Vehicles

Cars are an expensive item to own in Norway.  The government doesn’t deem them a necessity, so they are heavily taxed.  A new car comes with 100% sales tax, plus a “deposit” of a thousand dollars. When the car finally makes it to the junk yard, the deposit is refunded.  The government wants to be sure cars don’t litter up their otherwise incredibly beautiful landscape.  Many fairly good older cars end up in the junk yard because when things start breaking down, people would rather get the refund back than pay for repairs.  Repairs are incredibly expensive and every other year an inspection of the vehicle, is required (which costs about a grand) to be sure there is nothing wrong with it.  If there is something wrong, it must be fixed or the license plates are removed.  Norway doesn’t allow junky cars on their roads.

On-going car expenses aren’t cheap either. Gas was fifteen dollars a gallon when we first moved to Norway, the tabs on our van were over five hundred dollars, we paid over two hundred dollars just for an oil change, and the minimal insurance cost nearly a thousand dollars a year.  The government sets the price of the tabs based on how many cubic meters are inside the passenger area, so many cars in Norway have the back seats removed and a metal screen installed behind the front seats so they won’t get taxed on the luggage area in the back.  Weird.

The license plate on a car stays with the vehicle its whole life.  When we bought our used van, we had to go down to the licensing bureau with proof of insurance and a driver’s license, before we could buy back the plates.  The insurance agency and vehicle licensing bureau are tight - so nothing gets past those guys. 

When we left Norway to come back to America, we just thought we’d let the tabs expire and the insurance run out, but thankfully the cousins warned us to turn in the license plates, because if the plates are on the vehicle, we would have to pay for both the tabs and insurance even if the vehicle wasn’t driven.

Many people in Norway don’t own cars because it’s so easy to get around without one, but just taking the bus fifteen minutes down the road and back cost me over fourteen dollars, so that option’s not so cheap, either. 

I know Americans have a long standing love affair with the automobile, and I must say I love the freedom it provides, but while living in Norway, I’ll admit, my love began to dwindle.