Help Buying Imported S14!!!

[D1tuner]

Hi I am planning on buying a imported S14 and need some help. The owner of the car has the original japanese title, some customs papers, and DOT papers. The owner has NOT registered the car in the U.S. and has not gone through all of the EPA and other stuff. He informed me to register the car in the U.S. it will take about 4800 dollars. He's giving me a good deal on the car and im not sure if i should go for it. I have a smashed up S14 sitting in my garage and the title and vins for it are looking mighty tempting. Does anyone have any loop holes or ideas of how i can register this car without paying an arm and a leg.

-Oh and are RHD vehicals illegal. Well pretty much my question is will cops mess with me about it?

Thanks

[Timeattack]

"I have a smashed up S14 sitting in my garage and the title and vins for it are looking mighty tempting."

not a bad idea but i wouldnt tell anyone lol

[Howard92884]

Why not just buy a USDM S14 and do an engine swap, and not deal with all the headaches that come with buying a foreign car. You can buy a nice swapped S14 for around 6-7k, look on the forums or around your area.

[SR20d2fourT]

I would love to have a RHD car but why the hassle? No RHD is not illegal, some older jeeps came w/ that but then again you NEED REGISTRATION PAPERS.

Why not just a good ole fashion US spec s14? Just put bitchin susp. setup, add some power and voila. :)

Let us know how it goes, though.

-sr20d2fourt

[drift freaq]

Hi I am planning on buying a imported S14 and need some help. The owner of the car has the original japanese title, some coustoms papers, and DOT papers. The owner has NOT registered the car in the U.S. and has not gone through all of the EPA and other stuff. He informed me to register the car in the U.S. it will take about 4800 dollars. He's giving me a good deal on the car and im not sure if i should go for it. I have a smashed up S14 sitting in my garage and the title and vins for it are looking mighty tempting. Does anyone have any loop holes or ideas of how i can register this car without paying an arm and a leg.

-Oh and are RHD vehicals illegal. Well pretty much my question is will cops mess with me about it?

Thanks

Ah the owner is feeding you a line of coke. lol DOT papers on a Japanese S14 ? Never going to happen. He is faking something. J
DM cars legal? No. RHD illegal? No. JDM RHD cars Illegal? Yes.

Vin swapping? Highly Illegal and a federal offense. You can do time for it. Asking about it in public on a internet forum? Sheer stupidity.

[aa87]

his usernames d1tuner, not formulaDtuner.

RHD or bust!

[DarkPhoenix]

RHD car are perfectly legal in the US for use on public streets. And being the S14 was sold here in the US, it isn't that much of a stretch for him to have paperwork. It is going to cost you regardless. Do NOT swap VINs. That is a bunch of trouble that you do not need.

[Howard92884]

RHD car are perfectly legal in the US for use on public streets. And being the S14 was sold here in the US, it isn't that much of a stretch for him to have paperwork. It is going to cost you regardless. Do NOT swap VINs. That is a bunch of trouble that you do not need.

They are illegal because they weren't built to U.S. standards.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Gray Market Cars, by Mike Bender


Buyer, Insurer, and Law Enforcement beware. Popular Japanese vehicles such as the Nissan Skyline and Silvia are being imported to the United States without going through registered importers and they do not comply with NHTSA, DOT, or EPA.

A vehicle that is manufactured outside of the United States and is not originally built to meet U.S. safety and emissions standards is called a Gray Market vehicle. In the United States it is a violation of federal law to import a vehicle that does not meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emission standards.

What does this mean to you? They are not legal and can be seized even if DMV/MVD has registered them.

There has been an influx of Gray Market vehicles due to the American desire for true Japanese vehicles. These are commonly referred to as JDM by the street tuners. Insurance companies and departments of motor vehicles have been wrongly insuring and registering these illegal vehicles. With the increase in JDM engines other problems have surfaced. They are not covered under any manufacturer’s warranty which has resulted in an increase in fraudulent claims. The thefts of these engines have also increased and are posing a problem for law enforcement and the victims.

For more information on regulations and laws go to the below links.http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/ (http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/)
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/ (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/)
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/standards/chapt301.html (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/standards/chapt301.html)

[JRas]

to my knowledge RHD are not illegal

however what you are thinking about is illegal

this thread should be:lockd:

[motoman6968]

Hi I am planning on buying a imported S14 and need some help. The owner of the car has the original japanese title, some customs papers, and DOT papers. The owner has NOT registered the car in the U.S. and has not gone through all of the EPA and other stuff. He informed me to register the car in the U.S. it will take about 4800 dollars. He's giving me a good deal on the car and im not sure if i should go for it. I have a smashed up S14 sitting in my garage and the title and vins for it are looking mighty tempting. Does anyone have any loop holes or ideas of how i can register this car without paying an arm and a leg.

-Oh and are RHD vehicals illegal. Well pretty much my question is will cops mess with me about it?

Thanks

This is what you can do, Call DMV and ask....lol

[motoman6968]

They are illegal because they weren't built to U.S. standards.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Gray Market Cars, by Mike Bender


Buyer, Insurer, and Law Enforcement beware. Popular Japanese vehicles such as the Nissan Skyline and Silvia are being imported to the United States without going through registered importers and they do not comply with NHTSA, DOT, or EPA.

A vehicle that is manufactured outside of the United States and is not originally built to meet U.S. safety and emissions standards is called a Gray Market vehicle. In the United States it is a violation of federal law to import a vehicle that does not meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emission standards.


Yes, that is all true, but if the car that was imported from japan was also manufactured in the US, it is possible to register it. In fact I have the form for the petition to register imported vehicle at my work. I might be able to scan it on here if I bring a copy home. Although that is through Oregon DMV and Oregon state laws, federal law concerning the matter is rather vague. I think they leave it up to the individual states which makes everything even more confusing.

[WangonwWarrior]

Ah the owner is feeding you a line of coke. lol DOT papers on a Japanese S14 ? Never going to happen. He is faking something. J
DM cars legal? No. RHD illegal? No. JDM RHD cars Illegal? Yes.

Vin swapping? Highly Illegal and a federal offense. You can do time for it. Asking about it in public on a internet forum? Sheer stupidity.

+1 i wouldnt try this, just swap the parts over to a usdm chassis

[johngriff]

Bottom Line:

The car needs to be inspected by a DMV Employee to seek compliance with:
EPA
DOT
Local States Regulations Concerning Grey Market Vehicles

99% of the Cars you see with plates did NOT pass these, but have "friends".

There are "Work-Arounds" with the most popular I could suggest is this. Become a CAR DEALER. Register with your state to be a vehicle dealer/reseller. They will give you a set of Dealer Plate (not paper, stamped plates) and you can legally drive a grey market vehicle if you own it in the process of selling it, however long it may take. Pretty much everything short of this is going to be either a "favor" or "illegal" or "really, really, really expensive".

Oh, and VIN SWAP is a FEDERAL FELONY. Don't do it.

[drift freaq]

Yes, that is all true, but if the car that was imported from japan was also manufactured in the US, it is possible to register it. In fact I have the form for the petition to register imported vehicle at my work. I might be able to scan it on here if I bring a copy home. Although that is through Oregon DMV and Oregon state laws, federal law concerning the matter is rather vague. I think they leave it up to the individual states which makes everything even more confusing.

Actually federal law is not vague about it. If it does not have DOT approved crash safety reinforcements its Illegal. This is the exact reason Motorex went down. They got caught not installing the extra door beams in a bunch of Skylines. After that it came to light they were also fudging R32's and R34's paperwork because the R33GTST was the only Skyline they had ever actually crash tested.

People these type of threads appear here about once every 6 months and everytime we state facts I have stated above. Its not changed. A JDM car in the states regardless of if the chassis was sold here is Illegal.
A RHD car is not, though it is annoying to drive. LOL

[D1tuner]

Yea i cant remeber ever saying i was going to swap vins although i did imply it as a joke and i'll admit that was dumb. My question though was, does anyone have any loop holes or ideas of how i can register this car without breaking the bank. It would be great if I could get some info from someone that has registered a imported vehical before.

[jkjunior]

Switching Vins is stupidty, You mid as well handcuff yourself and go to the police station.. Good luck ever selling it...theres plenty of usdm s14 in amercia that are amazing and/or legal jdm rhd vechiles, do some research theres a lot of good deals out there. Good luck whatever your out come is!!

[drift freaq]

Yea i cant remeber ever saying i was going to swap vins although i did imply it as a joke and i'll admit that was dumb. My question though was, does anyone have any loop holes or ideas of how i can register this car without breaking the bank. It would be great if I could get some info from someone that has registered a imported vehical before.

You really don't see the bigger picture here do you? We all stated it was not legal. You do realize that if you get caught with a non DOT legal car that they can confiscate it and crush it! They can and they do do that.

Now you can take your chances but what we are trying to tell you is use so common sense here. Its more trouble than its worth.

P.S. reiterating your question will not change the basic facts. Your only way to drive it temporarily legally would be with dealer plates like John said. Though are you prepared to put down a 100k bond, get a car sales lot or storefront and open up a used car dealership to do it?

[jkjunior]

You def need to do some research of what port etc your going to be bringing it in at. Some are cooler than others..Ive seen numerous cars sitting in ports that have been seized, id hate to see you loose a good chunk of money to see it being seized and/or crushed..google importing vechiles, youll get quit a run down of stuff..ive looked into it before!

[johngriff]

I don't think its THAT much to get the dealers licence, I know you have to be bonded, but there are bonding companies, and at least in cali you don't "NEED" a store front, I have a couple friends that Buy and Sell on Ebay.

[motoman6968]

Actually federal law is not vague about it. If it does not have DOT approved crash safety reinforcements its Illegal. This is the exact reason Motorex went down. They got caught not installing the extra door beams in a bunch of Skylines. After that it came to light they were also fudging R32's and R34's paperwork because the R33GTST was the only Skyline they had ever actually crash tested.

People these type of threads appear here about once every 6 months and everytime we state facts I have stated above. Its not changed. A JDM car in the states regardless of if the chassis was sold here is Illegal.
A RHD car is not, though it is annoying to drive. LOL

Ok well all that I found out was through dmv and through customs so if you think your right then take it up with them, do not neg rep me for stupid shit like that again

[s13 @ fullboost]

Bottom Line:

The car needs to be inspected by a DMV Employee to seek compliance with:
EPA
DOT
Local States Regulations Concerning Grey Market Vehicles

99% of the Cars you see with plates did NOT pass these, but have "friends".

There are "Work-Arounds" with the most popular I could suggest is this. Become a CAR DEALER. Register with your state to be a vehicle dealer/reseller. They will give you a set of Dealer Plate (not paper, stamped plates) and you can legally drive a grey market vehicle if you own it in the process of selling it, however long it may take. Pretty much everything short of this is going to be either a "favor" or "illegal" or "really, really, really expensive".

Oh, and VIN SWAP is a FEDERAL FELONY. Don't do it.




yeahh my father is a dealer and that how he got away with his skyline

[SlideWell]

just buy Keiths (Smurfey002) imported jdm s14 kouki. JEEEEZZ :duh:
LOCK this damn thread :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd: :lockd:

[bram StRoker]

you also dont want to vin swap because of insurance reasons. your gonna be pissed when they cut you a check for 2700 dollars versus the appraised value of the vehicle which in my friends case was a difference of 6100 dollars

[D1tuner]

You def need to do some research of what port etc your going to be bringing it in at. Some are cooler than others..Ive seen numerous cars sitting in ports that have been seized, id hate to see you loose a good chunk of money to see it being seized and/or crushed..google importing vechiles, youll get quit a run down of stuff..ive looked into it before!

Well the cars already here so thats not much of a problem. I do get the big picture that the car is illegal on a federal level drift freaq. Also how is it that Keiths (Smurfey002) S14 was legalized. If theres no way that a imported RHD vehical can be legalized why does he have a legit washington vin. Maybe thats who i should be talking to. The owner of the car also said he had it registered as a race car and got by with that although i know your not supposed to drive on public roads registered that way. I'm looking into the dealer licences with my state now though.

-I dont think i stated before that the car is already in the U.S.

[johngriff]

If it came in as a race car, it can only stay here for a little while before it HAS to leave the country.

DUNLOP lost their Record winning land speed car because of this:
http://www.steveschmidtracing.com/our-team-5.html

Car was AUCTIONED at the L.A. customs auction, OG built in South Africa.

[motoman6968]

If it came in as a race car, it can only stay here for a little while before it HAS to leave the country.

DUNLOP lost their Record winning land speed car because of this:
http://www.steveschmidtracing.com/our-team-5.html

Car was AUCTIONED at the L.A. customs auction, OG built in South Africa.

wow, I read the article on that link and it was pretty impressive, it really got sent out of the country? That would suck, why cant we be just a little more like canada with our laws surrounding cars..:keke:

[LA_phantom_240]

"I have a smashed up S14 sitting in my garage and the title and vins for it are looking mighty tempting."

not a bad idea but i wouldnt tell anyone lol

I've seen it done before. Very simple in my opinion. I'm trying to convince a buddy of mine to pick up a 180sx Type-X and use his old vin on his junker s13.

[johngriff]

Yeah, I watched it get auctioned in person. It sucked allot.

Its our failing US auto makers to blame for the current state of our laws. Non-Competition.

[D1tuner]

yea well he didnt say it was brought in as a race car but he got it registered as a race car, IDK though.

prior written approval from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required and such approval is granted only to those racing vehicles that EPA deems not capable of safe or practical use on streets and highways. If the contests are for other than money purposes, the vehicle may be admitted for 90 days without formal entry or bond if the Customs officer is satisfied as to the importer's identity and good faith. The vehicle becomes subject to forfeiture if it is not exported or if a bond is not given within 90 days of its importation. Prior authorization must be obtained from DOT if the vehicle does not conform to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards.

[johngriff]

Right. So its CRITICAL for you to know EXACTLY how the car got here, its current paperwork status etc. I am sorry but right now it just sounds like you are dreaming big. For most it is more trouble than its worth, unless you really want to show people you are a BALLER, then drop the dime to grease the wheels and get it done.

[drift freaq]

I don't think its THAT much to get the dealers licence, I know you have to be bonded, but there are bonding companies, and at least in cali you don't "NEED" a store front, I have a couple friends that Buy and Sell on Ebay.

then they have wholesalers license which limits them to 25 cars a year and yes you do need 100k bond, though I believe the wholesalers is 50k. A wholesaler does need a place of business as well . Trust me I have looked into this.

Ok well all that I found out was through dmv and through customs so if you think your right then take it up with them, do not neg rep me for stupid shit like that again

You know what go back and do your homework. Call the DOT and the EPA this shit has been researched and posted on this forum before. So man up little boy and learn to investigate more before spouting off. You stated unfactual misinformation. You are just begging for more neg rep aren't you.

P.S. your grey square attempt at neg repping me motoman is laughable. Trying to school me on what should or should not be neg repped is laughable too. I suggest you shut up read and learn newb.

[johngriff]

Yeah, I should ask around, because a few of them make some good bank, its just a hustle and flow.

[SlideWell]

if this were all in happening in one room, there would be fists flying, people kickin, curb stompin, and id be in the corner laughing.
man, i wish some things were fo realz

[WagDatto]

You're going to break the bank trying to register it and waste a lot of time. Man up, buy a front clip and do a RHD and motor swap. It's legal to have a RHD car (though not necessarily the motor!), and if you swap the firewall and do a good job/pay someone to do a good job of it, then who cares? You'll go nowhere trying to register an import legally.

[onehundredoctane]

do the RHD conversion, but do it RIGHT!

then when you swap a SR, you won't have to touch the wiring or modify the engine wiring harness, everything should then be plug and play, however, the body harness is another story.

RHD PROJECT for 2 years and running, but it's got a full built engine, and lots of body work.

[lazy240]

so if you do the right hand drive conversion will you get in trouble for the vins being change on the dash or what

[onehundredoctane]

do you get in trouble if you take the vin number off your OEM dash and make a aluminum dash panel, then rivet the vin tag back on? I'd think not, converting a car to RHD is considered a customization.

Not as drastic as some ricer body kit, but still, you get the point.

[fliprayzin240sx]

Check with your state...its easy to get a car approved by your state and register it, but its another to make it federal.

I know for a fact in FL (I know a couple people in the mil whos done this), you can go to certain counties and they will register your car in FL with the JDM vin. All they asked for were simple paperwork like the JDM title w/ translation for the most part. Not all counties does it, the person I know brought back 3 1st gen Evos and a Pulsar GTi-R, he had to go from county to county till somebody was willing to register it. Its not legal but its registered.

[Phlip]

This round of this argument has gone far enough... I will end it now