Importing Mercedes Questions????
 

hi
I was wondering if anyone in this forum ever got a Mercedes or other german cars imported to the States?

I was thinking of getting a Evo1 16v LHD imported here.
I have been reading alot of the US Custom pages on the Net , but it's hard ,long and complicated reading with hardly any anwsers.
I figure I will have to pay duty,(2.5%) , but it seems I have to
pay one and one half the vaule of the car untill it is EPA approved, and have to put up the total value untill it is DOT
approved,?? Does this sound right to dish out around 30K untill
it is legal and gett it all back,
Any help


:confused:

thanks
Dave

86 190e 16v
80 300SD TD
69 911 Iroc replica

First I want to tell you that you will be the envy of every 190 owner if you get a real EVO I. Second, I spoke with an E30 M3 owner and he was telling me that he spent $10k over the price of the car(Euro E28 M5) to bring it over and federalize it. He never mentioned anything about paying 1.5 times the car's price. Just that it was waiting a long time in the docks while it got US parts installed. Why don't you call up one of those importation companies and see what the deal is?

Sorry not too much help,
Giancarlo

I called 3 differnt import places today, one, I don't have time for this!!!, and the other 2 just said ,I will have to give them around 10k and 3 mo, but will not tell me what for and what needs to be done, One guy said I will not be able to get it out of port without him and the 10k?? Hard to get soild anwsers from these guys too.

Ping RickG...I remember him telling me a way to import one before..can't remember. I know it had to do with it's limited production exception.

By now you should have found the requirement that importing a foreign, non-North American version car is going to require (not convenience, but statutory requirement) that the transaction be done by a bonded importer. Conversion to US standards, safety and emissions, will be required for cars under 25 years old. Exemptions exist for 1) race cars and show cars that are not titled; 2) diplomatic cars.

Here's NHTSA's list of potential imports:

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/ELIG0521-03.html

The EVO should qualify for show use.

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

You can work this law to your advantage and the vehicle only has to meet EPA requirements. The key is locating a importer that will act as your agent and assist with EPA conversions (most likely, just a cat will be needed).

I would also be interested in the true "Total" costs of importing.

E55T for me please.;) (Kleemann and Clarsson would also contribute to the final product!)

The EVO falls into that "less than 500 built catagory" and/or the catagory of "Historical significance", hence why it would be rather easy to get it imported for show purposes. The E55 won't fall into either of these catagories, so its going to be a bit tougher.

Try contacting Kathy Rice at 202-366-5291 at the NHTSA about whether or not the E55T would qualify for importation at all.

You can also try John Weisheight at JK Technologies 410-366-6332 as a possible importer for you.

thanks for the info 2phast, the show application ,I think is the way to go!!!
I will have to see what the story is on the Evo and show car importing with them on monday.
thanks

Dave

Why stop at the Evo 1?

http://uk.mobile.de/SIDlXRXMElghwOhy-As3Nx0Jw-t-vaNexlCsAsK%F3P%F3R~BmSB10LsearchPublicJ1064266226A2LsearchPublicCCarW-t-vctpLtt~BmPA1A1B20A1i-t-vMkMoSm_xsO~BSRA6E17200Eevo%FF%A02DEVO2A0A0/cgi-bin/da.pl?sprache=2&bereich=pkw&top=1&id=16048&

The EVO II would qualify but look at the price they want for it...40,000 euro!

I have a friend that imported a Lotus Elise in '98 as a "off-road only" vehicle. It was meant to be just a track car, but he was able to get it registered here in IL without any additional modifications. It must be legal, as he got pulled over in the country doing 120, and he still drives it on the road. I could get more info from him, if you are interested.

I knows a guy whom knows a guy
 

That is CYA lingo for - don't ask whom the "guy" is };-^)

Anyway, it seems that back when 450SLs were new and hot sellers here stateside, there was a certian flyboy that used to fly the "milk run" (B-52) from Rome to Ramstein to Rome. Sometimes there was a nuke aboard, sometimes there was not. Sometimes the aircraft were weighed before takoff and upon landing, some times they were not. As the story goes, the "importers" would hoist a 450SL into the bombay and "import" same without modification and sell to a buyer for a lot less than the other bandits (C/K/A Authorized Mercedes Dealerships) would sell them for. After a certain General ended that method of import and one 450SL was "released" somewhere over the Atlantic to avoid Brig Time, the un-named pilot came up with a new method. He would have the vehicle shipped from Stuttgart to Nova Scotia. He would then register the vehicle in a certain heavily Democratic US state and get plates and a registration issued for same. Upon arrival at it's destination, he would receive notification from Canadian officials of it's arrival on their dock. He would inform them that he intended to have it imported to the US and done by a DOT qualified garage to US spec and that a "registered" car carrier would pick up said vehicle at the dock and pay the import tax at the US border upon crossing. The carrier would then deliver the vehicle to a certain motel in Halifax and be paid for the delivery. He would then attach the plates, slap on an Inspection Sticker, drive the car around on some dirt roads to get it "used looking" and then drive it over to the ferry and bring it in to Portland or Bar Harbor, have it detailed and sell it to the "2nd owner".

If Canada has not changed the rules since the 70ies, one could suppose that the the same method of import could possibly be employed.

so yous knows the guy
 

excellent thought Tom ,

I asked my pilot instructor about the same thing , he said. it was going to be pretty pricey, It would be MUCH cheaper if I could use Uncle Sam;s equipment and fuel:D .
and boy. Im close to Maine, :cool:

jus take the vin tags and licence plate from another 16v and have it shipped to mexico or maybe canda. lol :D

some guy snuck a cosworth RS into the US from mexico.