Relocating to Vietnam & would like to import my motorbike

Better you shouldn't bring your motorbike here
Check old threads for more details!

Expect a mountain of red tape, ( and expense ), getting the bike here, hope you can speak/read VN, you will need to when sitting your over 175cc motorbike test.

I don't think you should! It's way too much hassle!

We're talking about lots of paperwork, loads of money for import tax and you don't have appropriate driver license for Vietnam (getting one isn't easy).

I know you love your bike but best way is to sell it, buy another one in Vietnam. Maybe some time April next year foreigners can apply for A2 driver license for bikes over 175cc. We'll see!

Thanks Bluenz as I thought, I guess I was just hoping for an easier solution. Cheers:D

Thank Ngan, how about if I stripe the bike & bring it in as parts. Would that work???

Vincenzo Raiti wrote:

Thank Ngan, how about if I stripe the bike & bring it in as parts. Would that work???

It still needs to be registered, number plate etc, big bikes attract the cops attention, ( big bike , must have big money, can pay big ' donation'  to poor cops ).

bluenz wrote:

Vincenzo Raiti wrote:

Thank Ngan, how about if I stripe the bike & bring it in as parts. Would that work???

It still needs to be registered, number plate etc, big bikes attract the cops attention, ( big bike , must have big money, can pay big ' donation'  to poor cops ).

Not to mention there are no roads that a fast bike can go on confidently without fear of a pothole falling you.  The Vũng Tàu Highway for example was just newly built a year ago with new smooth blacktop; now it's full of patchwork/repair.  Most of the repairs aren't even flat/smooth so you end up bouncing up and down while you go over them.  I actually broke one of my shocks/springs because I did too many bunny hops over those uneven surfaces/potholes.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

bluenz wrote:

Vincenzo Raiti wrote:

Thank Ngan, how about if I stripe the bike & bring it in as parts. Would that work???

It still needs to be registered, number plate etc, big bikes attract the cops attention, ( big bike , must have big money, can pay big ' donation'  to poor cops ).

Not to mention there are no roads that a fast bike can go on confidently without fear of a pothole falling you.  The Vũng Tàu Highway for example was just newly built a year ago with new smooth blacktop; now it's full of patchwork/repair.  Most of the repairs aren't even flat/smooth so you end up bouncing up and down while you go over them.  I actually broke one of my shocks/springs because I did too many bunny hops over those uneven surfaces/potholes.

The main highway from Da Nang to Quang Ngai is pretty good, one of my adult students told me he was doing 100 KPH one trip, ( 80 kph is comfortable ), my biggest worry is the VN's, ( trucks , buses, etc ), who think it is a one way road. 
Rice harvest season can be hazardous too, they like drying the rice/straw on the side on the roads, sometimes for many kms at a time.

bluenz wrote:

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

bluenz wrote:

It still needs to be registered, number plate etc, big bikes attract the cops attention, ( big bike , must have big money, can pay big ' donation'  to poor cops ).

Not to mention there are no roads that a fast bike can go on confidently without fear of a pothole falling you.  The Vũng Tàu Highway for example was just newly built a year ago with new smooth blacktop; now it's full of patchwork/repair.  Most of the repairs aren't even flat/smooth so you end up bouncing up and down while you go over them.  I actually broke one of my shocks/springs because I did too many bunny hops over those uneven surfaces/potholes.

The main highway from Da Nang to Quang Ngai is pretty good, one of my adult students told me he was doing 100 KPH one trip, ( 80 kph is comfortable ), my biggest worry is the VN's, ( trucks , buses, etc ), who think it is a one way road. 
Rice harvest season can be hazardous too, they like drying the rice/straw on the side on the roads, sometimes for many kms at a time.

They actually intend on you driving over the rice/straw.  The vibration and trampling separates the seeds (they don't have to manually beat it).  At the end of the day, they sweep the seeds.

When I was first in the Mekong Delta during the harvest season I was dumbfounded as what to do since the roads were blocked with rice/straw.  I didn't want to run over somebody's livelihood.  I even got a little irritated at first at other people who did run over the rice/straw and thought how inconsiderate the locals were to each other.  Then I figured out the seed thingie.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

bluenz wrote:

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

Not to mention there are no roads that a fast bike can go on confidently without fear of a pothole falling you.  The Vũng Tàu Highway for example was just newly built a year ago with new smooth blacktop; now it's full of patchwork/repair.  Most of the repairs aren't even flat/smooth so you end up bouncing up and down while you go over them.  I actually broke one of my shocks/springs because I did too many bunny hops over those uneven surfaces/potholes.

The main highway from Da Nang to Quang Ngai is pretty good, one of my adult students told me he was doing 100 KPH one trip, ( 80 kph is comfortable ), my biggest worry is the VN's, ( trucks , buses, etc ), who think it is a one way road. 
Rice harvest season can be hazardous too, they like drying the rice/straw on the side on the roads, sometimes for many kms at a time.

They actually intend on you driving over the rice/straw.  The vibration and trampling separates the seeds (they don't have to manually beat it).  At the end of the day, they sweep the seeds.

When I was first in the Mekong Delta during the harvest season I was dumbfounded as what to do since the roads were blocked with rice/straw.  I didn't want to run over somebody's livelihood.  I even got a little irritated at first at other people who did run over the rice/straw and thought how inconsiderate the locals were to each other.  Then I figured out the seed thingie.

Brilliant, and they say farmers are stupid?  They do the same thing in the Phils, that's how they get the little stones, etc, in the rice, a bit of fibre is good for you.

Ngan Khanh wrote:

I don't think you should! It's way too much hassle!

We're talking about lots of paperwork, loads of money for import tax and you don't have appropriate driver license for Vietnam (getting one isn't easy).

I know you love your bike but best way is to sell it, buy another one in Vietnam. Maybe some time April next year foreigners can apply for A2 driver license for bikes over 175cc. We'll see!

yeah I just sold my bike too. I loved it so much I almost cry seeing it towed away on a trailer hitch. But too bad Vietnam don't allow bikes over 175cc.

khanh44 wrote:

But too bad Vietnam don't allow bikes over 175cc.

That is not correct! Vietnam allows bikes over 175cc. Just the driver license is the difficulty!

Ngan Khanh wrote:

khanh44 wrote:

But too bad Vietnam don't allow bikes over 175cc.

That is not correct! Vietnam allows bikes over 175cc. Just the driver license is the difficulty!

Yah the other day a motorcycle "club" went buzzing by me when I was riding my motorbike.  They had those Ninja Street-bikes...acted like a bunch of rich kids with expensive toys.  They acted like they were VIPs and had a police escort....even had police siren sounds and were bullying "peasant" motorbikes out of their way with those plastic sticks.  But I didn't see any CSGT uniform on them, only motorcycle club jackets so I was like "f*** off"-I have as much right to be here as you and I'm gonna hang out here.

In any event, I can attest that the bigger engine bikes do exist.  And I'm sure those driving them don't have the A2 licenses since their superbikes can outrun the CSGT's chase motorcycles.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

Ngan Khanh wrote:

khanh44 wrote:

But too bad Vietnam don't allow bikes over 175cc.

That is not correct! Vietnam allows bikes over 175cc. Just the driver license is the difficulty!

Yah the other day a motorcycle "club" went buzzing by me when I was riding my motorbike.  They had those Ninja Street-bikes...acted like a bunch of rich kids with expensive toys.  They acted like they were VIPs and had a police escort....even had police siren sounds and were bullying "peasant" motorbikes out of their way with those plastic sticks.  But I didn't see any CSGT uniform on them, only motorcycle club jackets so I was like "f*** off"-I have as much right to be here as you and I'm gonna hang out here.

In any event, I can attest that the bigger engine bikes do exist.  And I'm sure those driving them don't have the A2 licenses since their superbikes can outrun the CSGT's chase motorcycles.

There's even a few Honda 400's out here in the sticks, I laugh as they accelerate quickly up to 50-- 60 kph, only to have some obstruction slow them down immediately, they must like the noise, ( like those noisy, ridiculous 150cc HD replica's )

This is a post from a forum a few years ago but it tells the story:

The rules changed in about 1995 when a 175cc size restriction was introduced. Perhaps it was due to the small bikes the cops had (the 125cc Bonus) or to fears of resulting congestion and mayhem. Perhaps even it was common sense because a large wind cooled engine has a terrible time in slow, hot traffic.

So a two tier licening regime was introduced. A1 for normal bikes and the illusive A2 for anything larger than 175cc. Anyone who had a large bike back in 1995 was well conected and not happy about loosing their Honda play thing so a compromise was made. You could ride a large bike if you had an A2 licence but you could only get that if you were a member of one of two motorcycle clubs. Lets call the clubs the "Sons of Important People MC". These guys swung a deal whereby they promised to be on call should any parade or fun run or race etc needed a flashy motorcylce escort with lots of flags and sirens. So, these guys got to ride their bikes around and everyone was happy.

The restrictions really came into play at the international borders. Just because you had an A2 licence did not mean sqat should you want to import a large, new bike. So, the club guys are still driving around on their pre 1995 bikes, so you see less and less of them. Sometimes tour operators manage to run a deal with the clubs and rent their bikes from them. The result is a mess of run down, beat up bikes with clents bitching about why they are on the 400cc while so and so is on the 750cc.

Of course everything changes here, depending who your dealing with...

Ngan Khanh wrote:

khanh44 wrote:

But too bad Vietnam don't allow bikes over 175cc.

That is not correct! Vietnam allows bikes over 175cc. Just the driver license is the difficulty!

Yes you're correct. I meant to say it's such a hassle to import it. Forget about the shipping cost alone but 100% import tax on a price of a brand new bike and not taxed on used price just not worth it when motorbikes in Vietnam are cheap as it is.

if you wanna import personal stuff, you must have a contract with a company in Vietnam, and show clearly you come here to work (working permit). we also can do it for you.
about motorbike lisence, as I know, you can buy one. it's so easy.

thanhmai296 wrote:

I know, you can buy one. it's so easy.

Yes but not legally recorded on the system, so if you have an accident and someone is hurt you are in even more trouble, than having no licence at all!

No, I mean you also have to take a test. But as normal, if you want to take a test for motorbike lisence which over 175cc, you have to join alot of activities at ward office or parade. So they will care about that for you. You also need to take a test only.

thanhmai296 wrote:

No, I mean you also have to take a test. But as normal, if you want to take a test for motorbike lisence which over 175cc, you have to join alot of activities at ward office or parade. So they will care about that for you. You also need to take a test only.

That test is in VN and you are not allowed an interpreter either. They almost tried that one on me when I sat my A1 licence, and I already had a VN B1 licence. ( should have been Heavy Truck /Semi, but when they omitted to put my surname on the Licence, and also had me down as an Aussie Citizen , I couldn't be bothered going through all the, (  no doubt ), new lot of paperwork ).

Just to share that A2 license is not that difficult. I got it in 15 days...

jonny555 wrote:

Just to share that A2 license is not that difficult. I got it in 15 days...

Was it in Viet , without an interpreter?

Yes .. in Saigon and without interpreter.

jonny555 wrote:

Yes .. in Saigon and without interpreter.

Thanks, I thought that was right.

I went to the office in HCMc they gave me the papers for VN conversion (with translations) and requested i return on 13th with medical cert and translation of Ausie lic, VN lic would then be issued,  another topic, big bikes, what are Ducati doing in HCMc if big bikes not allowed same for Harley Davidson??? P;s my lic includes heavy rigid and car , I will get all classes

mark stutley wrote:

I went to the office in HCMc they gave me the papers for VN conversion (with translations) and requested i return on 13th with medical cert and translation of Ausie lic, VN lic would then be issued,  another topic, big bikes, what are Ducati doing in HCMc if big bikes not allowed same for Harley Davidson??? P;s my lic includes heavy rigid and car , I will get all classes

Medical, haha, I went for mine, they Doctors knew my wife, embarrassingly for me , as we jumped the long que, then sat there for 10 minutes, they never spoke to me, or even checked me at all.

bluenz wrote:

mark stutley wrote:

I went to the office in HCMc they gave me the papers for VN conversion (with translations) and requested i return on 13th with medical cert and translation of Ausie lic, VN lic would then be issued,  another topic, big bikes, what are Ducati doing in HCMc if big bikes not allowed same for Harley Davidson??? P;s my lic includes heavy rigid and car , I will get all classes

Medical, haha, I went for mine, they Doctors knew my wife, embarrassingly for me , as we jumped the long que, then sat there for 10 minutes, they never spoke to me, or even checked me at all.

Yep...and you passed with flying colors.  Cool how doctors here can diagnose you through telekinesis.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

bluenz wrote:

mark stutley wrote:

I went to the office in HCMc they gave me the papers for VN conversion (with translations) and requested i return on 13th with medical cert and translation of Ausie lic, VN lic would then be issued,  another topic, big bikes, what are Ducati doing in HCMc if big bikes not allowed same for Harley Davidson??? P;s my lic includes heavy rigid and car , I will get all classes

Medical, haha, I went for mine, they Doctors knew my wife, embarrassingly for me , as we jumped the long que, then sat there for 10 minutes, they never spoke to me, or even checked me at all.

Yep...and you passed with flying colors.  Cool how doctors here can diagnose you through telekinesis.

Now I think about it, I didn't need a Medical to exchange my Car licence, ( should have been my Semi licence included, as well, oh well that will be another ' adventure ', in the future ), do they think a car will cause less damage in the hands of a maniac driver, or more likely Bike riders get the blame for ALL accidents?

So if you got the big bike license and have a motorcycle over 175cc are you allowed to ride in the near empty car lane between HCM and Vung Tau or you're still stuck in the congested motor bike lane?