Shipping a motorcycle from Singapore->USA

[pressman_g]

My tour of duty in Singapore looks to be coming to a close and I am thinking about shipping my motorcycle back to the United States (because the offers to buy the bike are pretty low). Does anyone have experience with a auto freight forwarder? Any help or advice is appreciated.

 

-brian

[actionong]

what state are you going to ship it to? plating it with the DMV could be a pain, they aren't known for their excellent service, no matter what state it is.

 

could be more worth it just to buy a bike there. what bike are you selling?

[pressman_g]

Im sending to hawaii. Trying to sell a 2007 shadow 750 with 1800km on it. I know its a pain... but im having no luck trying to sell it here. Not sure what to do minus sell it for 50% less than I paid for it 5 months ago.. harsh..

[fivefive]

don't think it's worth it.it will cost in excess of $5k.you would do it only if it's harley or sort of expensive bikes

[actionong]

Im sending to hawaii. Trying to sell a 2007 shadow 750 with 1800km on it. I know its a pain... but im having no luck trying to sell it here. Not sure what to do minus sell it for 50% less than I paid for it 5 months ago.. harsh..

 

That's rough. Don't know about the bike scene in Hawaii, but I'm quite sure the pain in the ass isn't worth it. In general bikes are cheaper state side. If you want to sell your bike, make it look new and shiny. It might help. Be happy to help you out with that. I love cleaning my bike(s)

[pressman_g]

Thanks for the replies. It is a pain in the ass to ship the bike.. but not 5K. I got a quote for 1.2K including the crate. After the singapore gov gives me the tax rebate... the cost will be about 500 usd. The bike costs 6700 usd new in Hawaii (i looked last time I went back). That is 9K sgd. The bike cost me 16.5K SGD here which to this day amazes me....although to be fair, the same shampoo that I use to buy at walmart for 99 cents costs 6 sgd at a singapore Watsons...so its not just motorcycles that are expensive. Anyways, the cut off point for shipping the bike is 8.5K. The bike is only 6 months old and I'm pretty good about cleaning and polishing it. I think the problem is that demand for the bigger bikes is just not large because one must jump through several hoops to get the license.

 

Its just harsh that I will lose 45% in 6 months and 1700 km on Motorcycle...but thats part of having to leave the country. Oh well...

[biting_point]

why not try to push the bike to a shop and ask how much they are willing to buy??

i believe even it's low, you can at least get back S$10k..

 

with this S$10k, you get get the same bike in Hawaii or even a HD..

 

Hang Loose..

[DeusExMachina]

Whoa harsh.

 

But do keep us updated here.

 

Who knows... some of us might wanna ship our bikes over Stateside or Europe, just to ride it around and then ship it back again.

[mrjun]

Whoa harsh.

 

But do keep us updated here.

 

Who knows... some of us might wanna ship our bikes over Stateside or Europe, just to ride it around and then ship it back again.

 

woah... u actually wanna do dat?

[DeusExMachina]

woah... u actually wanna do dat?

 

Just a thought. Renting a bike there is expensive.

[CMYRS]

Thanks for the replies. It is a pain in the ass to ship the bike.. but not 5K. I got a quote for 1.2K including the crate. After the singapore gov gives me the tax rebate... the cost will be about 500 usd. The bike costs 6700 usd new in Hawaii (i looked last time I went back). That is 9K sgd. The bike cost me 16.5K SGD here which to this day amazes me....although to be fair, the same shampoo that I use to buy at walmart for 99 cents costs 6 sgd at a singapore Watsons...so its not just motorcycles that are expensive. Anyways, the cut off point for shipping the bike is 8.5K. The bike is only 6 months old and I'm pretty good about cleaning and polishing it. I think the problem is that demand for the bigger bikes is just not large because one must jump through several hoops to get the license.

 

Its just harsh that I will lose 45% in 6 months and 1700 km on Motorcycle...but thats part of having to leave the country. Oh well...

 

hmmmm.....im not sure if im reading this right but doing the maths, it doesnt seem worth the effort shipping the bike back.

 

to keep things simple, i will convert everything to sgd using an exchange rate of 1.38

 

new bike in the US - SGD9246

 

current bke in spore bought for SGD16,500

 

can be sold at 50% less for SGD8,250

 

can be shipped back at cost SGD690

after rebate from the govt

 

 

if you sold your bike at 50% less and went back to buy a new one, basically, u need to outlay an additional SGD996 to get a new one.

 

but if u were to ship it back, it will cost u SGD690, basically u save SGD306 from buying a new one getting back.

 

to me, it makes more sense to sell it here and return to the US to look for a new one.

 

1. hassle - all the paper work and worry abt if the bike will be damaged when

it is shipped over

 

2. warranty - if ure buying it fr the dealer there, peace of mind should u face

any issues with the bike

 

3. selling price in spore - i believe if u can get better than 50% for a bike with

such low mileage. even if u can squeeze a couple of

hundreds more fr the sale, you can actually

"break-even". and with the cash, buy a new one in

the US.

 

one thing abt shopes here, they go by appearance, turn up in a 5 figure suit and ask for a price and turning up in shorts and slippers the next day, u get a much discounted price.

 

sharks i tell u.

 

best of luck which ever way it goes mate!

[pressman_g]

Thanks again. Yes, it is deff easier to sell here and buy a new one in Hawaii. On the other hand, if I ship the bike home, I get to personally take out all my frustrations on that stupid electronic tax machine mounted on the handle bar. I really hate that ugly thing. It would be priceless satisfaction to destroy it into a million pieces. Buy yes you are right, selling around 10K and buying same bike new in Hawaii would be better. Actually, if I ever found someone selling a 6 month old for 50% off I'd buy that in a second. I have the bike listed for 11K now. Guess I'll lower that to 10K.

 

Hmm.. i didn't show up to loois motor in shorts and flip flops but jeans and a button shirt. Maybe too casual. I have a few more weeks to sell.

[HeathHolden]

The Singapore government will track you down with the secretly embedded tracking module they put on everything (sometimes they call it an I.C) and cane you when you smash the **** out of that stupid ERP thing! I want to help. You know they have an ERP gantry out at sea now to keep charging you as your bike gets across the pacific!