₦airaland Forum

ADAMUdaCOWBOY:
Oga, the used cars imported from Europe and america are not cheap. These oyinbo people often laugh at us because of the high price we pay for these "Belgium" cars.

The prices for second hand cars in the US are posted on Twitter on a daily basis, and they are dirt cheap! Second hand cars are relatively affordable in the abroad. The key issues are continuous insurance, parking fees, maintenance etc. In return, in some countries, the public transport is top notch, most people (unmarried and those without children) don't see the need to own a car.

From this thread, it has been revealed that most of the imported cars in Nigeria are stolen or accidented. This means we're too poor to buy good second hand cars from the abroad that have not been stolen. At the same time, we are too poor to buy brand new cars.

In summary, we are very poor as citizens, and very poor for the arrogance we exhibit.

Wow! I never knew we could be this poor that most of the second hand cars from the abroad are either stolen or accidented.

Dottore:
There's nothing wrong. You get value for your money and most are in pristine condition Because they don't export Salvage cars.
Their cars are also usually low mileage because distant Travel by road is not common in China as they have the best and largest rail network in the world. Their domestic flights are also very affordable.
The sweetest part is that you can order and pay for both shipping with Naira while lying down on your bed.

Seems nobody understood the OP’s question. He literally said while everything you are saying here is true and the fact that shipping these Japanese cars directly from the East instead of importing from Canada and the US should be cheaper, why then don’t we prioritize importing from Asia?
I also need a valid answer to the question. You just repeated what he said. Why are we taking the harder routes (importing from the US and Canada) to buy Asian-made vehicles (Toyota, Honda and etc) even when we all know that it doesn’t make any financial sense judging by the fact that Africa is farther from America than Asia.

TechAI:
I specifically mentioned Japanese brands of cars because I’m not interested in Chinese brands. What I’m saying is that the 2012 Toyota Corolla we usually buy from the U.S. or Canada can also be found in countries like China, Qatar, and the UAE.

What I’m unsure about is whether there’s any real difference between them — and that’s why I’m making this post, to get some insight. The East is geographically closer to Africa than the West, which means lower shipping costs. Additionally, prices for these cars in the East are generally cheaper than in the West.

Aside from possible differences in durability, I’m not sure what else sets them apart. I’d really appreciate input from more experienced folks here.

A lot of used cars were imported from UAE but Chinese government doesn’t permit shipping their cars out I guess

moscow007:
Till date we still depend on USD to import from China, over 95% of our USD needs is for import. And 90% of these imports is from China.

Pls explain to me why we've to drive ur naira to USD and later to RMB while importing from China.

This was the sole reason why I wanted Osibanjo as President, he engineered and introduced direct naira to RMB swap straight from ur Nigerian bank accounts for all imports from China.

US Ambassador visited Buhari the subsequent week and frustrated the policy, now it's operating under hush tone, most pple don't even know the policy and executive order exists.

Osibanjo's would've single handedly crashed USD demand by over 70%, by now 1 USD would've been 70 naira. It's not like Govt don't know wat to do to get Nigerians out of this mulky waters it's all about vested interests, propaganda and blackmails.
Elect a President without baggage and Western strings and experience real developmental strides.

If Osibanjo had succeeded, by now the demand for dollar would have gone down to 20% because most of the people demanding for USD are the businessmen and 90% of them ended up converting to RMB before buying from China.

uchman:
A lot of used cars were imported from UAE but Chinese government doesn’t permit shipping their cars out I guess

What is the price like in UAE compared to USA and Canada? Cheaper?

Wickedlywicked:
Seems nobody understood the OP’s question. He literally said while everything you are saying here is true and the fact that shipping these Japanese cars directly from the East instead of importing from Canada and the US should be cheaper, why then don’t we prioritize importing from Asia?
I also need a valid answer to the question. You just repeated what he said. Why are we taking the harder routes (importing from the US and Canada) to buy Asian-made vehicles (Toyota, Honda and etc) even when we all know that it doesn’t make any financial sense judging by the fact that Africa is farther from America than Asia.

The truth is thatsmy car dealers no longer import from US and UAE.
Then the no. 1 reason why others don't import from China is that people are not informed.

The number 2 reason is that stereotypes have eaten the mind of others. Some believe Chinese made cars are of inferior quality. Wel that's not true because the foreign brands in China market are the same with what you get in their home countries though their might be slight variations in design but not in quality checks.

China is the world's largest automobile market so all brands both local and foreign are in stiff competition to stay afloat. Your vendor can be honest enough to tell you some Chinese brands that are more durable than western brands.

xristos:
Op is saying... Toyota, peugeot, Hyundai, Honda etc..are also in the East(China) both new and Toks....why not import from there instead of always from the US/Canada

Valid reasoning..and I want answers too

Shipping cost is almost triple

Dottore:
There's nothing wrong. You get value for your money and most are in pristine condition Because they don't export Salvage cars.
Their cars are also usually low mileage because distant Travel by road is not common in China as they have the best and largest rail network in the world. Their domestic flights are also very affordable.
The sweetest part is that you can order and pay for both shipping with Naira while lying down on your bed.

Pls how do I order things from china with naira?

ponziponzi:
Let’s assume an average Dangote truck covers 80,000–100,000 km per year. The company imported 12,000 SinoTrucks into Nigeria back in 2014—that’s about 11 years ago. Many of those trucks have likely accumulated over a million kilometres by now..

You’re saying things without proper knowledge. I can’t speak for flooded cars, but I’m certain that most imported used cars in Nigeria are accidented vehicles. Some sources put the figure at around 70%, while others say it’s closer to 95%.

1. 95% Of Second-hand Vehicles Imported Into Nigeria Are Accidented Vehicles – Report: https://autojosh.com/95-of-second-hand-vehicles-imported-into-nigeria-are-accidented-vehicles-report/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

2. Over 70% imported cars to Nigeria are accidented – Clearing Agent: https://naturenews.africa/over-70-imported-cars-to-nigeria-are-accidented-clearing-agent/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Touche

Gerrard59:
The prices for second hand cars in the US are posted on Twitter on a daily basis, and they are dirt cheap! Second hand cars are relatively affordable in the abroad. The key issues are continuous insurance, parking fees, maintenance etc. In return, in some countries, the public transport is top notch, most people (unmarried and those without children) don't see the need to own a car.

My main concern is the cost of clearing those cars in Nigeria.

I’m currently speaking with a car dealer in Cotonou, and what surprises me is that the prices aren’t significantly different from what’s available in Nigeria. At most, there’s a difference of about ₦1 million to ₦2 million.

I’m referring to the total cost — purchase, shipping, and clearing — compared to buying directly from Cotonou. Another idea came to mind: what if we purchase the car ourselves, ship it through Cotonou, clear it there, and then have someone bring it into Nigeria?

TechAI:
My main concern is the cost of clearing those cars in Nigeria.

I’m currently speaking with a car dealer in Cotonou, and what surprises me is that the prices aren’t significantly different from what’s available in Nigeria. At most, there’s a difference of about ₦1 million to ₦2 million.

I’m referring to the total cost — purchase, shipping, and clearing — compared to buying directly from Cotonou. Another idea came to mind: what if we purchase the car ourselves, ship it through Cotonou, clear it there, and then have someone bring it into Nigeria?

So far you would pay duty for the imported car, it's bound to be expensive in Nigeria. In fact, this thread has made understand why second hand Japanese cars aren't exported to Nigeria. Since China is largely regulatory, it means our people do not have the money to purchase clean, not stolen and accident free second hand cars. Mini-buses are "cut" into pieces so they fill up a container. This cannot be performed on a car.

If it's personal use and you really like a particular model that's meant for the Asian market, you could go ahead. Else, buy the car from a car stand in Nigeria.

ernieboy:
it is actually cheaper to ship from china to Africa because chi a is closer.

Na una generation no do geography
for secondary school...

Even with smartphones and internet available,
it's shocking for you to be making such a dumb
statement... 🤔

adecz:
Na una generation no do geography
for secondary school...

Even with smartphones and internet available,
it's shocking for you to be making such a dumb
statement... 🤔

You should have taken the time to do the same homework you directed someone else to do. The answer is right below.

This is general knowledge. Geopolitically, there’s a reason the U.S. is willing to compete with China for influence over the African continent: it’s because China has a greater advantage and poses a strategic threat to the U.S.

adecz:
Na una generation no do geography
for secondary school...

Even with smartphones and internet available,
it's shocking for you to be making such a dumb
statement... 🤔

scratch that, I meant to say shipping from china to Nigeria is cheaper because there are more ships or traffic in that route because of more trade volume.anyway from own experience it is cheaper. The difference in distance is really not much, about 200 miles

Dottore:
There's nothing wrong. You get value for your money and most are in pristine condition Because they don't export Salvage cars.
Their cars are also usually low mileage because distant Travel by road is not common in China as they have the best and largest rail network in the world. Their domestic flights are also very affordable.
The sweetest part is that you can order and pay for both shipping with Naira while lying down on your bed.

You seems to have more valuable insights about how this business works, can you shed more lights about the pros and cons of the business in general sir??

Dottore:
The truth is thatsmy car dealers no longer import from US and UAE.
Then the no. 1 reason why others don't import from China is that people are not informed.

The number 2 reason is that stereotypes have eaten the mind of others. Some believe Chinese made cars are of inferior quality. Wel that's not true because the foreign brands in China market are the same with what you get in their home countries though their might be slight variations in design but not in quality checks.

China is the world's largest automobile market so all brands both local and foreign are in stiff competition to stay afloat. Your vendor can be honest enough to tell you some Chinese brands that are more durable than western brands.

Thanks bro but you still don’t understand the question. We are not talking about new Chinese-made vehicles as the question is about common Japs like Honda , Nissan and Toyota.
Fine, let me break down the question with a better analogy.
Nigeria “produces” Innoson and Nord and it’s massively exported to Ghana, Togo, Benin and the UK.
Now, people from faraway countries like Australia and the New Zealand prefer to import these vehicles in used condition into their countries from the UK instead of taking the very much shorter and cheaper routes (Ghana, Togo and Benin)
On getting to their countries, they are then sold to the masses at inflated rates that wouldn’t have happened if they had simply imported from the cheaper and closer countries.
The question now is why would anyone prefer to import these vehicles (used) from a farther country instead of just buying directly from those African countries that enjoy close proximity to the production country when it’s in fact, the cheaper and more economically feasible way?
Are there some bureaucratic hurdles that’s preventing people from importing these used Japs cars from Asia or something?

Gerrard59:
From this thread, it has been revealed that most of the imported cars in Nigeria are stolen or accidented. This means we're too poor to buy good second hand cars from the abroad that have not been stolen. At the same time, we are too poor to buy brand new cars.

In summary, we are very poor as citizens, and very poor for the arrogance we exhibit.

Wow! I never knew we could be this poor that most of the second hand cars from the abroad are either stolen or accidented.

Seeing this post got a "like".

I see a lot of good looking Toyotas, which I thought would or should sell in Nigeria, but the import duties are very high, and people's incomes haven't increased, else my people should be exporting such cars rather than just parts to Nigeria. The yen is in the toilet these days and would hit 200 to 1 usd on or before 2030 (my predictions).

At most, change the drive from LHD to RHD.

Wickedlywicked:
Thanks bro but you still don’t understand the question. We are not talking about new Chinese-made vehicles as the question is about tries, they are then sold to the masses at inflated rates that wouldn’t have happened if they had simply imported from the cheaper and closer countries.
The question now is why would anyone prefer to import these vehicles (used) from a farther country instead of just buying directly from those African countries that enjoy close proximity to the production country when it’s in fact, the cheaper and more economically feasible way?
Are there some bureaucratic hurdles that’s preventing people from importing these used Japs cars from Asia or something?

That is a question I would ask as it is something I wondered because such cars are shipped to Kenya a lot. There are a lot of such cars here and because of driving rules and infrastructure, they are very good looking. Maybe it is the language differences, LHD vs RHD and the distance that make them so expensive when in Nigeria compared to cars from North America.