Hey Acurites ... Just wanted to pop in to say hi, and introduce myself to AcuraZine (not that i'm anyone important enough to have a introductory post).

I have been a Acura Legend fan, and have wanted to own a RL since the 05 beauty was introduced. It's been out of my price range, until recently, when I noticed that the price has come down on some of the RL's. I originally just toyed with the idea of selling my car and buying an RL, but I am one of those people who will start at "toying with the idea" and end up obsessing over the thought. I've spent the last week and a half seriously digging into the used car market, and now, I'm somewhat determined to own a Canadian RL model (ventilated seats, headlight washers etc..)

That being said, I am a newbie when it comes to buying an out of state vehicle. Does anyone know what kind of headaches I'm going to run into if I go down that route?

05-08 CANADIAN RL

I live in San Francisco, and am willing to travel to Canada if I have to. I have only seen one Canadian RL being sold in the United States but it's quite above my budget...

I've heard about registration/licensing nightmares, I've there may be possible smog problems, and that i would have to submit the car to the sheriffs department to be looked over (and possible taken apart) to look for stolen parts.... all sorts of horror stories (never in detail, but bad enough to make me pause)..


Does anyone have any experience with something like this, or have any advise/thoughts on what I am trying to do?

Thank you guys!

 

First of all, there were some recent posts by Canadians that mentioned the used RLs in Canada are priced more expensive than in US!
Second, you live in the Bay Area, no need for ventilated seats and headlight washers!

I would bet there are better deals to be had around here (I'm in Bay Area as well.), and avoid the potential issues.

 

Yes, I have family living in Canada and U.S. and have seen this done a few times. It is much easier to import a car from U.S. to Canada, but is much harder vice-versa (Especially since you live in California). The U.S. has much stricter vehicle laws than Canada. You have to convert the emissions of the car (may require you to completely change out the muffler system). To even bring in the car from Canada to the U.S., you must have proper documentation showing the bill of sale (Trust me, its a lot of documentation). The car must be bought in full (Can not be financed or bank owned/liened) or the bill of sale must be in your name. You will be charged a 2.5% import tax of the total sales price. This is to avoid stolen cars from coming into the U.S. You will also need an speacial EPA agent, not just anyone, to fully inspect the car and approve it for safety and proper/legal emissions. If all approved and the car is allowed to be registered, you will have to pay the DMV extra money to convert the title from Canada to your state and still pay your local state/county sales tax. All and all, its just simply wayyy too much work and expense in my opinion. You will end up spending a lot more time and money than you might of thought.

If you really want it because of the heated/cooled seats and other improved things within the interior, I would suggest getting an 09'. Its filthy ugly in my opinion, but its a nice interior improvement over the 05-08's. Really all I can think of you loosing out on is the headlight washers (Are they that important?). Plus you will gain XM radio.

Hope this helps...

Google search importing cars to U.S. for more detailed info.

 

Problem is he said it is out of his budget.

Why not look into getting an RL in your state and changing up the headlights / seats? I would rather the US model to have XM than my soon-to-be canadian model.

 

Just get a US model. Lots less trouble, just as good. You'll survive without the ventilated seats.

Alternately, you can be The One to finally get a set of junked Canadian RL seats and retrofit them to a US model! That will make a hell of a DIY and you will get lots of forum respect (sorry, doesn't come with any money! )

 

RMJSE, thanks for the comments on the 09, can we have a glance at your ride?

 

wow you guys are quick. Yes the 09 is way out of my budget, and I think the 05-08 has a timeless look to it. No disrespect to the 09'ers, it's just personal preference I guess.

I dont need the headlight washers, I just think it's cool, and it makes that rl a bit more unique. as for the vented seats, there have been multi hour drives i've been on, that have left my back and butt sweaty, and vented seats would be awesome. in a sense it kind of makes me feel like additional future proofing. this will be the car that i hang onto until it dies, so i would like to have that benefit.

as for pricing. it's sub 16g for the one i've been looking at. i havent seen anything even approach that in the us. at that price, i wont mind the insurance bump, the premium gas costs, the cost to totally detail the car professionally, and to fix any odds and ends on the car.

I wanted the extras because there are some things you can't put in after the fact. the seats, the washers etc.


are the emissions and safety stuff different between the two models? i would have assumed it'd be the same. as for taxes, cant you write the bill of sale for a lower price then it actually went for? That should cut down on all those registration/tax charges wouldnt it?

Thanks again!

This forum's a blast!

 

sub 16G for an RL in Canada? is that salvage or totaled and not even fixed?

that's a bit cheap, I'd be very afraid.

 

also, I'm not big on XM. Never ever tried it, so I dont know what I'm missing. with 6 disk changer, mp3 support, AM and FM, I doubt I'd miss XM at all. =)

 

Dunno, I was sent scanned documents. receipts for servicing on the car. oil changes, other maintenance items. i havent run a car fax check on the vin yet, but it has all of that information, certificate of inspection, and a registration certificate for some sort of Platinum Environmental Shield.

 

I would definitely have it checked it REALLY well. Like with a professional mechanic, CarFax, AutoCheck, whatever you can throw at it.

 

i dont even know if that's viable now, with all of the stuff i'm hearing about buying canadian and bringing it back over
man. why does it have to be this difficult.

 

cause free cheese is only in the mouse trap. Get a US version, seriously. And get the extended acura warranty too. That is something you can depend on for years. Giving your money in Canada and finding out the vehicle is stolen...not worth it.

 

Don't have an RL yet, as much as I want one. Since reading these forums I decided to hold off on an '05 and get a certified '06, but not looking to spend over $20K.

Probably won't have one till August since I will going traveling overseas in July. But I will post pics as soon as I get one!

I really don't recommend you buy it. Like others have said, it may have a lot of hidden problems that you may not know about or may not show up in a carfax because its Canadian. My budget is almost like yours. I want to spend around $16-$20k and so I am holding off until prices of '06s drop a bit. If I were you I would wait a bit, 3G RL is said to be released in 2011 (Which probably will be mid 2010). When that happens the '09-'10 model price will drop a lot (it already is because of this economy) and you might be able to afford it and get your ventilated seats. But like you, I really can not stand the front grille of it, or for that matter the new 3G TL yuck! . Don't know what Acura was thinking .

 

AS I said before, I am in Bay Area also. I did a quick scan of used '05 RLs. I see quite a few listed from 15K (high miles) to 22K (low miles) all at Dealers. I'm sure you can offer them at least 20% off their list, maybe more. They are hurting for biz.
My '05 is pushing 90K miles if you want to make me an offer

 

I was one of those Canadians: In the spring of 2008, I paid $46K for a non-tech 2006 RL (with very low mileage though).

 

How much you got for an 09 RL with 8k CMBS, new tires, SS brake lines, german tints, soon to be quad exhaust?

I am sure we can come to a reasonable deal :-)

 

I brought a car into California from another country and I had to post a bond at customs to allow the vehicle to be tested to see if it had ever had anything but unleaded in it and it took 6 weeks. BTW the car was from CA. I'm not sure that Canada has reciprocity with the US or not but Ca is another battle that you don't need.

 

Turns out the Canadian vehicle I saw was actually an American model in Canada. I guess when I asked if it had ventilated seats, he took the "ventilated leather" as a yes. Pics of the headlamps and the shift knob (with heat/cool toggle switch) confirmed it was american.


Sigh.

As such, the only Canadian model I've seen in the United States is a 2005 model going for 25k ... If they can drop it to 20, I'd consider it.


Anyone know of any headaches buying a washington car, and having it registered in California? and is the RL a 50 state emission vehicle?

Wondering if it's worth a few thousand more for a Canadian model. Atleast it'd be unique..But even if I can get the car for 20g (5g off is probly undoable) how much would all the tax/paperwork/registration cost? I was told if I buy a out of state car, registering it would cost the same as a new vehicle. *bite nails nervously*


As for the 09, Wonderful car, but no thank you. Besides preferring the 05-08 styling, the car is even longer. Street parking in san francisco is crazy enough, and the 05 rl is already 4 inches longer than my current car (02 Camry XLE V6). I believe the 09 RL is 4 inches longer than the 05-08. 8 inches is a lot, considering how badly I wanted a smaller car before my RL passion re-ignited!

 

If 05's are just at the edge of my available budget, the 09 wont be in range for a few more years yet!

 

Describe car. What will you drive if you sell your RL?

 

Do you just like a challenge or have you got something against buying a car in California? If you are trying to same time and money then look in CA, it will negate weeks of DMV BS.

 

I don't know about you, but I had the same feeling that Lancer was going thru.

At first i couldn't get the RL out of my mind, but I thought the American version was a bit on the subtle side. Thats when I found a seller in the far east selling the Afghani version of the RL!!! This RL didn't have features like most RLs, but instead came mounted with a 30mm chain gun mounted on top of the roof, it also had HIAA headlights and an trunk attachment for hauling sheep, goat, and the occasional pillaged wife.

I just had to have it, but since the car probably didnt pass EPA smog emissions, then i knew i'd have a headacke bringing it into the US.

woe is me, thats why i stuck with a 2005 US RL.

 

Ok, now you're just teasing me .

Also, I'm not doing it for the challenge, I like the fact that the RL isn't on every street corner (Hey, I own a Camry).
A Canadian RL would be nice because it has extra features. Headlight washers (probably not needed, but a nice touch), heated/cooled seats (3 step heat, 3 step ventilation) = no sweaty back/asses on multihour drives in the summer, and lighted door handles are a nice touch. I figure the reason they have it is so the driver/passengers can find the doorhandles in thick fog/snow?

To retrofit the American RL with heated/vented seats would cost a fortune, but it's one of those things that would greatly increase my enjoyment in the car.

I work hard for the money I've earned and saved, and an RL SHOULD be out of my budget, but a used one is running around the top end of what I can buy (and still have a bit of savings in case I run into an emergency).

For this money, I would like a car that I can drive until the wheels fall off, and a Canadian model will have a few perks to keep the smile plastered on my face.

Again, I have no issues with buying in state, I hope I'm not being too unreasonable. Right now I'm trying to purchase a Canadian model that's registered in the states. It's in Washington, so I wonder if that'll be easier to register in California or not.

Are all RL's (Canadian included) 50 state epa emissions legal?

Thanks again!

 

Was mostly kidding on selling it. Need to keep for a while longer.
But as I said before, there are lots of RLs under 20K in the Bay Area.

 

Lancer,

Seriously, I am on the same boat as you.

Personally, I would look for low mileage and newer year (i own a 05) over the canadian perks. Plus there's a good chance that those canadian cars were pushed hard in bad weather.

I test drove a M35x that had ventilated seats and I did not noticed the difference at all, if seat warmth is a concern, dont get black leather. Mine is White with Parchment leather and its pretty much cool.

 

How much should I offer for a Canadian RL
34000 miles. From Dealer, so I assume it will be immaculate.
Car has everything I want, perhaps not the best color (black, my favorite, but shows scuff/dirt/swirl easily).

Car is out of warranty (4 years), but supposedly an extended warranty could be worked out.

3 questions.
1) What should I offer for this (likely the only canadian rl i would ever be able to get hands on)
2) Would I be able to get warranty transfered for california, or purchase a warranty for it for use in california / from a california dealer?
3) Anyone know how much Registration + other fee's I'd have to pay for California? This will factor into my offer.

He mentioned since it's a used car, I dont have to worry about smog/emissions ... is that the case? That as long as it's not a new vehicle, it doesnt matter what state, what emissions it currently puts out?


Thanks again!

If not this one, I'll probably have to kill my dreams of owning Canadian, and wait for an RL. Supposedly a friend of mine has a hookup with some acura sales manager in the area *shrug*

 

As for questions 1, thats really upto your budget. Not really sure about question 2, I would call Acura, or visit http://www.curryacuracare.com/index.cfm for more info. And question 3, I would visit http://www.edmunds.com/car-loans/. This is a great site that will give you an pretty good estimate of you taxes and fees based off your zip, and will help calculate monthly payments if you're financing.

 

But that sounds just the perfect car for redneck to go around n shoot anyone who doesnt look like him. Oh wait, u want the US version becuz it comes with presidential seal n license to drill anywhere in the world.