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Buying legal end-of-life cars from Delhi and re-registering elsewhere

17th October 2024, 16:17 by Kanad Kalasur

I want to do a sense check of how lucrative it is to purchase these cars and run them till it is legally/practically possible

BHPian SiddharthR recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Since the vehicle scrappage policy has come into action we can see fairly low mileage higher age cars being offered for cheap prices, especially those closer to their end of legal life. I want to do a sense check of how lucrative it is to purchase these cars and run them till it is legally/practically possible.

For example - 2011-12 F10 BMW 5 series Petrol single owner with ~50k kms is available in the range of 6L to 7L in Delhi
Similarly, 2013-15 Porsche Cayenne single owner with ~50k kms is available for

I am keeping the maintenance costs aside for this discussion - this has always been a factor

1. Does it make sense to purchase the car from a different city and transfer to Mumbai. What costs are to be expected for re-registration/transfer etc? Are there any challenges in transferring such cars out of state?
2. What ownership challenges can be expected going forward (non-maintenance)? Do RTO officials/police track down such vehicles and seize the car etc?
3. How easy or difficult is it to extend the car's useable life officially? Upto how long can it be extended if the car is well maintained?
4. Is it feasible to change the body shape to a newer type to hide the car age and run it post the legal limit? Will there be challenges in getting insurance etc? I've seen some dealers offering this service

I basically want to understand if it is possible to buy a 10 year old Porsche Cayenne Diesel for 15L, convert the body to the latest design and enjoy it for 10 more years.

Here's what BHPian saikishor had to say in this matter:

Re-registering the vehicle itself is a hectic process. You need to pay tax again, take an NOC etc etc. Apart from that, it is not really worth the effort unless the car you are looking for is a very special one(say a E46 petrol manual). Also, you need to keep in mind that the future for old cars is not promising, as the govt might impose scrapping at any moment.
So in simple words, it is not really worth the effort.

Meanwhile, here's what BHPian Entsurgeonhad to add:

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1. Does it make sense to purchase the car from a different city and transfer to Mumbai. What costs are to be expected for re-registration/transfer etc? Are there any challenges in transferring such cars out of state?
As long as the original registration has not been expired in Delhi, getting an NOC and registering such a car out of state is no big deal. People buy vehicles from out of state and re-register them in another state routinely. It's not a Herculean task.
Re registration costs vary state to state but they are not too little. In almost all states, a vehicle registration is anyway valid only for 15 years. After this, one needs to get their vehicle registration renewed. Cost involved is low if done before expiry of existing registration. Extension is usually granted for 5 years.
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2. Do RTO officials/police track down such vehicles and seize the car etc?
In Delhi, many cars with expired registration parked on public roads were seized indeed. Once such a car is out of Delhi, any traffic cop can check the registration and other papers. Let's not talk about such cars as what I understand from your query is, you would anyway keep her legal. If you got a car registered outside of Delhi, its a legal car and Delhi cops won't seize her just because it was first registered 10/15 years back in Delhi
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3. How easy or difficult is it to extend the car's useable life officially? Upto how long can it be extended if the car is well maintained?

Its a routine process. Both getting her registered outside Delhi and then keep getting her re-registered as and when needed. What usually happens is, most Insurance companies don't provide comprehensive cover for such old cars and while a third party liability cover would be good for legal purposes, Risking your 20-30 Lakhs (including out of state registration) on streets is not to everyone's appetite.

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4. Is it feasible to change the body shape to a newer type to hide the car age and run it post the legal limit? Will there be challenges in getting insurance etc? I've seen some dealers offering this service.
While it's not impossible, it's not advisable either. The costs of spares would be high for high end cars. Then again only a face lift would be easier. Most cars of next generation have totally revised body panel designs, sizes mounting points. As an example, you can modify a Gen 4 2014 Honda City to a face lift Gen 4 2018 one by changing the bumpers headlights and a few chrome inserts etc. ( These won't be cheap thus negating any vost benefits) But you can not install the same of a Gen 5 model. The entire body and every panel is different.
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I basically want to understand if it is possible to buy a 10 year old Porsche Cayenne Diesel for 15L, convert the body to the latest design and enjoy it for 10 more years

You can enjoy her sure. The added risk is, your home state may also follow Delhi way and disbands the Diesel cars over 10 years old. That said, the only advantage in buying from Delhi is wider choice. Otherwise, any financial gain in buying a 9-and-a-half-year-old diesel car would be negated by re-registration costs in other states. Many states up north ( Chandigarh comes to mind) do charge/charged a flat registration cost on vehicles but that would only help if you are from that region. In most other states, paying 5-15% of original invoice value would bring her to the price range not so far from prices in your home state. Not worth the loss of sleep over it
Well, unless you plan to buy a Rolls or a Ferrari.

Check out BHPian Turbanator's reply:

Quote from BHPian SiddharthR:
I want to do a sense check of how lucrative it is to purchase these cars and run them till it is legally/practically possible
1. Does it make sense to purchase the car from a different city and transfer
Good points. Yes, it makes sense to buy and get it transferred. It depends on the state of re-registration and also the costs/ condition of the vehicle being the foremost. As these cars were originally multiple times the present costs, expect the service charges or the costs of spares to correspond with the original sales price. However, a lot of that component (sales price) was customs/ duties/ taxes extra, so one can find spares cheaper overseas. Also, some manufacturers are very fair in pricing, like BMW.
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2. What ownership challenges can be expected going forward (non-maintenance)? Do RTO officials/police track down such vehicles and seize the car etc?
It's always a good idea to have a car in your own name per the address you live at. If you plan to use it for some short time, I don't think anyone will bother. In North India, no one bothers, and also in most parts of Gujarat/ Rajasthan or even Maharashtra, I can say, no one flags. One of my colleagues is using a CH-registered Etios in Mumbai. It's in the name of the company, so he has an excuse if stopped, but he was never asked.
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3. How easy or difficult is it to extend the car's useable life officially? Upto how long can it be extended if the car is well maintained?
Will depend on the car. Most BMWs or Porsches will be good for 15-20 years at least with regular maintenance. Air suspension is something that will fail on most of these cars (if equipped) and can be a major expense.
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I basically want to understand if it is possible to buy a 10 year old Porsche Cayenne Diesel for 15L, convert the body to the latest design and enjoy it for 10 more years
I don't think one gets such kits, but why will I do that? The older ones are so beautiful, and no one is going to stop you in a 10-year car!!
Finding registration charges is important, as a member has mentioned for TN. I don't know about Maharashtra, but in Chandigarh, it’s calculated based on the current IDV. It appears to me a very easy and correct/ logical way of calculations. You simply pay new tax based on the IDV on insurance, and the new registration happens.
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If it is a car with a legit odometer but it is with a dealer, it already had half its parts sold to garages and replaced with cheap counterfeits or used parts from aforementioned wrecked vehicles.
No, for a dealer, the car is an investment. They won't take anything off unless they are not able to sell the car. Selling an ECU or a gearbox from a Cayenne and replacing it with something that's broken but still working to complete a sale is a far-fetched idea.
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A 10 year old Cayenne is still a money pit even if it is a single owner car, so I hope you know what you are in for.
No, Porsche is a fairly reliable brand. It's not a Tata that things will fail on its own. Exception: Air Suspension, as I previously mentioned. If one can find a good Cayenne ( Turbo or GT line), what's the harm? Pay inspection charges to a Porsche dealer, get a report, and maybe an extended warranty (Porsche sells old car warranties). One can fulfill the dream of having one at 10-20% of the costs of a new one, which will give you multiple times more enjoyment over a new Mahindra.