Buying a new car stinks!

We have a week left on our rental car and have spent quite a bit of time on the 'net searching for used cars. There is little rhyme or reason to used car prices here, but due to the harsh heat/sand conditions we've been advised to get a newer used car with low miles, and an SUV is highly recommended. Most of Kev's co-workers have advised to buy a car from an expat who is leaving, but due to the time of the year virtually no one seems to be leaving. My favorite phrase found in used car classifieds is "western expat lady owned," which in the States would usually mean something entirely different than the connotation here.

Our first trip to a recommended used car dealer resulted in hearing that the car we had seen on the 'net would not be available to see for 3 more days because it was being "polished." Due to Ramadan, and now Eid, new car dealerships hold crazy erratic hours and then trying to get a test drive the day of your visit is virtually non-existent - we have to make appointments. For example, today is Saturday, but because it is Eid the Nissan dealer only has 2 showroom guys and can't offer us a test drive on anything until Tuesday. We've also been browsing some recommended craigslist-type sites here but have quickly realized the good deals are gone in a day or two. We met with a local Qatari woman selling her '09 Altima with under 5k miles on it today. When asked why she was selling her car, she said her kids were too rough on it and she had already upgraded to a Hummer. The exterior was beat up a bit and the interior had leather seat covers. Given the kid comment, I didn't dare think what was underneath. Did I mention there is no Qatari law requiring that kids be in a car seat, booster seat or even buckled in? Grrr.

I hate to think that we will end up with a new car just to avoid the hassle and mystery of buying a used car, but we shall see. Oddly enough, we really like the Kias here and are hoping to test drive the Soul, Sorento and Sportage.

To further complete the car insanity, we first have to have money to buy a car. Needing a wire transfer from the US is further complicated by the banks being closed for Eid. Additionally, there is a mess of other steps to follow...

• Make sure you have a resident's permit and driver's license (which at this stage I do not, but Kev does)
• Find a car you like
• Get your employer to write you a letter in Arabic stating that they don't object to you buying a car (you can't do this until you have a specific car ready to buy)
• Take that letter with the car seller to the Traffic Dept. to authorize the transfer of the car registration

An interesting note about cars in Doha is that the car is insured - not you the driver - so that transfers with the sale of the car. I believe it is 3-4% of the value of the car, including a depreciation each year.

Searching for a car is slowly sucking the life out of us. Stay tuned!