First, I'd like to clarify, THIS IS NOT MY CAR.
So, hypothetically, let's say a friend of yours in the military just returned from overseas with a 1994 "JDM" Supra. That came back under comforters in pieces as a household item. (Not 100% sure what was declared).
You are now in the position of telling this friend that the Supra isn't on the "legal to import" list in any way, shape, or form.
What's the best thing to do with the pieces? Am I missing something on the legality of importing these?
He could store it for 8 years or he can use it as a track only vehicle. Or part it.
Buy a shell and transfer everything else to it?
93EXCivic wrote:He could store it for 8 years or he can use it as a track only vehicle. Or part it.
+1 I agree.
mtn wrote:Buy a shell and transfer everything else to it?
This would be my plan of attack
How did he bring a unibody in comforters?
Fast forward to 2020...
"Yeah, see um, I smuggled this car into the country back in 2012 but now that it is 25 years old, I want to register it...."
That should go well.
davidjs wrote:First, I'd like to clarify, THIS IS NOT MY CAR.
So, hypothetically, let's say a friend of yours in the military just returned from overseas with a 1994 "JDM" Supra. That came back under comforters in pieces as a household item. (Not 100% sure what was declared).
You are now in the position of telling this friend that the Supra isn't on the "legal to import" list in any way, shape, or form.
What's the best thing to do with the pieces? Am I missing something on the legality of importing these?
I'm guessing it IS legal to import, quite honestly.
They were in the Military, so they should get a pass. Drive it.
Sell it to someone in Canada. They only have a 15 year rule. Does it have some sort of title or ownership?
bludroptop wrote:Fast forward to 2020...
"Yeah, see um, I smuggled this car into the country back in 2012 but now that it is 25 years old, I want to register it...."
That should go well.
Why not? You can import a car whenever. It just not might not be legal for road use...
To bad he isn't in Alabama, it would be easy to get a tag for it using the abandoned vehicle process. 
92CelicaHalfTrac wrote:How? It's my understanding that unless it has an fmvss sticker or is on that list, it's essentially impossible to import.davidjs wrote:First, I'd like to clarify, THIS IS NOT MY CAR.
So, hypothetically, let's say a friend of yours in the military just returned from overseas with a 1994 "JDM" Supra. That came back under comforters in pieces as a household item. (Not 100% sure what was declared).
You are now in the position of telling this friend that the Supra isn't on the "legal to import" list in any way, shape, or form.
What's the best thing to do with the pieces? Am I missing something on the legality of importing these?
I'm guessing it IS legal to import, quite honestly.
By the sheer amount of wink winking I've found on supra boards, I assumed jdm ones were not automatically compliant.
davidjs wrote:92CelicaHalfTrac wrote:How? It's my understanding that unless it has an fmvss sticker or is on that list, it's essentially impossible to import.davidjs wrote:First, I'd like to clarify, THIS IS NOT MY CAR.
So, hypothetically, let's say a friend of yours in the military just returned from overseas with a 1994 "JDM" Supra. That came back under comforters in pieces as a household item. (Not 100% sure what was declared).
You are now in the position of telling this friend that the Supra isn't on the "legal to import" list in any way, shape, or form.
What's the best thing to do with the pieces? Am I missing something on the legality of importing these?
I'm guessing it IS legal to import, quite honestly.
By the sheer amount of wink winking I've found on supra boards, I assumed jdm ones were not automatically compliant.
Importing and putting on the road are two different things I think.
mw wrote:Sell it to someone in Canada. They only have a 15 year rule. Does it have some sort of title or ownership?
I believe he has a legal Japanese title.
I don't think there's any way this car is going on the road legally in the US other than to buy a USDM shell and swap all the parts over (or the not-quite-as-legal equivalent of swapping the VINs from the US car to the JDM car).
The same year car was sold here, which means you can get it on the road legally. It would still have to go through a registered importer and be federalized.
Buy another shell. It will be easier and cheaper.
MG Bryan wrote:The same year car was sold here, which means you can get it on the road legally. It would still have to go through a registered importer and be federalized.
Buy another shell. It will be easier and cheaper.
Right, but since it's not currently on the list, that means there's no approved process, correct? So it would have to be the "first one"?
ever seen when a guy takes a "hemi cuda" that consists of the few inches of the car surrounding the VIN plate and a title and takes a 6 cylinder body and "rebuilds the body around the vin tag" using the entire other car?
now, legally who knows what that means. i have no moral objections to doing so, he acquired said supra legally so it's not like it is a stolen car. i just would not go blabbing all over the internets that it was done.
patgizz wrote:ever seen when a guy takes a "hemi cuda" that consists of the few inches of the car surrounding the VIN plate and a title and takes a 6 cylinder body and "rebuilds the body around the vin tag" using the entire other car?
felony!
davidjs wrote:MG Bryan wrote:The same year car was sold here, which means you can get it on the road legally. It would still have to go through a registered importer and be federalized.
Buy another shell. It will be easier and cheaper.
Right, but since it's not currently on the list, that means there's no approved process, correct? So it would have to be the "first one"?
There's thousands of 94 supra in the USA.
Sorry, forum works weird on tablet.
Anyways, there's thousands of 94 supras in the USA. As long as it's lhd the process shouldn't be bad.
He'll have to add all the emissions stuff though.
Would make sense to just use it as a donor. Keep the jdm stuff and vinas a conversation starter.
92CelicaHalfTrac wrote:Sorry, forum works weird on tablet.
Anyways, there's thousands of 94 supras in the USA. As long as it's lhd the process shouldn't be bad.
He'll have to add all the emissions stuff though.
Would make sense to just use it as a donor. Keep the jdm stuff and vinas a conversation starter.
I'm just going to quote this half of this post. 
As, 92Celica says there are thousand of them in the US because the Supra was sold here for the '94 model year. The importation rules state that if a sufficiently similar car was sold here, a car can be imported without being specifically listed as an exemption. You have to get approval and show that it's "sufficiently" similar, but that is theoretically possible.
RHD shouldn't even matter unless the chassis are drastically different in some way. Does the steering column collapse in an impact? Does it have SRS? Does it have the same bumpers it was sold with in the US? There are a bunch of criteria it has to meet.
It has to go through a Registered Importer. You can't federalize it yourself. The system is designed to make it difficult enough that most won't bother and to wring a lot of money out of those that do.
A shell with a vin that sold here cuts out all of those hurdles and save you huge stacks of cash.
