Let's talk about buying a car, versus bringing your car down. This isn't an easy decision, there are a lot of variables, and no simple answer. Weigh your options, and calculate the correct course of action.

Transporting Old: Drawbacks

The drawbacks of bringing your car down is that, one your car is from Canada. Which means as you sit and read this, salt is currently eating away at the metal. That's a huge amount of depreciation, and will continue to happen after you've moved (but at a much slower rate of course). You will also lose a lot trying to sell a Canadian car in the U.S, especially in California. To move your car will also cost $2000+ (unless you drive it yourself), which you could use for a downpayment on a brand new car that will last 20 years in California.

The biggest issue will be trying to register your car, it can be costly, modifications might be required, and it might not pass emissions. California is very strict on emissions, though some of the stories I find hard to believe. I registered my 1993 Honda Prelude SRV (in 1998), which is a 190HP 4 cylinder sport coupe. If that can pass, any fairly new 4 cylinder shouldn't have a problem. Powerful 6 cylinders however will have problems, and truck like things such as Sport Utils and Jeeps might be an issue. There's different rules for Sport Utils which is why a Dodge Durango, the all time top ranking gas guzzler, can get registered. They fall into the truck/service vehicle category which isn't as strict, however the State of California is working on changing that. Best thing to do is call up your manufacturer, and ask what exactly your car will pass.

In brief bring your car down if it's relatively new, and/or in good condition, and/or because you love that car.

Transporting Old: Advantages

The bonus to bringing your car down is that you don't have to worry about the hassle of increased difficulty in getting a license, or getting a new car and having to deal with getting a loan with no credit rating. Even better though, is keeping your car registered in Canada. It's ultra cheap to register your car in Ontario ($90 for two years kind of thing). Insurance doesn't care, they just want the VIN. But if you get pulled over by the cops, they're going to ask what's the deal. You have 20 days to register your car, but the excuse that we've tested is "sorry sir, we asked the INS if we have to register it, and they said since we're only on a one year visa, not to worry about it." The cop will then say "well the INS is wrong, I'm giving you x days to get it registered." So then you just register it.

Transporting Old: Notes On Registering

Registering your car can be a painful process. For licenses and registration I recommend going to a DMV that's way out in the East Bay, if you go to the one in Mountain View the line ups are massive. So you go there, fill out the form, a dude will look it over and note that there are no emission level stickers under the hood. To complete the process, you then have to take it to a "smog referee." Contrary to popular belief a lot of Canadian cars will pass the Californian smog test. California has the strictest emission controls in the country, and the gas here is drastically cleaner than anywhere else in North America (which is one of the reasons why it's more expensive then the rest of the States). A minor plus is that your engine will last longer because of it.

You'll see Smog Check advertisements all over the place, but you can't bring your car to one of them, because an out of country car is considered a grey market vehicle. The smog referee guy will stick this thing in your tail pipe and run your engine for thirty minutes as a computer analyzes the output. If it passes, he puts on the sticker and the information automatically gets wired to DMV HQ in Sacramento. You can then go back to the DMV office and get your license places and registration. They will ask you if you want to transfer the title to California, the only benefit of this is if you want to be able to sell your car in California. For an out of state vehicle you pay a one time $300 environmental impact fee (which is stupid, because your car passed the smog test, so it impacts it as much as a native Californian car). The yearly cost of registration is a percentage based on the blue book value of your car, it used to be 3% but it's been reduced by 25% (for 1999), and another 25% in the year 2000.

Ammendment: There was a class action lawsuit against the DMV regarding this $300 fee and they won. The DMV is forced to give back the $300 to anyone who has ever had to pay this. So if you've paid it, make sure to go to the DMV website and find out how to get a refund.

If your car doesn't pass the test, you then have to have modifications done. Usually you just add something to your catalytic converter that restricts your horsepower enough to pass the test. If you're tight with a mechanic, after you pass the test, you can just tell them to take it off.

To register your car you must show proof of insurance. After paying off your loan, the bank will mail you the title with the lien holder's releasing signature. You have to submit this title to the DMV within 30 days to remove the lien holder's name and have a new title issued showing you as the new legal owner.

Links To Check
• DMV License and Registration FAQ
• Locate a DMV Office

New Car: Drawbacks

The drawbacks of buying a new car is getting the financing. Surprisingly it's easier to get than a credit card. Dealerships are very aggressive in trying to get cars off their lot, so they'll make it happen. More anal companies will want one third down to show your level of "interest." I garauntee you, that you will be able to get a loan, just an issue of hassle. Some are so aggressive that you can walk in one day, and you can drive away with it the same day, even without a license plate. You'll see a lot of that, as it's legal to drive without plates if you're waiting for them (you'll have a temporary registration paper).

I'll say this over and over again, always avoid someone doing a credit application on you. You will automatically fail, and every failure gets noted on your record. It's ok however to have a credit check, but make sure that's all the dealership does. Explain it to them, that you're from Canada, so that they understand the situation.

New Car: Advantages

The bonus of a new car is that you won't have problems registering it, it will last forever as it will never see salt, and cars here are incredibly cheap. As well, it helps establish serious credit history.

My friend bought a new Miata, he had been in the Bay Area for about 3 weeks. Went to Sunnyvale Mazda and we took at a look at the 10th year anniversary Miata and decided to talk serious business. One of the great things about the States is they want you to drive that car off the lot. The financing wasn't that great, because of his no credit, so he was looking at 9.5%. The worst case scenario was that he pay the high interest rate for a year (which amounts to a measly $40/mo more compared to 7.5%), establish credit, and then use his bank to refinance. Well SFNB came through the next day, so he paid off the other loan and now pays the 7.5% his bank gave him. What really impressed me was after all the ownership papers were done, a car insurance broker came by with his laptop and got him a really good rate on his Canadian license (has 30 days to get a Californian one) and had him going instantly.

The sales guy was totally clued out, and really strange. We almost walked out, but the manager is a straight up, let's do business, kind of guy. I'd recommend their location, and the other guys who work there are really friendly.

Verified Good Car Dealerships
• Acura of Mountain View
• Acura of Los Gatos
• Sunnyvale Mazda

General Tid Bits

You have to have your car smog checked every two years. When the DMV wants a smog check, it will be indicated on the renewal form that you get in the mail. It's a simple process at this point, just go to any service center, do the smog test, and it automatically gets sent to DMV. Then you can just mail in the check to renew your plates.

From what I understand you have to have the front license plate on, but a lot of people seem to get away with this. Also, your front windows are not allowed to be tinted at all, unless it came that way from the factory. If you get pulled over, they might just give you a warning and tell you to get it taken off. If you see a cop, and you have front tinted windows, roll the windows down.

Reader's Tips

Julie Nyree writes: I'm in a hot spot with the Toyota dealership I bought a used Izuzu Rodeo from three weeks ago...everything seemed fine and I drove the car home that night with the assurance that because I had had a lease with Toyota Credit Canada, they would have no problem arranging financing through Toyota Credit here ...WELL, apparently Toyota no longer offers cross-border credit approval and I'm in a lurch because the interest rate is already at 14.5% AND they want an additional downpayment on top of the $2100 I already paid to sign with this particular bank. *groan* Talk about 'Welcome to California'....