Purchasing an Automobile

High taxes make the purchase of a new vehicle in Costa Rica more expensive than in many other countries. In the past, people chose to buy new cars in the United States, where prices are much lower. Now, prices of new cars in Costa Rica are more affordable than before, and more people are choosing to purchase locally rather than deal with the paperwork of importing a vehicle and high taxes. Currently a law is (probably) being passed to prevent the importation of vehicles older than five to seven years.

One more reason to buy locally is to ensure your vehicle will be under warranty in case anything goes wrong. Most local dealers offer two to three-year warranties on new cars.

Due to the high price of new cars, used cars are plentiful in Costa Rica. Most of these second-hand cars are priced higher than they would be in the United States or Canada, so Costa Ricans tend to keep them longer and take better care of them. This makes resale value high.

The majority of automobiles in Costa Rica are made in Japan, so most replacement parts are for Japanese automobiles. Spare parts for U.S. cars must be imported, are expensive and sometimes hard to come by. Therefore, you should think twice about bringing an U.S. car to Costa Rica. If you do decide to bring a car from the United States or Canada, it is best to bring a Toyota, Nissan, Honda or other Japanese import for the reasons just mentioned.

If you plan to drive mostly in the country's larger cities, smaller, new or used cars will help reduce fuel consumption and are easier to maneuver on crowded streets. Prices for new small cars are extremely affordable and range between $9,000 and $14,000, while new midsized vehicles cost between $13,000 and $20,000. Those of you who plan to drive outside of the city and off-road should consider a sport utility vehicle (SUV), pick-up or jeep. Many of the country's roads are unpaved and filled with potholes, and a solidly built vehicle is absolutely necessary especially during the rainy season. Prices of new SUVs run $20,000 to $75,000, depending on the model and size of the vehicle. Used cars are priced substantially lower.

Here are sample prices of some used cars found in the The Tico Times'classified ads. All prices are in U.S. dollars

95 Chevy Lumina ................................................... $4,900
91 Isuzu Amigo ................................................................ $2,900
02 Chrysler Caravan....................................................... $21,500
00 Mercedes S-500 ......................................................... $30,000
04 Mercedes E240 .......................................................... $48,000
91 Isuzu Rodeo ................................................................ $5,500
4X4s 99 4-Runner ............................................................ $14,000
03 Pathfinder .................................................................. $27,000
91 Land Cruiser ............................................................. $13,900
00 GMC Jimmy ............................................................. $18,500
01 Jeep Wrangler ............................................................ $22,500
80 Land Cruiser Diesel ................................................... $13,900
87 4-Runner ..................................................................... $8,900
03 Dodge Dakota ............................................................. $25,00
95 Mitsubishi Montero ................................................... $11,000

Since new cars are so expensive in Costa Rica, buyers have the option to lease or finance. The dealer can usually arrange financing. If not, many Costa Rican banks offer financing for cars. Interest rates are generally in dollars instead of colones and vary according to market rates.

If you decide to bring a car to Costa Rica, there are two ways to do it: by sea or by land. If you ship your car to Costa Rica by boat, contact a shipping company near to where you have your car in the United States or one of the companies mentioned in this chapter. This method of transportation is relatively safe since your car can be insured against all possible types of damage.

If you have all of your paperwork in order, your vehicle should not take more than a month at most to reach Costa Rica, depending on your port of departure. If you send your car from Miami, it takes only one week to reach Puerto Limón on the east coast of Costa Rica and costs about $800 plus taxes. From the west coast or New York, you can expect to pay more than $1,300 plus taxes and some other fees to process your paperwork.

To import a new or used vehicle, you will have to make sure your shipping company sends the following documents: a driver's license for all potential drivers, the original clear title or pink slip (título de propiedad), original registration, copy of passport, original bill of lading (conocimiento de embarque) if the vehicle has been shipped, and the name of the shipping company. Also make sure your car has Canadian or U.S. plates, or the whole process may be delayed.

Note: ALL VEHICLES, since June 7, 2001, now require an Emissions Control Certificate certified by the Department of Motor Vehicles from your country of origin or by the vehicle's manufacturer if new, dated no later than 30 days prior to the shipping date. The certificate must be translated into Spanish by an official translator and authenticated by the Consulate of Costa Rica nearest to the Emissions Inspection Station that issued your certificate. This applies even to used vehicles, and any car without it will not be able to be registered in the country. This change, in fact, caused many vehicles to be stuck in Customs for a time, as the law passed in December 1999, but was never enforced until the middle of 2001.

To be safe, call the nearest consulate to check what documents are actually required. In many cases, they will ask for a notary public to authenticate the gas emission test and then have the State Department certify that the notary is registered.

If your name does not appear on the original title of the vehicle, you must provide a document from an attorney certifying that the owners allow you to drive their car. Said document must be notarized and approved by the nearest Costa Rican Consulate in your country of origin. Cars that are being financed in the United States and are not fully paid off fall into this category.

If you do not provide all of documents above, including the gas emission certificate, you cannot import the vehicle to Costa Rica.

Make sure that the VIN (vehicle identification number) and all details of the car are correctly typed on all documents. Any errors will void the documents and prevent you from importing the car.