 |
| Our 2003 Lexus LX |
Before we moved here in August 2011, I did a ton of research about cars around Panama. I frankly did not find much I liked on the cars and debated if we should bring our SUV to Panama. We figured it would be less trouble and less money than purchasing a car in a 3rd world latin america country, but we did not know whether or not it would "fit in". Back home in Washington, I drove around in a 2007 Lexus GX and come to think of it, it would have blended in with the other cars here in Panama. I see more Toyota Prados, BMWs and Audis here than I saw in Bellevue! But... I loved the research and the prospect of a "new" car.
We ended up selling my Lexus and decided with the money I would buy something here. Fresh off the flight, day 1 of our Panama adventure was searching for the RIGHT car. We flew in, stayed at the Trump, hired a driver and had him drive us around almost every car dealership in Panama City - probably all of them I think.
Here are my personal steps in purchasing a car/SUV in Panama. 6 special steps, is all that you need...
Step 1: Research. Check websites. If you live here, then word of mouth is great too.
We figured with the website searches on craigslist, Play Community, Ricardo Perez and Encuentra24 we had a general idea on prices. However, the cars I liked were so overpriced we figured an older, used car would be better for our budget of $20,000. No Hilux, no Jeep, no on a Fortuner or 4Runner, etc.
Step 2: Drive around to local dealers
Day one was not so successful on car shopping, but successful on figuring out the shortcuts and turns and traffic around Panama Centro. That was great since I kind of pictured myself driving here a lot....and I have. Also, driving around the city gave us an idea of what type of cars were driven. Boy was I surprised.... BMWs, Audis, Toyotas, Hondas, Mitsubishis, Hyundais, Kias, Porsches, Range Rovers, along the taxis and the diablo rojo buses. Some dealers don't post all their inventory on the website so driving around proved to be good for us.
 |
| Snack time near Honda dealership - YUM YUM! |
At one dealership, we were close to buying a Toyota Prado, but let me tell you. SUVs here are driven pretty well...almost to the ground. We were careful about looking under the hood, interior smells (some smelled like wet dog or low tide or muggy dirt). I have a really sensitive nose so if it did not pass the sniff test, we moved on. Some cars looked great on the outside, but really beaten on the inside. Some were leather and some were cloth seats with stains. Some had low mileage (US imported) or low kilometers. Some cars had nice everything but double our price. Very hard to choose.
 |
| BMW X5 |
 |
| Range Rover Evoque |
 |
| Lexus GX |
 |
| Mercedes ML |
Step 3: Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate - Stick with your budget!
We struck gold at one dealership who we kept coming back to. You know the walk away theory, right? Luxury Motors was it for us. We liked their inventory...who wouldn't? A maserati on their lot? Audis, Hondas, Toyotas, Mercedes, BMWs. And mostly used SUVs there too. They did say they had a Honda Pilot but needed to come back later. Which we did....and then had to wait. Finally, we test drove it around the area and liked it. No super dark tinted windows, no major luxury extras, just a nice car, clean smelling, paperwork on history of oil changes included. We said yes. The blue book value was $24k but we bought it for $21k.
Day 2, we went back to Luxury Motors. We were looking for an SUV because of the pot holes on the road to our Gorgona home and we found it. For an SUV we decided to pay extra at a dealer ship as opposed to individuals selling their car. We filled out the paper work and paid some in cash, and some on credit card. We drove around the city looking for a place to swipe the card and transfer the money. But we were able to drive the car back our new place. The owners of the dealership told us to come back next week for the title and registration plates. Sure! We now know better....keep reading.
Step 4: Paperwork in Order, drive away happy.
 |
| BMW 7 series |
 |
| Parking at the Mall |
From experience, once you a car, you need to be sure that the title of ownership is properly transferred to you. The car must have valid insurance; this is a requirement from the National Transit and Transportation Authority. If you purchase through a dealer they will ensure that the ownership of the car is transferred to you. If you need to do this yourself you can find that you need to pay, while a dealer will take care of it for you. We paid $100 to have all that done for us - includes the fees to register the car. However, I kept coming back every week. Calling was a dead end because they would assure me it was there. It took me 3 trips (1 month) to have all the paper work in order.
Step 5: Car Insurance - Illegal in Panama to drive without (same as US)
Insurance is not an option. If you do not have insurance, you will not be able to renew your plates. For the Honda, being a 2007 we were able to get full coverage. We were recommended by a few friends to go with VIP Insurance (Kutu). With all the driving to and from the city, I was nervous about driving without insurance. For both cars we paid $1,600. The 2003 Lexus was over the 7 year rule about full coverage, but we have the regular liability.
After a month we bought Chris' SUV, a Lexus LX for another wonderful deal from another dealer - Full Cars on calle Via Brasil & Via España (near Price Smart). This second experience was tons smoother - paper work wise. We actually ended up paying cash (another story on banks and getting large amounts of cash) and because we had a few repairs that the car needed, we waited a week for us to get it - not to mention days to get cash from the bank. By then, the paper work was finished, the owner of the dealer ship was such a nice guy. Gave us a name for a mechanic that specializes on Lexus for future fix its. I still run into him now and then in his own Lexus around Coronado.
Step 6: Maintenance
 |
| Chris and Kami taking my car on Mailbu Beach, Gorgona 4x4 |
After 1 year of both cars, we have had no issues. We have had friends with mechanical issues, engine issues, brakes, boots, accidents, etc.
We have had the regular maintenance at Tambor Tires here in Coronado: low air on the tires, and reapplying for registration on the vehicles and the regular oil and air filter changes. I think overall, driving a car from the dealer, gives me more peace of mind. And I do consider us lucky to have found 2 good deals.
- Lita
