There is an old proverb in Mongolia - "When a Mongolian is given a horse he never checks its teeth". However, Mongolians now want to send a clear message - don't let Mongolia become a scrap yard!
Mongolia is changing rapidly and the Government has a clear policy of reducing the number of older vehicles on the roads in Ulaanbaatar. The import car market is booming in Mongolia, and Japan offers a range of cheap, and high quality vehicle (of 5 years old or less with readily available spare parts) for as little as US$1000. As the Government ultimately decide whether to waive the import duties on the vehicles we take, they get to say what goes!
You can raise more money at auction for your car by following some simple tips for choosing your car:
- No rust. Mongolia is a very dry country, and rust is uncommon and looks very bad.
- Availability of spare parts. Take spare parts with you, or choose makes
of vehicles that are common in Asia. - Left Hand drive. Mongolia is left hand drive, the same as continental
Europe and the US, so LHD vehicles are more valuable. - Classic Cars: for example antique vehicles such as a Morris Minor, Mini
(known as "the Mr Bean car"), a London Taxi and anything else particularly
interesting will raise more money. - Vehicles with obvious utility such as vans, trucks, lorries.
- Vehicles with good internal fabric. Cars with the back seats ripped out
do not fetch a good price. - Vehicles with badly made modifications are worth a lot less. Drilling
holes in your roof to fit a roof rack devalue your car. - Original paint work, or good paint work. Bad resprays will always knock
the value of the vehicle down. - Vehicles with good ground clearance. For example, a Suzuki SJ410 4x4 are popular (providing the internal fabric is ok) as they make great vehicles for dodging the pot holes.
- Is the vehicle particularly quirky or interesting, regardless of the value?
How do I find out if my car is going to be ok?
If you're not sure about what your vehicle might be worth, you can use our ask the expert page to put your questions about vehicles to take. This isn't an exact science, but the page should give you a rough idea of what makes a vehicle good or bad. We'll look at each case individually.
