We had been living on Gozo without owning our own car up until a few weeks ago.  I wore out a couple of pairs of shoes and lost 15 lbs from all the walking.  We had been renting a car from a local garage for monthly errands and special outings.

We have decided that while a car is not an absolute necessity for us, it does save us a lot of time.  Using public transport or walking to get to Victoria (Rabat) for some business or household errand would often consume three to four hours of our day.  The bus system was not even an option when considering a social evening.

So, after deciding that we wanted to buy a car, our next step was to determine how much we wanted to spend.  Because of the typical constraints of a small isolated market, new cars are quite expensive here.  There are several small car dealerships on Gozo and countless ones on Malta.  An interesting difference from the North American market is that the dealerships do not strongly ally their branding with an individual manufacturer.  Most Japanese makes are available, Toyota being the most common.  Opel is a popular European make.  Compact cars are very popular but SUV's aren't uncommon.   Some car dealers also import late model used cars.

There are a few recreational areas that are not accessible to a simple passenger car due to rough and/or very steep roads.  We have visited San Blas, a beautiful secluded beach and there are only motorcycles and jeeps in the lower parking area.  ATV's are licensed as a regular motor vehicle at present and can be seen on the streets every day.  Safety concerns have caused the government to consider reclassifying them in order to make helmets mandatory.  I have seen some interesting, atypical vehicles put to use here. Some of them could be a very practical solution for a couple or an individual.  Daitsu 'Midgets' are one such oddity.  http://www.microcar.org/carspecs/daihatsumidgetII.html   The climate lends itself well to open vehicles and convertibles.  The Moke is an open vehicle that was concieved as Britains answer to the Jeep.  It didn't have a successful career in the military owing to its low ground clearance, but it has become popular as everyday transport in many warm climate vacation areas.  It was also prominantly featured on the TV series 'The Prisoner'.  http://www.ozcooper.com.au/moke.jpg

We decide that our first car here would be an older used car that would hopefully give us several years of trouble free driving.  We kept an eye out for promising deals in the classified ads in the Times of Malta and asked around locally.  The used car market on Gozo is somewhat different than in most of North America.  Mileages can be surprisingly low on cars that are quite old.  Damage from minor fender benders often goes unrepaired.  UV damage to both exterior and interior is an issue.   We test drove a well worn Renault that had a 1 litre engine.  The asking price seemed too high on that car and I thought it was underpowered for climbing hills.  We were given a 1990 Skoda Favorit to try out and ended up keeping it for two days ( the owner is a local garage owner).  This Czech built car is not fancy, but it runs well and has spacious back seats.  A big part of our major purchasing decisions here have been based on personal relationships with business people.   The decision to buy the old Skoda was one of these and so far we are still quite happy with the decision.  

The transaction is not much different than in most parts of North America, possibly even less complicated.  License plates stay on the car.  There is an official log book with the car that must be signed by the buyer and the seller at the time of the transaction.  A witness must also sign, this will often be the insurance agent.  We went with the seller to the agent's office and arranged a tranfer of the insurance.  I took the signed log book and proof of insurance to the licensing office the next day and paid Lm 2.50 in fees to get a new permit and log book.  After I returned to the insurance agent so they could photocopy my new permit I was finished with everything until the VRT runs out, at which time I must have the car inspected for road worthiness.  A VRT is issued for a period of 24 months and remains valid from one owner to the next.

Having a car affords us a great deal more freedom and saves us time which we are putting to good use. 

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