Expat information

I have a 2005 BMW X5 4.4 petrol LHD, bought and registered by its first owner, an English ex-pat, in France. We bought in England in 2006 whence it was brought to sell and we, having a place in Mallorca, thought it an excellent idea as, less than 12 months old, we acquired it for £25,500. It had done less than 10,000km about 6,250 miles. We re-registered it in the UK, then drove it over to Mallorca where, sensibly, we re-registered it in Spain. We are now looking to downsize and need to know whether it would be better sold over here or in Spain where the economy is even worse than our own. How much should I expect it to fetch either privately or through a dealer if we bought from that dealer in Mallorca? In fact, is there a market for such a beast now? We could do with the money.

Asked on 12 September 2009 by

Answered by Honest John
There is a new law in Spain now that if you are not a Spanish resident for tax purposes you cannot register a car there, so this may cause a problem with the X5s replacement. Talk to your assessor. The UK market for big, guzzly SUVs hit rock bottom last November, but has since improved quite a lot. Not that there is strong demand, but you don’t have to give cars away. Worth talking to: www.lhdplace.co.uk; www.midland-lhd.co.uk; www.oakleaf.net;
www.londonlhdcentre.com; www.kilrushcars.com; www.transeuropean.co.uk; www.premiersearch.com
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