Importing a Thesis

[Paul Greenway]

Now that it seems there is little chance of obtaining a new RHD Delta with the proper badges and registered in its proper name, I am returning my thoughts to importing a Thesis. I have spoken to Paul Baker regarding this as I believe he is the last club member to have gone down this route and he has kindly offered in helping me source the right car, however the biggest hurdle to overcome is getting it UK registered under the latest DVLA/VOSA etc stringent rules and regulations.

The rear fogs are not an issue as both sides on the Thesis have them, likewise with the headlamps should not be an issue as the beam direction can be switched in a straight forward manner, it's just the all km/h speedometer that requires calibration in mph.

Luckily I have spoken to Mark Robbins at Superveloce who has been extremely helpful and he has a man (family ties) on the case in Milan specifically tasked in switching a km/h speedo to a predominantly mph speedo. Mark was recently in Italy (he visits on a regular basis) for the Monza GP & San Marino Moto GP (nice work if you can get it) and looked into my Thesis import concerns whilst there. He thinks his man in Milan can resolve the speedo issue for about E150 and he can also access Thesis's (& other Lancia) through the trade for competitive money.

Upon confirmation that the speedo can be altered, I will be in a position to start looking in November for a late 2008/09 (or newer as there are some late registered cars) fully loaded 2.4 JTDm Emblema or LE car with lowish mileage (most have intergalactic miles) to be ready over Christmas. Mark reckons it should take 2-3 weeks from sourcing the right car to collecting it fully registered and UK compliant.

I will keep the forum informed of future developments.

[038tipo]

Hi Paul.
Good to hear! Well done on the speedo issue hope it works out, if not you may consider an overlay (transparent) which may be done if you know someone decent with graphics, to be able to re-produce similar numerical font.
Let me know how you get on and if you need any help.
Cheers.
Paul.

[HF_Dave]

Hi paiul, there is a Thesis for sale at the moment on Done Deal In ireland www.donedeal.ie its a 2006 2.4jtd with 170,000 miles in black, the asking price is €4750 . I am thinking of having a look.

[Dilambdaman]

Hi Paul,

The link will take you to the Modestine thread. Scroll down and you will see what we did to re-calibrate the Nivex petrol gauge. Apologies for the poor quality of the photos,  in the flesh the dial looks totally original.

http://www.lancia.myzen.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1239.195

Good luck,
Robin.

[Paul Greenway]

Hi paiul, there is a Thesis for sale at the moment on Done Deal In ireland www.donedeal.ie its a 2006 2.4jtd with 170,000 miles in black, the asking price is €4750 . I am thinking of having a look.

Hi Paul,

The link will take you to the Modestine thread. Scroll down and you will see what we did to re-calibrate the Nivex petrol gauge. Apologies for the poor quality of the photos,  in the flesh the dial looks totally original.

http://www.lancia.myzen.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1239.195

Good luck,
Robin.

Dave, That looks like a good buy, however too many miles for me, I am looking at 50,000 absolute max plus I want a late model (latest badging) of particular specification & options. I will be using as a daily driver putting 25,000 miles plus per year on it before replacing in 2-3 years. Good luck with that one.

Robin, Thanks for the Modestine link, if I fail with my man in Milan then this route is a possibility.

Cheers,

Paul.

[Paul Greenway]

I have had no joy whatsoever in trtying to obtain a Thesis in Italy. Despite hundreds to choose from, all the late low mileage cars at realistic money have failed to deliver the goods, they are missing history (lease companies keeping hold of service books?), they are poorly presented and require scuffs and scratches repairing and servicing at extra cost, there seems to be reluctance at offering for export- even with Superveloces Italian contacts I am failing and time is running out fast.

Paul (Tipo38) what is the latest on your car? I would be interested to know about the problems with your wheels from the other thread, I believe you previously replaced three, is this an 18" Centenario issue or do all Thesis wheels have issues?

To all those in the know, Is a Thesis a good car to pile on the miles? there are hundreds for sale overseas with intergalactic mileage so it suggests they are and my Brera's done 55k miles no problem with the same engine, what about all those electronics too, are they reliable? is it wise to buy a used Thesis to use daily and add 25-30K miles per year for 2-3 years.

[Lindsay]

Hi Paull, can't comment on most of your questions (yet) but the wheels I suspect are to do with the polished finish - just like Themas, Dedras, Subarus and every other polished finish wheel, they look fabulous when new but unless you are anal about cleaning them, they will corrode quicker than a normal powder coat type finish. In saying that, all they need is a stone chip to break the lacquer or top finish and that is the start of it. Look great when new, rubbish for longevity.  The wheels on the 2004 one I have just bought are 2 perfect, 2 starting to bubble - but they are a normal powder finish and the 2 can be refurbished at reasonable cost. Refurbishing diamond finish is trickier and will need a specialist.

I would say there can't be an issue driving one and putting the miles on, as you say there are lots with huge kms on them. The chap I bought mine from advised Alfa dealers here are the only ones who have the full Lanciiaa diagnostic kit, regardless of what Fiat dealers, and any specialists up north said. Once he found this out, his local Alfa dealer dealt with any issues - mostly electrics (what a surprise).

Lindsay

[Paul Greenway]

Well I am on my way to importing a Thesis. Many thanks to Paul Baker and Roberto his Italian friend & Stratos owner who have helped me through this process to date and hopefully beyond.

It has been a struggle and at times non satisfying experience with many let downs over the last three months. Cars as we all know do not always live up to expectation especially when advertised at tempting prices. I have had Superveloce looking at cars for me and all the ones previously seen on AutoScout24, OOYYOO, Ebay.it and Autosupermarket.it have for one reason or another not come up to scratch. The ideal car I thought I had bagged was stolen from my grasp at the eleventh hour and I resigned myself to not ever owning one.

Anyway speaking to Paul over Christmas, we listed a number of vehicles to check out and Paul spoke to Roberto who did the business and eventually we came across this car.

The car is a 2009 Black Centenario 2.4JTDm, ex Petronas (Owned by Fiat) with 80K Km's on the clock with FSH (no expense spared).

I flew out to Turin last Saturday to be greeted by Roberto & the vendor in the car at the airport and then we went on a 25 mile test drive taking in all kinds of roads where the car drove beautifully and the vendor took it up to around 210kmh no trouble at all. Another mechanic friend of Robertos was going to check out the car -he works for Lancia and worked on the Thesis production line-but unfortunately could not make it due to his daughter being struck down with a mystery virus in the early hours.

I decided I had to have it so put down a 1000 Euro deposit on the priovision that the car is inspected early this week by the mechanic. If I get the thumbs up then we are into Phase two, the purchase and getting the car home. To be continued...........

[fay66]

Good Luck Paul, It looks fantastic so I hope the deal goes through and it lives up to expectations.
Brian
8227

[Lindsay]

Well done Paul. Excellent news. As a matter of interest, what will your annual road tax be for it?

[Sliding Pillar]

2.4JTD emmissions 234g/km  Group L tax bracket = £435/annum

[toby2449]

fantastic news Paul, what a gorgeous car, every luck with her!

[rogerelias]

Will I have to salute you when I see you in it

[SteveGales]

I was thinking that too Roger! I bet Claire and the kids will love being chauffered around in it.

Paul, has Claire being practising a 'royal' wave yet !

Looks fantastic , hope everything works out.

Steve

[Neil]

Lovely car, the car tax is a bit steep...  but nice all the same, enjoy!