car costs
I can't find exactly the right topic so lets try it here.
I'm considering buying a second hand car in Qatar even though I'll only be there for 8 months. The alternative would be renting.
I'd love to explore the desert, take landscape photos, watch birds so I guess a 4WD would be best suited. If I decide on buying I can bring someone along who can check the car for me, no problem.
But what about additional costs? Gasoline is still cheap? What about insurance and insurance cover? Tax? Is there a fee for registering a car on a new name? And finally, how difficult is it to sell a car in time again, and what if I don't manage to sell it? Are there many people posting fraudulent classifieds here or on other websites?
The alternative would be to rent a cheap saloon and rent a 4WD additionally for some weekends. Though looking at car rental companies, 4WDs seem to be rather expensive.
Can someone tell me more about the costs and advice on what's best?
First of all these car dealers will inspect the cars for their own satisfaction when they buy it from people so you dont have to worry about it. Further more if you wish to get the car checked it will be at your own expense which is 500 bucks more or less not sure. You can take someone with u to check out the engine if you know anybody. About negotiating the prices it depends on the car condition and model, they might be willing to go down by a couple of grand at the most, never settle for their displayed prices.
Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)
_[]~SMoKE~[]_
Thanks for explaining. One last question: If I decide on buying from a car dealer, how much can I still negotiate the price and is it possible to get any kind of guarantee that the car won't break down immediately? Or is the latter not common or not worth the paper it's written on?
Over here if someone crashes into you then its their fault and their insurance will pay for your damages, not sure if YOU are included in the car insurance :p i think they have separate life insurance for that. You might want to check out this old thread regarding insurance http://www.qatarliving.com/qatar-forum/forums/motor-insurance-in-doha
Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)
_[]~SMoKE~[]_
Smoke means that insurance will not cover any damages that occur off road. If you have third party insurance you will pay to fix your own car but insurance covers the other car. full insurance covers both although insurance companies do not always cover older cars.
Personal injury is a bit trickier here and usually requires a court appearance but can be done.
Good luck.
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"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"
Thanks for your answers. I thought about spending around 35.000 or less for a 4WD if I can get something that doesn't fall to pieces on the first trip.
I could pay cash if I can transfer money from a European to a Qatari bank account and won't need a loan. Need to check on that. I'm not in the country yet but will come in August.
Smoke: I don't quite understand your comment on insurance. That's the cover you're talking about? What about the insurance costs? And will I be insured if someone crashes into me, and what about if I crash into someone? Will my insurance cover injuries of me and the other person? I'd be gutted if my car broke down and it wasn't covered but it's not that important in comparison.
Just be carefull when going off road, unless specified the insurance may be voided for off road stuff.
for 1 liter.....
Ok, from what I understand, if you buy a car cash, you are somewhat ok. Not sure what the requirements are as far as insurance (if you have to have residency permit or not)You have to have a residence permit and transfer your salary to a bank here in order to get a loan from the bank. If you borrow from the bank to buy a car, then you can't leave the country until someone else takes over your loan, and the car is out of your name. As far as second hand cars, I personally would not buy one as the drivers here are very hard on their cars. I think it would be best to rent because then you don't have to worry about the insurance, and when you are ready to leave, you just turn the car in. Yes, the gas is till cheap here, about $.75 a liter
Motherhood...The hardest job you'll ever love! : )
If u are here in Qatar already then i suggest u look around in the second hand car shops, there are some along Salwa road, Car Maxx. Petrol is cheap here so u dont need to worry about that. Anything less than 30k should be fine. In 8 months u can sell it off for around 25k. If u dont have enough time to sell it off u can request a trusted friend to transfer it in their name and sell it for u and transfer the money to you. If you dont have trusted friends then i suggest u sell the car back to the second hand car dealers and accept whatever price they offer u.
Insurance on second hand cars mostly are third party insurance. For a decent 4x4 u should get anything between 35-50k in my opinion, just dont expect it to be a land cruiser :P
Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)
_[]~SMoKE~[]_