importing a GTO to the states

okay so i found a gto that i would love to have. 2000 GTO MR 6 speed RHD 27k miles. black on black. only problem is the company that will get it from japan can only get it to canada (cuz thats where their based) does anyone know what i would have to do to get that in the states and about what it would cost... or even where to look in to it?

Not worth it.









Not worth it.









Not worth it. If you want to import something, at least(and try not to bash me for being a ricer) get an R33.

It CANT be done. Period. The GTO is not legal for road use in the states. There are only two Mitsubishis that can be legally imported.

you want a RHD car? hehehe
$$$ let me see the money!

Have you checked the elgibale car list or whatever for import? I dont rember if it is DOT or what but some site has the registered importers list and cars eligable. Where the GTO and 3000gt are simuliar i think you should be able to but it would have to be LHD b/c the Nissian Skyline is the only eligable RHD car that can be left RHD.

why does is have to do with RHD/LHD? i was under the impression that they (most JDM cars) were not legal here becasue they dont pass our crash test standards and emmisions.

The GTO is not on the list of eligible cars. Yes the cars are very similar, almost identical. But for some reason they are not legal for road use or importation into the US. Besides even if it were legal you are looking at around $20k just to get it leglaized. Why do you think Motorex charged so much to get Skylines here? Most of it was importation fees. Its just not worth it. You can get a lower mileage VR4 for alot less.

RHD/LHD all cars crash tested in american are LHD so naturally you would have to crash a few RHD GTO if you wanted left RHD to prove it was safe *part of the reason motorex charged so much to* But if you LHD converted it you could use mitisubishi's crash tests. But any way like stealthee said get a good VR4 for less or a front end damged vr4 and rhd swap it. Grab the MR gears swap them and hell grab some cloth seats and diss the aws and climate control and you are close to a MR i can't rember what all they were missing.

The 95-96 Stealth TT's were basically MR's without the gearing. BTW ALL 6 speed GTO's had the "mr gearing"

okay so since importing a gto is kinda out of the question (or so it seems) does anyone know where i can find a list of all the difference on the MR and the VR-4?

The MR was on the z15 chassis. It had no AWS, no climate control, no leather, basically it was a base 3000gt with AWD and TT.

why would the jap spec Mr not have AWS? is it heavy or something?

^^It is basically not really worth it. It is so small of a change the weight really isn't worth it.

The AWS on the TT 3s DOES work. But the MR was going for "lightweight" In reality I beleive the MR was only like 180 lbs lighter than a regular GTO TT.

also another reason u cant import a gto, is because of the stealth and the vr4, it states no car similar to that already offered in america can be imported.
u can find many 3/s tt for under 10k right now, in great condition. mine's a 92 stealth tt, 8700 got it, and it just needs it's 60k tune-up,and tires. even like stated by someone else, u find one with a lil damage, do the rhd conversion. really the only reaspn rhd conversions are available in america is for 2 reaspns. 1) to make the car different. 2) to make it look like something from outside N. America.
the mr is a 3000gt sl with awd and tt's. it is lighter(all of 150lbs) from removal of items that were luxeries.
the mr is similar in the way the rx7 had different performance levels, r1,r2,and r3

RHD/LHD all cars crash tested in american are LHD so naturally you would have to crash a few RHD GTO if you wanted left RHD to prove it was safe *part of the reason motorex charged so much to* But if you LHD converted it you could use mitisubishi's crash tests. But any way like stealthee said get a good VR4 for less or a front end damged vr4 and rhd swap it. Grab the MR gears swap them and hell grab some cloth seats and diss the aws and climate control and you are close to a MR i can't rember what all they were missing.

what the hell?? Its not that.. the RHD does not have any thing to do with it.. there are no catalitic converters no EGR there are no stickers on the side mirrors that say "objects in mirror are closer then they apear" it has to have all this gay shit that japan didnt put on there cars.. thats why its such a pain in the ass.. I have a friend that imported a R33 and R32 from japan through canada.. it took about 6 months of paper work and costom fabbing of the egr and other safty and emmision control shit and he is now streat leagal.. that is with keeping the jdm vin.. no crash test stuff.. just time and money.. i also have a friend that imported a silva.. he also jumped through the loops and is now streat leagal.. and it is RHD still... his took just over 8 months though.. if you just want a RHD vr-4 i can make you one.. all it takes is money!!! haha

To be legallly imported into the US * a non US car* You have to supply crash test data proving the car is safe for road use. Plus what you said about emissions. But they are many many loop holes but go ask in the skyline section bout the repurcusions of going through loop holes and getting found out. THEY ARE NOT PRETTY!!!!! How does he have these car insured? My bet the gray aera or whatever where you do the value of the car that you want other then the actual value.

for the skyline to enter america(from anywhere other than factory,yes nissan brought over 3 for motor trend and car and driver so they can test them) it has to be brought in thru a registered importer(well any car does if u want leagle)
but as for the gto, the car really isnt worth all thte hassles to bring here, there are way too many other options here.

http://forums.nicoclub.com/zerothread/159216


This will tell you everything you want to know about importing a car.



Also, yes you can get the car in parts and claim it as a parts car, but if they find out then you can get your car impounded. Happened to a friend of mine's R34.

just for the sake of argument and curiosity, how do people get away with "custom" vehicles? What are they insured and registered as? Obviously they have to pass emmisions, but what about crash standards? I cant imagine they crash test a Boyd Coddington original custom one-of-a-kind vehicle for example...

that said, whats to stop me from buying an R34, or GTO for that matter, taking off all the badges and the VIN plate, and regestering it as a custom built vehicle?

like the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile...did they have to crash test that? lol

that is a great question.. or the ultima gtr or all the cobra kit cars?? there are lots of the cobra kit cars out now

Those are considered it cars are receive a special designation and special VIN. The trouble youd go thru just go get a GTO into the states to begin with, then all the trouble you have to go thru to get it registered you have spent double on a GTO as what you could have on a nicely modded low mileage VR4.

And not trying to be a dick but vectorsepcialist PLEASE for the sake of the forum if you do not know what you are talking about then please say nothing. There is no legal importer for GTO's. Like I said they cant be legalized in the US even if you get one here. There was 2 floating around on ebay and right in the auction it stated CAR CANNOT BE LEGALLY DRIVEN.

I thought it had be a simulair car had to be here o well. *or it would help* But as for custom or kit cars they have to apply for vins get the vin apply then go for inspection once inspected they get another thing they have to apply for get it * i think its another of vin like one for body one for chassis. But yeah just front clip a crashed out vr4

well kit cars are registered as kit cars. as for boyd coddigton his cars are built on pre-existing frames therefore no crash testing is needed, just emissions.
also stealthee, if u read i stated u need a registered importer. so if one existed for te gto(which one doesnt) then u can
as for the wienner mobile, that's a good question. email oscar meyer.
the nobel company is a good example of bringing a car here and registering it under kit car

and please not trying to b a dick, but can people actually read and not just glance

well kit cars are registered as kit cars. as for boyd coddigton his cars are built on pre-existing frames therefore no crash testing is needed, just emissions.

nope.

half the cars Boyd Coddington makes are from the ground up, that is the make their own chassis.

also stealthee, if u read i stated u need a registered importer. so if one existed for te gto(which one doesnt) then u can
as for the wienner mobile, that's a good question. email oscar meyer.
the nobel company is a good example of bringing a car here and registering it under kit car

the Noble company does not bring the car to the U.S. in it entirety. you have to purchase the body/chassis and engine separately and assemble, thus its a kit car.

----

and all this stuff about a car cannot be legally driven in the U.S...yes its true to some extent, so let's clarify: it cannot be driven in the U.S. in its current state. WHY? b/c it does not meet the strict safety guidelines of the US DOT.

Jason said it all:


what the hell?? Its not that.. the RHD does not have any thing to do with it.. there are no catalitic converters no EGR there are no stickers on the side mirrors that say "objects in mirror are closer then they apear" it has to have all this gay shit that japan didnt put on there cars.. thats why its such a pain in the ass.. I have a friend that imported a R33 and R32 from japan through canada.. it took about 6 months of paper work and costom fabbing of the egr and other safty and emmision control shit and he is now streat leagal.. that is with keeping the jdm vin.. no crash test stuff.. just time and money.. i also have a friend that imported a silva.. he also jumped through the loops and is now streat leagal.. and it is RHD still... his took just over 8 months though.. if you just want a RHD vr-4 i can make you one.. all it takes is money!!! haha

the cars in the U.S. have a special 'safety glass' on all windows and windshield. also, there are emissions standards, SRS (airbags), seatbelt standards (material of strap must be of a certain strength denoted by its weave pattern), headlights/turns/reflectors/etc.

also, the link Morphius posted is very helpful. read it and quit making up ur own theories. a few quotes:

"Please note that we determined the vehicle eligible for importation based on its capability of being modified to comply with all applicable standards."

"You should note that if you were to import the vehicle, the necessary modifications would have to be made by an RI [registered importer], and that importer would have to certify to us that the vehicle conforms to all applicable FMVSS [Federal motor vehicle safety standard]...[and the RI would be held liable in the case the] vehicle is determined to contain a safety-related defect or a noncompliance with an applicable safety standard.

"Questions regarding modifications to conform the vehicle to applicable emissions standards should be directed to the EPA."

It's too bad you guys have such a hard time getting them down there. Up here (Canada) we can bring in most cars that are over 15 yrs old. Started seeing a few GTO's in the past couple years. It gets annoying though, as everyone and their dog has a RHD car now, I'm just glad ppl are sticking to Skyline's and Fairlady's and staying away from the GTO.

i know about the nobel, body from africa and chassis from england, and built in ohio i think.
i didnt know coddington built some of his own cars, are they hot rods, or modern cars?

I believe the US has that law, except with 25 years instead of 15 years.

yea it does, and i think it should b 5 or 20, who want a car after 25yrs. no offense but wat did japanesse companies make 25yrs ago that was interesting, tho, europe ha nice cars back then

i know about the nobel, body from africa and chassis from england, and built in ohio i think.
i didnt know coddington built some of his own cars, are they hot rods, or modern cars?
Close but not quite:

The full rolling chassis is manufactured in South Africa. It is then imported to 1G Racing as the exclusive importer in the US. An engine is order separately from AER in Texas. Both are shipped to an installer to be completed.

The Noble is never a completed car outside of the states and is therefore elegible for component vehicle / kit car status. If a completed Noble from Europe were to be imported you would have to go through both import hoops and federalization (read - mega $$$$). That's the reason it's done as a "kit".

well then i wanna know wat makes the nobel a british car, if nothing is made in england

there's a blue nobel for sale by me, it's 97g, nice car, i think its an m400

well then i wanna know wat makes the nobel a british car, if nothing is made in england

Lee Noble the designer and founder is in England and all normal (non-US) production cars are assembled in the plant in Leicestershire before dealer distribution.

o ok, i get it now, still nice cars

Wow lol. If I had that kind of money I'd be searching for a 1999 VR4.

Wow lol. If I had that kind of money I'd be searching for a 1999 VR4.

I have a 1997 VR4 as my "slow" fast car. I love my 3K but at 1400lbs heavier and less HP.... no comparison to the Noble performancewise.

the nobel is strret legal race car, that's exactly wat it is, no real luxeries, the 3/s were grand tourers, therefor sport plus luxery

Oh I was talking about DSM Monster. He is so determined to get a GTO/3kgt. Seeing as importing a GTO is not an option: Personally, if I had that type of money I would be exploring other options such as a 1999 VR4 or a VR4 Spyder with super low mileage. :)

Oh I was talking about DSM Monster. He is so determined to get a GTO/3kgt. Seeing as importing a GTO is not an option: Personally, if I had that type of money I would be exploring other options such as a 1999 VR4 or a VR4 Spyder with super low mileage. :)

I agree. Much better use of funds. Heck, he could buy a US one and "refresh" a bunch of things and still spend less than importing.