claynz

I'm in the market for a C5, I've got cash but I'm not a US resident. I'll be in the US next month and I'm hoping to buy a car before I get there. I'm doing a road trip then shipping the car home.

I have no idea how car dealers work in the States. If I find the right car, can I drive that car out the yard for the price on the windshield or are there a whole lot of hidden fees.

I'm happy to buy privately but I may not find the right car (rare color manual) before I get there. In which case I can cruise the car yards and buy one off the lot.

Vetteman Jack

My advice is to contact one of the forum dealers and ask your questions on how they handle such purchases. I’m sure they will give you some good advice.

FX VETTE

My experience is that used car dealers are much more interested in financing you and they don’t get very excited about a cash offer. So don’t expect dealers to negotiate much with a cash offer. That’s my 2 cents.

juanvaldez

The laws vary state to state. At a minimum you will pay sales tax (5 - 10%) and registration fees ($100-$200). For instance, Texas requires a mailing address and insurance. An acquaintance will work for a mailing address.

6speedsteve

It may depend on how long the car has been on the lot, my car was sitting for 3 months at dealer, 5300 miles, asking $30,000, I paid $25,500 cash deal, was back an hour later, they only had to install a new battery, and I drove it home.

claynz

I was interested in a car in Idaho, I found out on the DMV website I can get a sales tax exemption for being a non resident of that state. I assumed that would apply to most states. I have a Texas mailing address as my daughter lives there.

claynz

Thanks I'll do that, but how do I find them?

claynz

I was thinking the same thing as I know dealers make money on the financing.

Jackie Chan

If you drive it off of the lot expect to pay taxes.

Dave1

Why pay a car dealer for a vehicle as old as a C5....?

Search for a private one owner and take your time. There are still a lot of garage queens out there in a large variety of color combinations. The for sale section here alone is a good place to start....

Good luck....

VettePDX

First, sounds like a great idea! You'll enjoy the visit and the car, and I'm sure it will be enjoyed back in NZ.

I travel a fair amount internationally, so I get what you're trying to do. I don't know what city you plan to fly into, but i would recommend contacting local dealers in your city of arrival. I would contact both New Chevy dealers (who all have used departments) as they do get C5 trade ins. I would also contact reputable used car dealers. You can review used car dealers in yelp, if they have a number of high reviews, you are likely good. Tell them what you are looking for, and they will feed info to you. cargurus.com is a good place to look too.

As for fees, depending on the state you buy in, you will have a sales tax and licensing. These are state taxes and vary by state. Sales tax will run you 0 to 9% of your purchase price. Licensing $100 to $500. On the West Coast, Oregon has zero sales tax, so consider that. Licensing is pretty cheap too. You will need insurance, so you need to check that out too.

Depending on timing, if you find a car you like prior to getting here, you may be able to talk the dealer into holding it for you, with an agreed to refundable deposit. (takes some risk out)

Certainly you can talk a good dealer on sitting with the car for up to 30 days if you pay in full.

The other alternative is to reach out to a private party via a forum like this where there are brand enthusiasts. Enthusiasts often tend to think their car is more valuable than it really is, but you will likely get a car well cared for, babied, and some "extras".

Good luck in the search and the trip....stay off the freeways and see the back roads, you'll enjoy your visit!

VettePDX

Oh, I was going to add, it is common here, to make an offer from the window sticker. Typically you can get a discount from the sticker, that discount varies, but can be as high as 10%. Don't be shy on making offers, any dealer offended by a real offer, you don't want to buy from, they will want the sale, and they will get to a their "real" price pretty quickly.

Phanni

When negotiating in the US always demand to see the bottom line (out the door) price. This should include taxes and any other "add on fees".

grampi50

I absolutely don't like the idea of buying a C5 from a dealer. For one thing, they have no idea about the history of the vehicle, nor do they care. Buying one from a dealer IMO drastically increases your chances of getting a money pit. I intend to buy mine from a private owner, and if that means it will take longer to find the one I want, then so be it...

rrwirsi

I recommend reading all the stickies at the top of this forum regarding the C5 issues by year. Then do as much as you can from home by identifying cars you would want from the dealers lots using the web (Auto trader/Cars.com/CarGus, etc) requesting them to send pictures of outside, inside, and motor. Personally, I would only deal with GM new car dealers or dealers that specialize in Corvette resales. Why, there may be special document needs for when you ship the car back to NZ that Dealers will help you get. When you find a car that meets your 'wants', find a mechanic in the area (Forum can help) and have the car inspected before arriving. You probably will need to put a deposit down but if you do, make sure you can have it refundable should the inspection find issues that are not acceptable to you.

Like any business anywhere, there are bad ones selling products. It is always buyer beware. It applies to businesses and private sellers. Lastly, most states (I think all) can issue a temporary tag for at least 30 days and maybe more. And as others have said, you will need insurance.

Hope you find the right car and enjoy the tour of the USA.

laurent_zo6

The Forum has a C5 for sale section. You can start by looking there.
Each year's C5 has some quirks so you may want to look at the stickies at the top of the c5 General page: for example, "help for buying a c5..."

midnight01

Cash is no longer king at dealerships; they make more money on the back end of the deal as far as financing, gap insurance, extended warranties, e.t.c. If you buy the vehicle through a dealership by law they are not allowed to let you drive it off the lot unless its either registered or you flatbed it out. You will also have to fill out quite a bit of paperwork, talk to finance team even though you are paying cash, waiting for them to get the title, paying the sales tax to them for the car, they then have to fill out paperwork themselves, so its about a good several hours before you walk out.

IF you buy it from a private seller, you get the title in hand, you sign the documents, you dont pay a sales tax, you pay the nice man and transaction complete, drive it out of their driveway if you want. You are then going to pay the additional taxes and such for your country you register it in.

choice is yours, pay more at a stealership or buy private and pay less.

Velocity_Vette

I didn't see it mentioned anywhere in any one's posts but you will have to have insurance sorted out prior to purchasing the car as most dealers will not let you drive the vehicle off their lot. This is for the most part regardless of state you purchase in. Typically you need to at the least have full-coverage insurance on some sort of vehicle already (to show you're fully covered) and ideally you will need to have already called the insurance company and had the vehicle insured prior to purchase.

This won't apply obviously to a private sale as effectively you take that risk in your own hands but even then I don't think I would ever buy a car from someone without having insurance on it. You could get in a wreck leaving their driveway...

Insurance in the US works on a state-by-state basis as laws can vary from state-to-state, so for example if you're buying a car in Texas you have to go through a Texas insurance company. Ideally as your daughter lives in Texas it would better for you to buy a car from there anyway, as you could possibly tack yourself onto her insurance for the month you are here, and she just receive a slight increase in premium until you leave.

I think ultimately this isn't going to work out as smoothly as you may think it will but I will say good luck. Especially since you're looking for a "rare color" and "manual" you're going to be in for a "fun" time. It took me two years to find what I wanted - also a harder to find color w/ manual - and I LIVE in the United States.

The Rabbi

Check with used Corvette dealers. I met one in Mesa, Az who handled really nice cars and most were sold out of the area. https://www.vetteculture.net/inventory/

Jackie Chan

See how that works out for you if you don't register or pay taxes for it because you are eventually exporting it, if lets say you get pulled over or into an accident, oh and don't forget about insurance.