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Kommando posted:I'm hosting an auspol goonmeet on sat night at South Bank in brisbane. some goons from Sydney are coming up. you're welcome to join. at this stage it will be at Stokehouse. Dammit I'm going to America tomorrow (FOR EVSIES) or I'd totally crash this, how awesome. I'm going to Ben's Burger's tonight I'm loving excited as helllllllllllll but I've never been to Stokehouse, have heard good things.
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Mar 31, 2015 08:00
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Kommando posted:I'm hosting an auspol goonmeet on sat night at South Bank in brisbane. some goons from Sydney are coming up. you're welcome to join. at this stage it will be at Stokehouse. Cool let's do itttt bringing another lurker Brisbane goon
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Mar 31, 2015 12:44
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So my holiday working visa came through today  as a result I'm beginning to research buying a vehicle. I plan start in Melbourne, buy a car and then roadtrip along the coast headed north looking for a smaller place to settle into (not a big city cat). Some of my questions are about changing provinces and what happens to the registration? How much is a roadworthy? and should I eschew any car that isn't sold with one? My upper limits for price would be about $3000 US. I've seen cars w/o registration and road worthy that are supposedly working for around $2000. Would a car $500 more with those things be better? plus any tips, tricks and anecdotes would be welcome. Also after I buy the car i think it would cool to let the thread name her!Edit: Also I have an iPhone 5 so it's good to go with a SIM card. What is the most affordable network for a guy traveling between the states? anymore? (thanks Pompous Rhombus) or is it like the US where that isn't a thing Sneaky Fast fucked around with this message at 08:55 on Apr 1, 2015 |
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Apr 1, 2015 05:42
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Sneaky Fast posted:So my holiday working visa came through today 1) We call them states here  I've been navigating this stuff over the last few months myself! Here's what I've learned: 2) If you're not a resident of the new state, you *should* be exempt from having to re-register (which probably also means re-pitting). On a WHV I don't think it should be an issue. However, if the rego comes due while you're interstate, make sure you can renew it online rather than in person. Backpackers seem to tout WA cars as being particularly good for this, not sure if the other states are worse. I'm pretty sure it can be done online in Tassie too, be surprised if other states mandated a personal appearance. 3) In the vast majority of cases, I personally wouldn't mess with a car that doesn't have current registration. If it's something you *really* want, or you had a lot of wiggle room and/or were handy with cars and had the tools, maybe. The reason is you will have to get the car pit passed (a safety inspection), and you don't know what kind of expensive repairs might be lying in wait before you can actually register the car. Like you noticed, the stuff that's out of rego is substantially cheaper... if I was selling a car and knew it was going to "sail over pits", wouldn't it make more sense to just pony up for the inspection and sell it in registration for more money? Sure, there are a few genuine hard lucks stories, personally I 100% disregard any seller's claim about how easy it will be to register their unregistered car. Hilariously (to me), you can just keep renewing registration on your clapped-out hoopty and never need to get your car re-inspected (at least down here in Tassie). Theoretically an inspector can write you a ticket that requires you to report for an inspection if they see anything amiss, I don't think it's very common though, mostly with conspicuous and dodgily-modified 4x4s. The whole system seems like a rather pointless inconvenience to me: either require inspections yearly/biannually like Japan or just don't require them at all, like many parts of the US. Not sure about other states but Tasmania has a 90 day grace period if the registration lapses, where you can re-register the vehicle without having to re-pit it, which is totally fine and not something I'd view as a problem. Do take into account the remaining rego value when you're looking at cars (probably about ~$50/mo in most cases?), especially when you're buying on the low end. You should have no problem getting a running car for US$3K, have a look around Gumtree. Petrol is substantially more expensive than in US, so it's worth considering something that's going to offer you good fuel economy. For example, if you're planning to sleep in the vehicle but maybe just occasionally, a 4cyl wagon might make more sense than a full-sized van/4WD. Your best bet is probably buying off a departing backpacker, they usually throw in all sorts of accessories (esky, camping gear, fishing gear, surfboard, etc) to boot. I may actually wind up ignoring my advice about buying a car without rego someday... I'd really like a microvan (like a Suzuki Carry or Daihatsu Hijet), but they are fairly rare in the Aussie market generally, which means finding one in Tasmania's little microcosm economy is very difficult. I can usually find a few for sale in Victoria, so I may just deal with the hassle of buying a vehicle from interstate and re-pitting it here (might as well buy something without rego since the Victoria RWC doesn't mean jack down here, and drive it down on a permit), if I decide it's really worth it. Pompous Rhombus fucked around with this message at 08:07 on Apr 1, 2015 |
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Apr 1, 2015 07:56
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So I'm looking at this vehicle. http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/carrum-downs/cars-vans-utes/1994-bmw-318i-manual/1074605191 in the ad the guy says there is a oil leak, which I've asked about it in the BMW thread in automative insanity. In the ad, the seller offers to get it Roadworthy tested for 500 on top of his asking price, should i do that? or would it be more affordable to get the car done myself if he is so sure? My gut says have him do it.
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Apr 3, 2015 02:14
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Well roadworthys cost $72.50 so... hm.
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Apr 3, 2015 04:06
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hi goons goon meet at stokehouse? what time? im in brisbane but internet is limited sorry
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Apr 4, 2015 05:28
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Thanks for joining the goonmeet, sorry i didnt reply to this thread, but you found us all the same. Abe you left to get food and never returned  I hope you found a burrito and I look forward to seeing you in Hong Kong.
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Apr 5, 2015 01:04
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Sneaky Fast posted:So I'm looking at this vehicle. http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/carrum-downs/cars-vans-utes/1994-bmw-318i-manual/1074605191 in the ad the guy says there is a oil leak, which I've asked about it in the BMW thread in automative insanity. In the ad, the seller offers to get it Roadworthy tested for 500 on top of his asking price, should i do that? or would it be more affordable to get the car done myself if he is so sure? My gut says have him do it. Don't buy an old European car to road trip around Australia in. Buy something common like a Holden, Ford or Toyota.
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Apr 7, 2015 08:35
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Hey guys. American guy here moving to central QLD later this month (by way of Canada) on a transfer from my employer. How hard is it for foreigners to buy a car? Any trouble at all? I have a week in Rockhampton to get settled before going inland, and was hoping to be able to purchase a car in that time period. Is it realistic to assume I'll be able to do that? Additionally, I got some info from my employer for doing a novated lease which is really weird and different from what we have in North America. also I was quoting it and like wtf how can it possibly cost north of $1800/mo. to lease a pickup? I have cash on hand too so just wondering, am I missing something or is it going to be a better deal for me to just buy something cash? I have no idea how much fuel, registration, insurance, and the other things covered in the lease would cost independently but can't see how it adds up to that much. The websites just keep talking about how much money you save by doing the lease, but the monthly cost seems incredibly high compared to what I am used to.
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Apr 7, 2015 09:08
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Absolute Zero posted:Hey guys. American guy here moving to central QLD later this month (by way of Canada) on a transfer from my employer. It's pretty easy, backpackers do it and they're not even residents. Double-check on Queensland's Department of Transport to see what fees, etc you may be liable for. It's probably not too bad, although keep in mind what I mentioned a few posts back about rego/inspections. If you can (pretty sure you should be able), might want to covert your Canadian or US license to an Aussie one; it's been good for getting me residents' discounts here in Tasmania, plus it's nice to know it'll always be accepted as valid ID anywhere in Australia. Is that like a short-term lease? I remember looking in to renting something bare-bones back in the US for like 1-2 months and the rates were similarly ridiculous, I assume it's just something companies do on occasion for ~reasons. You are definitely better off buying something, although with just a week and especially in a smaller area like Rockhampton, you may have to settle. Pro-tip on Gumtree: at least in my experience, people will basically never ever respond to an email; if you're interested in something, at least send a text, if not call them.
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Apr 7, 2015 09:20
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Yeah it sounds like getting a DL is pretty easy. I have one from BC at the moment, and had a few former co-workers who have gone ahead of me who had no problems. The lease is a minimum 12 months, with some discounts for longer terms. The trick is that the amount gets deducted from salary pre-tax so there is supposed to be some savings there, but still seems excessively expensive. Thinking I might just go for something cheap initially. I really want a Hilux as I've been driving a Tacoma in the US/Canada the last few years, but man shits expensive down there and with no winter I guess driving a little car w/o 4wd isn't a big deal. Absolute Zero fucked around with this message at 09:34 on Apr 7, 2015 |
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Apr 7, 2015 09:30
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Absolute Zero posted:Hey guys. American guy here moving to central QLD later this month (by way of Canada) on a transfer from my employer. I was on a novated lease for the last 8 years (qld govt employee) with my car/s, don't do it unless you have cash to pay out the residual at the end IMO though it is incredibly convenient and great while it's happening. I'm also a Rockhampton girl so let me know if you want me to recommend some places, I just moved to NE USA so I can't help with actually hanging out but I'd be happy to make any other kind of recommendations you might be interested in. Personally, were I you, I'd buy a car outright if you have the cash. The novated lease I was on covered everything - repairs, maintenance, tyres, petrol, insurance, registration etc - but it's not a cheap or easy way to obtain a car unless you are cashed up and will have no issue paying out the lease residual at the end. Remember though that poo poo is more expensive in Australia! Literally everything. That's why they pay us the big bucks 
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Apr 7, 2015 13:49
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Kommando posted:Thanks for joining the goonmeet, sorry i didnt reply to this thread, but you found us all the same. SO sorry for bailing you guys, friends wanted to eat and were grumpy because restaurants were super full. But yeah goon meet anywhere
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Apr 7, 2015 13:57
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pazrs posted:Don't buy an old European car to road trip around Australia in. Buy something common like a Holden, Ford or Toyota. Absolutely, holdens, fords, Toyotas or Hyundai's are very very common and have plenty of cheap spare parts. Buying a european car is asking for expensive repairs. Almost any part will need to be shipped in from Europe, sometimes taking months. old cars of 10+ years old can go quite cheaply (sub $2000) but be cautious because they might be broken, I've seen several backpackers filling their radiators on the side of the highway. Absolute Zero posted:Hey guys. American guy here moving to central QLD later this month (by way of Canada) on a transfer from my employer. Not sure about leases, but that might be to do with leasing a new car and then you're supposed to offset your tax with that. Probably not a solution for short term solo. For example: My 2002 Grand Vitara 2.0L was $6200 to purchase in 2013 and costs ~$800 a year in registration. This includes your third party insurance that covers another persons medical bills if you have an accident and are at fault. Fire/Theft and Comprehensive insurance is extra and purchased separately. I have a $300 excess and Full comprehensive with Suncorp (they pay the agreed price for my car if its wrecked) costs me $57.62 a month. **THIS IS IMPORTANT** My friend from canada had his VW Bora ran into and written off and he thought he was covered, when he only paid rego and his third party. Now he has a wrecked european car and no payout even though he was not at fault, the offending driver was drunk and he wasnt even in the car. it has a 60L tank and at typical Brisbane city petrol prices costs nearly $100 to fill and will take me 600kms. I'm going to link this so you can get an idea of what i'd cost to insure a car http://www.suncorp.com.au/insurance/car and there are plenty of other competing companies. Negative Entropy fucked around with this message at 02:03 on Apr 8, 2015 |
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Apr 8, 2015 01:58
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Thanks for the advice guys. Insurance is actually quite a bit cheaper than Canada, pretty much on par with what I used to pay when I was in the USA. In Canada registration/insurance is combined in BC, and I paid $2400 annually on my Tacoma. I think cash purchase is going to be the way to go. Dumping out all of the money at once i think will sorta keep me under control anyway -- at least I think I'd be less likely to drop north of 30k when it's all at once.
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Apr 8, 2015 07:16
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Good decision friend  Enjoy Rockhampton. Check out Chango Chango, it's a new Cuban bar on the corner of Archer and Bolsover streets in the CBD. Stockland is the large shopping centre. Do you know where you're staying?
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Apr 8, 2015 15:02
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Absolute Zero posted:but still seems excessively expensive. Welcome to Australia! Seriously, be aware that most things (yes car insurance in BC is its own separate hell) are more expensive in Australia than in Canada and especially than in the USA. $1800 a month for a leased truck is ridiculous though. You've gotten good advice, just buy outright.
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Apr 8, 2015 16:08
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Speaking of insurance any suggestions of good companies to look at? Ones that have a good rep in OZ? I'm getting a 1992 Pulsar so coverage on my car isn't really needed.
Sneaky Fast fucked around with this message at 08:55 on Apr 9, 2015 |
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Apr 9, 2015 08:47
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HookShot posted:Welcome to Australia! I thought Canadian vehicle insurance was supposed to be crazy high in some provinces... or is that just motorcycles? I've seen some Canadians posting some Looney Tunes numbers on insurance quotes.
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Apr 9, 2015 09:46
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Sneaky Fast posted:So my holiday working visa came through today If you're heading along the coast looking for somewhere to settle into you're almost certainly likely to end up in NSW anyway, so it might be worth just going to Sydney and going south, to avoid any rego issues. But that may not really be an issue at all. How are you actually planning to spend your two years? Are you going to settle down in one place for a long period of time, or keep on moving and maybe head all the way up to the Top End by the time the visa's up? Because yeah, most states say you should re-register after 90 days or something ridiculous but I very much doubt they're going to enforce that for backpackers wandering up and down the coast, especially if you can say you aren't permanently settling there (and how are they gonna prove otherwise?) The issue would come when you try to re-sell the vehicle in another state - it's still doable with interstate plates, it's just that most buyers won't be interested because they don't want to go through the hassle themselves. quote:Edit: Also I have an iPhone 5 so it's good to go with a SIM card. What is the most affordable network for a guy traveling between the states? anymore? (thanks Pompous Rhombus) or is it like the US where that isn't a thing Telstra is the only one worth a drat outside the major cities and towns, but it's costly (or at least a few years ago it was). I used to be with Optus and had 2GB of data (which I never came close to using) and unlimited calls and texts each month for $30, which I thought was pretty good, but again, you'll never have a signal out on a lonely country road. Also be aware that even under Telstra the network is nowhere near as good as it is in the States. In terms of technology Australia tends to be about 5-20 years (depending where you are) behind the rest of the world.
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Apr 9, 2015 10:29
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freebooter posted:If you're heading along the coast looking for somewhere to settle into you're almost certainly likely to end up in NSW anyway, so it might be worth just going to Sydney and going south, to avoid any rego issues. I'm already in Melbourne and the car I'm buying has rego for 3 months. My plan is to travel the next month or so and then settle in somewhere. So when it runs out ill just reregister in the state I'm settled in. I'm from the US. I can only get the one year here.
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Apr 9, 2015 12:25
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Ah, okay. Well anyway, like I said, it's probably not a huge deal. That sucks that you only get one year, but honestly I'm surprised you even get that - I didn't know the US issued (or received in turn) working holiday visas at all.
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Apr 9, 2015 16:24
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they don't hence the single year.
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Apr 9, 2015 16:34
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Pompous Rhombus posted:I thought Canadian vehicle insurance was supposed to be crazy high in some provinces... or is that just motorcycles? I've seen some Canadians posting some Looney Tunes numbers on insurance quotes. Yeah, it depends on the province. Ontario is high, I think, but BC, where I live, is also pretty bad.. The government basically forced everyone to get insurance through them because that way it would prevent insurance companies from being total assholes and it could be cheaper, basically that insurance should be run by the state which I do think is a good idea. Unfortunately, eventually governments realized JUST HOW MUCH of a cash cow a complete monopoly on basic car insurance is (you can get extended stuff through private companies) and hiked up the fees so that now it's ridiculous. I'm paying (with no discounts at all - it would go down 50% if I'd lived here 10 years or whatever) around $2500 a year for a 10-year old Prius with 300,000k on it. That includes comprehensive though, it's not just CTP.
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Apr 9, 2015 16:58
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freebooter posted:Ah, okay. Well anyway, like I said, it's probably not a huge deal. We used to not get anything, I think it started around 2007/2008? I was pretty chuffed when I found out, although wound up not taking advantage of it. Am considering maybe popping over to NZ to work this summer if I can't find anything down here though. Sneaky Fast posted:I'm already in Melbourne and the car I'm buying has rego for 3 months. My plan is to travel the next month or so and then settle in somewhere. So when it runs out ill just reregister in the state I'm settled in. I am pretty sure you won't have to re-register (again, avoid this if at all possible, you will have to get the car re-inspected too) in a new state if you're on a WHV visa. I believe you get 1-3 months grace period... after that, since you're limited to 6 months at a job, I'd just say I was only planning on staying wherever for six months and then going back to VIC, so it made no sense to re-register. Full disclosure that I have no idea if it'd work or how chill cops/vehicle inspectors are, but I have a feeling being a foreigner on a WHV would probably give you a fair bit of leeway. As another poster said though, you will probably wind up having to sell to another backpacker, it's a PITA to re-register/re-pit a car and most locals won't bother, especially for something on the low end.
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Apr 9, 2015 23:24
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Pompous Rhombus posted:We used to not get anything, I think it started around 2007/2008? I was pretty chuffed when I found out, although wound up not taking advantage of it. Am considering maybe popping over to NZ to work this summer if I can't find anything down here though. yeah, pretty much, if its an old car and it lapses in rego, its regularly seen as only good for scrap. The expense of repairs to bring it back to 'roadworthy' is often more than the car. However if the car is over 35 years old it can be registered as a 'classic' and is stupidly cheap (like sub $100 a year cheap). This is for rarely driven antiques, but an early 80s BMW or Porsche could fall under this. And even gramps old holden he drives to the bowls club. This is not a reccomendation to buy a thirty year old car.
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Apr 10, 2015 02:19
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Kommando posted:yeah, pretty much, if its an old car and it lapses in rego, its regularly seen as only good for scrap. The expense of repairs to bring it back to 'roadworthy' is often more than the car. However if the car is over 35 years old it can be registered as a 'classic' and is stupidly cheap (like sub $100 a year cheap). This is for rarely driven antiques, but an early 80s BMW or Porsche could fall under this. And even gramps old holden he drives to the bowls club. At least here in Tassie, you can't get a Special Interest tag without also having another vehicle in your name with full registration. You've also got to keep a logbook written in ink that a cop/Transport official can ask for at any time, and can't drive it more than a certain (not terribly high) number of days per year. (Although thinking about it, a "1" could become a "7" and then a "9" pretty easily...) I still think I might actually take advantage of it if I eventually get a motorbike though, be nice to have something for the occasional passenger or really terrible weather day.
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Apr 10, 2015 11:57
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I think Australia is prettier than Western Canada With amazing internet  Shout out to Kommando and Aussie goons. Will post more pictures soon. And yeah, you really really need a car to enjoy everything in this country, even when you live in Melbourne.
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Apr 11, 2015 05:34
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Sharks Below posted:Good decision friend Not sure yet they haven't booked my hotel. I'm there for the aussie mining standard 11 training so would imagine they are doing that somewhere central. Will keep the tip in mind on the bar. Another question to anyone out there in this thread. The town I'm moving to has two banking options -- ANZ or Westpac. Any advice regarding those two, or are they pretty much the same? Absolute Zero fucked around with this message at 06:17 on Apr 12, 2015 |
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Apr 12, 2015 06:11
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Absolute Zero posted:Another question to anyone out there in this thread. The town I'm moving to has two banking options -- ANZ or Westpac. Any advice regarding those two, or are they pretty much the same? Do you need to have personal interaction for your banking? All my banking is done online, with ING Direct. They don't have branches. If I'm unlucky enough to receive a cheque I think I have to either post it to ING (if I even have any envelopes!) or takes it to a certain type of Australia Post branch. Not sure.
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Apr 12, 2015 12:20
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Absolute Zero posted:
The big 4 banks are all equally evil. I try to steer people towards Bendigo bank, because they are slightly less evil. I set up my account over the internet, and the only real difference is the ATM network. You will always be able to use any ATM, its just that generally you don't get slugged $2 per transaction if its an ATM owned by your bank. You can get around this by taking money out if your account when paying for shopping. If you don't give a poo poo about divestment from fossil fuels, or ethical banking practises, then flip a coin to choose a bank.
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Apr 12, 2015 12:25
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ANZ is currently in the largest class action law suit in Australian history because of the huge and unethical fees and charges they had on credit card accounts. They got taken to court over a wide variety of poo poo,and had most of the rulings go their way, except for the $30+ fees on late payments I think. They are of course appealing this judgement and the case is due to be heard in the highest court in Australia.
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Apr 12, 2015 12:28
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Commonwealth bank has a slick phone app and you can pay by NFC with it.
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Apr 12, 2015 21:46
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Kommando posted:Commonwealth bank has a slick phone app and you can pay by NFC with it. Yeah, the Commbank app has saved me on a few occasions, or at least in the sense that it makes it easier to transfer money from one account to another so that I can (very unwisely) spend more money on alcohol.
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Apr 13, 2015 08:30
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Octy posted:Yeah, the Commbank app has saved me on a few occasions, or at least in the sense that it makes it easier to transfer money from one account to another so that I can (very unwisely) spend more money on alcohol. Its at the point where its stranger for a bank not to have mobile apps. Smaller credit unions are a bit hit and miss, but all the big banks do, and so does bendigo.
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Apr 13, 2015 10:17
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If you're like me and keep forgetting to withdraw cash, Commbank has a ton of ATMs and you can also use the 7-11 ATMs (the orange ones) without fees which is nice. I like their banking app and have a "high interest savings account" there too, which makes it easy to track all of the accounts on the same app. That being said Commbank is probably evil as hell. Edit: I obviously can't read and it's not one of the 2 options.
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Apr 13, 2015 11:01
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I am heading to Melbourne for a few days for a job interview on Thursday. I will be arriving in Melbourne on Wednesday and staying until Saturday, what should I do on my free days there?
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May 10, 2015 10:31
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I really enjoyed visiting Melbourne museum while I was down there last. I've heard good things about the penguin tours you can go on too. Depends on what you're into, really.
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May 11, 2015 23:21
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Thinking about a working holiday in Australia? Enjoy your 32% income tax as of June 1 2016, sucka.
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May 12, 2015 13:16
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