Vin Motors · · 9 min read
How to use mobile.de: a practical guide for buyers in Lithuania
How to use mobile.de in English: key German listing terms translated, how to read a listing, how to spot a reliable seller and what it really costs to bring the car to Lithuania.
Mobile.de is the largest car marketplace in Europe, with over a million live listings at any moment. It is where buyers from Lithuania find the same BMW, Mercedes or Audi thousands of euros cheaper than on the local market. The catch: the site runs in German, and the English version only covers part of the experience.
The good news is that you do not need fluent German to buy well. This guide shows how to use mobile.de in English, translates the German terms that actually decide a car's value, explains how to read a listing and how to tell a trustworthy seller from a risky one. At the end you get a realistic cost breakdown for bringing the car from Germany to Lithuania.
Contents
- What mobile.de is and why prices are lower
- How to use mobile.de in English
- Key German terms
- How to read a listing
- How to spot a reliable seller
- What it costs to bring the car to Lithuania
- Common mistakes
- FAQ
- From listing to a car in Lithuania
What mobile.de is and why prices are lower
Mobile.de has been running since 1996 and belongs to the eBay group. It is Germany's main car marketplace: official franchise dealers, small traders and private sellers all list there. The selection is on a different scale from Lithuanian portals - for the same model and trim you will find dozens or hundreds of cars instead of two or three.
Why are prices lower than in Lithuania? A few reasons:
Competition. When the same BMW X5 sits in fifty listings, no seller can overprice it. In Lithuania, where supply is thin, prices naturally run higher.
Lease returns. A huge share of new cars in Germany is leased through companies. After 2-4 years they flood back onto the market with full service history and a single owner. That supply pushes prices down.
Market size. Germany is the biggest car market in Europe. Models that count as rare and expensive in Lithuania are everyday cars there.
In practice, the gap between a mobile.de price and a Lithuanian dealer's price for the same car often reaches 5,000-10,000 € even after all import costs.
How to use mobile.de in English
Mobile.de has an official English version at mobile.de/gb - the search interface, filters and listing structure are all translated. What stays German is the part that matters most: the seller's free-text description and many equipment lists.
For those parts, browser translation fills the gap:
Chrome. Open the listing, right-click anywhere on the page and choose "Translate to English". The address bar shows a translate icon where you can switch automatic translation on for the whole site.
Firefox, Edge, Safari. All modern browsers have built-in translation or a free extension. On phones, Chrome and Safari offer translation automatically.
Translation is not perfect: technical terms sometimes come out oddly or stay in German. That is why the most important words are worth recognizing on sight - they repeat in every listing, and the full table is below.
One more tip: even in the English version, some filter values keep their German logic. Fuel type is straightforward, but a manual gearbox is "Schaltgetriebe" in German listings and prices are always in euros, so there is little room for confusion there.
Key German terms
These words decide a car's value, so learn to spot them without a translator:
| German term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Unfallfrei | Accident-free |
| Scheckheftgepflegt | Full service history with stamps in the book |
| TÜV / HU | Technical inspection (with its expiry date) |
| Erstzulassung (EZ) | First registration (the car's age) |
| Laufleistung | Mileage |
| Vollausstattung | Fully equipped, top trim |
| Anzahl der Halter | Number of owners |
| MwSt. ausweisbar | VAT deductible invoice available (matters when buying from a dealer) |
| Netto / Brutto | Price excluding / including VAT |
| Gewährleistung / Garantie | Warranty |
| Nichtraucherfahrzeug | Non-smoker car |
| Standheizung | Auxiliary parking heater |
| Motorschaden | Engine damage |
| Bastlerfahrzeug | Project car sold with no warranty of any kind |
The last two are warning signs. "Motorschaden" means the car is sold with a broken engine, and "Bastlerfahrzeug" is what sellers write to shed all responsibility for the car's condition.
How to read a listing
Mobile.de listings follow one structure, so once you can read one, you can read them all:
At the top - the price and its type. If you see separate "Brutto" and "Netto" prices, the seller is VAT-registered, which lets company buyers and export buyers purchase without German VAT. A single price with no VAT line usually means a private seller or a dealer selling under the margin scheme.
The technical table - first registration (EZ), mileage, power (kW/PS), fuel, gearbox, TÜV validity. Cross-check age against mileage here: a 10-year-old car with 60,000 km is either genuinely low-mileage or has a wound-back odometer. The service book tells you which.
The equipment list - in German, often abbreviated. Browser translation handles this part well.
The description - the seller's free text. Look for "Unfallfrei", "Scheckheftgepflegt", "1. Hand" (first owner), and on the negative side "Motorschaden", "Bastlerfahrzeug", "kein TÜV" (no valid inspection).
If essential information is missing - no VIN, no service history, no TÜV date - that is not a dealbreaker, it is a question for the seller. Reliable sellers answer quickly and specifically.
How to spot a reliable seller
Two types of sellers list on mobile.de, marked differently:
Händler (dealer). A company with a visible rating - stars and reviews. Buying from a dealer gives you a 1-year warranty under EU law. Look at the volume and age of reviews: a dealer with a few hundred reviews over 10 years is a different league from a freshly registered company with no history.
Privat (private seller). No warranty; liability only for deliberately hidden defects. Prices are often lower, but so is your protection.
Whatever the seller type, before buying always:
- Ask for photos of the service book and the VIN. Refusal to provide them is reason enough to look elsewhere.
- Run the VIN through Carfax or AutoDNA: accidents, mileage progression, owners.
- Order an independent TÜV or DEKRA inspection on site (100-200 €). Serious sellers agree without fuss.
We covered the inspection process and every import step in detail in our separate guide to importing a car from Germany.
What it costs to bring the car to Lithuania
Once you find the car on mobile.de, add these costs on top of its price:
| Cost item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Open-carrier transport from central Germany | 400-600 € |
| Enclosed-carrier transport (for premium cars) | 800-1,800 € |
| TÜV/DEKRA pre-purchase inspection | 100-200 € |
| Initial technical inspection in Lithuania (only if the TÜV has expired) | ~30 € |
| Regitra re-registration | 30 € |
| Lithuanian compulsory insurance | 200-400 € |
| Pollution tax | based on CO2 emissions, applies above 130 g/km |
The VAT question depends on the seller: buying a used car from a private person (older than 6 months and with more than 6,000 km), no VAT is due in Germany or Lithuania. Buying from a VAT-registered seller, insist on a "Steuerfrei" invoice without German VAT - otherwise you risk paying VAT twice.
If you would rather not manage all of this yourself, the VinMotors delivery service covers the vehicle search, inspection in Germany, VAT paperwork, transport and Regitra re-registration. You pick the car on mobile.de, we do the rest.
Common mistakes
Buying from photos alone. Nice photos guarantee nothing. Without a VIN check and an independent inspection, buying a car thousands of kilometres away is a lottery where the stake is 20,000-60,000 €.
Paying a deposit to an unknown seller. No advance payments before an inspection. Scams are rare on mobile.de, but they exist: a price too good to be true, a seller "currently abroad", a request to wire a reservation deposit. Genuine sellers reserve a car after an inspection or not at all.
Ignoring the VAT type. If 19% German VAT stays on the invoice, Lithuanian VAT is then calculated on the VAT-inclusive price. The loss runs into thousands of euros.
Forgetting the Brief. The German KFZ-Brief (Fahrzeugbrief) is mandatory for re-registration in Lithuania. Before paying, make sure you will receive the original.
Trusting browser translation too much. "Ersatzteilträger" can translate into something quite innocent, although it means "parts donor car". If you hit an unclear term about the car's condition, translate it separately or ask the seller directly.
FAQ
Does mobile.de have an English version?
Yes, at mobile.de/gb - search, filters and listing structure are in English. Seller descriptions stay in German, and browser translation handles those.
Can I buy on mobile.de without speaking German?
Yes. Browser translation is enough for reading listings, and most sellers correspond in English. If a seller only speaks German, translation apps or an intermediary help. For VinMotors clients we handle negotiations and paperwork in German ourselves.
How is mobile.de different from AutoScout24?
Both are German and both are big. Mobile.de is larger inside the German domestic market; AutoScout24 is stronger in other European countries. When hunting for a car in Germany it pays to watch both - listings overlap, but not fully.
Are mobile.de prices negotiable?
Usually yes. German dealers leave 3-7% of negotiating room, especially if the car has been listed for over a month. "Festpreis" means a final price with no negotiation.
How long does it take to bring a car home from mobile.de?
From choosing the car to a re-registered vehicle in Lithuania usually 2-4 weeks: inspection and purchase take about a week, transport 3-7 days, re-registration in Lithuania a few more working days.
From listing to a car in Lithuania
Mobile.de is the best tool for finding a car in Germany, and the English version plus the term table in this guide is enough to use it freely. The hard part starts afterwards: inspection, negotiation, VAT paperwork, transport and Regitra.
If you have found a car on mobile.de and want us to inspect and deliver it - contact us about the delivery service or call +370 662 76235. And if you want a car without the wait, browse the vehicles we have already imported - they have been through this whole journey already.
