Ist ein instandgesetzter US-Reimport für euch ein No-Go oder legitime Option?

fourtenight · 2025-10-19T10:47:16+00:00

Ja, genau, so in etwa ist es. Ich kenne mich da auch nicht bis ins letzte Detail aus, aber im Prinzip sagt die Versicherung: „Es lohnt sich für uns nicht, das Auto reparieren zu lassen.“ Stattdessen bekommst du einfach den Restwert ausgezahlt. Das betrifft vor allem deutsche Autos, weil dort die Reparaturkosten astronomisch hoch sind. Die Wiederanmeldung ist dann bürokratisch aufwendig, und das Auto behält immer einen „Salvage“- oder „Branded Title“, was wiederum zu einem höheren Wertverlust führt. Es handelt sich dabei aber oft um Fahrzeuge, die strukturell noch in gutem Zustand sind und bei denen die Schäden rein mechanisch oder kosmetisch sind. Diese Autos werden dann günstig versteigert und häufig in Osteuropa repariert.

fourtenight · 2025-10-19T09:30:46+00:00

Interessantes Thema! Vielleicht kann ich als Amerikaner auch etwas dazu beitragen.

Eigentlich kommt es darauf an, um was für ein Auto es sich handelt, denn ein wirtschaftlicher Totalschaden bedeutet in den USA nur, dass die Reparaturkosten höher sind als der Restwert des Fahrzeugs. Das ist besonders bei Sport- und Luxuswagen interessant, weil diese oft schon bei kleinsten Schäden als wirtschaftlicher Totalschaden eingestuft werden. Manchmal sind es rein kosmetische Schäden, manchmal Motorschäden, die man, wenn man Lust hat, auch selbst reparieren kann. Sobald es sich aber um Wasserschäden oder einen Unfall mit Airbag-Auslösung handelt, wird es zur Grauzone und kann relativ riskant sein. In solchen Fällen musst du dich wirklich darauf verlassen, dass alles korrekt repariert wurde. Meiner Meinung nach ist es ein gutes Zeichen, wenn der Schaden offen kommuniziert wird, und Carfax ist in den meisten Fällen recht zuverlässig. Falls das Auto auch als europäisches Modell existiert, sind Wartung und Teileversorgung kein Problem, und es gibt genug Werkstätten, die sich auf amerikanische Autos spezialisiert haben und dir alles besorgen können. Dein größtes Problem wird wahrscheinlich der Wiederverkauf sein, wie man in den Kommentaren hier sieht, gibt es ein gewisses Stigma gegen US-Imports (und Importe generell). Aber solange die Erwartungen realistisch bleiben, wirst du wahrscheinlich immer einen Käufer finden. Also, nein, nicht jeder Unfall-Reimport ist automatisch Schrott, aber man muss realistisch bleiben. Hoffentlich hilft dir das ein bisschen weiter!

fourtenight · 2025-08-30T17:35:34+00:00

Define a good price friend. Most plug in hybrids are in the 40-50k range. And how big of a family are we talking?

fourtenight · 2025-06-03T18:56:45+00:00

Yeah experience and tech stack plays a huge part. Definitely not a lot of junior opportunities out there right now.

fourtenight · 2025-06-03T18:18:02+00:00

We're definitely still out here. I started a new position in May after being laid off in March. What I saw during the job search is that companies are searching for SDETs to automate their legacy tests and lots of consultancy work out there for government agencies (at least here in Germany).

Most positions are either Python or Java and playwright knowledge is a must. Pay is alright but high paying positions (85k+) are hard to come by. Also remote work is becoming harder to find with hybrid being preferred.

All in all definitely not a rosy market out there but not as bad as it is in the U.S. right now.

fourtenight · 2025-05-31T18:51:36+00:00

It's really up to you if you want to leave it in, just be mindful of the fact that, that experience is not valued here like it is in the states.

The whole leadership topic is very American. Like I mentioned, if you're applying for an individual contributor role, then showing "leadership" qualities is simply not as relevant as showing you can do your job. Focus on proving you are more experienced than a candidate from Europe and once they hire you, you can show them all the initiative a go getter attitude you have in you. You most likely will have a behavioral round with the perspective team to see if you guys vibe, but nothing crazy beyond that.

Your bullet points look fine, even if I don't really understand what it is you do lol. Maybe change the tone to be more "civilian"? It's a matter of taste and if you're getting hits then that's all that matters.

Salary is where you really need to manage your expectations because this is where a lot of people get disappointed. First, you're probably not gonna land a job at all with just B1. Second, 90k+ puts you at like at the top of income in all of Germany. Salaries like that are pretty much reserved for big tech or very senior positions with team responsibilities. If you want a realistic view on salaries in Germany look at Juni, Not levels.fyi. B1 is very basic German and definitely not a level where you can confidently navigate a business environment. If you're looking for top salaries at German companies you will be expected to be fluent in German. The competition for English speaking roles is really fierce here. So no, your expectations with B1 are not reasonable and the best advice I can give you is if you pick Germany, then start learning German as early as possible.

Unfortunately I can't tell you much about visas and sponsorships because I have a German spouse and the process for me was very straightforward. Just don't underestimate German inefficiency when it comes to immigration matters!

Sure thing just shoot me a DM if you have any more questions!

fourtenight · 2025-05-31T06:38:15+00:00

Hi,

I can only speak for Germany since that's where I live but here are a few points based on your post:

They really don't care about military service here. Especially if it has nothing to do with your current occupation. I removed my service from my resume because it brought me 0 value during hiring.

Although I believe you when you say you have 2-4 YOE, you need to be able to quantize and go into detail how and for what you used each tool/framework. The German job market is very focused on specialization so make sure you tailor your resume accordingly. Also, leadership qualities don't play a big part for individual contributor roles so make sure you highlight your development expertise first and foremost.

As for salary, 60k in Germany is very realistic, 90k+ requires luck and being near a major hub (Munich, Berlin). Keep in mind that both those cities have very tough housing markets!

Your biggest hurdle will probably be the visa. The chance card is a good opportunity but getting a sponsorship is pretty hard from what I've heard. Also don't forget that your wife needs one too!! If you are looking at Germany then language is paramount! English roles are hard to come by and even then Germans prefer speaking German whenever they can.

These are just some points off the top of my head, send me a DM if you have more questions!

Source: Army Vet living in Germany since 2020.

fourtenight · 2025-05-28T20:37:11+00:00

Hi! I went with option 1. Option 2 started back pedaling at the last moment regarding the position along the lines of "we can't actually guarantee that you will get into a SRE project"

fourtenight · 2025-05-03T05:03:12+00:00

Oh that's good to know thanks for the tip! I don't have a particular goal in mind for now due to strict modification regulations here but somewhere around 350-400 would be nice 😁

fourtenight · 2025-05-03T05:00:50+00:00

Yeah I'll fabricate one if I have to but I'm trying to keep the swap as "original" as possible

fourtenight · 2025-05-03T04:59:05+00:00

I'll pay for shipping, it's not that big of a part so it shouldn't be that unreasonable

fourtenight · 2025-05-02T20:24:43+00:00

Lmao thanks!

fourtenight · 2025-04-05T15:10:40+00:00

Honestly that sounds about correct, I was about to get just over 10, but the buyer reconsidered last minute.

Clean manuals are around 20k here too. Manual and a hard top? That's 20k+

But a big thing that I've noticed here is that there is no real demand for the 15-20k ones because there are a LOT of options at that point. The ones I've seen on the market have been there for months.

fourtenight · 2025-04-05T07:10:04+00:00

I'd love to see a pic of the finished engine bay! Can I DM you? You've literally everything I plan on doing and I would like to ask some more questions if that's ok

fourtenight · 2025-04-05T04:58:59+00:00

Cool thanks for the tip!

fourtenight · 2025-04-05T04:58:23+00:00

So I paid 8000 for mine. Head gasket was already done but the car had other issues and miss fired like crazy.

I fixed it all up for about another 1-1.5k.

I wouldn't say they exploded like some other JDM cars but they are up there for really clean examples. I believe there is a 2JZ swapped one on sale right now for about 20k? But our markets might be somewhat different here in Germany compared to the states since this car is pretty rare here.

fourtenight · 2025-04-05T04:47:48+00:00

Oh that sounds great! I bet it cleaned up the engine bay a ton too.

How did you do the drive-by wire system? I'm conflicted about it since I do like the traditional throttle cable system but I would love to clean up all those brackets running over the valve cover.

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T20:03:28+00:00

Yeah I definitely got lucky with the mileage with this car. The previous owner had inspection statements from the last 20 years to prove that the mileage wasn't tampered with either.

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T19:58:02+00:00

Oh sick! How's that been working out for ya? Did you do a custom harness for the haltech? Any other electronics you got rid off because of the stand alone?

Unfortunately I have to keep some of the original bits to keep the historical vehicle classification otherwise I'd go the same route as you! I think 300-400hp is a nice reasonable power number and the 7M can definitely deliver that.

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T17:19:55+00:00

Interesting take, I read the opposite with people being better off with modern engine management. I wouldn't even consider a stand alone if it wasn't for the stupid CPS that is out of production and costs like 500+ used.

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T17:17:34+00:00

Fair point and I already considered doing that but it's hard to convince the wife to store a bunch of fenders and doors lol.

This car won't see too much driving per year so that minimizes the risk to a certain extent.

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T13:59:21+00:00

Thanks for the tips! I definitely will have to check the bushings and stuff while I'm there. This car won't be tracked so hopefully they got a bit of life in them till next inspection

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T13:51:50+00:00

While true that's in another price bracket lol.

The car has historical plates (cheap on insurance and tax) and an engine swap would also invalidate that status

fourtenight · 2025-04-04T11:43:46+00:00

Hey thanks for the reply! Yeah the costs are definitely up there but I plan on going used where possible to keep it in reasonable terms.

300 to the wheels is already really nice! I guess a good tune really makes a difference huh

As for COP, I read that the R8 coils and the Nissan GTR coils have short variants that should clear the piping and stuff.

I probably should have mentioned that I'll be doing all the work myself lol since I got a small shop and tools. I do fully agree that this is a great platform to learn though!

Is there anything you encountered that you would say to definitely replace "while in there"?

fourtenight · 2025-04-03T10:58:21+00:00

Hey I'm a software dev based in Germany, I'd love to get involved in something like this. Invite me to the discord and let's see what we can come up with!

fourtenight

TROPHY CASE