I'm making the move to SXM on June 29th and will be in need

[sohomale]

If anyone is looking to get rid of their ride or knows someone who might be, please PM me. I rebuilt an engine in a prior life so please no lemons! I don't care if all the paint is scraped off the car or it has different color body panels on it, as long as the engine, clutch, brakes and suspension are in decent working condition that is all that matters to me.

Anyone know what a decent used Corolla goes for on the island?

[AUCMD2006]

thres a couple out in the lot when you get here just go on the auc parking lot or the bill board in school i recommend looking in the paper here though as most of these cars are island cars and students don't put anything into them and expect to sell them when they leave so a lot of them are pieces of crap....good luck 4th semester sucks be ready to sweat

[archon218]

you might consider shipping one there.

[sohomale]

Are there any SXM classifieds that are available online? I spoke to a manager at Hertz rental and he said that they get rid of their old Corollas in Sept.... he mentioned a ballpark figure of $6K which is completely absurd given what the price in NADA black book is.

Corolla pricing:
(assuming only 15k miles per year of car + very good mechanical cond.)
1998 - $4,000
1997 - $3,500
1996 - $3,000
1995 - $2,600

Does anyone think this seems realistic for SXM?

[J_chou22]

Does anyone think this seems realistic for SXM?

Soho, when I was looking for an used car, about a month ago, I came across a few 1999 Corollas that rental car companies were selling - Thrifty, Paradise, and Alpha. They were the selling their Corollas in the $5,000 - $6,000 range with anywhere from 30K to 50K miles. I test drove all of them and I would not say that they were in "good" mechanical condition. They were in fair condition. Surprisingly, they were all sold in less than a week. I believe Corollas have a stronger and more reliable reputation here with the locals? So as long as people will buy at these prices, the prices will stay.

Best of luck in your search for your Island Beauty...

JWC

[sohomale]

JWC...what did you end up getting and for how much?
I can't afford to pay $5-6K on a corolla.....looking to spend $3K max

what other kinds of cars seem to survive on SXM?
any honda civics or nissan sentras?

[AUCMD2006]

when you come down go down to alamo rent a car and do a short term lease for a month that way you don't rush to buy the first thing that comes your way. there are very good cars that sell for 2500-4000 you just have to be patient and look around.


1)get cell phone
2) get the paper and go look at some and don't tell them you are a medical student
3) as you are driving around people leave their cars allover the road for sale pull over and call for some reason they never put the price on the car you have to call. again don't say you are a medical student

you will find something don't freak out it will just take more than a day.

[anencephalic]

He mentioned a ballpark figure of $6K which is completely absurd given what the price in NADA black book is.


Let me know if this logic strengthens your bargaining power with the locals... :shock:

Aloha,

[microphage]

He mentioned a ballpark figure of $6K which is completely absurd given what the price in NADA black book is.


Let me know if this logic strengthens your bargaining power with the locals... :shock:

Aloha,


HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

[xsbb]

Hey, the cars on the island are usually in pretty bad shape. However, you can have a car imported from Japan for pretty cheap (although it will have the steering on the wrong side). A couple of first semesters I know of have ordered Levins (Corolla's and some sports cars) for under $5000 including shipping to St. Maarten and you can order via internet! Suburu Impreza's don;t have such a good resale value and can be had for a decent price also in a half way decent shape.

Hope this helps

[djsoar]

The start of a new trend.
Right on xsbb, if you can't import your own car from the states, a good option is to import a used car from Japan. Cheaper than you might think and you can even obtain very nice, exotic performance cars that make the island cars sob for the same price (R32 Skylines, ~$6000 FOB). It takes ~2 months including paperwork, shipping and release.
I was very lucky to get the Levin and wouldn't ever consider buying an island car. The only awkward thing is right hand drive, which you can get used to in a day or two, but shifting left handed might bum you out for a lot longer.
Lee

[tRmedic21]

It's not that bad. I learned to drive that way in one of the hardest places in the world (that I can imagine), but you get used to it quicker than you might think. :)

[levator]

thres a couple out in the lot when you get here just go on the auc parking lot or the bill board in school i recommend looking in the paper here though as most of these cars are island cars and students don't put anything into them and expect to sell them when they leave so a lot of them are pieces of crap....good luck 4th semester sucks be ready to sweat

some students do expect more than they deserve for their old cars. but there are some students that will want to sell their cars cheap when they leave, for example me. it just depends on the student and the car that they are selling. in the long run, keep in mind that unless students leaving the island want to drive it off a cliff, they must sell it to someone. me personally, i will drive it off a cliff with all my scrubs in it if i cant sell it. :twisted: :!:

[xsbb]

Lee, if you buy a Supra, I am Ditching my car and buying the R32!

Sohaib

[anencephalic]

Lee, if you buy a Supra, I am Ditching my car and buying the R32!

Sohaib

How much you wanna ditch your lexus for? I may have to ditch my Daihatsu...then again, I could be pretty happy in a Skyline GTR...

Aloha,

[AUCMD2006]

man as much of a car freak that i am i just couldn't deal having a skyline here i would never get any work done. when i was first here i thought about getting a good car either shipped or here i looked at a few mustangs because after all there is NO substitute for cubic inches and juice but after some reasoning here is what i came up with:
1)i wouldn't have the time to enjoy it and i would use it as an excuse to go out more.
2)the locals would have a field day banging into it they don't seem to grasp the concept that these are not bumper cars...and i am really anal about the appearnace of my ride
3)i'd be stuck with a 6k car that i couldn't sell. face it most students don't have the cash to spend on a decent car.
4)then even if you do get a sportscar there is no road that you can go more than 100 here so whats the point?

on a seriouys note please remember that you are likely to be without loans for a semester after 5th for step one etc. so you need enough to carry you 4 months, pay for step 1, possible extra review course, plane tickets to take the test and to your rotation as well as apartment deposit for your first rotation. those 12k burn a hole in your bank account just make sure you have enough for the time between 5th and 6th semester.

having said that i must test drive the left handed stick shift :shock:

[xsbb]

Good point Rich!

Honestly, I don;t think I would be selling my car any time soon! The main reason I brought it was that I have known the things I have done to the car in the past 4 years and hence find it ectremely reliable! I really don;t want to buy a car and then have to spend the time to fix things!

BTW- they have races on the French side every Sunday morning (8am)
And if you get flames you can shave a few seconds off of the quarter mile :lol:


Sohaib

[AUCMD2006]

yea i've been wanting to go there but could never find any other gear heads to join me, hey i get the sonata with the V6 back tomorrow maybe i can do a burn out and take on a corolla....i said V6...sad day when a man has to settle for a V6 and no juice but it will have to do...

[xsbb]

Oh by Island standards a V6 is a Hot Rod/Muscle car! I asked Vijay to race me since I have a V6 too, and both cars would be 3.0l's but he wouldn't listen to me! How about a race next Friday 18th, on the french side? :twisted:

Sohaib

[archon218]

Do people get by without a car? Do people car pool? What is the price of gas down there?

[xsbb]

A lot of people DO carpool, and hence a lot of people do not have cars. However, the price of gas is actually a bit cheaper than premium in the states. When I was in Boston I paid 2.01/2.02 per gallon for gas for premium (I only use premium). And in St. Maarten the price of Gas is ~$2.00 per gallon. Just to give you an idea, I have a V6 car and it costs $30-35 to fill it up and I fill up the tank every 1.5-2 weeks or so, so at the end of the day I guess gas is not really an issue.

Hope this helps

Sohaib

[AUCMD2006]

i'm game if i get my othe rcar back, this one they gave me has all mismnatched tires on it and it shakes past 30.

[xsbb]

You got it, Friday then !
:twisted:

[archon218]

Maybe I can break out my 2004 ferrari testarosa

[xsbb]

:shock:

[AUCMD2006]

apparently while my friend was driving the race car they had a date with a wall...hehe

[archon218]

I know a few people that died that way.

[JewishDr'sWife]

Try Eurocar and ask for Harry (He's american).You buy the car for 4,000 (it's usually an atos prime but it'll be refurbished) and it's in the contract that he'll buy it back for 2,000 when you leave the island.That should make things much easier and less of a hassle for you.

He also has his own shop so if he can't fix your car he at least tell you where he would trust to have repairs done at.
For another 100 bucks he'll also get your registration and tags done for you along with insurance (it's really third world country style to get that stuff done on your own, besides, you have enough to worry about just setting up with everything else).We've had no problems with him and he doesn't care about dings and such like the leasing places do. Eurocar is the first road on your left past the tropicana casino.

Hope that helps more so than talking to the one student that honestly thinks someone is going to buy that piece of crap labarron with the top ripping to pieces and flopping in the wind :roll:

[microphage]

Try Eurocar and ask for Harry (He's american).You buy the car for 4,000 (it's usually an atos prime but it'll be refurbished) and it's in the contract that he'll buy it back for 2,000 when you leave the island.That should make things much easier and less of a hassle for you.

He also has his own shop so if he can't fix your car he at least tell you where he would trust to have repairs done at.
For another 100 bucks he'll also get your registration and tags done for you along with insurance (it's really third world country style to get that stuff done on your own, besides, you have enough to worry about just setting up with everything else).We've had no problems with him and he doesn't care about dings and such like the leasing places do. Eurocar is the first road on your left past the tropicana casino.

Hope that helps more so than talking to the one student that honestly thinks someone is going to buy that piece of crap labarron with the top ripping to pieces and flopping in the wind :roll:


4 grand for a used Atos? No way in hell would I ever go for that. There is a flaw with the design of the A/C which drips and rusts one of the parts(I'm not too car savvy, ask Jon for the full explaination of the flaw). The part costs a fortune(2000 or so). Don't get a Gaytos. You've been warned.

[ML]

Atos is a piece of sh*t? I had that car for a week. You can't even climb a small hill with A/C on if you have two passengers with you.

-ML

[xsbb]

The Atos DOES have a turbo boost button. If you press this button, you can notice a significant improve in acceleration (although as with any car, there is a trade off between performance and comfort). This "turbo" button happens to be the airconditioner button! :lol:

[wifeofDr2b]

We called Europcar a few months ago and Harry said he no longer does the "buy and I buy it back from you" deal he used to do. Our neighbors tried going there not too long ago and were told the same thing. Who knows if he still IS doing it...but he wasn't on those few days not too long ago.

In defense of the Atos/Gaytos: you CAN make it over the "hill" with 4 people in it AND with the A/C going! :P

[JewishDr'sWife]

I'm guessing you guys rather walk, carry groceries in the rain and wait months for your cherried up rice rockets to come in and be stolen by locals than have an atos?

Oh wait; no you'd rather own the one car in the parking lot that doesn't have any door handles. Yeah, an atos is SOOOO much worse than these jems.

Besides that, every car has major issues. I worked in the service department for three dealerships for years - trust me, they ALL have major problems that cost a ton to fix. Some just turn a blind eye to their make's issues because they are loyal to the brand.

For example, the toyota tercel had a big problem through 1989 when their heater coil continued to melt onto the orifice tube and later caused the a/c to constantly crap out. The camrys have issues with the PCM that caused the check engine light to come on with ghost codes. The Mazda 626 had a weak timing spindle, which caused your timing belt to break and ruin your engine. The four cylinders 626's were designed for northern regions so when people bought them in florida , the transmission would puke because there was no external tranny fluid cooler for the hot and humid conditions of the climate. NONE of these were recalls so people had to pay out of pocket, and most happened after the warranty period ended.

So really, can you honestly expect an island with second grade vehicles available on the island (compared to our standards) to be anything special? Let's not forget that even if a student has a good car here, they usually run it into the ground and try to sell it. I'd rather buy it from a business for more money than from a student for less anyway. Students are here for the health business and most are sorely inadequate in anything mechanical. I'd much rather have an atos than a crappy hertz corolla with a transmission stripped of third gear and a whining compressor any day.

[AUCMD2006]

your car talk is like music to my ears why must you be married? :lol:

i say air conditioning compressor to my wife and anything after compressor may as well be greek...hehe

[xsbb]

:lol:

Valid point, although I did not mean to offend anyone who drives an Atos, I had one for about 2 weeks when I first came to the islands and they are really good on gas, and excellent for zipping in and out of traffic.
I agree with the point that no car is devoid of troubles, the Lexus ES300 97-01, Camry etc etc for engine gelling problems, the 03/04 ES's for their transmission software issues etc come to mind, and these are "supposed" to have no problems. And then there are cars like BMW's and early Jags with Lucas (acronym for Loose Unsoldered Connections and Splices)Electricals.

As far as buying from other students is concerned, I think there are some students who take good care of their cars although the majority do think they are driving rallye cars!

Cheers

[microphage]

Say what you will about other cars but the Atos is like no other car. Once you've seen what a flood on the road next to the golf course can do to an Atos, you'll see it in our light. Come rainy season, it will be a junk yard of Atoses on that road. Alot couldn't make it past the 2-3 foot puddle and just died in the puddle. You'll be all alone pushing the Atos off the road in the puddle while other drivers in their Subarus and their Daihatsu's honk and drive right past you.

If you want further prove, just come to the dungeon and ask this one girl how many atoses that has died on her. Bring both hands to count... and maybe more... :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[JewishDr'sWife]

Say what you will about other cars but the Atos is like no other car. Once you've seen what a flood on the road next to the golf course can do to an Atos, you'll see it in our light. Come rainy season, it will be a junk yard of Atoses on that road. Alot couldn't make it past the 2-3 foot puddle and just died in the puddle. You'll be all alone pushing the Atos off the road in the puddle while other drivers in their Subarus and their Daihatsu's honk and drive right past you.

If you want further prove, just come to the dungeon and ask this one girl how many atoses that has died on her. Bring both hands to count... and maybe more... :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Hee hee! Silly man, why would I drive on the road filled with water when I can off road onto the "golf course" grass? Has no one else done this? What is the Dungeon anyway? Is that a lab or something?

And rrod, thanks for the compliment. :wink: We should talk cars sometime, since that seems to be a hobby for you as well.
You should see me play my starcraft and Diablo 2 online (I know I'm such a guy hobbies chick - only I don't look like one ). The guys there swear at me all the time for wiping them off the map :P

[microphage]

Hee hee! Silly man, why would I drive on the road filled with water when I can off road onto the "golf course" grass? Has no one else done this? What is the Dungeon anyway? Is that a lab or something?

And rrod, thanks for the compliment. :wink: We should talk cars sometime, since that seems to be a hobby for you as well.
You should see me play my starcraft and Diablo 2 online (I know I'm such a guy hobbies chick - only I don't look like one ). The guys there swear at me all the time for wiping them off the map :P

I've "off-roaded" with a few Atos and other small Korean cars. It actually feels right to be driving those things on the golf course(afterall, an Atos is just an overpriced golf cart with A/C). The security at the course keeps putting up rocks to prevent you from driving on the car course but if they can push it there, someone can push it off. Otherwise, you can be like rrod who doesn't give a rats **** about his leased car and drive 30 km/h through the "lakes."

(and then somehow lose his license plate in the process... hahaha) :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Sorry rrod, that was too funny.

[AUCMD2006]

hey at least i wasn't the only one....when i went back the next day to find i found my choice of 12 plates so i picked the pne that matched the closest...after all in the caribbean it just has to be good enogh.....