No lesson is learnt quite so well as that acquired through personal experience. I’ve been reminded of this as we pack for home after a three year adventure in London. Like being forced to sell a low mileage, well maintained Peugeot because taking it home requires paying a 65% customs duty.
That sends a far more powerful message about the real costs than any lobbyist’s argument justifying SA’s heavily protected motor manufacturers. Even worse, though, was being told by donation-refusing charity shops that much of what we’d pay good money for at home, is literally worthless here.
My friend Des Irwin, a Karoo farmer who died nine years ago but left memories aplenty, loved reminding me of such realities: in his world a tin that once contained peaches became someone’s cup. In the city, he said, it was just rubbish. In the rich north, that now stretches to anything used, even if it does work just fine.
From Biznews community member Alastair
Thanks for Biznews – always a great read. Nice touch of reality in this article.
Reminds me of my own distant (car) past – around about 1964 in fact my mum spent about six months in the UK visiting with seriously ill family members.
My Dad bought her a new Mini there to get around – cost no more than £1,000 – then about R2,000.
Thereafter he could afford to ship it back home and import into RSA at a pretty nominal cost.
That Mini then served my university years at Wits, plus those of my brother and sister thereafter.
It then did another circuit through the family as our respective families grew over a period of around 30 years.
Sad about your Peugeot.
