Topic: Auto Manuf's Better Get Real On Supremacy Cdn Dollar

[tpl]

But isn't that what NAFTA was all about?  About fading the border in terms of economic activity?  It was sold to voters by Mulroney as finally allowing Canadians and Americans to realize one large market.  BS.

I don't anticipate change, but what I hope happens is it illustrates to people that free trade is not really free trade and instead a unilateral trade system that assists companies and punishes consumers and perhaps we should GTFO of it.  Six months notice and then resume negotiated and managed trade that is good for everyone...

(Though in fairness, thanks to our low dollar at some points, NAFTA was advantageous to Canada, but only due to the weak dollar, and was not an anticipated result...)

In the meantime, vote with your dollars.  I hate it, so I don't buy new cars.

Nafta and the FTA were never free trade, they were managed trade. Note there is no free trade in labour. No free trade in dairy and of course not in cars either**.   No free trade in lawyers, doctors and ( I think) accountants.   Actually  legal services, medical services and public accountancy.   The EU have been working quite hard at true free trade for some decades now and they haven't managed it yet especially in services.

** True free trade in cars would be that if you bought a car in the USA and paid sales taxes on it their you would not have to pay here and vice versa. And the same would apply between provinces here. ( I am talking new cars for the example)

[2latecrew]

And in the end, nobody has been able to tell me what I'm getting for those extra $595...$770 vs $1365 just for freight/PDE. Lets not forget, no admin fee down there either.   I guess they want to sell cars.  

I don't see that extra $595...$770 vs $1365 hurting car sales in Canada much. They can charge it,,they do and people pay it because they essentially have no choice.

What you get for the extra $ is the ability to buy a car without travelling very far, going through import process and having manufacturer financing available to you. If none of those things are important to you you can avoid them by going to the us and importing a car.

[No H2O]

I don't see that extra $595...$770 vs $1365 hurting car sales in Canada much. They can charge it,they do and people pay it because they essentially have no choice.

But they do have a choice. And yes, it doesn't hurt car sales, but only because we are generally dumb consumers. Maybe they're too well off...overpaid. BTW, its a $2000 difference before tax.

What you get for the extra $ is the ability to buy a car without travelling very far, going through import process and having manufacturer financing available to you. If none of those things are important to you you can avoid them by going to the us and importing a car.

I complain about pricing; at least I do something about it...I shop elsewhere. Most people complain about pricing, do nothing and pay. Thats their problem if they are lazy. It obviously not important to them. Their choice!

[2latecrew]

I don't see that extra $595...$770 vs $1365 hurting car sales in Canada much. They can charge it,they do and people pay it because they essentially have no choice.

But they do have a choice. And yes, it doesn't hurt car sales, but only because we are generally dumb consumers. Maybe they're too well off...overpaid. BTW, its a $2000 difference before tax.

What you get for the extra $ is the ability to buy a car without travelling very far, going through import process and having manufacturer financing available to you. If none of those things are important to you you can avoid them by going to the us and importing a car.

I complain about pricing; at least I do something about it...I shop elsewhere. Most people complain about pricing, do nothing and pay. Thats their problem if they are lazy. It obviously not important to them. Their choice!

I have no problem with people going to the US and importing and in fact I applaud it. That is really the only thing you can do. Vote with your wallet. BUT to term anyone who pays the higher Canadian prices as LAZY is ridiculous.

I don't like the higher pricing either. Lets say I want a Ford Focus and don't like the higher freight we have here.

The nearest non Canada dealer to me is in Maine. To get there its either :
1. Have someone drive me over 6 hours and then expect them to stay overnight at their own expense or drive back alone the same day.
2. Fly at a cost of over $500.

Either way I'm likely out $500 for transport and at least $200 for a hotel and food.
Unless I kill myself I'm out 2 days of time (which I probably need to use my vacation days)

So for a Ford Focus SE with 201A package in the States my after HST price to get that car is 21 500
but wait to that add my plane ticket food ,import fees etc we are probably at 22 500 maybe more.  Add the two days of vacation it takes up (what I could have made at work) we are at 23 ,000

Maybe I could ave a total of 1000...?? But wait I need to slap 23,000 on my line of credit at 3-4% rather than  at the 1.99% ford of Canada offers (sorry I don;t have that kind of cash lying around)

So does that really sound like someone being LAZY? Yes its a choice but its not so cut and dry. For some people (those who don't have cash or lines of credit large enough to absorb the cost of a new car) the choice becomes buy a new car in Canada or don't buy one at all

Sorry most people don't have the option to buy from the US and that is why no amount of letters etc will change this. The manufactures have us over a barrel and the givernment is not inclined to equipped to change it. 

[safristi]

Most Canucks are a STONER THROW from any BORDER......a wee bit of initiative OR HIRE A SPECIALIST (Many) in cross border buying KARS..........1   2   3     4     .........

[No H2O]

And even if there were a net savings...say $1000 or more, they still couldn't be bothered. OK, so use another word...not lazy...rich enough to not care to be bothered. Hey, I don't care...more choice for me.

[2latecrew]

And even if there were a net savings...say $1000 or more, they still couldn't be bothered. OK, so use another word...not lazy...rich enough to not care to be bothered. Hey, I don't care...more choice for me.

Did you not hear what I said?

How many people can buy a new 20 K plus car without manufacture supported financing?

A 1000 would make a big difference to me and I do care. The reason I don't import is not because I can't be bothered. You talk like its no big deal to spend 2 days fly for hours and figure out how to self finance at  reasonable rate 20 K plus.

[Vmango]

I drove to pick up my car in the morning and was back home in time for dinner.

Financing? Save up for a couple years and pay cash - borrow a small amount if needed.

If not, buy in Canada and pay your extra $$$ for convenience. Whatever.

For some models, it has nothing to do with being rich....saving 10K is saving 10K. If people want to spend that difference because they can't be bothered so be it. The biggest thing for me is many of the U.S. cars have much better option packages....some not available in Canada.

"It's too much work to import."

If your job paid you 10K for 5 hours work you would be happy, no?

[johngenx]

It depends on the make and model.  On some vehicles, the savings are thousands, sometimes more than $10K, even on non-exotic cars.

What do people think about buying a US-bought car in the used market?  Personally, I find that buyers are asking the same as Canadian-origin vehicles.  For some reason, knowing that people paid far less originally I expect to pay less for the used vehicle.

[my2cents]

I refused to buy a car for an extra 5 years - waiting for prices to come down. Somebody lost a sale 5 years ago.

It just so happened that my Rav4 deal just happened to work out to about $3000 less than the US version because of a $1000 rebate and a good Touring Package. The fact that I had a trade and wanted cheap financing (.9% for 4 years) made it a perfect storm for that month.

If any of those variables were different - I'd still be waiting.

Every now and then I think of buying a radar detector. I see a price and check the model on Amazon.com for reviews.

The Source has a sale for 30% off so I checked a couple of Cobras (they only sell 2 detectors).

Never mind the reviews - I didn't get that far.

The Source price is $399 - minus 30%

Amazon price is $137.58

I see this all the time and just don't bother buying anything. If I knew what Amazon charges for shipping - and if they ship to Canada - and if I have to pay duty etc. I would be ordering things.

It just seems too iffy. Some people get a pretty hefty charge for brokerage when ordering from the U.S.

[No H2O]

Some people get a pretty hefty charge for brokerage when ordering from the U.S.

I can't remember the last time I've paid brokerage charges....maybe twenty-plus years ago.

Don't ship using UPS, FedEx, or similar. Ship USPS to Canada and if thats not possible, have your orders shipped to the nearest UPS Store in the US...about 100 kms from you...maybe there is one closer than Bellingham.

Not worth it? Depends on your order. My orders, the tax savings on the dollar difference in savings pays for my gas. My net savings have been at about 43%.

[my2cents]

^^^^^^

Here's an example.

When I was deciding where to order detailing supplies from and checking their stock - I decided I wanted a bucket with a lid on it.

Chemical Guys had one and included a bottle of car wash soap and a fuzzy wash pad and grit guard for $24. They don't ship to Canada.

But Amazon had the same thing for the same price. Trying to find a shipping charge was useless. I came across a chart with a per item fee and cost for weight that could be $9 per pound.

So it could be $30-$40 for shipping plus any other fees if they shipped to Canada which I also couldn't find.

I got my local guy to order it (he picks up at the border) for $39.99  Same price as Auto-obsessed which is where he got it from. I'm not sure how that happened - but that's how it worked out.

Another item I was considering is binoculars. Again they were less than half the Canadian "on sale" price at Amazon.com

I'll buy lots of junk if it's any good at a good price. Not things I need - just good deals for things I could use.

I can live without them and because of the huge price difference - I do.

[2latecrew]

I think that things are going pretty off topic. Ordering stuff online to be shopped to Canada is completely different from car buying.

None of us like it but I'll bet good money that nothing is going to change in terms of pricing.

[No H2O]

About the Jetta...we weren't overly impressed with the build quality...

RR, I had some time to kill last Friday and being next to a Ford dealer, I popped in to see what America's so-called best car company had to offer.

What I saw had me think back of your above comments and also to those made by a review found here a few weeks back...the plastics and such.

I looked at a Fiesta, a Focus and a Fusion in the showroom. The sticker prices had me roll my eyes for what I was getting...$22K, $26K and $33K (rounded down) respectively.

At $33K, the door panel of the Fusion was mostly Mattel plastic except for a few small areas of inlaid cloth and leather/leatherette. For that kind of money, there is a lot out there to choose from. Same for the $22K Fiesta and $26K Focus.

I was not impressed.