Imported cars cost up to three times more than Korean cars, but spare parts cost up to seven times more, Consumers Korea said Thursday. But what is worse is that imported spare parts cost up to 2.5 times more here than in other countries.
Consumers Korea compared the price tags of five imported cars and six major components.
The consumer rights group looked at bumpers, hoods, door panels and headlamps of the BMW 520d, Mercedes-Benz E300, Audi A6 3.0 TDI, Chrysler 300C and Lexus ES 300h and found that three quarters of the 30 components reviewed cost more in Korea than in other countries that also import them.
For example, a Lexus front fender costs W691,000 (US$1=W1,116) in Korea, but only W276,000 in Germany and W394,000 in the U.S.
The front door panel of the Chrysler costs W901,000 in the U.S. but a staggering W1.72 million here. And a Mercedes-Benz headlamp that costs W2.95 million here costs just W1.68 million in the U.S. -- even cheaper than the W2.3 million it costs in Germany, where the car is made.
A BMW 520d costs W64 million compared to the W22.5 million price tag of a Hyundai LF Sonata, supposing the two cars are roughly comparable. But when it comes to spare parts, the price difference was between 4.6 to seven times.
