Group Import for next season - Sign up now!

[pearl]

Please check post #364 for a very important update

List of people interested are on post #2, I will update every other day or so.

Special thanks to apstndp for giving me some useful links and info.
Special thanks to Bambaataa for the PM asking a great question.

Ever since the Canadian dollar has been equal (now more!) than USD, and the 2008 Kawasaki Ninja 250R for MSRP of $3499 has been released (compared to the 2007 model in Canada for $6500), the interest of importing a bike from the states has significantly increased. Some other examples of the difference between MSRP's are as follows:
Some prices (e.g. Kawasaki, Suzuki) are listed as 2007 for Canada and 2008 for USA, so it's not a fair comparison, because old model bikes usually cost much less, since the manufacturers want to get rid of the old models, with that in mind, take a look

All prices are pulled from the manufacturer's website at the time I last looked, except for Ducati's. if you find a mistake, please let me know

Not all bikes are listed

(Price posted are the old 2007 model for Canada and new 2008 model for USA)
.................................................. ...Canada....................USA
Kawasaki 250R...........................$6,299......................$3,499
Kawasaki ZZR600......................$9,999......................$7,299
Kawasaki Z1000.........................$11,499....................$8,899
Kawasaki ZX-6R........................$12,099....................$9,099
Kawasaki ZX-10R......................$15,199....................$11,549
Kawasaki ZX-14.........................$15,699....................$11,699
Kawasaki Concours 14 ABS....$19,099....................$13,799
Kawasaki Eliminator 125...........N/A..........................$2,649
Kawasaki Vulcan 900.................$9,449......................$7,349
Kawasaki Vulcan 1600...............$15,499....................$10,699
Kawasaki Vulcan 2000...............$18,999....................$13,699

(Price posted are all 2008 )
.................................................. Canada....................USA
Honda Jazz..............................$2,799.......... ............$1,899
Honda CBR 600RR.................$12,499....................$9,599
Honda VRF 800A...................$14,699.................... $10,799
Honda VT750C2.....................$8,799................ ......$6,799
Honda VTX1300T................. $12,799....................$10,999
Honda VTX1800T..................$20,499................. ...$14,899
Honda ST1300........................$18,999............. .......$14,499
Honda GL1800AL..................$29,399................. ...$24,349

(Price posted are the old 2007 model for Canada and new 2008 model for USA)
.................................................. Canada....................USA
Suzuki GSX-R600....................$11,799................... .$9,399
Suzuki GSX-R1000..................$15,299.................... $11,499
Suzuki Hayabusa....................$15,099............... .....$11,999
Suzuki S40................................$6,199......... .............$4,399
Suzuki Boulevard M50...........$8,799......................$6,899
Suzuki Boulevard C50............$8,699......................$6,899
Suzuki Boulevard C90............$14,299....................$10,499
Suzuki M109R.........................$17,999............. .......$12,699

(Price posted are all 2008 )
.................................................. Canada....................USA
Yamaha Vino...........................$2,699............. .........$1,949
Yamaha BW's..........................$2,899.............. ........$2,099
Yamaha Vino 125....................$3,599..................... .$2,649
Yamaha YZR-R6......................$12,499................... $9,559
Yamaha YZR-R1......................$15,599................... $11,699
Yamaha FJR1300.....................$19,099............... ....$13,899
Yamaha V-Star 250..................$4,899.....................$3 ,599
Yamaha V-Star 650..................$7,699.....................$6 ,099
Yamaha V-Star 1100................$9,699.....................$8, 999
Yamaha V-Star 1300................$11,499...................$10, 090
Yamaha Road Star..................$15,449...................$1 1,899
Yamaha Roadliner S...............$19,999....................$14,980
Yamaha SV1900 Custon S.....$18,499....................$13,180

(All prices are 2007)
.................................................. .Canada....................USA
Ducati 1098...............................$19,995........ ............$14,995
Ducati Monster 695.................$9,995......................$7 ,795
Ducati Monster S2R 800.........$11,995....................$8,995
Ducati Monster S2R 1000.......$13,995....................$10,495
Ducati SS800.............................$11,995......... ...........$8,495
Ducati Multistrada 1100..........$14,995....................$11,995
Ducati ST3.................................$15,995....... .............$12,995
Ducati Hypermotard 1100S.....$17,995....................$13,995


With the exchange rate currently hovering around 1 CND = 1.03 USD, the prices are actually even better than it seems. Unless Canadian manufactures are cutting their prices in February, I am determined to import one myself. Having done more research on the process, it seems pretty straight forward. I've even read a few people that said the dealership did all the paperwork necessary for them.


Which is what brings me to start this thread. If we were to buy a few bikes as a group, we can ask several dealers what's the best price they can give us, rent a big cube truck, and go to the dealership that offers us the best price.

Remember, the prices listed above are MSRP's, that means the prices dealerships offer us will most likely be much less, since we're buying so many bikes as a group.

For those that are interested, please let me know what bike and how serious are you about buying it, this is meant for people that have pretty much set their mind, not just shopping around and kicking tires.

*** IMPORTANT ***

I DO NOT want to touch a cent of your money.
I DO NOT want anything to do with the legal or financial aspects of your purchasing/importing process.

All I am doing is, find who wants to buy what, find out the best price a dealership will offer for our group buy, and setting a time for all of us to go down and pick up our bikes. You can drive your own truck, rent your own trailer, chip in for a big truck, or even ride it back if it's legal, it's none of my business.

In simple terms, I AM NOT responsible for any money loss/gain or legal trouble you may or may not get into. Please take your own precautions.


This entire process that I am going through will be completely open, I will post every email I send out and receive from dealerships. I am not asking you to sign any contract with me, but please, only sign up if you are genuinely serious about getting a bike for next season



*** Process and Dates ***

Check post #364

*** FAQ's ***

1. Can I give you a few hundred bucks extra and you buy and bring back the bike for me?
No, two things wrong with that. One, I don't want to touch a cent of your money. Two, I do not want my name to have anything to do be on any of your paperwork(importing, ownership, etc)

2. Why are you doing this, what's in it for you?
I'm cheap. I just want to get the best price possible, so I am willing to put in a little work to find a group rate down in the states if it means saving some money.

3. Sportbikes only?
No. Sportbikes, cruisers, dual sport, off road, scooters, all welcome

4. What if I'm looking for a USED bike?
Read the whole thread, especially starting from the "Process and Dates" section. Please let me know as soon as possible if you're looking to buy a used bike for next season. HOWEVER, I ask that you only message me if you are 100% SERIOUSLY and GENUINELY ready to own a bike both financially and mentally. I understand that finding the used bike to fit your needs is tough, but I do not want to tell the dealership we have 50 people looking for a used bike, then only have 1 person that's actually buying a bike from them, it will probably affect the discount for the rest of the group when the dealership sees there are actually 49 less customers than expected.

5. I really want to help, how can I be part of the organizing process?
Thank you for everyone that has offered me a hand with organizing this group buy, it is much appreciated. It's great that everyone wants to be more involved, because it really shows that you're serious about this process, but I ask that one task be left to me for the mean time - communication with the dealerships.

Of course, I'm not asking you to lay all your trust on me and never contact the dealerships, I understand everyone wants to be sure they get their bike. I only ask that you would leave the communication with the dealerships to me until mid-December, this is because it would be much easier for me to coordinate with the dealerships alone, instead of having to coordinate with others to make sure we're supply the dealerships with the same information and answering all their questions with the same answer. Which would affect our final discount and any services that they may be willing to offer to get our business.

By leaving the task of communication with the dealerships to one person alone, it will keep everything consistent and easier to manage, much less risk of information being altered through a game of broken telephone.

Again, I'm only asking everyone to leave the task of communication with the dealerships to me, until mid-December or so. After all the dealerships have completely understood the situation, asked me all the questions, and made me an offer, you are more than welcome to contact the dealerships to talk to them.

6. I have some questions for the dealerships, should I contact them and ask them myself or....?
It'd be great if you could let me ask the dealership the questions, as explained above, it will allow me to keep everything consistent, and avoid creating a logistical nightmare for myself. I will then post all the answers I receive from the dealerships for everyone to read. I have also created a new section in the thread (second post, below the list of people interested), composing of all the questions you may have for the dealerships, so that the dealership and I won't get asked the same questions 35 times. Let me know via this thread or PM if you have any questions for the dealerships at all! The more we have, the more serious the dealerships will take us!

[pearl]

List of Motorcycles to quote
2008's
Honda CBR600RR
Honda CBR100RR
Honda VFR800 ABS
Honda Goldwing Non-ABS

Kawasaki Ninja 250R
Kawasaki Ninja 650R
Kawasaki ZX-6
Kawasaki ZX-10R
Kawasaki Concours Non-ABS

Suzuki GSX-R600
Suzuki GSX-R750
Suzuki GSX-R1000
Suzuki Hayabusa
Suzuki B-King
Suzuki Bandit 1250 ABS
Suzuki M109R
Suzuki DR650

Yamaha R6
Yamaha R1
Yamaha FJR

Ducati 1098

Harley-Davidson FatBob

Triump Rocket III
Triump Daytona 675

2007's
Honda VFR800

Suzuki GSX-R600

List of People Interested

1. Murf.............................2008 Yamaha R6 or 2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 or GSX-R1000
2. mjavor..........................2007 Kawasaki Ninja 500R (Yellow)
3. apstndp.........................2008 Yamaha R6 (Raven/Black)
4. petieboy........................2007/2008 Suzuki Bandit 1250 ABS
5. Alnazer..........................2008 Kawasaki ZX-6
6. Tovarish.......................2007/2008 Suzuki M109R
7. CdnVStar......................2008 Kawasaki Concours 14 non-ABS
8. type_s kid.....................2007/2008 Yamaha R6 or 2008 Honda CBR600RR
9. type_s kid's friend #1......2007/2008 Yamaha R6 or 2008 Honda CBR600RR
10. type_s kid's friend #2......2007/2008 Yamaha R6 or 2008 Honda CBR600RR
11. type_s kid's friend #3......2007/2008 Yamaha R6 or 2008 Honda CBR600RR
12. type_s kid's friend #4......2008 Yamaha R1
13. TKZX............................2008 Ducati 1098 (Black) or 2007 Kawasaki ZX-10R (Black)
14. fr0zen...........................2008 Honda CBR600RR
15. fr0zen's friend................2008 Honda CBR600RR
16. rexel.............................2008 Harley-Davidson FatBob
17. TheToeCutter.................2008 Triumph Rocket III
18. FoSs.............................2008 Suzuki GSX-R 600 (White/Silver)
19. johnsa1.........................2008 Honda GL1800/2008 Kawasaki Concours 14 Non-ABS
20. slasher..........................2008 Honda Goldwing
21. rizvi..............................2008 Suzuki GSX-R 600 (Blue/White) OR Honda CBR600RR (Silver/Black)
22. Dober............................2007/2008 Suzuki GSX-R 750
23. Chromedome...................2008 Kawasaki Concours 14 non-ABS
24. LiNK666..........................2008 Triumph Daytona 675
25. pappu_pager...................2008 Honda CBR600RR (Black w/ Graffiti)
26. jibbonacci.......................2008 Yamaha R6 (Black/Raven)
27. moosio...........................2008 Yamaha YZR-R6
28. 954RR............................2007 VFR OR 2008 CBR1000RR
29. jhonnydee.......................2008 Kawasaki Ninja 250R
30. phucyall..........................2008 Kawasaki Ninja 650R
31. inreb..............................2008 Suzuki DR650
32. RED77.............................2007 Yamaha R1
33. Bambaataa......................2007 GSX-R600
34. mimic..............................2008 Suzuki Hayabusa and B-King
35. orangeF4.........................2008 Honda CBR600
36. Michel.............................2007/2008 Honda VFR800 abs
37. graytaz...........................2008 Yamaha FJR


List of People interested in Used

1. LucTdeC

List of Questions You have for the Dealerships:
1. Do you offer delivery of the bikes for those of us that would like the bike delivered? If so, would you be charing extra and how much?
2. Will you be doing all recall work needed on the motorcycles before we pick it up?
3. Many of us are also looking for riding gear with our new bikes, how much discount would you be able to give us on riding gear and accessories?
4. Most of us would like to pay for the motorcycle in one transaction, what forms of payment are accepted?
5. To cut down transportation costs, we prefer to pick up all our motorcycles at once. Would you be able to keep all the motorcycles indoors until the date of pick up?

List of Dealerships to Ask
The list is given as a picture, so you won't be able to copy and paste the URL's, sorry for any inconveniences
Since this is an image, the list you see might be an old one, press F5 to reload.

Please remember not to contact the dealerships about the group buy yet, refer to FAQ in Original Post for details

[qaz393]

lol only in canada, gsxr 1000 will be even more expensive then the hayabusa

[apstndp]

sweet, the new models are coming out in Nov.

[Dober]

I've been looking into this for the past month or two. So far Don George's have given me the best price and the salesman I was dealing with was very helpful. He has an 07 in stock but I am waiting to see the 08s in person at the bike show before I make my decision.

More than likely it will be an 07 Suzuki GSXR 750 because it makes my pants tight.

[Bambaataa]

What is the best price the sales person has given you on the '07 (If you don't mind sharing with the board)?

I've been looking into this for the past month or two. So far Don George's have given me the best price and the salesman I was dealing with was very helpful. He has an 07 in stock but I am waiting to see the 08s in person at the bike show before I make my decision.

More than likely it will be an 07 Suzuki GSXR 750 because it makes my pants tight.

[Golo13]

List of People Interested
Updated 11pm, October 15th, 2007

1. Murf.........................2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 or GSX-R1000
2. SupaSubaru...............2008 Kawasaki Ninja 250R
3. mjavor......................2007 Kawasaki Ninja 500R (Yellow)
4. mjavor's friend............2008 Kawasaki Ninja 250R (Lime Green)
5. apstndp.....................2008 Yamaha R6 (Raven/Black)
6. Pearl.........................2008 Honda CBR600RR
7. Pearl's sister...............2008 Yamaha Vino
8. petieboy....................2007/2008 Suzuki Bandit 1250 ABS

2008 GSXR 600 won;t be available till late FEB ... 1000 should be ...

[pearl]

2008 GSXR 600 won;t be available till late FEB ... 1000 should be ...

Should be ok, I was planning for us to pick up our bikes in mid-March, because that's approximately a week or two before the riding season starts

[954RR]

Anyone looking to buy a Honda within the next couple of weeks? I already have a price from Ray Laks which is one of the best I was able to find in the US. PM me if interested. I also have a 2 bike trailer to get the bikes back into Canada.

[attn11]

How much it usually cost extra (taxes, custom, gas, food etc) ?

[kingkao]

Do we have to buy the whole bike or can we finance it from the dealership?

[Hachi-Roku]

[B]I ask that you only message me if you are 100% SERIOUSLY and GENUINELY ready to own a bike both financially and mentally.

Meh
I'm out

[Bart-Man]

i will defiantly be interested in a used bike.

[apstndp]

come on, I know there is more than 12 people who are interested in buying bikes.

[Dober]

What is the best price the sales person has given you on the '07 (If you don't mind sharing with the board)?

The best price I've gotten so far is $8950 plus 6 dollars for some bs tax they have on tires in NY state. The price should go down a little bit more also once the 08s come out if they still have some 07s lying around.

[Baggsy]

Kawasaki Concours?

Also which manufacturers void the warranty when you bring a U.S. bike to Canada?

[pearl]

Do we have to buy the whole bike or can we finance it from the dealership?

I will ask the dealerships when I send out my first round of emails. Even if they don't offer financing, you'll save a bundle by taking a loan from bank and buy from states, as suppose to financing from a dealership up in Canada, since Canadian's MSRP is at least $3000 more than the States' MSRP

[pearl]

The MSRP for the Kawasaki Concours has been added to the list on the Original Post

The difference is pretty significant, and remember, these are only MSRP, I'm pretty sure dealership will cut us a discount since we're buying ~15 bikes

and plus, with the CND hovering around 1.025 USD, savings are even better! Go Canadian Dollar!

[apstndp]

Just a quick note to everyone.

You can finance the bike in US but the bike can not leave US. at the border, US customs makes sure there is no lean on the bike, (72 hours grace period) it has to be under your name and paid fully before you can export a bike. As Pearl said, if you need financing, get it from Bank here or other loan office and purchese the bike fully in US.

[murf]

Just a quick note to everyone.

You can finance the bike in US but the bike can not leave US. at the border, US customs makes sure there is no lean on the bike, (72 hours grace period) it has to be under your name and paid fully before you can export a bike. As Pearl said, if you need financing, get it from Bank here or other loan office and purchese the bike fully in US.

No you can't finance a bike/car at all since you don't even have a credit rating or a social security number and no bank account in the usa........
If you have lived/worked there in the past you maybe able to but like you said you can't bring it over the border with a lein