How soon is too soon??

[VanVonVan]

Hello Everyone,

So I have convinced my wife that getting a delica would be awesome! Now the fun part of plannin everything out. My goal is to buy from a dealer by giving them what I would like, then to fly to BC and spend a couple days there and then road trip back. As of right now there is some sweet deals to fly out may long so I guess my question is when do I start talking to a dealer?

Thanks

Russell

[psilosin]

I think the most common protocol in use is to wait between 12-16 weeks after deciding to get a delica before you call any dealers. This makes sure the delica you want has a chance to age well and gets nice and tender and juicy.

Sorry I do not understand teh question I guess. You want...you shop. Why wait...what if your wife changes her mind? Hesitation kills!

[CREGAN]

Cash in on the convincing while you can!! Once you get it and things inevitably start to need work you can say "Well, you thought it was a good idea too."

Talk to a dealer soon. Usually it takes a while for them to find the one you want or are looking for. Sometimes you can get lucky and a dealer will have it in stock already for you - that's when you race out as quick as you can with all the bottle money you can round up and cash it in.

Craig

[VanVonVan]

Well it's not really the money that is the issue, it's more the vacation time. And we want to make a vacation out of the trip....You know spend a few days in vancouver (maybe do a pyro install and meet some other deli owners), go to banff, maybe drumheller, drive as fast as I can through saskatchewan ) and then back to lovely winnipeg. The whole trip taking maybe 8 days or so.

So my question really is if I want to pick up a van in may how soon before that should I contact a dealer to find a van so it is ready to go when I want to be there. Also a bc safety is valid in friendly manitoba so I was thinking of getting my insurance done before i fly out so I can put my plates on and have a nice leisurely drive home.

Russell

[jessef]

if you want to pick up the van in May, now is a perfect time to begin looking.

If you're picky, it may take a week to a few months to find the one you're looking for.

[CREGAN]

I started my search in January of this year and on April 1 I flew out to pick it up. It can take a while if the Deli is not in stock. I started to get impatient, which never helps.

There was some strange things to stop at in Saskatchewan. We stopped at the Corner Gas site, a lighthouse in the middle of nowhere, and a giant replica of an M-16 when we were on our way to Lake of the Woods two years ago.

Craig

[roadie]

Skip the dealer and save yourself a bunch of cash.....Get a reputable exporter in Japan, tell them what you want, and they will do the rest. A couple hundred bucks spent on a customs broker and your ride is ready to pick up.......Easy cheesy lemon squeezy..................

[konadog]

Skip the dealer and save yourself a bunch of cash.....Get a reputable exporter in Japan, tell them what you want, and they will do the rest. A couple hundred bucks spent on a customs broker and your ride is ready to pick up.......Easy cheesy lemon squeezy..................

Best make arrangements for a mechanical refit if you go that route - Off the boat they all need work - some lots - if you want reliability and longevity. A good dealer should do that for you and hence why they cost most - value added.

There are also lots of private sale options too.

Good luck with the hunt!

[psilosin]

Skip the dealer and save yourself a bunch of cash.....Get a reputable exporter in Japan, tell them what you want, and they will do the rest. A couple hundred bucks spent on a customs broker and your ride is ready to pick up.......Easy cheesy lemon squeezy..................

Best make arrangements for a mechanical refit if you go that route - Off the boat they all need work - some lots - if you want reliability and longevity. A good dealer should do that for you and hence why they cost most - value added.

There are also lots of private sale options too.

Good luck with the hunt!

One thing to keep in mind with dealer warranties is that they are typically from Lubrico so are 100% useless. I've had 100x more issues with the vehicle I bought from a dealer than with any I took the time to import myself. Quicker and easier to buy from a dealer for sure but most of the ramble of NEEDEd pre-sale maintanance is a load of hot air to make you think going any route other than dealer is suicide. That said, coming all the way from Manitoba it is likely worth it to go the dealer route and hope they were not too busy prepping for a vacation to notice all the obvious flaws. Most important is to have fun and treat the purchase as an adventure.

[VanVonVan]

Thanks everyone for the great tips!!!

I am starting to seriously look now but will have to wait to spring to purchase. I think I will probably go the dealer route just because of the experiance that they have importing. It would be nice to buy the airplane tix now (only $169!!! ) but obviously the nightmare of trying to plan that out in advance would leave me with a flight and probably no van.

Russell

[nxski]

By searching for the right van you could probably save more money on the van than you could on plane tickets.

[Spearo]

While you're looking, maybe you find a nice used one. Use this forum and you might get a better vehicle than you expected :)


BTW your fast-as-possible drive through Saskatchewan might be slower than you expect, especially if you get a 300 haha!

Cheers and happy shopping!

[jessef]

BTW your fast-as-possible drive through Saskatchewan might be slower than you expect, especially if you get a 300 haha!

especially with a head wind. Last time I did it, I couldn't push 50km/hr

[after oil]

ill drive one out for you if you split the airfare home for me. im reputable, ask around...