Is importing a motorcycle a good idea?

[lilkitcat]

We are thinking of shipping our motorcycle with us when we move. From what I read it can be cost-prohibitive with all the import duties etc.

Apart from money I have heard/read that there are a lot of hassles to get the bike approved for road use.


Has any one else gone through this experience?
I would also love to hear your opinions if you think buying a bike locally is a smarter thing to do than importing one.

[Chris 525]

Forget going through the process of importing your bikes or cars.
It is riddled with red tape and expense, and will involve sending you machines back to the home country for emission tests..
Unless your machine is made of Gold, sell it, or put it into storage.

If you buy a bike locally. There is a vibrant 2nd hand market that comes wiith all the pitfalls.

And if you buy new, then the COE for bike is around S$1500, which is a lot less than cars.

You can pick up a reasonable 600cc for 18k OTR - On the Road with Tax and Insurance. A reasonable 1000 cc for 25k OTR. And for even more $$$ you could treat yourself to a Harley, BMW or some exotic bike like KTM or Ducatti.

When buying bikes in Singapore, you must bear in mind it is very difficiult to sell an exotic bike, or large cc machine, unless you sell at a very reasonable cost.

And Suzuki's (any cc) are diffcult to sell because of some supersticious nonsense, so bear that in mind.

We are thinking of shipping our motorcycle with us when we move. From what I read it can be cost-prohibitive with all the import duties etc.

Apart from money I have heard/read that there are a lot of hassles to get the bike approved for road use.


Has any one else gone through this experience?
I would also love to hear your opinions if you think buying a bike locally is a smarter thing to do than importing one.

[sundaymorningstaple]

^^^^^^

tic....toc....tic....toc.....

car salesmen beware, we are watching......

moderator


lilkitcat, it's been done before. At least one or two on this forum have done so I believe. but as was noted, it's fraught with pitfalls and if the bike is over 3 years old, I believe it cannot be imported at all. You might want to do a search of this site:

http://www.onemotoring.com.sg/publish/o ... tion_.html

sms

[Chris 525]

If you are referring to me, I am definitely not a car salesman.

[Strong Eagle]

You can pick them up for a lot less than the numbers mentioned by another poster... his numbers are for a relatively new bike. Do a search for Singapore Bike Forums, and take a look at the classifieds.

As noted, if your bike is more than 3 years old from date of first registration, faggedaboudit. You'll not want to do everything the gahmen wants anyway.

As with everywhere else, the dealer has a very hefty markup on used bikes. Go with a private seller if you know how to inspect a bike.

PS: If you haven't already done so, make sure you have your unlimited class motorcycle license in hand or you will get only a class 2b conversion, 200 cc and less.

[lilkitcat]

Thank you all for you replies.

License is definitely a lottery to be played after one year. I was planning on using my US license for one year, after which was going to bring driving history, proof of clean insurance for the years etc..... and plead for a full license.... may be they will have mercy on me and give me a full license

[lilkitcat]

BTW.... the bike is definitely older than 3 years..... a Ducati Monster

[Strong Eagle]

Thank you all for you replies.

License is definitely a lottery to be played after one year. I was planning on using my US license for one year, after which was going to bring driving history, proof of clean insurance for the years etc..... and plead for a full license.... may be they will have mercy on me and give me a full license

Older than 3 years, Ducati? You won't be bringing it over. As for license, IF you are licensed to ride big ones in the US you can get converted... the police have now changed the language on their website. I had a Texas MC license which has no class on it and got it converted without issue.

If you are older and have been riding for a while you can probably convert without issue. If you are 22, probably not.

[Saint]

^^^^^^

tic....toc....tic....toc.....

car salesmen beware, we are watching......

moderator


lilkitcat, it's been done before. At least one or two on this forum have done so I believe. but as was noted, it's fraught with pitfalls and if the bike is over 3 years old, I believe it cannot be imported at all. You might want to do a search of this site:

http://www.onemotoring.com.sg/publish/o ... tion_.html

sms

It also has to be right hand drive!

[curiousgeorge]

It also has to be right hand drive!

You're probably being flippant, but having imported my own bike you *do* have to make sure it is a "right-hand drive bike - at least, a bike designed for riding on the left side of the road.

Motorcycle headlamps increasingly are angled away from the oncoming traffic and require different set-up or lens to be corrected if coming from a left-hand drive country.

[curiousgeorge]

For the OP, as you say, your bike is older than three years so its a no-brainer, you can't import.

Sorry to disagree with Chris525 but you don't have to send your bike home for emissions tests either for two reasons:
1) If you have the original Cert of Conformity *for your bike* (not just the generic model) you already have the emission test results from the factory. It's harder for US bikes because the paperwork doesn't always mention the EC Standard. And US Bikes don't always have a KM display on the odometer.
2) Since November 2009, singapore has opened its own emissions test centre...Vicom at Bukit Batok...see import paperwork from one motoring for info.

Yes, there is expense...but I got my one year old F800GS imported and on the road for under S$21,000 which is about $5000 less than any second hand F800GS on the market, or $9000 less than new.


There is a full report of my import experience on my blog at http://f800gsrider.blogspot.com/2009/04 ... uk-to.html

But if you don't like paperwork, don't do it!

[Chris 525]

You paid s$21k to import your bike here?

Ouch!!!!!!!

Before the emission test centre at BB, one needed to get the cert from some centre overseas. I was considering importing my 2 year old FZ6 from Germany in 2008 but because of the paperwork and hassle, I sold it there, and bought one here instead.

Anyway the importing procedure can be found at the LTA's website.

[Strong Eagle]

http://www.onemotoring.com.sg/publish/o ... rcycle.pdf

[curiousgeorge]

You paid s$21k to import your bike here?

Ouch!!!!!!!

No, I paid $9,340.60 to import the bike, register it, insure it and get it on the road. Nearly 5k of that is insurance, COE, registration etc, which any bike owner has to pay. So the "actual" cost of the import was only about $4800 for shipping/crating/vehicle inspection.

The $21k includes the cost of the bike, as valued by LTA.

Which like I said is still $4k cheaper than a pre-owned vehicle, and at least $9k cheaper than a new one here.

You would only consider an import for a big/special/unique bike...what the locals call "motorbikes" and everyone else calls "scooters" are really not cost efficient to import.

[curiousgeorge]

Before the emission test centre at BB, one needed to get the cert from some centre overseas.

That is a common misunderstanding. Any bike sold in the EU must come with a Certificate of Conformity. That cert includes emission tests conducted at the factory on your actual bike, not generic model tests. It also details all the information you need to supply to LTA, with that one single document you hit most of the LTA requirements for importing a bike. One phone call to my dealer is all it took.

Only if you don't have the CoC or you come from a place that doesn't test to the EU standards do you have to go through the emission testing again.

Simple really.