overvalued currency, page-18

The most expensive imported item the average Aussie buys is a car.
If you check overseas prices for new and used cars you'll discover they are about
30% cheaper than here.
The reason for this is twofold:

(a) Australian Design Rules (ADRs) which do not recognise some overseas standards of safety and testing.

(b) The costs of landing a car in Australia

Australan Design rules are there to protect the major Auto Manufacturers
market and not the australian motorist. It is absurd that we do not recognise
Japanese standards and instead use a modified version of European standards.
To crash test a vehicle in Australia can cost up to a quarter of a million dollars and that is only one test of about 50 that have to be done.

Landing costs for a new luxury car ex japan such as a Lexus LS 460 are:
Shipping and insurance ...........................$2000
Australian wharf /agency charges............$ 500
Quarrantine services ................................$ 300
Custom services........................................$ 250
Import duty................................................$7,500
Luxury car tax...........................................$15,000
GST........................................................... $18,000

Thats a total of $43,550 on a $200,000 luxury car

Please note the tax on tax: import duty-Luxury car tax and GST on top of the lot
including distribution and dealer margins.

Import duty and luxury car tax is justified by the government to protect our local manufacturing. If you dont like the charges then you should be advocating the abolitiion of taxpayers funds to local manufacturers so that you can access cheaper cars from overseas.
Cheers
Moorookamick