The boardEvery convertible the alerts turn up, best first.
Loading the wire…
The fieldEvery convertible worth a look, grouped by how realistic it is at this money.
PaperworkVictoria. Checked with VicRoads and the SRO on 18 Sep 2026.
Victorian, registered
The one to hold out for
- Seller hands over a roadworthy certificate, valid 30 days.
- Seller starts the transfer in myVicRoads; you finish it online within 14 days.
- Pay $47.50 transfer plus duty. The remaining rego comes with the car.
- Drive it. No yearly inspection in Victoria: renew until you're done.
Victorian, no rego
Most cheap Marketplace cars
- Buy it as is. Get an unregistered vehicle permit to drive it anywhere.
- Roadworthy from a licensed tester, plus whatever it fails on.
- Register it: fee + TAC (3, 6 or 12 months), duty, plates.
- Budget a buffer: an old convertible rarely passes first go.
Interstate
NSW, SA, Qld, ACT only: never WA or Tasmania
- Victorian roadworthy needed whatever the car's rego says.
- Book a VicRoads centre appointment; hand in the old plates.
- Pay full new Victorian rego, plates and duty. A UVP covers the drive to the appointment.
- Claim any refund of the old rego from the other state.
What it really costs
Route
| Item | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Transfer fee, private car | $47.50 | VicRoads transfer fees |
| Stamp duty (used, under $80,809) | $8.40 per $200 of the price or market value, whichever is higher | SRO current rates, from 1 Jul 2026 |
| Rego + TAC, 12 months | $958.80 metro · $897.10 outer metro · $824.60 rural | VicRoads vehicle fees |
| Short-term rego | 3 or 6 months, pro rata + $2.70 each period | VicRoads vehicle fees |
| Number plates | $44.20 | VicRoads permit fees |
| Roadworthy certificate | About $150–250 before repairs; each tester sets its own price | Licensed vehicle testers |
| Third-party property insurance | Victorian average about $705 a year for TPP only; cheapest sample quotes about $430. Covers damage you cause to others, not your own car. Compulsory third-party (injury) is already in the TAC charge. | iSelect, Finder, 2026 |
| Unregistered vehicle permit | Quoted when you apply: depends on days, vehicle and postcode | VicRoads permit fees |
| Selling at the end | Registered private sale needs a fresh roadworthy. Selling to a dealer or wrecker, or cancelling the rego and selling unregistered, doesn't. | VicRoads selling a vehicle |
AlertsHot finds (7/10 and up) are emailed straight away; the rest arrive in a 7pm digest.
Carsales
Checking…
- Convertibles under $5,000 → Save search → email alerts on.
- Repeat for MX-5, Z3, SLK and Capri under $7,000, which list as roadsters.
Alert emails are read from Gmail every 15 minutes, read-only.
Gumtree
Via the same Gmail
- "Convertible" under $5,000 → Save search → email alerts on.
Gumtree's alerts arrive daily; they land on the board within 15 minutes of reaching the inbox.
Marketplace
Checking…
Swept every morning at 8:30 from the laptop, through Chrome, when it's awake: convertible searches within 500 km of Melbourne (WA and Tasmania skipped), each new ad opened for its gearbox, rego and roadworthy.
Anything it misses goes in the "Found one yourself?" box on the board.