A typical payment structure looks like this: 1. Deposit: 10-30% after you confirm the car and price, often to reserve the vehicle and start the inspection. 2. Balance: paid after you approve the inspection report, but before or at shipment. A common safeguard is paying against a copy of the bill of lading, with telex release of the original B/L after funds arrive. 3. Never send 100% upfront to a new supplier. Use traceable methods (T/T bank transfer to a corporate account matching the company name, or escrow for first orders) and keep every agreement in writing. 4. Timeline: quote within days, inspection 3-7 days, booking and loading 1-2 weeks, ocean transit 3-6 weeks, customs clearance 3-10 days. Red flags: personal bank accounts, pressure to skip inspection, prices far below market.

Under international practices and our standard CIF/FOB terms, the THC at the port of origin (China) is borne by the seller; all THC and port miscellaneous charges incurred at the destination port during unloading are to be paid by the buyer (consignee) upon local customs clearance and pickup.

Once the car system (especially in a closed ecosystem) undergoes a major version upgrade, its bootloader is usually locked, preventing downgrades. If this happens, there is basically no solution in an overseas environment. Therefore, we strongly warn: do not blindly insert a USB drive to upgrade while offline.