How to bring your car to Palau

I did not import my own car here, and personally know of only one person who has (as I write this, I believe they are trying to sell theirs to buy local cars). I would strongly recommend against bringing your own car here for several reasons.

1. Palau is hard on vehicles. Your car is going to get hit. Several times. I've been here 19 months and one of my cars has been hit twice, once while parked, once while I was stuck in traffic (hit and run, which happens with great frequency). My other car has been hit twice while parked outside of our apartment. Door dings are too numerous to count, equatorial sun is harsh on interiors and plastic exterior parts, salty sea air will turn your car body to rust. Whether you just got done diving or you just got caught in the rain, you're going to be wet frequently in Palau and it's nice to not worry too much about a soggy interior. Palau is the end of the line for cars - only bring your car if you intend to let it die here.   

2. Depending on where you are coming from, your car will be relatively huge. I'm an American, and I can think of very few cars from the States that would be small enough to be practical here - a Nissan Cube is not considered a small car here. Roads are narrow and parking is at a premium, so it's nice to squeeze into a tiny space (painted lines in parking lots are largely ignored - it's usually a free for all). Fuel economy is also important. It seems like we pay double what they pay in the States. Price fluctuations hit the pocketbook hard here. 

3. Most importantly: parts are hard to come by here and are quite expensive if they have to be shipped in.  If you have a common car, chances are good that they will have a few new parts in stock, and if not it is likely there is one in salvage they can pull working parts off of. If the part isn't on island (which if you have an uncommon car, it won't be on island), you're looking at waiting for weeks for it to get here - that's a long time if your car is out of operation. Also, if you have an uncommon car, you'll have fewer shops that will be able to repair it.

As you are walking around, trying to build your life here, take note of the cars you see driving around. You'll start to see more of certain cars than others. These are the cars you should consider buying. Locate your nearest mechanic (proximity is essential, as there are no tow trucks on island) and when it's time to buy, take your potential car to him and ask what he thinks of the car for the price. They'll tell you if it's something they can work on easily, and if there are any issues they see happening frequently with the car and if it's something that's easily fixable.

I would also recommend an older economy car instead of a newer, nicer car. One of my cars shares a drive train with the little utility trucks you see everywhere on island. You don't have to know anything about cars to look under the hood and see that this car does not have a complicated engine. Due to the simple nature of it, the mechanics here have been able to make some of the parts needed by hand, or repair them by welding. Labor is inexpensive in Palau, where as parts aren't . My economy car was at the neighborhood mechanic for three days while they welded and machined a cracked torque converter and totally rebuilt the transmission - this is a huge job - total bill was $280.

By contrast, I have a newer Nissan sedan. I spent $255 to replace an oxygen sensor, which they fixed in under an hour. Labor was $50, part was $155, "diagnostics" was $50 - this is not a huge job. It's worth noting that not every shop can work on my newer car, and shops that have the capability to work on newer, nicer cars also charge more for labor. I can push my econo-box to any street corner garage for repair (remember, no tow trucks!) but there are only two reliable repair shops that I can take the Nissan to, neither if which is near work or home.


Sometimes finding a car is difficult, but don't be afraid to get a cheap 'beater', I know I prefer mine to my nice car.