All the values below are indication. They might fall a bit lower, they might fall higher, but they're pretty much what needs to be payed.

New price for a GT convertible according to the 2011 builder, with a couple of nice options: $42.368. That equates to €32.595

We need to transport it, which adds some €1.500 ($1.947) to the bill, coming to €34.095 ($44.265).

10% of that needs to be payed as customs fees, bumping the total up with €3.409 ($4.426), making it €37.505 ($48.691).

Then we get the VAT taxes of 19%, tacking on another €7.126 ($9.251). Total: €44.631 ($57.943).

1.5% are insurance costs for transport which makes €669 ($869), and we tack on another €589 ($765) for freight hauling costs... Total: €45.889. ($59.577)

Car needs to be prepped for EU requirements, so we add another €1.750 ($2.272). Which makes the car total: €47.639 ($61.849).

Then we get to the incredible two factors that make the car pretty much untouchable unless you won the lottery.

BPM = Tax on a new car... This used to be 40% of the value of the car as it was new, but since it's in violation with the EU guidelines they're required to remove it. So they bumped it down to 27.5% since January 2008. So 27.5% of €47.639 makes €13.053 ($16.947), which brings the total up to €60.693 ($78.795).

Hefty price? No, cause I said there were two factors... The other is the CO2 emissions tax... And that one screws you over... Prices for the CO2 tax will rise to 2013 when they're at their highest. I've noted them in brackets behind:

Up to 110 gram/kilometer CO2 you're not required to pay anything.
Beyond 110 gram/kilometer CO2 up to 180 gram/kilometer CO2 they require you to pay €35 per gram. [2013 - €95]
Beyond 180 gram/kilometer CO2 up to 270 gram/kilometer CO2 they require you to pay €126 per gram. [2013 - €256]
Beyond 270 gram/kilometer CO2 they require you to pay €288 per gram. [2013 - €667]

Why will those prices be highest in 2013? Because up to 2018 they're going to drop the prices to €0. By then you're not paying CO2 tax when buying the car anymore. No... They're planning to have it incorporated in a pay-per-kilometer scheme, so you pay your CO2 tax with every kilometer you drive.

If we assume the 2011 will have similar CO2 emissions as the 2010, that means it's rated at 312 grams/kilometer CO2. So with the 2010 values I mentioned above:

Up to 110 gr/km = €0 ($0)
Up to 180 gr/km = 70 * €35 = €2.450 ($3.181)
Up to 270 gr/km = 90 * €126 = €11.340 ($14.722)
Up to 312 gr/km = 42 * €288 = €12.096 ($15.704)

This totals: €25.886 ($33.606), which we need to tack onto the total price: €86.579 ($112.402)

Do note: This is the price for the purchase of the car, and parking it in the Netherlands with dutch plates and the key in my hand, papers in my pocket. No insurance, no roadtax payed, and no gas included!!! Guess my rule of thumb (multiply by 2 and exchange the $ sign for the € sign) still holds true.

If this was 2013 however, that CO2 tax would tack €57.704 ($74.915) to the bill, making the same car costing me €118.397 ($153.710)... :shock: By then it's more likely to multiply by 3.5 and exchange the $ sign for a € sign...

Suffice to say... The Netherlands is NOT a land you'd like to be when buying a new Mustang :? Not even considering the fact that you can't readily buy them here anyway.