Import 4runner to canada

gbc

New member
Hello,

any canuck has managed to import a 4runner into canada? If so, is it complicated? I know there is a lot of paperwork involved, but I heard that the dealer takes care of most of it....
 
Register to hide this ad
What part of canada do you live in. Yes I imported a 4rnr via a broker here in Calgary. If you need more info or have some questions just PM me. Good luck.
 
A couple people here have imported - usually saves about $5,000 or more by the time you're done with duty and fees. With CDN dollar now above par, makes financial sense to import, just be sure of what you're buying and follow all the steps in the long paperwork trail.

Start here to begin the long but worthwhile process:

Importing from the US.

Good luck and let the board know how it goes.
 
Last edited:
Yup,

I imported my 2010 Limited w nav and slider (all Canadian Limiteds have third row which I did not want) from Utah back in November. Did all the work myself.

It was 5 months old with 6000 miles on it and cost $44000 taxes/duty all in for BC (12%). A comp used Canadian one if you could find one was about 52k Taxes in and a new one 58k taxes in.

It is very easy to do, the hard part is finding the right one. Toyota USA doesn't allow dealers to sell new to Canadians, there are complicated ways around that but I think a near new minty one is the best deal.

I also considered a Trail with nav as the Canadian Trails don't get nav as an option, but they are even harder to find and in the US they were almost as much $$s as the Limited.
 
Just remember to include fuel, hotels and your time in your calculation. I found there wasn't anything to save after I would have paid the GST and Duty on the import. All "j" code vehicles have to pay duty... So the 10% you think you're saving goes away at the boarder and you still don't have a warranty and a KPH spedometer. (Not a big deal if you never sell the truck...)

I'm going to buy another 5th gen from the dealer, next week. first one got wrote off on a moose. Some things aren't worth the hassel.

Jason
 
Just remember to include fuel, hotels and your time in your calculation. I found there wasn't anything to save after I would have paid the GST and Duty on the import. All "j" code vehicles have to pay duty... So the 10% you think you're saving goes away at the boarder and you still don't have a warranty and a KPH spedometer. (Not a big deal if you never sell the truck...)

I'm going to buy another 5th gen from the dealer, next week. first one got wrote off on a moose. Some things aren't worth the hassel.

Jason

Wrong, Warranty is valid in Canada and speedo in KPH and MPH, I saved at least 8k on a Limited vs used and 14k off what a new Canadian one is. After all taxes and duties.
(though not a direct comparison)
 
Last edited:
Does anyone know of any west coast Toyota dealers in the US that will sell to Canadians?

My dealer is low balling me on my trade in as well as not moving on msrp. Since my trade in is also a US vehicle I figured i might get better trade in south of the border. Kbb lists my trade in value higher than Canadian black book does....
 
Does anyone know of any west coast Toyota dealers in the US that will sell to Canadians?

My dealer is low balling me on my trade in as well as not moving on msrp. Since my trade in is also a US vehicle I figured i might get better trade in south of the border. Kbb lists my trade in value higher than Canadian black book does....

Toyota are really strict on that unless you have some connections or have a US residency. I think trading in to the US will cost you more due to tax implications, depending on your Province. There is a local wholesaler here that may take your trade and can get a new US vehicle for you. PM me if you want the name.

If you don't have to have brand new a slightly used US vehicle can save $$$.
 
Definitely no reason you can't do it. There is a Toyota dealership in Niagara Falls, ON, who has a '10 4Runner Limited for sale.... 6,000km, no navigation, US vehicle (openly stated in the ad). The dumb part is that they are selling it at Canadian market prices and making a huge profit, especially if they picked it up from an auction down in the US.

I couldn't be bothered with the hassle. Got a decent deal on our 4R since it was still a "new" 2010, but had been driven for 2,000km by a manager.
 
Alot depends on whether you want a new unit or used. I've just finished bringing in a new Trail through 'gamer''s importer in Calgary. I got the dollar at about 1.0130, minus the exchange fee of .008. When all the costs and fees are added up, it came out to just about the same cost as I would have paid here. But, I did get the nav system with the JBL stereo, which isn't available in the Canadian Trail. That's worth about $2,500 U.S, which was my end benefit of doing all this.

If you're looking at buying new in the U.S., good luck finding any dealer that will sell it to you if you don't have an American address to title it to. Toyota U.S.A. apparently has a rule that they will not sell to Canadians unless the unit has 'used' status, meaning at least 4 months under a title other than the dealer's.

If you are looking at used, I don't think there is much to bringing it in. Just the border crossing, which requires a few documents, thus some legwork on your part. Look at RIV.ca to fill you in on that.

Also, yes, the warranty is fully valid on both sides of the border. I wouldn't have done this if it wasn't. The American speedo does have km/h on it, so the only work required for Transport Canada inspection approval was the wiring of the daytime running lights directly to the ignition instead of the seperate switch.

Duty for bringing in a vehicle manufactured outside North America (4R is built in Japan) is 6.1%, and also be aware that Toyota U.S.A. is apparently raising 4R prices $600. (There's a post on here about that). And as I was warned at the outset, the dollar exchange is the deciding factor. I'd say at about 1.02 - 1.03 would be the pivot.

Good Luck.
 
If you are looking for an extended warranty I believe a US extended warranty won't be supported in Canada and you cannot put a Canadian extended warranty on a US vehicle - try warrantydirect.ca if you want one.
 
I imported a Limited back in November and you really need to crunch the numbers well. Options vary (navi only on loaded Limited in Canada), prices vary and distance from Canada... so the savings boil down to the deal you make on the specific vehicle, new or used. I was originally looking for a Trail with Navi but found that the biggest bang for the CDN buck was a minty slightly used Limited with Navi. If you pay full US MSRP the savings are minimal... most people don't pay that.

The decision and savings are more contingent on the specific vehicle deal rather than general assumptions.
 
Thanks for the replies guys.

My current vehicle, the Tundra, is a US vehicle. So part of the issue, for me, was the trade in price i was being offered by dealers in Canada. Upon looking up the value in Canadian Black book and the US KBB, I got a higher number from KBB, so I thought it might be even more worthwhile to buy out of the US. Sounds like it is going to be quite a hassle though and I may end up spending more on gas and travel than its worth??
 
I looked into it hard and found I might have saved $1000.00 on the price for an SR5 , but then I would of had to add a block heater , mud flaps and running boards , speedometer annoyance , 1500 miles on my new rihg from the broker driving it up here , possible bad resale and some people said it is a bigger hassle to get warrenty work done. Don't know if the warrenty thing was true or not? So I bent over and bought one up here with the factory mud flaps and black running boards and stuff , I think I am money ahead of buying from the U.S. and having it brought across the boarder. What I cant understand is the price difference of $10,000.00 for the same vehicle, our dollar is higher , how can anyone justify the price difference except for pure rape and greed . I know for sure the average Canadian making $45 dollars an hour is not as well off as the average American making $45 an hour
 
Importing 2011 4Runner to Ontario

Has anyone imported a 4Runner into "Ontario". We have lived in the US for 4 years and are relocating back to Ontario (former residents) in a few months. We purchased a 2011 a year ago and just working the numbers to see if it is even worth it financially before going down the importation process itself. The numbers are one thing, the process itself can be brutal, i.e. inspection, licensing etc. We know we already have issue with DRL. The only thing that works in our favor is that because we were residents of the US, we get a $10,000 exemption at the border for taxes and duty. That alone should save us some money. The big question for us is that we have been told different things from the border as it relates to how they assess value for duty on vehicles. One time I called, they told me the purchase price. Another time, they said they use the Canadian Red Book value Purchase price is good for us but NOT red book value as the vehicle is valued significantly higher than what we paid. So ultimately finding out how they do this will help us to determine if we want to just sell it before going back. If anyone has any experience or advice specific to Ontario, I would appreciate it! Thanks
 
Has anyone imported a 4Runner into "Ontario". We have lived in the US for 4 years and are relocating back to Ontario (former residents) in a few months. We purchased a 2011 a year ago and just working the numbers to see if it is even worth it financially before going down the importation process itself. The numbers are one thing, the process itself can be brutal, i.e. inspection, licensing etc. We know we already have issue with DRL. The only thing that works in our favor is that because we were residents of the US, we get a $10,000 exemption at the border for taxes and duty. That alone should save us some money. The big question for us is that we have been told different things from the border as it relates to how they assess value for duty on vehicles. One time I called, they told me the purchase price. Another time, they said they use the Canadian Red Book value Purchase price is good for us but NOT red book value as the vehicle is valued significantly higher than what we paid. So ultimately finding out how they do this will help us to determine if we want to just sell it before going back. If anyone has any experience or advice specific to Ontario, I would appreciate it! Thanks

Don't know about Ontario specifically as they have unique insurance issues, but the RIV process is easy and I got my loaded Limited imported for $44 grand all taxes/duties in on the road here in BC. It was a mint super low mile vehicle and a comparable in Canada at the time was about $54 grand all taxes in on the road (new $53 plus taxes) . Warranty is no problem.

So process is easy and
4runner has a higher value in Canada (I saved about $10 grand yours may be different as the models vary a little)

If it is a year old they use the Book value..

Probably worth it.. to import..

Is there a lien on it? If so then don't bother...
 
Not sure if this is an option to you, but I maintain property in the States. In so doing, I keep the vehicle titled down there, which allows me to maintain insurance down there (it covers me anywhere in North America). As you probably remember, Canadian insurance is about three times as expensive, so I save there, plus I didn't have to import anything.
 
Not sure if this is an option to you, but I maintain property in the States. In so doing, I keep the vehicle titled down there, which allows me to maintain insurance down there (it covers me anywhere in North America). As you probably remember, Canadian insurance is about three times as expensive, so I save there, plus I didn't have to import anything.

It is illegal for a Canadian to drive a US tiled vehicle into Canada, unless you are importing and do the paperwork at the border via declaration.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
278,307
Messages
3,554,056
Members
248,016
Latest member
Advally Service

Trending content

Back
Top