Importing a 911 into the U.S.

[RickM]

Since this question comes up once in a while I figured I 'd post this. Contrary to what I thought, this person states that there is no one-time import exemption.

From http://germanusedcars.com/parts1.html

Importing Cars From Europe to the U.S.

****New info concerning Importing cars from other countries to the US: " I did some research on this when I was preparing to move back to the States from Germany.

The Feds did change the rules about importing cars recently. You
may import a car that is (1) "significant" (i.e. unusual) and is
(2) driven for recreational purposes only (2,500 mi/yr). Under
these conditions, significant modification is not necessary.

Even if you could live with (2) above, the 944 Turbo, sadly, is
not considered significant, as it was produced in mass quantities
for the US market. The Feds will tell you to buy a US-spec one
instead.

The McLaren F1, for example, IS significant and was not sold in the
US and is therefore being imported to the States by several wealthy
owners.

This was interesting to me since the 944 Turbos are regarded in
the same league as the Renault Le Car (Renault 5) in Europe, and
thus sell for a fraction of what they cost in the States. But to
bring one over would still require full DOT and EPA certification,
which would cost thousands and thousands of dollars -- enough to
buy perhaps 2 or 3 USA-spec 944 Turbos.

If you wanted something like the Lotus Elise or a Renault Spider
for track use, or if you're importing something really exotic like
the F1, the new rules might be the hot setup. But otherwise,
they really don't help.

To my knowledge, there's no "once per lifetime exemption". Hope
this helps."
"What modifications do I have to make and how much red tape do I have to go through to buy a car in Germany and have it shipped to the U.S.?"
Answer (Sent in by Ted, thanks Ted!): (Taken directly from the DOT and NHTSA web sites with links to them contained below.) "Imported motor vehicles are subject to safety standards under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, revised under the Imported Vehicle Safety Compliance Act of 1988; to bumper standards under the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act of 1972, which became effective in 1978; and to air pollution control standards under the Clean Air Act of 1968, as amended in 1977 and 1990. Most vehicles manufactured abroad that conform with U.S. safety, bumper, and emission standards are exported expressly for sale in the United States; therefore, it is unlikely that a vehicle obtained abroad meets all relevant standards. Be skeptical of claims by a foreign dealer or other seller that a vehicle meets these standards or can readily be brought into compliance. Nonconforming vehicles entering the United States must be brought into compliance, exported, or destroyed. Both the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency advise that although a nonconforming car may be conditionally admitted, the modifications required to bring it into compliance may be so extensive and costly that it may be impractical and even impossible to achieve such compliance. Moreover, under Federal Regulations 49 CFR parts 591 through 594, effective January 31, 1990, some vehicle models are prohibited from importation. It is highly recommended that these prohibitions and modifications be investigated before a vehicle is purchased for importation."

For specific info and help on this matter please go to the following websites:

http://wallacelab.com/AutoImports.htm

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/ld-hwy.htm

http://www.classiceurocars.com/