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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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 Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2010 3:44 am Post subject: |
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Really... only you can decide how much of your monthly income you want to sink into a car. I really think you need to get there... lease something for the short term. Then see what people are driving... visit some dealers... bargain bargain bargain... 
VS |
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Duffy
Joined: 29 Oct 2005
Posts: 449
Location: Oman
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| Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2010 4:47 am Post subject: |
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Especially if you are arriving during Ramadan, always bargains and freebies.
Duffy  |
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Buffalo Boy
Joined: 02 Oct 2009
Posts: 80
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| Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2010 10:39 am Post subject: |
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Fantasizing about vehicle ownership is the only thing getting me through my last few months in Vietnam.
In reality I will probably lease the cheapest car I can find for the length of my two year contract, because after that I imagine an Omani or Philipino will be doing my job. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2010 2:15 pm Post subject: |
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Whatever gets you through the day... or night... or whatever.
I wouldn't worry too much about your job disappearing. As long as you are managing to do the job and want to stay, you probably can. They will usually try to keep native speakers as long as they can because it pleases the students.
VS |
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weslah
Joined: 23 May 2011
Posts: 1
Location: UAE
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| Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 4:59 am Post subject: Need to buy a car in Oman? |
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Hi. I am currrenlt in Dubai but expecting to move to Sohar, Oman and I want to take my car: a rangerover with me.
Does anyone have any experience of doing anything like this? Anyone know anything about taking a car from the UAE, re-registering it Oman, or maybe driving back to register it in Dubai each year (it's only 2-3 hours from Sohar)?
Thanks for any help or suggestions?
Wes. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 2:04 pm Post subject: |
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It can be done. I moved my car in from Kuwait, and between the fixer at the college and the fixer at the moving company, they had it registered the first week I was there... and I still only had a tourist visa in my passport.
That was rather miraculous and everyone had said that it couldn't be done, but I expect that you will have to do it yourself. I would plan on two trips to the DMV. The first to find out that while you have paper X, they want paper Y too. And the second time you will get the plates.
I had to get mine done quickly as it only had 'import' tags, but you can likely get away with using the UAE plates as long you don't get stopped for some driving infraction. So, you should have plenty of time to find out the process and make friends with your employer's fixer. 
VS |
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lizziebennet
Joined: 24 May 2009
Posts: 355
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| Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 12:32 pm Post subject: |
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| What's the current situation with hiring/leasing/ buying a car in Oman? I've seen it mentioned in other forums that buying isn't as cheap as it was (40% deposit for expats). |
We put a down payment of under 20% so that is not always the case. I guess it depends on which company you are buying from. We bought through OTE and they do their own financing so they were happy to agree to a lower down payment. If you are getting financed elsewhere they may charge you 40%
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| Do people generally buy or lease a car now, and what are the costs involved? What kind of car do English teachers usually drive? |
Most people lease when they arrive. We leased a Mitsubishu Gallant with a co-worker and it ended up being 220 a month total. You do need a credit card when you lease with the reputable companies. They keep the car in order and you won�t have any nasty surprises. Cheaper agencies can make you pay for the repair of everything broken in the car if it stops working while you are renting it. Even if you rent it for a weekend and the damage is due to them not having the car serviced!
Also most teachers start with small cars and then move onto 4x4's if they decide to stay here for a longer period if time. If you are secure in your job and feel this is a place you'd like to stay in for a while I would suggest just going ahead and buying a 4x4.
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| If you are buying second hand can you get a loan or do you have to front with the cash? |
There are reputable companies in Muscat where you can buy second hand cars and get financing. These companies are probably the best bet when you buy second hand cars as they check them thoroughly. If you would prefer to buy a second hand car I would say buy it through a special pre-owned car company as opposed to the car souk! |
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lizziebennet
Joined: 24 May 2009
Posts: 355
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| Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 12:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Also Kia will give you a "Buy back" option. This means that if you decide to leave before the 3 year (standard expatriat) finance deal, they will buy the vehicle back off you, even if it is on a "HP" basis. |
I would be interested to hear from anyone who actually benefited from those buyback options. The only people I have met who have had experience with the buyback option have lost a lot of money. Don�t be fooled!
One friend had a dent in her door which was fixed by the company and the company used that as an excuse to not pay what is promised by the �Buy back� option. Anyone who has driven in Oman knows that you will inevitably get a dent or two in your car.
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| Anyone driving a Toyota Fortuner over there? I've been doing some research and it seems that despite some faults, it's a good family car/weekend offroader that holds it's resale value well. Cost is about 9,000OR. |
Toyotas are the most popular 4x4�s around which means they are usually much more expensive than other 4x4�s. They normally sell for around OR12 000 - OR14 000. If you have found one for OR9000 you could buy one with financing over 4 years at about OR200 a month with a OR1000 down payment (if you can get them to accept such a low downpayment).
We went to every shop and looked at cheaper options like that �Yaris� but my husband is tall and his head was practically touching the roof! So we had to look for something bigger. We wanted something we could off-roading with so we started looking at 4x4�s.
We eventually bought a Hummer (H3) because it was the cheapest deal we could find. It was one of the company�s test drive models and we got it for OR6500 with registration, insurance and warranty till 2012. We agreed on a OR1000 down payment and OR250 monthly payment over two years. For a couple this is more than doable!
It came pretty bare as far as Hummers go. No chrome wheel caps, grill, sidesteps etc. So we popped into Sharjah and picked up some cheap accessories and now it looks like any other Hummer 
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| My boyfriend spend years in South East Asia and thinks a motorcycle would be just fine- and a lot cheaper. I just can't fathom riding a motorcycle in the blazing Omani sun...and can't quite fathom going off road or through some of those wadis on it. Is a car affordable? |
I know what he means. I drove a scooter in Korea for 5 years and bought one when we arrived. The one I bought had a lot of problems so I hardly drove it but it was pretty hot then and it wasn�t even summer!
I think a scooter/ motorcycle would be perfect for a small town, say if you wanted to pop into the local supermarket or travel around town but it is not ok for travelling on main roads. Korea was bad but this is different. It doesn�t look as dangerous but as someone said earlier it is much more dangerous!
Best supermarkets to check out for used cars are
1. SQU Al fair (some of the cars are parked outside)
2. Sultan Centre (near Qurum City Centre)
On a side note Sultan Centre has a much larger (and cheaper) selection of American products than Al Fair and Carrefour put together! That�s where you go for things like Diet Doctor Pepper and ingredients for Cajun food etc |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 2:14 pm Post subject: |
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Sultan Center is or was related to the Sultan Center in Kuwait... which was Safeway before Saddam's invasion. (little Middle East factoids... )
Can the public get into the SQU campus just to check the board at the little Al-Fair there? I sold my last car there through the board at the Faculty Club. The ad was put up in the morning and I came home to my answering machine completely filled... sold it for full price to the person who was message one... we transferred ownership and he let me keep it for my last month until I left. "Western female expat driven" are magic words in the Oman car business.
VS |
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caravanesque
Joined: 09 Jun 2011
Posts: 16
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| Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 11:18 am Post subject: used vehicle? |
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Having read the previous messages, especially about the last inter-faculty sale, wondered if buying used wouldn't be an option for someone who wants to save.
Buying a merc or bmw sedan that way would be an option, wouldn' it, but just wonder if it will be possible to do this on monthly terms (with a small deposit for starters), instead of buying cash
Anyone in the know?? Which websites or dealers would be the best to consult?? |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 1:50 pm Post subject: |
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JMO, but I would never buy used except from someone I knew. (or a friend of a friend sort of thing) Buying used can be problematic everywhere in the world, but especially in the Gulf as so many people seem to treat their car like their camel. You feed it gas and get a new one when it dies. Oil changes and such are a mystery they never look into...
Then a crew of sub-continental mechanics - who can get anything running again - fix it up for the used market. I'm wondering how many drowned cars from the typhoon are still passing through the lots.
I have only financed a new car in Oman so can't help you out on used...
VS |
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Duffy
Joined: 29 Oct 2005
Posts: 449
Location: Oman
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| Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 4:43 pm Post subject: |
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A friend of ours bought a Kia Sportage from a dealer in Muscat. He drove it down to Salalah and two months later the gearbox (automatic) broke down. He then found out that the dealer refused to repair or take it back under what was supposed to be a three month warranty.
He ended up trading it in for a new Sportage and having two bank loans to pay off.
Don't even trust the traders!!
Duffers |
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lizziebennet
Joined: 24 May 2009
Posts: 355
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| Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 5:46 pm Post subject: |
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| in the Gulf as so many people seem to treat their car like their camel. You feed it gas and get a new one when it dies. |
V.S this made me giggle! You hit the nail on the head!
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| A friend of ours bought a Kia Sportage from a dealer in Muscat. He drove it down to Salalah and two months later the gearbox (automatic) broke down. He then found out that the dealer refused to repair or take it back under what was supposed to be a three month warranty. |
That's terrible! I would be so mad! And what's even worse is that there was probably nothing your friend could do about it! I take it that this was a second-hand car and not a warranty by the manufacturer.
We have been lucky, the warranty we have is the manufacturer's warranty so we have had parts replaced that needed to be replaced. We also have 24 hour roadside assistance in the gulf which is helpful because we are in the UAE on a daily basis! We were in Dubai and left our lights on in Dubai mall, as a result our car wouldn't start so we phoned the roadside assistance thinking it will probably cost us a bit but they sent someone out for free
It's times like those that I am glad that we bought a new car (albeit a test drive model) from a reputable company. |
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