7 days, but it never is true. It is not just for imported cars, all cars are a pain to get... all cars have non-local components and demand is higher than inventory. So? We wait. Good luck, hope your car soon.

 

[earlyretirement]

Is it better to buy a brand new car from the dealership or a 2nd hand car from car lot?

Especially if money is not the issue.

If you're not in any hurry I'd say just buy a new one. Used cars are fairly expensive there. I was amazed how much I could get for my car when I sold it.

I wasn't in a big hurry to get my car so I just ordered new. Plus you can customize and get what you want. Many of the stuff they had in stock was manual transmission and I definitely wanted an automatic transmission.

Plus I didn't want the hassles if the previous owner treated their car like crap. The locals aren't the best drivers.

 

[Ceviche]

I definitely wanted an automatic transmission.

Its shocking people still drive manual transmission cars! They call it "real driving!" I call it "what a pain"!

 

[earlyretirement]

Its shocking people still drive manual transmission cars! They call it "real driving!" I call it "what a pain"!

LOL! Yeah, no kidding. I couldn't understand all my local friends that always bought manual transmissions. Traffic in Buenos Aires is really horrible. And the drivers are utterly horrible drivers. Some of the worst in the world.

I'd say before you buy, take a good look how much you will use it. I didn't use my car too often. Luckily I owned a garage space but garage spaces aren't too cheap now if your place doesn't include it. Especially if you're around Palermo, parking is really tough to find as most of the pay-to-park garages came down or soon will to sell to land developers.

Then you have the issue of car insurance which isn't cheap. Funny I paid more in Buenos Aires to insure my car than I did in the USA. Also, the license plate fees (especially if you have an import car) are relatively expensive each year.

The other hassle is several times my car was hit in parking lots and of course, no one ever left a note saying they hit it. So I spent money getting it fixed a few times with dings. Probably you're best to just keep the dings in there without fixing it...

I didn't use it much because parking was a pain, traffic was a pain. But it was nice on the weekends I'd drive around when traffic wasn't as bad. We'd also use it whenever we went over to Uruguay. Very easy to take it over on the Buquebus and just drive over there as rental cars are expensive over there, especially during the high season.

But probably worth taking a good look how much you will actually drive it, especially if you live in the Capital.

 

[trennod]

Some good points ER. I am thinking of getting a car. I am really missing the flexibility but also wanting to use it to get out more, and we would also like to drive it up to the north around christmas and use it up there to get around and to get to the coast etc.

Anyhoo for those who have experience of paying for a car here at a dealer, can you actually pay the larger dealers to an account outside the country?

 

[earlyretirement]

Trennod. I'm not saying it was all bad owning. We used it a lot when it rained and taxis were harder to get. We also used it when we wanted to stock up at stock at Easy or Jumbo and didn't want to wait for their delivery service.

Back when I bought, currency controls wasn't an issue so I just paid the dealer with cash. But now, I'd think that EVERY dealer has a way for you to pay for the funds doing a wire abroad.

All the dealers work with money exchange firms. And if you already have funds abroad, you can easily arrange with them to get funds wired and it won't cost you a cent. However, I'd say the safer method is wiring the funds to yourself and then just paying in cash and getting a receipt at the moment you bought it.

Later if AFIP ever questions how you paid for the car, just say you brought it in when you entered Argentina. For every passport entry stamp you have in your passport it's good for $10,000 US worth of cash.

Call me paranoid but I probably wouldn't want to wire in directly to some account the dealer has abroad. I'd go into the transaction assuming they could somehow screw you.

This way, if you get the funds wired to yourself you can pick up the cash and take it directly to the dealership when it's due. Much safer route to take.

 

[alicia30]

haha.

The same thing happened to me with Alra a couple of months ago. I'm starting to think we might have the same agent. Was it the Alra off Gaona ?

Anyway. I wouldn't worry too much. You'll get the car, eventually. It is a little infuriating since they promise 7-10 business days ( 15 days approx ) and it took them just about 30 days total to deliver my car but it is what it is.

You need to contact the central office on Juan B Justo and talk to the person you dealt with when you were there. They almost never answer calls. The phones just ring and ring. You need to go down to the office with all your purchase paperwork and receipts and request a more specific delivery date. Although if it's been a month already, it shouldn't take more than another week or two.

Sit tight. You're car will get there soon enough.

OMG yes! Alra on Av Gaona, the guy's name is Pedro... really nice guy until you pay him, then he disappears lol Well it's been 3 weeks so I guess I'll just have to keep waiting *sigh
Good thing that the subte workers are not on strike anymore!

 

[Ceviche]

I am someone who uses the Ezeiza ad Aeroparque airports quite often.

Do these airports have "long term" parking options? Where you can drive in, park your car. Fly out for 2-3 day trip. Fly in back and drive back home. Please dont write a cynical answer. I am just asking. I am quiet sure its not possible, but never know.

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On another note, I notice parking in the city garages ( short term) is very expensive. Is parking on streets free? Such as streets in palermo or Sa Telmo or Micro centro?
If we have to pay for street parking, are there parking meters?

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I am personally "dying" to buy and drive a car in BA. I have driven in places like Bangkok, Manila and Nueva Delhi. So I am not that paranoid.

 

[Ceviche]

Later if AFIP ever questions how you paid for the car, just say you brought it in when you entered Argentina. For every passport entry stamp you have in your passport it's good for $10,000 US worth of cash.

Thanks. That sounds like a brilliant idea to me!

Will this work if I am new citizen of Argentina? But the entry stamps on my previous passport would still be there of course.

But I sure, loved your idea.

 

[Markgeezer]

Many 2nd hand vehicles have the mileage clocks turned back, and most any bad engine problem can be covered up. If you have the money, buy new, unless you know and trust the first owner personally.