Has anyone brought in one of the EVO II's to the States? I'm in touch with a LHD one in the U.K. that sounds interesting but don't want to end up with the import nightmare...

I found one about 2 years ago in Belgium (my native country). It was a superbly maintained example, and I was really, REALLY looking forward to bringing it to the states.
I have a relative there in the shipping bus, so that part of the deal was going to be easy.

The big let down came when I contacted the DOT to see what all the requirements were etc. I planned on doing the conversion myself since I am a technician. They would not go for it. According to the people I spoke to at the time, I needed to get it to an authorized shop to have the EPA/DOT stuff done. He then faxed me a list of about 6 shops around the country who are "authorized". I called them all, and every one of them seemed uninterested, rude, and not very proffessional.....of course each of them wanted around 10-grand to do the conversion.

I asked if I could keep the old parts taken off the car, and couldn't get a straight answer.
I asked specific q's about making me a detailed list of the mods they would perform (for my 10k$) and couldn't get a straight answer.
Interesting, since about every euro version car I have ever serviced looked like whoever did the conversion just cobbled the job, and didn't do anything right.
I have seen alot, ALOT of grey market Benzes (and porsches, ferraris, lambos,BMWs) and have not yet seen one that had a clean, well done conversion.

I hate to sound discouraging.....But I spent alot of time, and a few bucks, trying to put this deal together only to be totally let down by all the chicken$#!*, that uncle sam makes you deal with.

Maybe things have changed, but I doubt it.


I finally gave up when the owner of the car contacted me because he had another offer on the car. I just couldn't justify all of the expenses (and risk letting a bunch of hacks, butcher a beautiful EVO car),,,,so I ended up building a cobra replica.

------------------
Alain
http://www.expage.com/benzracer

Jim,

Considering that there are only 502 true EvoII's that were built for street use, one would think that these cars would fetch at LEAST 6 figures with no problem. I would think that the price would make 300SL owners pause.

That being said, if one could afford and EvoII to begin with, the cost of import shouldn't be an issue.

I would be more concerned with what Alain said about the quality of work that was done in converting the car.

In all honesty, I would think that any kind of modification to such a rare and wonderful car will decrease it's value. Such a car should remain as it was from the factory. But then again, I am somewhat of a purist...and a bit of a hypocrite because I would like to convert my 16v back to the european specs *L*



------------------
Cheers!

Yen-Hsen Liem
'93 500E black pearl/black leather; 89,000km; 245/45-ZR17 Michelin Pilot SX; 17x8.25 factory EvoII
'93 500E bornit(blackberry)/black leather; 69,000km; european delivery; 245/45-ZR17 Michelin Pilot SX; 17x8.25 factory EvoII
'88 560SL desert taupe/dark brown leather; 89,000km; Euro headlights
'87 190E 2.3-16 black pearl/black leather; 55,000mi; Euro headlights
'70 280SL white/red; 135,000mi (original); factory alloys; Euro headlights

Six figures?? Here is my Christmas present to you...http://www.mcp-motorsport.co.uk/frame.htm

At roughly 22,000 Sterling, this should be looked at.

------------------
'93 500E
'88 Tyrrell/Cosworth DFZ 017
'95 Ducati 916
'00 Ducati MH900e

Jim: Is it possible to import the true EvoII to Canada easily and without much conversion and without much import taxes ??? Thanks

__________________
1987 190E 2.3-16 Valve
216,000 miles original engine

Alain, Jim, all

Since/if you are a tech/shop owner...you could try to convince them (the DOT)that this car will be used for show or testing purposes and forgo the necessary mods to federalise it. I believe that is how the few Porsche 959s got into the US w/o being mauled up with silly US regulations/parts.

I think you can get a Euro-spec car in the USA that way, without mods for at least a year or two. Change your address after the year or two and they will probably/maybe forget you and the car!! There is also someone who brought in an Audi RS4 Avant recently for 'show and test' purposes. I saw a test of it in either European Car or EuroTuner in the past few months. The article has the importer name, maybe you could ask them how they did it. Check it out. Or let me know if you can't find that cars info and I'll search my recent mags for their info.

On another note...a local friend/car wholesaler got info from a Connecticut car federaliser a few years back to possibly bring in an E60 Limited....they were quoting him 5-7000$ to do the deal...and he could keep the euro-bits too when it was all said and done!!

Good luck !! Fabulous cars them EvoIIs.

__________________
Jim

1992 500E
2007 CLK63
2003 Audi RS6
2001 Audi allroad

Although production figures for the EVOII were 502, only 500 were available for public sale, that said, the EVOII should qualify as a vehicle that can be imported for "Show or Display"

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/ShowDisplay/howtosd072003.html

Keep in mind that the EVOII is not on their list of "approved" vehicles and you would need to be prepared to present a case to the NHTSA stating "why" this vehicle is "special" Your also going to need proof that there were only 500 made (well, 500 made for public sale that is), so your going to need to do some leg work with MB of Germany to get all the data you need. You still need to have the car converted to meet EPA guidelines.

Disclaimer: The following is only information I have obtained from the internet and/or known parties that have imported cars, I don't condone breaking any laws, use the following information at your own risk.

There are many cases around the US where vehicles were brought over here either under the above mentioned guidelines and other less honest methods. Many examples of JDM Integra Type R's and Nissan Silvias bought over exist and are for sale.

Also many of these have been legally registered in the US. So it definately is possible to get the car into the US bypassing the NHTSA and to get it legalized. The JDM Integra would be almost impossible to legalize via NHTSA guidelines as the front end is not DOT approved and both passenger and driver airbags would have to be added (1996 and later). I have seen these cars in full JDM trim (no modifications to conform with NHTSA/DOT), with state issued replacement VIN's and valid titles.

The big question though is how bad you want a EVOII and do you want to jump through all the "hoops" to do it the NHTSA way or do you want to side step that process? If so, continue reading.......

As for Canada, if the car is 15 years or older, you can import it very easy. 1989 and soon to be 1990 Skyline GTR's are starting to appear in Canada, in full JDM trim. Several people I know are bringing these cars into Vancouver, registering them, then driving down into the states. Thats your ticket to getting the EVOII into the US, your next problem would be to get a VIN for it, Washington and Oregon seem pretty lax when it comes to this (given how many JDM Integras and Silvias have been registered without so much as a headlight swap). The EVOII would be viewed as just a 190E and given the year of manufacture, there would be no red flags thrown up during inspection, last step would be to ensure the car pass's emissions or to register the car in a county that does not have any emissions testing requirements.

Good luck.

__________________
1993 500E
http://2phast.com/500e/500e-sig.jpg

My only addition to this discussion is that owning/driving the Evo II, other than a display or museum piece, would be full of risk and expense. The model specific engine, chassis and body parts are rare and jaw dropping expensive as with any limited production, homolgation special.

Further to MTI's post, I have discovered that pricing for some EvoI parts are as follows:

Fender flares: $2300 Canadian EACH
Front bumper & Air dam: $5500 Canadian

These are list prices as there was a verified EvoI (I have seen the car AND the VIN number) in the MB bodyshop up here after it had been badly rear ended.

One can expect that EvoII parts would cost even more.

__________________
'94 W124.036 249/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'93 W124.036 199/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs, up in flames...LITERALLY!
'93 W124.036 481/040 leder; euro delivery; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'88 R107.048 441/409 leder; Euro lights
'87 W201.034 199/040 leder; Euro lights; EvoII brakes; 8x16 EvoIs - soon: 500E rear brakes
'70 R113.044 050/526; factory alloys; Euro lights

When we were working with Aprilia North America (an Italian motorcycle manufacturer). We were busy testing the valiidity of racing the new Mille R (1000cc v-twin motorycle). We were able to import a non US spec version (since there were no US models at the time (1999)). We used it for a test bed for evaluation and actually used it as a backup bike for the first season when the US versions were finally made available. As Jims500E pointed out this was not a problem however as the 2 year mark loomed on the horizon we were asked by Aprilia to return the bike to the factory in Italy. Of course crated it up and sent it back (eh, most of it anyway). So I can confidently say that you could find a way to import it however you may run into issues down the road. I remember the DOT sending agents to the homes of the lucky few owners who imported Porsche 959s. There was even a story of an owner in Seattle who had to sneak his 959 across the boarder into Canada to prevent it from being seized. Seems like there are loopholes but as with everything in this world there are no guarantees. You have to weigh the risk/reward of such an indeavor. I wish you the best of luck.

__________________
...yes, but no sprinkles...for each sprinkle I find I shall have you killed. - Stewie

Did the Canadian EVO1 have the production number embedded into the Stick Shift knob like in the EVO2 i.e. 022/500 or 368/500 with the numbers 022 and 368 printed in red color ?? Thanks

__________________
1987 190E 2.3-16 Valve
216,000 miles original engine

Never seen an EVOI with the production number in the shift knob, that was only on the EVOII

__________________
1993 500E
http://2phast.com/500e/500e-sig.jpg

Yeh my Evo 1 just as the normal 16V knob and no fender badges either I think the limited production number was a later sales gimmick to help sell the Evo 2 models. The Evo 1 featured in Mercedes Enthusiast magazine had a numbered knob but weather that was an original fitment I dont know. I personally use my car every day , the bodykit parts that need special care are the lower front spoiler particularly when in the lowest ride height setting.The Evo body kit is quite tough and being Carbon fibre easy to repair should anything happen, I dont see the point in owning a amazing car like this and not using it as much as possible. There have been some unused Evo2s forsale in Europe recently but one must wonder what problems the long period of stagnation will cause. Has regards modification for US certification what would need to be done? bearing in mind the Evo was built to the West German spec with catalitic converter etc. Regards Linds

EvoIs did not have any numbered plaques or any badging to suggest that it was anything other than a 190E 2.5-16. That was strictly on EvoIIs. Any EvoI with such badging would have had them added after the EvoII was produced.

The only way to verify an EvoI (Aside from visually inspecting the chassis to ensure that the changes have been made "under the skin") would be through the VIN number: 201.036

As I understand it, the EvoI chassis was diverted from the regular production line as needed whereas the EvoII was manufactured in a single run. (The info about the EvoII is what I have heard and is not verified.)

__________________
'94 W124.036 249/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'93 W124.036 199/040 leder; 8.25x17 EvoIIs, up in flames...LITERALLY!
'93 W124.036 481/040 leder; euro delivery; 8.25x17 EvoIIs
'88 R107.048 441/409 leder; Euro lights
'87 W201.034 199/040 leder; Euro lights; EvoII brakes; 8x16 EvoIs - soon: 500E rear brakes
'70 R113.044 050/526; factory alloys; Euro lights

I have to agree the Evo 1 is alltogeather a more understated car which I personally prefer. The car was produced when most customers opted to have no external badges fitted ,my car doesnt even have the 190E and 2.5-16V badges. The extra work carried out on the bodyshell is quite extensive which would point to the car being built up from parts rather being modified from a prebuilt 2.5-16, the shell feels much stiffer than the standard car.
Regards Linds