David Car Dealers
Nov 14th, 2005 by Don Ray
Probably the first thing that a person from the US should realize is that cars manufactured for Panama are not the same cars that you would buy and have experience with in the US. I have been told that some people have had trouble with some service on US autos that they brought here because of some of the differences. Cars are one thing that becomes personal preference. I would advise that you check into the reputation of the dealer you choose. It is my personal opinion that the dealer may be more important than the brand.
General Motors, Kia, Subaru Located just off the Inter-American Highway next to Super Baru. I looked at some of the Chevrolets, which I thought would probably be built in Mexico. I was told that all of the cars they had on the showroom floor were from Korea.
Honda (Bahia Motors) While you are now starting to see a lot of Honda’s in David, the dealership is in Panama City. I understand that Honda is serviced by Grupo Tambor in David.
Hyundai (Petroautos, S.A.) Located on the Inter-American Highway
Grupo Q sells Mazda, Chrysler, Jeep, SsangYong and is located just off the Inter-American Highway across from Toyota.
Toyota (Ricardo Perez, S. A.) Located on the Inter-American Highway
Ricardo Perez also carries Daihatsu which isn’t shown on its website. I have had some experience with car and I really liked it for a small car. 35 miles per gallon isn’t too shabby for a 4×4.
Mitsubishi (MMC Panama, S.A.) Located on Calle Miguel Ángel Brenes a block or so from Nissan.
Nissan (Panamotor) Located on Calle Miguel Ángel Brenes next to McDonald’s
Skoda (TESA) Located on Calle Miguel Ángel Brenes close to Super99.
Ford Products (Distribuidora David) Located on the Inter-American Highway right across from KFC in David, Chiriqui.
Is DISTRIBUIDORA DAVID still open in David? In March of this year (2005) when we were in David we stopped at their dealership on The Inter-American Hiway and checked out the latest Latin versions of Fords including a Ford Eco and a 4 door Ranger pickup with a turbo diesel. Both models are made in South America and are not available in the states.
It is still there. I saw the new 2006 Suzuki Grand Vitara. It is a complete body make over. I thought it was a little pricey however.
Looks like I forgot their photo. I will put it up.
I have a 2005 VW Beetle, diesel. I’ve about decided that I should NOT bring it when I move down in mid-2006. Instead, I hope to buy (in Panama) a used vehicle (4×4 probably) with good gas economy.
Does anyone have an opinion about my decision?
VW has service in Panama City, but I am not sure about other areas. If you are planning on doing any driving off the main highway or out of any city, then a sedan will be challenged. Probably the cheapest and most economical 4×4 is the Daihatsu Terios. It is Japanese and serviced by the Toyota dealer in Panama. The engine in the Terios is a Toyota Yaris engine. It will give you around 34 miles to a gallon. While it is not a heavy-duty 4×4, it will probably get you anywhere you want to go.
I am going to buy a jeep wrangler when I retire and move to panama. I would like to know if there is a jeep dealer there and if I would be better off buying here in Miami and shipping it there.
The Jeep (Chrysler) dealer is also the Mazda dealer. Personally, I would buy here and not in the US, since the models are not the same and service might be more difficult on a car built for the US. However I don’t remember seeing the jeep wrangler in Panama.
Please send me an email that includes an email address for the Nissan and toyota dealers in David.
Thanks,
Dick Mullen
The associated websites have contact email addresses or contact locations. I don’t specifically have them. You can find the URL for the websites in the Link area of Chiriqui Chatter or in the post above.
i NEED EMAIL ADDRESS AND CONTACT INFORMATION FOR MITSUBISHI PANAMA. PLEASE.
THANK YOU
Here is the contact link.
http://www.mmcpanama.com/mmcweb1/contactenos.htm
[...] in Panama change so fast it is hard to keep up with them. Suzuki used to be sold and serviced by Distribuidora David. That is no longer the case. There is a new Suzuki in Panama and it is Motores [...]
David, Panama is closer for me than San Jose. I was thinking about purchasing a new small to mid size 4X4 of some type or a small double cab truck (which would be more practical for me) of Toyota, Nissan, Great Wall, etc.
I have been moderately successful in several fields of life, but buying a car is not among them! Because I have to leave Costa every 90 days, I was thinking, perhaps, about buying in David, but only if I can have the car serviced there as well.
Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Sarah Parker
Playa Zancudo
(506) 2-776-00-06
Hi Sarah,
One of my favorite small 4×4 cars is the Daihatsu Terios. I can get about 34 miles to a gallon and if you can find a good used one, it should satisfy your needs. It is sold and serviced by the Toyota dealer.
Does anyone know of a reputable person to repair an air conditioner for a Hyundai Terracan. Got one quote from Petroautos at $258 to repair the evaporator — they said it has a hole in it. Before we took it there, we had air but it was not working properly. After they checked it out, we have no air at all.
Hi Charlotte. I, fortunately, have not had to have any AC work done. It can be a tricky problem. It there is a leak it could have been made worse by their testing, but still could be the problem. To find the leak shops used to put in a dye to locate the area of problem.
Maybe others can respond with a known repair shop. Tambor might reccomend a shop and I think Tambor, who is not cheap, but I think reputable, would send you somewhere that could fix it.
hi charlotte
ask for Radiadores Chiriqui near Hotel Iberia for your problem
for electric problems ask for “Boli Jaen” in the same area, i recomend it specially. profesional and not expensive.
curiously all Chiriqui ends in these garages.
…David
Thanks so much for replies. Was not able to get Chiriqui website due to lack of power on & off constantly in our house and then the site was not available. Finally got that fixed.
I WOULD LIKE A PARTS CATALOGE WITH PRICES SO WE CAN DO BUSINESS. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT YOUR COMPANY
Sorry. I am not a business.
Is there a transmission repair shop in David or do the dealerships take care of everything?
Howdy
I’m trying to get a “warm fuzzy” about my decision to sell my current vehicles and purchase a new vehicle (in Panama) after I arrive in Panama. In addition, I wanted to follow up on a referral I found in another forum for a reputable car dealer apparently located in Chiriqui.
Warm Fuzzy
Probably late next year, I’ll be moving to Panama from Texas under Panama’s pensionado visa program. I have a ‘99 Honda CRV and 2000 Toyota 4Runner (USA specs). I’m thinking I should sell both vehicles and purchase a vehicle in Panama (rather than shipping one vehicle to Panama). One concern is the mechanical differences between vehicles made for the two markets and getting good quality maintenance on my older vehicle. Another concerns is the age of the Honda and import restrictions. I haven’t yet found the age restrictions for importing vehicles into Panama…so I don’t know if I could if I wanted to.
Car Dealer
In another online forum, in an article dated 1 Nov 2008, someone spoke highly of Oscar Hernandez at the Toyota dealership in Chiriqui…excellent customer service, etc. In addition, the poster said that Mr. Hernandez made all the arrangements to “…hook me up with a fixer in Panama who did all the paperwork for my pensionado import tax exemption.”
Questions:
1. What’s your opinion? Should I sell the vehicles and buy in Panama or import one vehicle (like the ‘99 Honda CRV)?
2. Have you heard of Mr. Hernandez? Can I purchase a vehicle in Panama and still get the “pensionado import tax exemption?”
Appreciate whatever info you’re able to offer…thanks for your time.
OK. The following is my opinion and you know the old saying about opinions.
I am not aware of any age restriction on importing a car. I don’t think there is any. Getting parts is another story. Even with new cars, depending on Make and Model, parts may be difficult or slow to get. As you stated, models may be built to different standards than the US models, and that has been a problem for some people. To know for sure, it would be better to talk to the appropriate dealer to understand the serviceability of the car. I think the CC link section has a used car site. See how many of that years cars are being sold in Panama.
I guess your bringing your cars to Panama, depends on the condition you think they are in. You should assume you will spend approaching 30% more in Panama for the same car. I chose to leave my cars in the US and bought here.
I know Oscar Hernandez and have purchased a car from him. I did not use my pensionado visa, when I bought the car. Whether it is worth it or not depends on a few things. It usually takes 2 to 3 weeks longer to buy a car using your pensionado visa discount. If you decide to sell the car then the buyer is going to have to pay the taxes on the value of the car when you sell it and there will be more paperwork for the sale. Oscar should be able to give you the pros and cons.
If you buy in Panama and do not use the pensionado visa, you should consider waiting until one of the auto fairs is going on. That is typically when the best deals can be had.
Thanks Don…I appreciate you taking the time to respond.
Hello my name is Carlos and I am from David but I lived and worked as a teacher in The USA for a couple of years. I know how it feels to start life in a whole new setting. So If I can be of any help to find good and inexpensive places to fix the air conditioning, or repair electrical and mechanical problems in your car feel free to contact me to my e-mail address carpalg@yahoo.com and I will give you the mechanic’s address or phone. You may want to talk to them in Spanish though.
Hi Carlos. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. I am sure that some one will be happy to know of your offer.
Hi Don, I was wondering if you might be able to offer some assistance… your site has been such a wonderful source of both information and enjoyment to me, and has offered such wonderful tips about what all is going on in this wonderful world that is Chiriqui. I have been here about a year now and am just thrilled to be able to call it home. Now, however, I am hoping to buy an ‘auto segundo’, or second hand car… and I was wondering what options there may be available to me, particularly here in Chiriqui province. I am aware of the ‘encuentra24′ website and, while that has been of great service, most everything on there (perhaps not surprisingly) is in Panama City. I was wondering if you might know of any good second-hand car options/dealers/services IN Chiriqui? Any help that you could possibly provide really would be greatly, greatly appreciated. I am anxious to find something… and am hoping that I won’t have to schlep 6 hours on the bus to the city in order to do it!
Thanks Don!
Wishing you and your great site all the very best, as ever…
Stephen
Hi Stephen. There may be a reliable used car place, but I don’t know it. The safest way to buy a used car is to know the current owner and trust him. Without a known history of any used car there is a fair risk that the car may have been wrecked or abused. Just my opinion.
Hello! When you need “an auto de segunda”, the best option is to contact a reputable mechanic who can check its condtions. I agree: it is very important to know the “pedigree” of the car …
The sales people at the company of your choice know of second-hand cars. In particular, I prefer my car dealer´s shop for maintenance. There is another option: approach Sandí´s on Vía Porras and L North Street. ( Just turn at the corner of Credicorp, St. Georges and Interoceánica building on Obaldía Ave.). Good luck!
… another option for used cars, I meant.