Moving from Canada to California with 911 SC

[TJK]

Hi, I have a 911 SC that I purchased in California, imported to Canada 20 years ago, and now I plan on moving to California. What can I expect when I arrive at the border in terms of importing the car to the USA? What will I need to do in California to get it licensed there? I am hoping this should be easy as the car was originally registered in California, but would appreciate any advice on the process, particularly anything I may need to do in advance of reaching the border. I have not modified the engine since my purchase in California and it easily past air care in Canada. I have the original blue plate - can/should I try to use that once insured? Is there a particular Cali insurance company recommend for classic cars in original condition?
Thank you!

[salayc]

When you drive across the border, have all your paperwork showing the car was US registered and it's duty free. In CA you will need to register and smog. It's pretty simple.

If you have a fully enclosed garage, there are several insurers (Grundy, Haggerty are the two big ones) If you don't have a garage, you need to go through a regular insurer.

[Cory M]

You should reregister with the blue and yellow plates. Much cooler to have the original and period correct plates.

[Noah930]

I think your car originally being a California car will make everything an easy process, from a paperwork perspective. I'd be surprised of there are any import duties or taxes. If you have the original blue plates, you should be able to run those, too. To avoid the hassle of going to a DMV, maybe join the AAA and see if they can process all the paperwork there?

You'll also have to get the car smogged. In general, only cars from '75 and earlier can skip bienniel smog checks. If the car truly is all original, smogging should be easier. California is unusual in that in addition to the sniffer portion (where they run your car on a dyno and measure tailpipe emissions), there is also a visual check. The tech looks at the engine compartment to make sure all original smog equipment is still present (i.e. smog pump, catalytic converter, etc). That last part depends on the acuity/knowledge/motivation of the tech.

I have used AAA for classic car insurance (I think they only insure cars over 40-years-old now for that), and now I have Grundy. That was a lot cheaper than Hagerty for me.

Good luck. There's a reason why Porsche has sold a bazillion cars here.

[TJK]

Wow sounds like this will be easier than I thought, great. Found a prior registration slip from Cali, and have original Cali sales receipt too. Regarding the original plates - seller only had one for rear of car - can I get away with that or is a front plate needed in Cali too? (been fined here in Canada for just running a rear plate)

[Noah930]

Front plate is necessary. I do not know if you have to prove you have 2 plates when you visit the DMV (or AAA, which is what I would try first because the line will be much shorter). But there are places where you can buy reproduction plates for $95. Technically not legal, but you'll never get in trouble for it legally because they look identical. But you may get ticketed for no front plate if you go that route.

[Cajundaddy]

I don't think AAA can handle out-of-state cars imported to CA. They rejected both my Cayman and Benz that were originally sold in CA but moved to AZ. I bought them in Phoenix and brought them back. Have your current title and reg, get insurance coverage in CA first and head to the DMV. If you have trouble getting it done, there are private companies who specialize in CA out-of-state DMV paperwork and they charge around $100 in addition to CA fees. Sometimes it is worth it simply in terms of hair loss.

The CA DMV is a strange place and it often seems like no one there knows how to handle anything out of the ordinary. They wanted $1700 in fees to import my out-of-state Benz and I politely declined as I was moving shortly and had 90 day temp tags. Got title and 2 year reg in Idaho for $74 and it was easy as pie.

[Noah930]

AAA was able to handle my move from MA to CA. My car was originally a CA car. But I had a MA title in my name.

But when I bought a motorcycle from NH and had it shipped to CA, I got the runaround and had to go the the CHP to verify the VIN to make sure it wasn't a stolen vehicle.

In the end, the process is whatever the clerk you get says it is. I transferred the titles of two cars when I moved. I brought one car to AAA one day, and the other car the next day. Somehow, the processes were slightly different each visit, even though the situations were identical. But I got the cars registered, so I wasn't going to argue administrative details.

[salayc]

Originally Posted by Cajundaddy

I don't think AAA can handle out-of-state cars imported to CA. They rejected both my Cayman and Benz that were originally sold in CA but moved to AZ. I bought them in Phoenix and brought them back. Have your current title and reg, get insurance coverage in CA first and head to the DMV. If you have trouble getting it done, there are private companies who specialize in CA out-of-state DMV paperwork and they charge around $100 in addition to CA fees. Sometimes it is worth it simply in terms of hair loss.

The CA DMV is a strange place and it often seems like no one there knows how to handle anything out of the ordinary. They wanted $1700 in fees to import my out-of-state Benz and I politely declined as I was moving shortly and had 90 day temp tags. Got title and 2 year reg in Idaho for $74 and it was easy as pie.

AAA handles private party out of state only. The reason is reciprocal fees and taxes with other states that AAA does not have access to.

[Allen_70S]

Let’s say a friend of mine “George” shared his experience with me:

A somewhat beat up original CA gold on black plate was sent to a license plate restoration business. This is officially illegal because renewing the registration each year means you are merely leasing the plate from the DMV for another year. You do not own the plate. They did an excellent job restoring the plate, and for an additional $20 or so, punched out a duplicate, in plastic. I doubt the police carry a magnet. The fix-it ticket for no front plate was $25.

[targa80]

In the engine compartment there should be a large emissions sticker declaring the car California smog legal. When I moved my NY 1980SC to San Diego the DMV and smog test station used that info for the new registration.

[Jonny042]

Depending on the direction of the wind and the whim of the border guards you may end up paying 2.5% duty on the car to get the car back into the country.

Not saying it's right, but be prepared for the possibility.

[Joe Bob]

If you are a US citizen/resident just drive thru w/o any comment.