Thinking about buying a new F250 while on vocation in the US this coming spring and was basically looking for any info people may have.

I am really interested in warranty issues. I phoned Ford customer service head office in Canada and they say its no issue and there will be a full warranty execpt that it will end at 36000miles instead of 60000KM but thats no big deal.

If anyone on here has any experience on importing a US ford into Canada I would like to hear your thoughts. The main reason that I am going this route for purchasing is the price but of course if there are turn offs like warranty issues than I will stay away from it.

thanks

 

why would you do this you will still have to get it converted to canadain rules daytime running lights kms instead of mph and then might be import export stuff make a deal at home check with U. S. customs about it

 

The lights are no problem, I'm told its just a check box in software to turn on the day time running lights. The speedo has KMS so it also is a no issue.

The F-250 Lariat I have seen on Autotrader.com are anywhere from $48000 to $52000 US$. A similiarly truck here built on ford.ca is $71000, thats why I am looking. Same reason why I just bought a travel trailer down there, I saved $16000 on the model I purchased after taxes and delivery.

 

My biggest worry would be the import tariff at the border

DRL are an easy fix with a $5 relay and a few resistors...or you can spend $80 for the "Official" Ford DRL kit...or spend $100 and have a Ford tech turn the DRL on inside the PCM

 

The only tariff I paid on my TT was a $250 import fee and I am not aware of anything different with vehicles.

 

would suck to get to the border and see a multi thousand dollar fee instead. I'd call the US and CA border offices and get their take on the subject. There is a reason vehicles cost so much for you guys up there.

It isn't simply shipping charges.

 

Likely all the required modifications are still cheaper than buying one in Canada.

I know a few people who always head to the USA to purchase vehicles, and it's something you undertake if you have a lot of time to spend to arrange everything. You have to inform RIV of your intentions, and get a letter from Ford saying that your specific vehicle (VIN mentioned) has cleared all applicable recalls, and fax all of the paperwork to the intended border crossing several days in advance and let them know which day and the time frame you plan on crossing. Then the temporary registration depends on which state you're getting it from, but after crossing you might get pulled over a few times because you don't have a real license plate.

Most Ford vehicles should be considered NAFTA compliant so major tariffs may not apply (* not an expert, you call border services to check since they have the final say) but GST will be there and any applicable provincial taxes (HST/QST/PST/whatever it's called now), I don't know if the air conditioner and tire tax are already included with the vehicle price or not. RIV also takes $200+GST for their services. There is also a fee for vehicles over 2 tonnes (2000kg) and I don't know the exact rate of that.

It's a process, but if you are prepared to go through that process you save lots in the end. So that depends on whether your time is valuable to you, or if you have all the time in the world to do this.

I was in Washington State in the summer and I was surprised to see how inexpensive the full-size trucks were. I also found that diesel powertrains were less popular there for some reason or other (fuel prices? registration?) so they were willing to put further discounts on them. Heck, on the used lot there were plenty of 7.3L powered first gen Super Duties which you never see just sitting around for sale around here, people either keep them or they get snapped up fast. But that wouldn't have worked out for me even if I did want to buy one because of the preparation work required. Can't be an impulse buy, has to be fully pre-meditated to make the vehicle import work.

 

I dont mind the process or time, as I mentioned I just recently purchased a 30ft travel Trailer from New York and had it shipped right to my door. The whole transaction from the time I chose a model to the time it arrived to my door was 1 month but as I said my savings was 16K.

I know some people bringing in vehicles but I am just probing for info on the forums to see if anyone had an experience (good or bad) in terms of service once they have it back here. As I mentioned the folks at ford say it will be fully covered under the north american warranty but I am wondering how much grief the local dealer can give you once they find out its a US vehicle.

I know I can probably complain to ford costumer service if i have issues but dont know if I want to go down that road.

This all comes down to me either getting an F150 here or an F250 diesel from the US for the same price. I want the F250 to pull my trailer in comfort but I can problably manage with the F150 ecoboost.

 

Can you buy through a "border dealer"? I recall seeing a news article or two a few years back about some US dealers that did the whole import to Canada thing and took care of everything for you, you still saved a lot of $$$ and had no headaches...

 

Thats the first time I heard of it. So the border dealer, is it on the Us side or Canadian side?

How would i get a list of these dealers?

 

On the US side, I read it in the newspaper back when the CDN dollar was on par, yet prices between US and Can were still miles apart.

Seems to me it was some of the dealerships bordering Quebec and Ontario that were into it, not sure exactly which ones, wouldn't hurt to call a few Ford dealers and see what they say.

 

Just a thought. Would it be legal or possible to maintain a us po box address and have the truck registration / insurance there, and just drive it in canada?

I once met someone who retired, sold their house, maintained a po box, registered the truck, trailer, and drivers license there, and travelled the country with a superduty and trailer, all the while getting social security checks direct deposited .

 

That sounds like its illegal, but i could be wrong. When I moved back home from Alberta my insurace agent in Alberta would only continue to insure me until the expirery date on my policy. After that I had to purchase insurance in the province where I reside.

One thing i would not fool around with is insurace, its sometimes difficult enough to get a claim made when everything is legit. They would love it if you were not straight with them just so they have a reason not to cover you.

 

Do anyone know of some good dealerships in the north eastern states?