importing Nissan Figaro to USA

[ftlajka]

my husband has a nissan figaro and would like to keep it when we move back to the US. He's planning on shipping the engine and the car separately. (he doesn't want the turbo engine in the figaro and plans on putting his 91 SE-R engine in it and vise versa).

My question is can he do it as kit car, or does he have to ship it together. I checked to DOT and NTSB sites and the only reference they have to this car are Not eligible for "show or display". it does not show up on the other lists.

He needs new tires and a couple other things for it now and we just want to know if it is even worth the expense.

thanks

[Broke_as_****]

This is from the EPA website:

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/kitcar.htm

The production, sale and importation of vehicle parts (engines, transmissions, chassis, vehicle bodies, etc.) are not regulated by EPA because parts are not considered motor vehicles under the Clean Air Act. However if the parts constitute a disassembled vehicle or an approximate disassembled vehicle, the combination is considered a motor vehicle under the Clean Air Act. Any attempt to use this policy to circumvent the Clean Air Act or the Imports regulations will be considered a violation of the Clean Air Act and will be strictly enforced. An example of such circumvention is:

A kit car maker who also provides the engine and transmission before or after production/importation of the body/chassis.

"Motor vehicles" must comply with the Clean Air Act and may not be disassembled nor purchased in a disassembled form for the purposes of evading the Clean Air Act or the Imports regulations. In these situations the kit car body/chassis combination must be certified by the manufacturer, must be in a configuration which was previously certified by EPA subject to the guidelines discussed at "2" above or, in the case of an importation, an EPA form 3520-1 must be filed at the port of entry and the vehicle imported by an eligible ICI who must ensure that the kit car body/chassis complies with all applicable emission requirements. At the present time, there are no ICIs eligible to import kit cars.

Now basically that says that you can't take a car apart, ship it in pieces and then register it as a kit car. However whether or not putting the SE-R engine in the Figaro will exempt you from that law is not covered. It would seem to exempt you because you are putting a different engine in the car then it was built with.

Kit vehicles are understood by EPA to typically involve new bodies, used drivetrains and new or used chassis.

It doesn't really state how much of much of what needs to be new or used of non-OEM origin to be considered a kit car. This law is more geared towards something along the lines of a Mustang chassis and suspension being used for a Cobra replica.

The production, sale and importation of automotive bodies alone (i.e., no chassis, engine or transmission) are not regulated by EPA since such units are not considered "motor vehicles" under the Clean Air Act. EPA form 3520-1 is not required for imported automotive bodies. A motor vehicle from which the engine has been removed is still a motor vehicle and is not considered a body.

It would seem that the Figaro shipped minus engine would still count as a "motor vehicle" but that may not apply if it was never a certified vehicle to begin with.

There is a few posts in the Skyline section (from where the EPA link is from) that claim to have shipped a complete car in pieces and registered them as kit cars. That would seem to be in violation of the law but perhaps "strictly enforced" really means "they don't give ****". And it maybe be one of those "it's not what you know it's who you know" deals as far as that went.

I do believe that military personel can get a normally illegal car in on a loophole but I would try contacting the post information or welcome center. Asking around to find someone who has imported a car on a military ticket would also be helpful.