remember, any chassis that wasn't sold here in the us has to be made street legal, otherwise it gets crushed in 30 days. unless you tow it to the racetrack.
Shipping by ro-ro Japan to UK is £3-500, containerisation; double that. I would imagine rates to the US are similar. Prices quoted are free on board; so that includes all costs to get the car on the boat. When it gets to the US, there are usually some fees to release the car from the docks storage area, then there are import taxes.
Registering grey imports in the US is a minefield; a lot of these cars don't have an airbag, so you'll have to figure that out for a start. Then there are emissions, though I expect most of these will be ok on that. Biggest problem is crash-testing. At least two cars will need sacrificing for crash testing. This is irrespective if there is an equivalent US model (eg. AE86 Toyotas). Someone might have done it before (eg Skylines), in which case you can present that data.
Oh, and also, all this work has to be done by an federal-approved import workshop who don't exactly charge bottom rate. I was quoted a conservative $10k to get a Eunos Roadster in, WITHOUT crash testing.
If you can demonstrate the vehicle is a rarity, you can get a limited mileage tag (2000 miles a year?), though I don't know how they check on that. Also, how do they define rare; do M2s fall in that classification? There was also an ultra-rare M2 version of the mazda AZ-1 Kei car.
However, its not just the Japanese cars on this site that are of interest. Lots of interesting rust-free US cars 9they don't use road salt over there, plus don't put on big mileages). Japan is a great source for Minis as well; towards the end, it was the biggest market for Minis, including the UK. All of these will be rust free cars. I also notice, Japanese Minis are also very nicely kitted out.
The Mitsuokas are mostly rebodied 5-10 year old Nissan models. Probably not too good to drive.
Still, some of these cars are nice to look at, and to contemplate. I'm pretty gobsmacked how tidy the older cars look, yet they are clearly not restored.
Wonderful website! Too bad the importation into he US is such a b*tch I fonud out the shipping charge to ship to Long Beacj,CA is only 750. Which is not bad at all. I love the evil looking FTO.
Mid-70s Datsun (Nissan) President.....back in the days when Japan couldn't make big cars. Mid-70s build, with early 60s (T-birdish) looks. There's a couple of Presidents in the UK.
Whats interesting about this site, besides the cars, are the rankings of most popular cars exported out of Japan. The most popular car isn't Japanese; its a BMW.
Hmm, and then there are these rhd oddities; we never got these cars in the UK in rhd form (you see LHD models, imported by Amercan car fans, or US servicemen), but they were available in Japan:
I quite like these,; understated looks, Jag S-type platform. Some tighter shocks, and these cars could make good motorway cruisers. Saw one being auto-xed once in the US :shock: Cheap as well; £2k starting mid on a minter.
I know all of you read more than just one automotive board. Let's post up all those dope pics of cars that are saved in your computer. Regardless of make or style. If you think it's sweet, then post it up. I'll start.
Miata content.
Today I am bidding on a 1991 miata that has been written off. If I win the bid my plan is to build myself a winter miata because my 93 LE has been parked for a month now and I miss it. Living in northern Canada a Miata is not most peoples first choice for winter transportation. They are low...
Spawned by the SUV thread and my recent acquisition. Who else here rides? What do you ride?
Just got a 1996 Kawasaki Vulcan 500. It's such low mileage that it has not yet had its first scheduled maintenance done so it's currently in a few dozen pieces in my buddy's garage while we fix some...
Just a thread to keep people updated on what you've done(are doing) to your Roadster. Post pictures as well if you want. I'll go first.
Just installed a recently bought NB soft-top(glass window) on my NA8. So much of an improvement. Pictures soon.
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