buying parts from ebay (oversea - uk, us even german)

[m43ldotcom]

greetings all ....last time i browse the thread i notice some of you guys recommend to buy stuff from ebay.i just wanted to know the procedure ...1) got to have paypal ? (if not credit card)2) got to ask the seller if he ships worldwide (or actually know how to ship to malaysia)then from there .... what are the things that i should prepare on my side ? what about the "kastam" ? will they tax ? if not ... how much item that would be taxable ? how to avoid tax ?i know that parts can be found at chop shop, but have to hunt down ... sometime got to spend all day long. whilst at ebay it just point and click and wait for it to arrive to ur door step.i dont have experience buying from international seller. so please enlighten me thanks.

 

[loafer]

A friend's friend actually mod his car with parts bought solely from Ebay. 500bhp + and cost him only a fraction of the price compared to buying everything locally. Apparently he did not get taxed for a single item as well. Just make sure you don't purchase and have them sent in bulk. Single items should be fine.

Just make sure you know the part you want cause once it gets sent to you and it's the wrong part, you're f@#ked.

 

[m43ldotcom]

so this is do-able

mine asking your friend what is the biggest item that he bought online outside malaysia without being tax ? 500bhp+ ? did he bought another engine ? and not taxed for that ?

 

[berserkdroid]

Your Questions:

1) got to have paypal ? (if not credit card)
Actually having a credit card makes things easier. You can top up your Paypal Account with it (and most sellers prefer Paypal) or you can use Bidpay to send a money order.

2) got to ask the seller if he ships worldwide (or actually know how to ship to malaysia)
Sometimes they may say shipping in USA/Canada/etc only. That means don't bother. If they say worldwide, then you're in luck. If they say Asia or something vague like that, then ask them if they ship to Malaysia and how much are the shipping charges. This is because sometimes the item may be cheap, but you may get whacked with high shipping charges. I remember one time when i asked for the charges from two sellers in the same location and for the same type of item. One seller had an almost 500% increase in shipping charges from the other seller, no doubt including one full tank of petrol for him, the week's groceries and whatnot. Suffice to say he didn't get my bid.

If you are buying something expensive, get insurance.

Remember, ask questions first BEFORE you make a bid. This is very important.

And watch out for snipers... That lovely thing that you may have bid for may be sold to someone else at the very last second. This can be very irritating...

However, sometimes you can find some real goodies and at a low price over there. Take your time in looking for those bargains.

Hope this helps.

Cheers! :top:

 

[m43ldotcom]

Hey, that is helpful Thank you very much.

 

[ramsing]

using ebay or paypal gives you a sense of assurance in case u're cheated on the item. shipping is very subjective, as berserk mentioned.

but if u buy big things, be prepared to go to kastams to pick it up. if u're lucky, no tax. but there's many way of doing it.

but its nice to receive things in the post. i still like the feelign of going home and seeing somethign waiting at the door

 

[laneza]

if u use paypall, they will protecting ur details in case the seller cheat to u...i am one of the addicted ebay buyer and seller..most of my e46 item i bought from ebay to be honest..actually if u go in ebay u can c they will put either to be ship worldwide or not..if not, u can try ur luck asking them to ship to ur house..price may vary..normally tax depends on the item..the item which can be taxed usually item which played with electronics such as guitars, tv's blah blah blah and so on...customs usually charge approx 10% from ur item which has been purchased...let say u bought the item Rm1000, so that they will tax u around Rm100+- ...that's from my experience im not sure the terms already changed...

 

[Van1ty]

If I'm not mistaken, customs will only tax you for items for sale. If you state that it's for personal use, or even second-hand, there shouldn't be problems.
One more thing, make sure to bid from credible sellers with a good reputation (eg. power seller). They would have more experience concerning international shipping and you would recieve your items with less problems.

 

[chase]

If I'm not mistaken, customs will only tax you for items for sale. If you state that it's for personal use, or even second-hand, there shouldn't be problems.
One more thing, make sure to bid from credible sellers with a good reputation (eg. power seller). They would have more experience concerning international shipping and you would recieve your items with less problems.

No rule here I'm afraid. It's whim and fancy with the Customs. Brand new or used items for personal use even if they are TAXFREE Customs habitually slap on a 10% Sales Tax !!! Luck plays a great part in the clearance and yes it's very much cheaper to buy genuine or German parts online. Just got ripped off by my regular mechanic who put Taiwanese parts on my beemer and charged me a bomb for it !

 

[maxkpp]

I just tried ebay these couple of weeks. Successfully bidded for two items ... cheap of course. The first item is only USD10 ... but the shipping cost quoted is USD 97.19. Too much so I told the buyer that I a offering it FOC to fellows friends in the States ... he rechecked the shipping cost ... new quote is USD6.65.
Second item is Euro 1 but the shipping cost is Euro 148 ...from Protugal. I am in the midst of negotiating with the seller regarding the delivery cost.

Third item is from a local seller ... direct nego ... below the "Buy it now price". Delivery .. self collect ...May pick up the item on Wednesday.

Overall, sellers in ebay are honest.
My advise ... ask the seller regarding the shipping cost first ... I will from now on.

Prior to this I bought few things from fellow nkbmw.com forummers in the Australia and in the States. Good price (have to ... if not I would not buy ...) no hassle. Went to KLIA to do my own customs clearance ... talk a bit to the customs officers ... and show them the parts ... they are used ones anyway ... no tax ...

 

[laneza]

yeah i bought my rear light for my ford escort Mk2 Rs with no tax!!

 

[wc9922]

The problem u will face if you send by postal service is that it's bloody long before you can get hold of your things. The part may have arrived in KLIA latest is 10 days from US or Europe. But they willl take their sweet time to send out a collection card to you to collect. That makes it like 3 weeks to a month to get your parts.

Duties: They play a trick on you..the customs, they 1st ask you for the cost of item, say 100USD . Then they ask you shipping cost ( from the invoice or shipping docket) and total it up. The tax they calculate is based on this total x 30% ( for import duty - automotive parts) + 10% sales tax. KNN. shipping cost also included. Some of them will be nice and give you no tax or some will just charge you RM100 or so. I did once asked to speak to a senior office cause they wanted to tax me RM350 for a set of Bilstein absorbers I ordered from the states. The senior officer was generous enough to reclassify the tax under asean automotive tax which is only 5% + 10% so I paid like RM115 or something.

The occasional 'settle' fee is also applicable but it depends on the people. The women custom officers normally are more strict.

If you send by DHL or MasKargo, you will get your things very fast but at a higher price. Tax is normally waved as they clear your parcel in bulk with others.

I've done both ways and it depends on how heavy is the thiing. If light parts like ECU I rather ship via courier than postal service.

 

[ess530i]

my experience with the kastam is that they are getting more and more difficult to 'settle' things especially small ones like few pieces of automotive parts. either their integrity have improved or they got bigger things to 'settle'. my suggestion is dont risk it by importing yourself, either you get an 'expert' to do the job or be prepared to pay 30+10%. courier service like fedex, dhl & ups are no exception they are subject to kastam as well and u know big companies like them do thing the very proper way...

 

[Nsappoo]

Isnt there someplace, to check for taxable and non-taxable items, covering 2nd parts as well. Its kinda bizzare to be at the mercy of kastam.Like they say ignorance is no fault of the law,its in the consumers' court to check.The other question is do the officers themselves know what is and what is not taxable.If somebody has this info , it would be great help towards improving malaysian consumer awareness and rights, rather then just pay whatever or 'settle' due to lack of information

 

[Van1ty]

I just tried ebay these couple of weeks. Successfully bidded for two items ... cheap of course. The first item is only USD10 ... but the shipping cost quoted is USD 97.19. Too much so I told the buyer that I a offering it FOC to fellows friends in the States ... he rechecked the shipping cost ... new quote is USD6.65.
Second item is Euro 1 but the shipping cost is Euro 148 ...from Protugal. I am in the midst of negotiating with the seller regarding the delivery cost.

Third item is from a local seller ... direct nego ... below the "Buy it now price". Delivery .. self collect ...May pick up the item on Wednesday.

Overall, sellers in ebay are honest.
My advise ... ask the seller regarding the shipping cost first ... I will from now on.

Prior to this I bought few things from fellow nkbmw.com forummers in the Australia and in the States. Good price (have to ... if not I would not buy ...) no hassle. Went to KLIA to do my own customs clearance ... talk a bit to the customs officers ... and show them the parts ... they are used ones anyway ... no tax ...

I'm bringing in car parts in my bag when I come back to KL. Any tips how to avoid tax at the airport, or should I not worry about anything? I've never brought back such a big bulk of items before.

 

[ramsing]

I'm bringing in car parts in my bag when I come back to KL. Any tips how to avoid tax at the airport, or should I not worry about anything? I've never brought back such a big bulk of items before.

for airport its really how many boxes you have and how u look/dress. and also depending on the time you arrive. i've brought back some parts but always managed to fit it inside one box or my main luggage. if you have to pack numerous boxes, the customs guy might see $$$ the moment he sees you

when you arrive, try to take a peek at the green lane, and see which officer looks sleepy or not bothered. or you try to follow a big group leaving.

but most imptly, pray hard :rock:

 

[Van1ty]

for airport its really how many boxes you have and how u look/dress. and also depending on the time you arrive. i've brought back some parts but always managed to fit it inside one box or my main luggage. if you have to pack numerous boxes, the customs guy might see $$$ the moment he sees you

when you arrive, try to take a peek at the green lane, and see which officer looks sleepy or not bothered. or you try to follow a big group leaving.

but most imptly, pray hard :rock:

Haha. Didn't kno the customs officers at KLIA followed such a "strict" conduct. =p I'm only bringing one huge bag for luggage and a huge-er box for the racunz. According to what you say, I wouldnt be so suspiscious. =p
I remember my friend once brought back a whole AUDI front bumper on the plane from UK. Dunno how he managed that feat.

 

[adliz]

i think can always check with kastam's webpage. they publish all the taxes and duty tables for reference. they even published books which u can get in good bookstores.. if u are savvy enough, can always argue that the imported items fall under 'specific' class which could be lower than others, even tax-free!! of course u need proper documentations..

eg, headlight housing would fall under automotive parts which carries 30% + 10%.. BUT, there's a class under 'lighting' which carries 5% + 10%.. engine parts would fall under something else too.. can't remember.. ALWAYS get the seller to specifically clarify the parts' names and descriptions in the invoice to your advantage.. most times, they would oblige..

better look through the tables and get your bullets ready to nego with the customs officers.. i saved quite a lot by studying the duty and tax tables.. it gets very technical at some point.. good luck!

FYI, i've imported bumpers, bodykits, rims, exhaust, oil coolers, intercoolers etc from all over the world without issues.. next to try, tires!!

 

[Van1ty]

Thanks adliz. You took a huge chunk of worry off my back.

 

[maxkpp]

Ha! Ha! Ha!
Tips on dealing with Customs.
1. Wear nice clothing ... not too flashy ... not like a homeless person.
2. Take the green lane ... unless they call you ... a per Ramsing's advise.
3. If they call you for inspection. Talk nicely with them. I always put all my utilised inner clothings on top portion of the bag. So after that section, the Customs officers just waved me off. Sometime I also seemed to misplaced the padlock keys ....
4. If you have to pay tax ... haggle the price... ask for huge discount ... offer a nominal token sum ~ RM100-RM200
5. Also as per Ramsing's advise ... pray hard.