wookie (03/11/83)
I too remember the one shot deal on bringing in a non-legal exotic car and in fact the guys at Automotive Research and Certification who do this work had mentioned it in a conversation. However I do know of a guy in Pennsylvania who bought a Mercedes through a relative in Germany. After spending $1600 to import the car he went to pick it up and the customs people asked for the necessary $4000 bond to insure he would get it federalized. He was completely unprepared for that event but came up with the cash. He spent a year trying to get the car federalized but never found anyone. The car was then shipped back to Germany since it could not be registered! Anyone have the answer to this? Keith Bauer White Tiger Racing Bell Labs Murray Hill
emma (03/11/83)
As I recall, there was a proposal to allow the one-shot exemption, which would allow a person to import one foreign automobile, not available in the US, in the course of his/her lifetime. The proposal died. It is possible to import a car if it is upgraded to meet US emissions/safety requirements. For a while, it was necessary to subject it to the same life-cycle tests that are required for production autos (which sort of implied you bought and did two--one died in testing and the other you kept), however the requirements are a bit less stringent now. You merely have to get it to pass current requirements once. The two "easy" ways to do this, by the way, are to either install an engine from an auto which is sold over here or convert to propane. -Joe P.