How to buy a car in Canada as Tourist

As a tourist it is super easy to buy a car in Canada which is a good option if you are planning to do a longer roadtrip. Renting a car would have been more expensive than buying one after just a month. In our chase we bought the car because we want to drive from Canada to Panama. 

6 Steps to buy a Car in Canada

  1. Have a good breakfast and google used car dealers near you. We found several in one area and went there. The best state to buy a car in Canada is British Columbia where we also got ours.
  2. Ask for cars in your price range. We simply asked for the cheapest car that will get us the furthest. The dealer showed us three different cars ranging from 2,000 to 2,500 CAD$. Compare it with other offers. We took the Ford Focus because it was the cheapest option and the smallest car but still has enough space for all our equipment and you can sleep in it if necessary.
  3. Check all the important parts of the car and get all the facts you can, for example when was the last service, oil change, ... if everything seems to be good  you are ready to buy. 
  4. Sign the papers and pay. All we needed were our passports, international drivers licenses and an address in Canada. First we thought the address would be a problem but our car dealer told us we can us the address of the hostel in Vancouver. 
  5. Next step is to get the insurance and number plates. Our car dealership had an insurance guy so we just had to go to the next office door. There we could choose between a few number plates. We filled out all the details for the insurance and payed. The insurance you buy in Canada is also valid for the United States.
  6. Put the number plates on the car and you are good to go. That's it! Even we were surprised how easy it was in the end!
Signing the papers.

Proud new owners!

First drive with Baby Fred.

where: Vancouver, BC, Canada

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