[Pal-leo]

I was watching a BBC documentary last night, it was all about how big an organised crime this whole Super cars business is. UK police went looking for super cars hidden in the containers in the ports behind a whole pile of trash. They open the containers and they find Jags and Range Rovers and Austin etc..

Source, a gang buys these cars, producing fake documents to the finance companies and dealers. After repaying them for a month or two they are reported stolen and claim the insurance and then ship the car to other countries. (Asia - India, china, Africa and Saudi. ). This business is more lucrative than the drugs.

This one should soon be available on the bbc website. Wonder what % of cars in India are of this sort

[abhinav.gupta88]

Oh My God.
You never know.
Maybe many - as many as 100%
You just never know.
Are the imports in India new or used?

[aaggoswami]

Originally posted by Pal-leo

I was watching a BBC documentary last night, it was all about how big an organised crime this whole Super cars business is. UK police went looking for super cars hidden in the containers in the ports behind a whole pile of trash. They open the containers and they find Jags and Range Rovers and Austin etc..

Source, a gang buys these cars, producing fake documents to the finance companies and dealers. After repaying them for a month or two they are reported stolen and claim the insurance and then ship the car to other countries. (Asia - India, china, Africa and Saudi. ). This business is more lucrative than the drugs.

This one should soon be available on the bbc website. Wonder what % of cars in India are of this sort

Its sad and shocking news, but I am still unclear about a thing or two:

1)
Is it that these are stolen cars ?

2)
Do the real owners of the cars allows this theft and eventually are involved in the entire plan ?

[Pal-leo]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

Its sad and shocking news, but I am still unclear about a thing or two:

1)
Is it that these are stolen cars ?

Few of them are stolen from Parking lots and other places.. and few are bought by these gangs only to sell them outside.


2)
Do the real owners of the cars allows this theft and eventually are involved in the entire plan ?

A genuine owner, definitely not involved.. but there are gangs who pose as genuine user and sell them to make money.





Extract from the BBC website

Series revealing the methods of 21st Century car criminals, players in a sophisticated business stretching across continents and costing the country tens of millions of pounds. With exclusive access to specialist police squads across the country, we see how officers are using increasingly sophisticated methods to catch the criminals, as well as hearing from people who've suffered vehicle theft and number plate cloning. Every year, up to 20,000 luxury cars are stolen from Britain's streets and illegally exported by criminal gangs in a multi-million pound business. Teams from the Metropolitan Polices Stolen Vehicle Unit head to Cyprus, one of the biggest destinations for these vehicles, to track down stolen cars and teach the Cypriot police how to identify which cars have been illegally exported. Cyprus has an astonishing one million registered vehicles for a population of 850,000, and it's an attractive market for UK car criminals as the Cypriots drive on the same side of the road. DCs Simon Ashton and Mike Pilbeam have their work cut out, but with encouraging success - since they arrived they've identified nearly a million pounds' worth of suspect cars, including a ?100,000 Bentley GT. The programme also reveals the lengths British criminals go to when they want to steal a car to order, especially as the latest technology makes theft much more difficult. New mum Lucy Edie became a victim, even though her 4x4 was fitted with the latest immobiliser and alarm, when the thieves who targeted her car drove alongside her and held a gun to her head. We also follow Barry, a repatriation agent, who returns stolen cars for the insurance companies.
60 minutes


Check out this on the BBC Iplayer .. Cars, Cops and Criminals: Big Business

[bigman]

This is a very old story and has been going on for more than a decade.

Lots of Lancruisers used to be shipped to Pakistan via this method, they would ship the car to Pakistan and then a few weeks later claim on the insurance, so they would have a fancy car in Pakistan for free . Also there was a massive market for these cars in Albania, they would even supply Alabanian documents for the cars.

With the advent of trackers a few people were caught in the process of loading cars into containers.

[bharanidharang]

looks easy money for them if they can handle the 2 port ends (loading and unloading) by bribe or any other means.

[bigman]

Originally Posted by bharanidharang

looks easy money for them if they can handle the 2 port ends (loading and unloading) by bribe or any other means.

Not any more, Interpol have a unit dedicated to this trade and have had success in nabbing the criminals.

[PhrozenFire]

I've heard from many people that many of these cars find their way to India too. Wonder if the owners in India have any idea what the origins of their beloved cars are, for which they've paid huge amounts including all the duties and taxes.

[gunbir]

The situation 15 years ago was such where 100% of all dealer imports had shady origins. From changing VIN, interiors, body kits to resetting the odo it was done midway in Dubai and then sold in India.

Today the scenario has changed. I know of "import consultants" who will go with the supercar buyer to London, get an appointment at the dealership (initially difficult for most Indian industrialists at the Maybach showroom), help select the custom options etc. Then manage the whole import and documentation process. All this for a pre -defined fee. So no hanky panky in this route.

Of course, even today, there are importers who take shorcuts in the paperwork and tax areas and eventually the end user has to live with DRI raids and impounded vehicles. That said, stolen imports do exist. Buyer Beware!

[iceman91]

In fact one such stolen car was located in bangalore!

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by gunbir

(initially difficult for most Indian industrialists at the Maybach showroom), !

Probably why the car never sells over here, the industrialists have long memories

Originally Posted by iceman91

In fact one such stolen car was located in bangalore!

Is this the one which got flagged when it came in for a service so the "owner" literally drove the car from Sundram to Mumbai and dumped it on the dealer ?

[spawnofsatan]

Originally Posted by ajmat

Probably why the car never sells over here, the industrialists have long memories



Is this the one which got flagged when it came in for a service so the "owner" literally drove the car from Sundram to Mumbai and dumped it on the dealer ?

can someone elaborate on the maybach and indian industrialist issue?

[canonball]

From what i know wasn't it Toyato Motors - Th bandra garage imported some Maybach's one for the Pune Ghutka baron not sure where the other went. He was recently detained by the DRI in connection to the cars and bike duty evasion scam. Maybe Ajmat can confirm if this guy is connected.

I heard the ghutka has issues some other cars as well and those were returned to him as well

[V-16]

are you sure about the Gutkha king's daughter's Maybach being imported by the Bandra dealer? i read in the papers that it was bought in officially through the Mercedes dealer.

If im not wrong, the papers had the pic of some foreigner from MBIL handing over the car to the Gutka king. Maybe im wrong but that is what i remember.

[v12]

Yes, the Manickchand Maybach was imported by DCIL and was gifted to his daughter for her 18th birthday.

It could be her Mini Cooper which may have been imported by the Bandra dealer.