I have friends who have a newer MINI COOPER that lives in england... The couple is moving back to the states and wanted to take there mini to the USA. Its a newer 80's mini... What we need to find is a place that will convert it to a 60's mini so it can be imported. There was a girl in our club that did this and imported the car to the USA, it was a trip to rip around in... she came over from germany and I dont have her info / its LOST. Anyone know of a # to call for the information of a shop or hamber that could lead them in the right direction?
You're not going to have an easy time importing a Mini from the 80s. The same rules apply to the modest Mini as apply to Ferraris and other high-dollar imports. It would be easier to purchase a Mini that's already here. Here's a list of approved importers: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/web_RI_list07252003.html What do you mean by "converting" it? That sounds like vehicle fraud, which is a pretty serious federal crime. (In fact, asking for help in committing a federal crime on the internet is itself a federal crime...)
A buddy of mine tried to import a BMW C1 scooter to the US. To declare it as a used vehicle he had registered it in Germany and shipped to Boston . There he was told that that POS was never supposed to be imported into the US and was neither certified as road legal nor as pollution controlled. To get the "road legal within the US certificate" he would have had to pay about 4000 US$ for testing and dyno runs. He just shipped it back to Germany. But minis have been imported to the US,I think? So it should be road legal...
yeah i dont know the "figure" or amount of money but it costs alot to get it to meet the US standards... there are places that do it so its "legal" but there are alot of modifications that have to be made. Any info on a place to bring it to have it done right would be much appreciated. I think they figured out how much that will cost. Its a case of "I LOVE THIS CAR" and dont want to leave it. Sentimental value... OH WELL. Katia brought her mini in from germany and im not sure how she went about doing it... the fedral law warning is a good point~ but she did it... and it seemed like it was old hat... so i thought I would ask~
I think it can be done.You might have better luck on one of the hard core Mini owners boards.There might be exemptions for cars over a cetain age.
Try herehttp://www.minimania.com/web/threadid/46878/InfoID/1/SiteMessages/1/msgthread.cfm its a mini forum site,they might have an answer for you. To put it to the 60's standard would be costly,you will have to change a lot of stuff to get it to look like an old one,and then you have still got the problem of engine and chassis no's. I'm sure the no's would be checked.I see that it has sentimental value,but at what cost??Maybe better to sell it and try and buy a genuine 60's model.Good luck with that as they have mostly rotted out and a restored one will be big$$$$$$$$$. John.
There are commonly mini's on ebay from the late 70s and early 80s. I would e-mail one of the sellers for info on how they got theirs here. For what its worth, those little cars are not cheap in any way shape or form. Pound for pound they're expensive little buggers. I'd recommend selling it in the UK and buying one here. Shipping cars and getting them legal here is pretty damn expensive regardless of make/model. -Dane
Everyone is right, but they're not answering your question: [ QUOTE ] What we need to find is a place that will convert it to a 60's mini so it can be imported. [/ QUOTE ] Everyone else is interpreting this as you want to do this legally with a registered importer. If it's 25 years old or older, you're OK - no conversion is necessary. However, if it's newer than that, there are ways "around" it. Since the UK uses a V5 document to record the registration details, you could "register" the car on another car's (older) details. Being merely a temporary resident, I'm not familiar with the ins & outs of this sort of activity. I can tell you, at best it's dishonest, at worst, it's criminal. It all depends on your perspective I do know the hot rod community partakes in this to a certain degree to avoid SVLA (extensive certification/testing) on fabricated/kit cars or cars built from parts (depending on the parts). You're unlikely to find anyone willing to do it over the phone, via email, etc - especially if they don't know you. Uhhh, good luck.
From what I understand there are points at which a vehicle in the UK ceases to be the original vehicle, in terms of its bodyshell/subframes/etc., when these things are changed. You can, in practice, have a vehicle listed as a 1959 mini even if you have a reproduction bodyshell (BMH make FULL NEW bodyshells for minis) made in 2003. It's a matter of how the law interprets your changes. I don't know where thay draw the line though. I mean, if you change the bodyshell and, then after that, change subframes and engine, then is it the same axe??? It would seem to mean that they would need to obtain the identification plates off an old mini and have their vehicle ASSUME it's identity. Or else buy an old bodyshell and swap all the parts over. Either way, it's very tricky.
About 5 years after I moved here I shipped my 3 race cars overhere as well. I had no trouble at all, customs seemed interested in how long I had owned them up to that point, and if I was going to sell them.(HELL no!) But they are all pre'66 and Race cars.
[ QUOTE ] From what I understand there are points at which a vehicle in the UK ceases to be the original vehicle, in terms of its bodyshell/subframes/etc., when these things are changed. You can, in practice, have a vehicle listed as a 1959 mini even if you have a reproduction bodyshell (BMH make FULL NEW bodyshells for minis) made in 2003. It's a matter of how the law interprets your changes. I don't know where thay draw the line though. I mean, if you change the bodyshell and, then after that, change subframes and engine, then is it the same axe??? [/ QUOTE ] I believe DVLA has a point system where they assign points to a fabricated/altered vehicle to determine how it will be registered. Once again, this is the most legal way to go about it. Once again, if you don't change anything on your car, and just want to call it a 1969 or whatever (just because the mini is virtually identical year-to-year except to the anoraks), I don't think that quite falls into either the spirit or intent of the law governing registrations. It does smack a bit of fraud, but hey, it's all subject to interpretation, eh? I'm surprised more UK rodders haven't answered you yet...
OK here's my stupid answer, is it possible to send it to Canada? are their import rules more lenient? just a thought, from there it could be brought to the US.
You had better do your homework on importing from Canada also, I know that there has been a big problem even importing the late models from Canada with the conversions from kilometers to standard mileage requirements, the instrument clusters on some Ford vehicles have put a cloud of doubt about the conversion being on the up and up as far as the actual mileage issue. If the converters miscalculated the conversion, for what ever reason, this would appear as odometer fraud as far as the feds are concerned. I don't know about the other aspects of the conversion from metric to standard. I suppose it also depends on what port you use. Some could be a little more easy to get along with that others.
[ QUOTE ] now, I realize that im a bumpkin hillbilly from ND, but why cant you import a car into the US???? [/ QUOTE ] The car needs to meet the federal EPA and DOT requirements for its model year. The requirements in foreign countries are almost always lower than in the US. For example, VW stopped importing the Beetle into the US in the 70s, but continued to make them in Germany and then Mexico until recently. You'd have a heck of a hard time importing a 1980s Beetle, because it doesn't meet the federal standards. And it doesn't matter if it was a legal car in 67, but not 87. They go by the year of production. It also doesn't matter if your local state or county doesn't require smog or crash testing. The feds still do.
[ QUOTE ] OK here's my stupid answer, is it possible to send it to Canada? are their import rules more lenient? just a thought, from there it could be brought to the US. [/ QUOTE ] Our laws are TOUGHER than the US. Glass, bumpers, seat belts, smog equipment make it nearly impossible. Even some imports designed for the US market can't pass Canadian standards. Plus you have to be a resident to import a car here. Long story short...no.
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