Thread: Buying a car?

Hello all! New member to this forum and attempting to enter for the May '04 session.

Had a quick question... where can one buy cars in Dominica? What is the typical condition of the car? 4X4 required?

Thank you!

I'm assuming you have decided that you WILL buy a car. VERY few students do since most everything they need is very close. Especially now with the bank and phone company on campus, students need to drive even less. Clearly, having a car would be nice, its just not an expense that is necessary for most single students.

They have car dealerships in Roseau (new and used). They also import good cars from Japan if you want something nice. Otherwise you can buy one from another student. Usually these are pretty used (some are just plain junk). Another option is a long-term rental or lease. You'll have to shop around when you get there.

As far as whether you need a 4WD vehicle is up to you. For normal driving around, its really not necessary. If you want to do some exploring and drive right down to the really nice beaches, then a 4WD is nice to have.

MitchDC

Originally Posted by ducman

Hello all! New member to this forum and attempting to enter for the May '04 session.

Had a quick question... where can one buy cars in Dominica? What is the typical condition of the car? 4X4 required?

Thank you!

note of clarification, phone company isn't on campus yet either. Their store is there, but its been locked up and boarded since we've gotten back and have yet to hear anything about when it'll be opening.

Walking to campus in the morning is the only exercise I get.
I don't even walk home ever since that student got kidnapped.

a student got kidnapped?? can u tell us that dont know what happened? so is it necessary to get a car then or just take the shuttle home every nite

If one wants to have their own transportation on the island what about shipping a on road/off road motorcycle? Buy one used in the U.S. for $1000 ship for $600 (Amerijet Quote). $1,600 total, any thoughts on this. I know my first thought is it means a lot of getting soaked to the bone when it rains!

No, KW...my first thought is that you would get soaked to the bone on TAXES. The other problem is that scooters and motor bikes are fine for the finished roads, but if you are tooling up the Banana Trail or out to the Kootney Resort on one, some of the potholes are deeper than the tires.

Really guys, Mitch is right. You can reach all most everything by foot or public transports (minibuses). If you are leaving school after 8 p.m. Ross offers a free transport right to your door. If you are leaving after 5 or 6 p.m. (or sunset), it is always smart to travel in groups for safety.

A long term lease for a car there will cost approx. $400 per month, and I am not sure if that includes the required insurance. How much is gas per liter there?

Any one want to elaborate on the circumstances of the kidnapped victim?

Dru

Originally Posted by medNoir

Walking to campus in the morning is the only exercise I get.
I don't even walk home ever since that student got kidnapped.

Please tell us the rest of this story. Is that student OK now?

BTW, if you walk to campus in the morning, but don't walk home, then you are already at the campus the next morning, and the morning after, and the morning after the morning after... and so on. So you would only take that walk once. Not much of an exercise program!

as a ross alumni and now a doc, i would ditch the car idea. unless you live very far away from campus, there's no need for a car. there are transports "vans" that for 1 dollar EC(pocket change) will carry you where you need to go. cars are difficult to resale and all the other stuff such as gas, maintanence etc can get expensive. trust me, you'll save a whole lot of money by not getting a car. you really don't need one. i survived my time down there without one and did fine.
i really hope you know what you're in for. this is a 3rd world country. you really have to rough it, but it's not so bad. don't expect to live in pampered comfort. if you have any more questions feel free to ask.
holly

I gave up waiting for that guy to tell us about the kidnaped student.
So i searched for 'kidnap' and got this forum:

http://www.valuemd.com/viewtopic.php...ghlight=kidnap