Buying a car in morocco

[NeilT]

Hi all, me and a friend are going to morocco soon with the idea of buying a cheap second hand car, maybe Renault 4, when we get there. Does anyone have any ideas about this, done it before, heard about people doing it etc. I don't know if they are cheap there but i'm thinking it'll save having the car on my passport so if it dies we can leave it there...

We are thinking we'll try to get as far as possible toward Timbuktu so will need to know if we can export the car/import it to Mauritania/Mali possibly without proper ownership papers. I bought a bike in India recently and couldn't register it under my name so i'm guessing the same could be true in Morocco but really have no idea.

Any advice much appreciated

Neil Thomson

[Madrid_CapeTown]

Hi !!!

I think its not a good idea.

Firstly , the paperwork is a nightmare (if possible at all , which I doubt) .You dont have a address in morocco , and the paperwork (even for trivial things is a nightmare ) so registering a car in your name will be the hell.

Definitely , you are not getting a Carte Gris , so -even that you could drive in Morocco - you can not enter Mauritania.

Also , cars are actually more expensive in Morocco than in Europe. Much more. and in far worse condition. Thats the reason people try to sell them there.

Also , the taxi-route in Mauritania while perfectly doable in a R4 , is not a joke , and doing so with a -moroccan-owned destroyed R4 may be even dangerous .

Thirld . If a car brokes down in morocco , -and assuming you are ready to lose the car- then , you just talk to the police to take you to the local douanne office , where they will gladly keep the car (and hence "liberate" your passport) .

If you are not confortable with that option , then AA , RAC , etc.. in their road-assistance service cover "vehicle abandon costs/taxes/etc.. abroad where applicable - Morocco included" which will help you out of Morocco.

It is actually Mauritania which is much more serious about leaving the country without the car.

In my oppinion , you should get a good RELIABLE cheap car in Europe, fix it , sort everything out , test drive it to destruction , make sure you have a Registration Doccument , cover yourself in AA -if worried about destroying the car in Morocco- , and then head South.


Have fun.
Javier

Originally posted by NeilT:
Hi all, me and a friend are going to morocco soon with the idea of buying a cheap second hand car, maybe Renault 4, when we get there. Does anyone have any ideas about this, done it before, heard about people doing it etc. I don't know if they are cheap there but i'm thinking it'll save having the car on my passport so if it dies we can leave it there...

We are thinking we'll try to get as far as possible toward Timbuktu so will need to know if we can export the car/import it to Mauritania/Mali possibly without proper ownership papers. I bought a bike in India recently and couldn't register it under my name so i'm guessing the same could be true in Morocco but really have no idea.

Any advice much appreciated

Neil Thomson

[NeilT]

Many thanks Javier,

OK, plan B then! Any idea if it would be easy for a Brit to buy a car in southern Spain and take it to Morocco? Again i guess I'm going to have trouble getting it registered in my name. Is it essential to have the car in my name to get it into morocco from Spain?? I would guess so but does anyone know for sure?

The thing is that it'll cost so much to get a car from the UK that even if it is expensive to buy one there it would have to be cheaper than paying for the petrol/ferrys/tolls from the UK.... If we can't take it out of morocco there are still plenty of places there I've not been and we could go without the car if we decide we really want to go to Timbuktu...

Any more info gratefully received

Neil

[Madrid_CapeTown]

Hi , Neil.

Registering a vehicle in Spain for a foreigner is somehow difficult , and expensive. You need Mot , proof of last year Road Tax (seldom available) , around 100 euros , and a few other paperwork , which I dont' sugeest you to do .

Id really go for buying a car in UK (In london you get a motted R4 probbably for free ! , ) or if you can afford something more beefier (LR Series or so )You should get one around 1 grand. .


Also , do not understimate the difficulties on buying a car while not mastering the local Language / local tricks / local Scams , etc..
Buying such a low-segment car in Spain is not that a good idea. !!! , because these vehicles tend to be over-worked ,botched ,hammered , whereas not VIN-re-engraved , etc...

I think the most sensible option is actually the simpler one. Buy a car in UK , fix it , make sure It won't fail , and then ferry it troight Spain to Africa. Then Sell it !.

In my experience , policemen over 'ere wont' worry "too much" about a British Car without insurance certificate -any printed paper often do it -, and you have to buy insurance for Africa anyway ... so..... got it ?

P&O ferries costs around 260 quid per car + 2 people . Much cheaper than driving trought France. Ferry from Spain to Morocco is around 100 euros (car +2 people ) . I think that these 300-400 quid still makes better option than buying a car in Spain/Morocco , with all the risks involved.

Just one advice.: dont buy a vehicle which you can not afford to lose /abandon.

Having said that , -for me -I think that choosing , buying / painting /fixing / customizing the vehicle is -at least- as exciting as the actual trip! .


Have fun ! .

Originally posted by NeilT:
Many thanks Javier,

OK, plan B then! Any idea if it would be easy for a Brit to buy a car in southern Spain and take it to Morocco? Again i guess I'm going to have trouble getting it registered in my name. Is it essential to have the car in my name to get it into morocco from Spain?? I would guess so but does anyone know for sure?

The thing is that it'll cost so much to get a car from the UK that even if it is expensive to buy one there it would have to be cheaper than paying for the petrol/ferrys/tolls from the UK.... If we can't take it out of morocco there are still plenty of places there I've not been and we could go without the car if we decide we really want to go to Timbuktu...

Any more info gratefully received

Neil

[NeilT]

Cheers man, i take your point about cars being cheap here but I'd want one I'll think has at least a chance of getting there. Things are cheaply fixed in morocco and the locals more likely to help out but i breakdown on the Spanish motorway... European AA cover costs over £100, more expense!

The main problem i should explain is that i only decided to go 3 days ago and I'm leaving next week... if i buy a car cheap here I'll have problems getting the papers so quickly plus even 3rd party insurance (I'll not go without) will have to be from here and that's going to cost at least 2-300 pounds as I've only had a motorbike for the last 5 years, so zero no-claims-bonus for a car. So the maths is maybe 500 for the car 300 for the insurance 300 for the ferries 100+ for the Spanish petrol and then having to dump the car or spend more than it's value getting the thing back to the UK. Don't forget it's a right hand drive car so I'll not be able to sell for a good price anywhere else. Thats £1200 before i get there and little chance to get anything back....

a year and a half in India taught me some things about scams and bargaining so i was hoping to buy a car in morocco and sell it before i left without getting completely screwed. I did this in India with a bike and the difference when i sold it was a fraction of the cost of renting. Really do you think i can't buy a car for £1200 in morocco? If i can I'll get half back when i sell it at least. It wasn't easy in India and i expect it won't be easy there either but is it possible? It must be a better idea!! Really do you still think it's not a good idea? Some ragged old piece of junk will do as long as it runs, kind of adds to the appeal in a kinky British masochist way, must have a working tape player mind you. Need my tunes ;-)

The last time i went to morocco it was on a nearly new Honda hornet, great trip but almost too straight forward. I was going to set out for an adventure and as soon as I'd decided what i was going to do i did everything i could to make it as easy as possible... i nearly traded the bike in for a GS for christs sake!! Then i realised that unless the trip is inherently hardcore, like solo sailing across the north Atlantic or hiking through the Congo basin, that too much planning/preparation takes the balls out of a trip, I've got the time to break down all over the place and what better way to see a country and meet the people :-> LOLAMOJ (new abbreviation for crazies - laughing out loud at my own jokes)

Any other advice on buying a car there welcomed or failing that I'll add a post later telling you how it goes.

Cheers
Neil

[roamingyak]

If you just want to buy a car to putt about Morocco in and then sell it, you could try visiting this guy in Marrakech (see link below) - really good straight up mechanic - and he might be able to point you in the right direction of one of his customers who wants to sell, or he has quite a few different vehicles lying around.

Many of his customers are Foreigners who all seem to have a vehicle or two to putt around in. He will want to do things by the book, but maybe some of his customers will not or something...?

http://www.roamingyak.org/morocco/di..._mechanic.html

&

http://www.roamingyak.org/morocco/di...irections.html

[vagabond]

Have you thought about buying the car in Gibraltar? Shouldn't be more trouble than buying one at home. Unless I'm very much mistaken.

[MarkieB]

Madrid_Capetown:
Thirld . If a car brokes down in morocco , -and assuming you are ready to lose the car- then , you just talk to the police to take you to the local douanne office , where they will gladly keep the car (and hence "liberate" your passport) .

Are you sure of that? The Moroccan customs website document http://www.douane.gov.ma/brochures/B...0fr2004%20.pdf

B.II.b taxation, I think translates as "'cars destined for scrap': there is an additional "— that is beyond the 25% maximum for a car 3yrs+, — "rebate according to the properly evidenced damage, in comparison to the taxable value of the same car in undamaged state"
seems to say that they impose the same amount of tax, 59.25% of the new value minus 25% depreciation, with a reduction in value according to the damage to the vehicle.

I'd understand that as saying that an 11 year old car worth €800 say, that say needed €1000 of work on it, and cost say €12000 new, is valued at €11000 minus 25% depreciation = €8250 , so there's still €4888 tax payable on it even though it's broken down?

Or does it work as a baksheesh to the individual customs officer?

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Mark

[javierCarrion]

Hi !

As of November I know , there is the possibility now of leaving the country without the car , -as long as you firm a couple forms stating that you need to leave urgently -family illness works awesome!- , and the car 'cant not be fixed/etc.. on time .

You also sign that you commit to get back Morocco , and resume your trip/fix the car ,and to warrant that , Customs /douanne will keep the car or remains of as a warranty.

In other words , you can leave the country and let them keep the remains. But this trick only applies in cities with an international airport which -so far are-

Casa , Rabat , Agadir , Marrakech and Layyouune.

Southern Layouune there's no other douanne than the one at FortGuerguerat , and Id 'bet that they will leave you go for a small "compensation".

BR:
Javier. (MAdrid_Capetown , but lost the passwd.).

[MarkieB]

Thanks Javier,

That sounds a very good idea just in case then; although I'll try to make it to a country that doesn't particularly mind me selling the car, as those few euros could be needed in the future.


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Mark