US Minivan to the UK?

We are preparing for our move to Manchester.  We are debating moving our car from here to the UK.  It will be paid off before we move, so it would give us a car immediately and no payment.  Has anyone done this recently and is it worth it?  Any links or resources for finding out the cost of moving it?

Thanks!
C

Two things to consider:

Insurance will be expensive/difficult to get

Resale value will drop dramatically as it will be near impossible to sell

If it was a classic car like an old Mustang or Camero, I'd go for it.  But probably much more cost effective to sell there and purchase here....  You'll also find fuel economy on European-standard cars/vans insanely better.

It's very unlikely that it will be worth it.

Thanks KFdancer and Geeta.   

Also, European safety standards are quite different, so even a car that has the "same" make/model in the US and the UK will need quite a few modifications to be road legal in the UK -- it really isn't worth it.

Also, the car will stick out like a sore thumb! I saw a F150 the other day here and thought God that looks odd. The gas consumption will kill you!!! We pay something like $8.25 a gallon!

As someone who lives in Manchester, you might have a tough time parking! UK cars are very space-conscious, so they tend to be better able to squeeze down narrow roads and into tiny spaces!
Where are you moving to? Welcome!

As someone who lives in Manchester, you might have a tough time parking! UK cars are very space-conscious, so they tend to be better able to squeeze down narrow roads and into tiny spaces!

Yes, I was thinking of that too. You might find that a US minivan is just too big for UK roads and parking spaces!

Many UK roads, especially in cities, are narrow with just one lane, and often with cars parked on either side of the road, cutting into the lane space... which means it's difficult enough to squeeze small, compact cars through, let alone wider vehicles. Plus, UK parking spaces are closer together and not as wide or as long as US spaces, so a large US car may have problems fitting into a UK space.

you might have a tough time parking! UK cars are very space-conscious, so they tend to be better able to squeeze down narrow roads and into tiny spaces!

Yes, I was thinking of that too.

And me. Best not to bring it, in my opinion.

Hi,

Overall, as per above, it won't really be worthwhile to bring a 'bread and butter' type car in from the USA here. The shipping costs, import duty and any VAT, modifications needed for the vehicle to be made UK road legal will easily be £3-4000 I'd have thought.

Importing cars from the USA only really makes sense when it's something much more interesting and/or rare

I miss the F150 I imported and had for around 8 years or so! I've got my eye out on what vehicles I want to bring over next time I'm able to

Contrary to popular belief, left hand drive and/or larger vehicles can be run and used here on UK roads relatively easily, although it does take a little getting used to Insurance isn't as hard to arrange as you'd think, and can be very nicely priced, selling on also can be easier as you have the Euro countries to export it to (or a new buyer to arrange their own importation) and they're all left hand drive cars countries. Perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions is 'fuel economy' - many people forget that the US figures for MPG are USA sized gallons and the UK has a larger equivalent. Direct MPG economy when you take that into account makes USA vehicles really very good for exact same models between the two markets.

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!