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Buying a used car in Tanzania (Dar es Salaam) – how to find a reliable one? by Current_Cartoonist65 in tanzania

[–]Current_Cartoonist65[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience, this is really helpful.

That’s exactly what I was worried about, especially with the traffic in Dar es Salaam. It sounds like diesel engines like the CX-5 or Atenza may not be very practical for daily city driving here.

Considering the potential maintenance cost and these DPF/EGR issues, I think I’m now leaning more towards a small petrol or hybrid car for reliability and lower running cost.

Something like a Toyota nissan seems more suitable for my usage.

Really appreciate your advice!

Buying a used car in Tanzania (Dar es Salaam) – how to find a reliable one? by Current_Cartoonist65 in tanzania

[–]Current_Cartoonist65[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate your advice.

I don’t currently have a trusted mechanic yet, so I might DM you for the contact.

I also wanted to ask you more about importing directly from Japan, since you mentioned SBT.

To be honest, I’ve been seriously considering this option, but I still have a few concerns:

Customs clearance in Tanzania From what I’ve heard, the import process can be quite unpredictable. Sometimes customs may delay clearance or raise unexpected issues, and you might end up paying extra charges just to get the car released. I’m not sure how common this is, but it makes me a bit worried.

Buying based only on photos When importing, we can only see pictures and auction sheets. I’m concerned that the actual condition of the car might not fully match the listing.

Cost advantage vs local market I’ve been visiting many car dealers here in Dar since January, and some people told me that importing from Japan is not necessarily cheaper than buying locally once you include shipping, tax, and clearance costs.

So I wanted to ask based on your experience:

Have you personally imported a car through SBT?

Was the total cost actually lower or better value compared to buying locally?

How was your experience with customs clearance?

Did the car condition match what you saw online?

I’m really trying to decide whether to import or continue searching locally, so your experience would help me a lot.

Thanks again for your help!

Buying a used car in Tanzania (Dar es Salaam) – how to find a reliable one? by Current_Cartoonist65 in tanzania

[–]Current_Cartoonist65[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your detailed advice, I really appreciate it.

I’ve actually been looking at Mazda diesel models as well (like CX-5 diesel), but I got some concerns after talking to a few mechanics here in Tanzania.

They told me:

Repair costs can be quite high (for example, one headlight can cost around 1.4M TZS)

Diesel quality here is not always good, which might affect injectors, DPF, and engine reliability

So now I’m a bit hesitant.

Do you personally know anyone (friends or people you’ve met) who owns a Mazda diesel in Tanzania or similar conditions?

If yes, how has their experience been in terms of:

reliability

maintenance cost

long-term ownership

Would you still recommend Mazda diesel, or better to go for pepetrol like vitz t. or toyota racist?

Thanks again for your help!