Special Kudos to Randy for inspiring me to research about all of the major European Delivery programs available to US customers. You can check out Randy’s supa’ fly red BMW 328ix here…Neuschwanstein Castle, I’m sooooo going to pay you a visit one of these days. LOL.

For those who have never been to Europe and are thinking about leasing/buying an European made ride, this is probably a great opportunity to do both. Typically you can save a significant chunk of change by opting for the European Delivery (ED) instead of getting your car stateside. Of course, you will need to do some price comparison in order to determine if the car you want is cheaper overseas or not. The typical savings range from 3% to 8% off MSRP but in a weak economy, anything is possible.

So what is the main draw here? There are many, but the immediate one is the fact that you save on car rental costs. You get to tour around at your own pace and in your own car, the way Europe was meant to be seen! All manufacturers seem to provide a zero-deductible auto insurance for up to two weeks, so you don’t need to worry about any damage incurred during the trip. There are also many locations you can drop off your car at the end of your trip for shipment to the US, so this will allow you to draft your own unique itinerary. What’s neat is that you don’t really need to take it back to the factory at the end of your trip (for the most part), so essentially you could start in Munich (BMW) and end your trip in Barcelona. Just keep in mind that some drop-off locations are free while others will impose a fee.

Another sweet little perk includes the ability to hop on Germany’s Autobahn and drive as fast as your car will take you. Just don’t do this during the winter please, or worse yet, do it on with a RWD vehicle. That’s just asking for trouble. You also get to tour the facilities and see where you “baby” was “born”. Transportation to and from the factory are included. I believe some even include 1 night’s stay while Volvo offers you that and two roundtrip tickets to come see your ride on top of that. Sweet, isn’t it?

Of course, doing the ED program does not guarantee that the trip is going to be cheap. You have to plan it right and be smart about it. Gas prices in Europe are easily 2-3 times more than what we pay here, so you will need to take that into consideration. Another thing to remember is that if you plan to go during the summer time, so will a lot of tourists. During peak-season, airfare and hotels will cost an arm, a leg and maybe your first born. As recommended by Randy, Nov-March is probably a good time to since it is off-peak season (winter) and you can save yourself a crap load of money that way. Just be careful during the winter because you may need some snow tires.

A word of caution here, there is a fair amount of fine print should you choose to do these programs. Make sure you spend some quality time understanding all the finer details of the program you wish to partake in.They all vary somewhat, so you need to see what works best for you and your ride.

Here’s a rundown of the current European Delivery Programs and a few of their highlights:

Audi European Delivery

• one night accommodation in one of 3 Audi recommended hotels
• transportation to/from delivery location and drop-off locations
• factory tour
• 15-day auto insurance

BMW European Delivery

• 14-day auto insurance
• transportation to/from delivery location and drop-off locations

Wharf and handling fees

Mercedes-Benz European Delivery

• one night accommodation in one of 12 luxury hotels
• transportation to/from delivery location and drop-off locations
• factory tour
• 15-day auto insurance
• European GPS unit for your travels

Porsche European Delivery

• Travel Club
• Porsche Weekend

Volvo Overseas Delivery

• Program video
• special travel packages
• complementary hotel accomodations
• two complementary roundtrip tickets on SAS

Here are a things to remember when considering one of these ED programs:

1. You need to plan ahead because building your car takes time.
2. You need to be patient, because it takes times for your ride to be transported from Europe to the US.
3. You need to plan your roadtrip and make necessary reservations/arrangements in advance.
4. Not all models are available for European Delivery.

All programs cover transportation/customs paperwork, insurance and fees, so you don’t really have to worry too much about these things. The one exception is Porsche, they don’t seem to offer you much of anything and the website seems to lake a lot of info as well. So far, I’ve heard two BMW and one Volvo ED story and the owners have expressed a lot of satisfaction with the programs and their rides. Definitely worth serious consideration if you plan to jump into a European vehicle. I know I am seriously considering it on my next lease.