Should I bother bringing a newer car

You see the whole range of cars. Someone on STX even drives a RR. What I don't see are many exotic sports cars.

Things to consider:

Full insurance (comp & collision ) is very expensive. If you have an older less valuable car you can just purchase liability insurance and be done with it. Liability will cost you much more than it would stateside for much reduced coverage so plan accordingly.

Don't bring a car from the mainland unless you have checked to see that there is a dealer on island to fix it. Often dealers don't have that complete an inventory of parts so taking it to an independent means an even longer waits for parts as they are shipped in.

The paved roads in the VI get pot holes. Sometimes you don't see them at night or during rain storms. Bigger tires assorb the hits better than low profile tires. Be sure your car is sturdy. Fancy rims are expensive. If you hit a hole and bend a rim it is better to have a less expensive rim to replace.

There are many interesting unpaved roads up into the hills or down to secluded beaches. Having a 4wd vehicle is ideal to have when trying to navigate these roads. If you decide to buy a 4wd get it set up for off roading including skid pads and tow hooks.

White cars are practical, they stay cooler in the sun and it is easier to touch up the paint yourself. To prevent rust you need to touch up scratches quickly.

You also need to keep hinges and latches oiled.

Dark colors show dust and water spots. Since it rains almost every day, water spots are a fact of life. In the summer, when all the dust is coming over from Africa, water spots are very noticeable on dark cars. Car washes are few and far between so if you want your car to be shiny clean you may need to do it yourself.

The sun is hot here, so think about what type of seats you want. Some people like leather, but I think it is to hot. If you are wearing shorts you need to put something on the seat so you don't scorch your legs, when you have leather or vinyl seats.

Streets and roads are narrow so scrapes can happen. Also be sure the mirrors fold back. No scrapes on my current car in the past two years, but it did have a mirror knocked off.

Parking is tight in town, so be sure the car you bringing has good bumpers to avoid damage from people parking by sound.

Jim

my suggestion is to not have a new vehicle..you won't care what kind of car you drive except for air-conditioning and I haven't seen too many vehicles here WITHOUT dents/scrapes/scratches, etc...you will have to have the brakes checked often and 4 wheel/all wheel drive has been best for us...some houses I looked at for rent were not accessible without it!
Potholes are bad here as Jim said and I have a RAV4 so I find it easy to turn around and park in small places! Roads are narrow! We didn't ship our cars....We couldn't ship one because it wasn't paid off and we tried to go through the steps to work around that and it was too much of a pain in the &%$ so we just sold it.

Mell

You have received some very good and complete answers. In addition the cost and hassel of shipping a car here is not worth it, unless you have a paid for car that you can't part with.

I will reiterate... smaller is good... somewhat "banged up" is good... paid for is good and good air conditioning is "really good".

While there are still some people here who want a car that others will notice, the "car culture" that exists in the states is not usually part of the usvi experience.

In addition a fancy car draws the attention of "bad guys" who will usually ignore an island car.

Hi,

Thank you so much Jim and Kellymac for all of the great information. You mentioned many things I hadn't thought of and your posts were very, very helpful:) 🙂 🙂 !!!

I was thinking about purchasing a PT Cruiser. I think I will reevaluate that and perhaps purchase a 4WD vehicle instead. I like the Toyota RAV4 quite a bit and will probably start pricing those.

One other quick question: Would you recommend that I purchase a car with a manual transmission or an automatic?

I drive a stick now and prefer it. One the other hand I am concerned about using stick on island when I am stopped on a steep uphill (i.e., messing around with the emergency brake to keep from rolling backward), as well as dealing with a stick in the island traffic. I am leaning toward getting an automatic -- at least until I get used to island driving.

Thank you also sxter :)!

All hills here my friend...lots of stop and go traffic...would definately go for automatic...

Dear Mell,

For what it's worth, and as an adjunct to the information and comments you've so far received, I'm a 21 year resident and have always driven a basic "island car" of some sort or another. Right now I have a 1990 Acura which I bought for $1700 six or seven years ago - bought it cheap because it had been rear-ended so the trunk is basically non-operational and I just have it wired shut. But she's a gem and I love her dearly!

I've put maybe $800 into her over the years for parts and labour and she does need to have that second CV joint replaced. She looks awful from the outside and she's been further abused in parking lots (yes, that IS a hazard!) but she gets me from A to B, is totally reliable and dependable and there goes by hardly a month when I'm not approached by some local dude who wants to buy her really badly. Why? Certainly ain't for her good looks, but they want her for the engine!

Whatever you buy, I do suggest that you get an anti-theft locking device for the steering wheel and also the locking hubs for the wheels. As strange as it may seem, hoodlums DO come and steal your wheels.

And although automatic is OK and which I have on this car, I really do miss stick. If your automatic transmission goes kaput it's a very expensive fix but if you have stick, the fix is much cheaper. And with stick, in this hilly terrain, you have much less wear and tear on your transmission.

A/C? I'm not much help there because in all the years I've been here I can't recall that I had a car with A/C. Windows down, does one really care?

Welcome to the VI and I hope I've been of some assistance!

Hi STT Resident,

Yes you very much have been of assistance -- thank you :)!

All of this helpful info from everyone has me completely rethinking my car purchase, and will probably save me thousands of $$$ as well!!!

Having lived in the Detroit Metropolitan area my entire life, the "car culture" that STXR mentioned is deeply ingrained in me. It will actually be good to get away from that, because frankly I am tired of constantly spending money on newer model cars just to keep up with the Joneses.

How liberating it will be to buy a car and drive it until the end of its useful life and not to have to worry about how it looks!

I had planned to purchase a 2005 PT Cruiser (thinking that it would be a cute island car), but I am totally over that idea.
I am now looking for a good deal on a used 4WD vehicle and my focus will be on the mechanical quality and practicality as opposed to the cosmetics.

Thanks again everyone 🙂 🙂 🙂 :)!!!