Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Aloha Everyone!
How easy it is to find a used car (small to mid size sedan) in Oahu? Can it be done within a week without paying premium to a car dealer?
I am moving to Oahu for a temporary assignment (1-2 yrs). I have a 10 yrs old, very reliable Honda Civic in mainland with less than 80K miles on it (approx value $5000). I am leaning towards selling it here (as opposed to shipping) and either leasing or buying a used car on the island itself. I also have a 2011 mini van with approx 25K miles and 1 year warranty left. I am definitely selling it because a) I can't take full benefit of the warranty left on the island (meaning we wont be using it that much) b) due to parking problems, it would be difficult to move around with a van. I think we can manage with one small sedan there knowing that the Bus is very efficient. Does this all make sense? I am sure many folks reading this forum have gone through it at some point. I would be interested in your experience and opinion. My thought is that it would be more economic to buy a used car there and sell it when we move back.
Me? I get to answer first? We just relocated here. We sold a great full sized pick up truck before we came. Hind sight: wishing we shipped that truck over! At least you know what you have without inheriting someone else's mess. I think you can ship for about $1200? I know it costs less if you don't mind your car riding in the weather. So I'm told. But you can try lemonlot.com and see if the military people have an good deals. We paid $1200 and put another thousand in it. Not too much but there's a little more to do to it. It's transportation. I just think if you have a great car it seems pretty cheap to ship it.
I know some people keep their home state registration and just get the Hawaii safety inspection. They're probably mostly military but if your job is bringing you here for a short time you might be able to do that, too. Cuz I see all kinds of states on tags here with HI inspection stickers.
I have a 10 yrs old, very reliable Honda Civic in mainland with less than 80K miles on it (approx value $5000). I am leaning towards selling it here (as opposed to shipping) and either leasing or buying a used car on the island itself.
Where are you coming from? That affects the calculation. From the west coast it's almost a no-brainer to go ahead and ship it. From the east coast maybe not.
A very rough rule of thumb is that a car like this will be worth about $1,000 more in Hawai'i than it is on the mainland. (Newer cars, more like $2,000) And from California it will cost $1,075 to ship it to Hawai'i, so it's pretty much a wash, and you don't have to deal with selling it there and then buying one in Oahu.
And since the Honda Civic is a popular model in Hawai'i, after a year or two it will still be low mileage and should be easy to sell when you leave.
From the Midwest you might pay $1,800 to ship it, from the east coast it might be $2,500 or so, and the calculation becomes harder. Keep in mind that you will probably pay $6,000 for the same thing on Oahu, and you know what you've got now.
People who own junkers or unreliable cars, or people who own cars with poor gas mileage, I say... leave them on the mainland. But if you have a decent car that gets good gas mileage, shipping it to the islands often makes sense, just as selling it when you leave often makes sense.
Shipping a good running used car is a good idea, because it is not that expensive to do so, and you will have a reliable car once you are here and trying to do the 100 things you'll need to do to get established. A good running car is one less thing you'll have to worry about.
Excellent points everyone. Thanks. I was only considering a scenario of paying shipping 2 times (coming there and going back). But I think shipping it there and selling over there after we are done is a better option. Seems like used cars are more expensive there compared to mainland so one time shipping could be a wash as OpenD mentioned. BTW, I am moving from northern CA so hopefully shipping cost is not that bad. Any recommendations for good (and cheap) shipping companies that ship cars?
Had positive experience shipping with Matson. The car showed up a few days early and was in the same shape as when I gave it to them. NOTE: It has to not have any windshield cracks, 1/4 tank of gas, and nothing inside.
I have not regretted for one second shipping our reliable 169K mi Honda CRV here. Like others have mentioned, you know what's 'right' with the vehicle.
Thanks everyone.
Anyone knows the details of keeping the home state registration (and benefits of doing that)? Cant find anything to that effect on the DMV website. If someone can post a link that has those details, it would be very helpful.
PS:I am not in military but will be there only for 1-2 yrs.
You have to get a $15 Safety Inspection before you can register the car. Registering it is actually pretty quick and you get the plates the same day. Very efficient. If your car is already registered in the state you are in, they honor that registration expiration date. This saves you some $$ till it's time to renew.
I'd add to my comparison of the three companies to check about if the car will be exposed to open salt air or not. Including asking about if it will be off loaded in Honolulu, and then sent to a neighbor island by YB barge. For some inexpensive cars, it is not a big issue. But for other cars, it can be a big issue.
Fair warning: the clerks on the phone can give misleading information, so get the details in writing.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We just relocated here. We sold a great full sized pick up truck before we came. Hind sight: wishing we shipped that truck over! At least you know what you have without inheriting someone else's mess. I think you can ship for about $1200? I know it costs less if you don't mind your car riding in the weather. So I'm told. But you can try lemonlot.com and see if the military people have an good deals. We paid $1200 and put another thousand in it. Not too much but there's a little more to do to it. It's transportation. I just think if you have a great car it seems pretty cheap to ship it. 
