Uh, Guys? (And Girls) - Easy GT-Four Registration Stateside, Why didn't we see this before? Options

[Espo]

So my buddy, who's been telling me my planned 3s swap is a waste (since I have an ST and won't be trusting myself with doing the work) just found out you can register a GT-Four stateside with no limitations. Now the only problem might be getting a whole one through customs and not a clip...but we do know about custom vehicle registration, right?

Since I live in New York, I found this: http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/homemade.htm

But...there are no kit car registration limitations, no...well really anything except lots of fees and waiting on inspections.

Seriously, this is plausible to do, isn't it? Why aren't more of us doing it? Considering a GT-Four used is probably cheaper than a swap any day.

[jason]

i dunno, gt-four = ~8k minus any fees and such, swap into an st ~5k with some goodies to boot

if you REALLY want awd go for a gt-four, if you just want a quick car, go with a 3s swap - you could probably learn enough to get by, source parts & do the swap with plenty of time to enjoy it before you can import a gt-four

[Johnnyny]

i dont have time to read that since im going to work but i thought u can legally drive a kit car on the streets and if you can its only like maybe 3000 miles at most here in pa thats how it is 3k

[Espo]

i dunno, gt-four = ~8k minus any fees and such, swap into an st ~5k with some goodies to boot

if you REALLY want awd go for a gt-four, if you just want a quick car, go with a 3s swap - you could probably learn enough to get by, source parts & do the swap with plenty of time to enjoy it before you can import a gt-four

If I'm swapping into an st, keep in mind I'm having a shop do it, likely at $80 an hour, I need to have the rear diff mounts fabricated, new engine mounts because I have a 7a-fe, new transmission mounts...I think it'd be a lot more than 5k.

And yes, I really realllly want awd. Would be killer in the winter here.

i dont have time to read that since im going to work but i thought u can legally drive a kit car on the streets and if you can its only like maybe 3000 miles at most here in pa thats how it is 3k

You can, but the difference here is that there's no mileage limitation. Street legal car with no limitations.

[JuMPiiN]

I've never actually looked into it for where I live but isn't there a few guys stateside that have legit GT4s not alot but isn't there a few? Kinda like the 30 skylines that are in the states. Idk how they did it but I know there's on on this forum with a red gt4 in Omaha Nb I believe so, I saw it the other day looking at Members rides section.

[block]

there are ways around it. just call a dmv, i think, and ask.

[EKAn]

Cant you just go to Canada, buy one there, then drive it across the border, and register it in NY as a kit car? I'm probably missing something

[block]

or better yet...have a canadian buy it, pay him more to drive it to you. buy him a good meal & plane ticket back home. then you'd have a very good chance because he drove it across and all you have to say is he sold it to you. that's what i was gonna try but the seller backed out

[EKAn]

Damn even better, too bad he backed out, i need to move closer to canada...

[JuMPiiN]

or better yet...have a canadian buy it, pay him more to drive it to you. buy him a good meal & plane ticket back home. then you'd have a very good chance because he drove it across and all you have to say is he sold it to you. that's what i was gonna try but the seller backed out

Thats a awesome idea, but what does the DMV do if that happens ? Can you still register it ?

[richee3]

Register it as a GT4? Absolutely not. You'd still have to do a VIN swap, which is VERY illegal. Maybe you could register it as a kit car, but not as a GT4 for another 9 years. Everything with a GT4 is risky. You can't insure it as a GT4, so simply driving the car is a risk. Insure it as a regular GT, and you'll never get the value of the car if it's wrecked. You'll be out tons of cash. Get caught with an 'illegal' car and it's going straight to the crusher, and you're out thousands of dollars. If you've got the money to play with, by all means do it. Otherwise we're pretty much stuck with hopes and dreams.

[block]

or better yet...have a canadian buy it, pay him more to drive it to you. buy him a good meal & plane ticket back home. then you'd have a very good chance because he drove it across and all you have to say is he sold it to you. that's what i was gonna try but the seller backed out

Thats a awesome idea, but what does the DMV do if that happens ? Can you still register it ?

well when i called my dmv, they said i had to register it as a kit vehicle. i talked to my insurance agent (close friend) and he said there are ways to get it registered and insured. if these "guys" are able to register skylines in MN, there are ways to get GT4's. it's a hard path but you'd have to figure it out. ill talk to my insurance agent again. but he did say i was able to register it if it came from canada and sold it here.

Register it as a GT4? Absolutely not. You'd still have to do a VIN swap, which is VERY illegal. Maybe you could register it as a kit car, but not as a GT4 for another 9 years. Everything with a GT4 is risky. You can't insure it as a GT4, so simply driving the car is a risk. Insure it as a regular GT, and you'll never get the value of the car if it's wrecked. You'll be out tons of cash. Get caught with an 'illegal' car and it's going straight to the crusher, and you're out thousands of dollars. If you've got the money to play with, by all means do it. Otherwise we're pretty much stuck with hopes and dreams.

see that's the thing. i didn't want to spend money and then at the end have it crushed. it's illegal to swap the vin and you could spend time in jail if caught.

[yarik83]

Definition of a "kit car" does not imply that you can take a car that is not approved for importation and register it as kit car.

A kit car is something like a replica shelby cobra or a mopar replica rolling chassis for all the models they offer. A kit car IS NOT a 1994-1999 gt4 celica or any celica for that matter.

A kit car carries a special designation from a registered vin manufacturer.

Last time I checked NHDOT is in hot pursuit of illegally registered kit cars. They shut down a few companies that used that loophole to import cars into the states. Needless to say they are behind bars.

[block]

i dont know. not exactly sure if the lady i talked to knew what i was talking about. i know it's impossible besides the illegal ways.

[Spider77]

*ahem*join military, go overseas, have it shipped to texas (one of the few things that i like about this state)

[epocsirhc]

Motorex(or something like that) was importing skylines into America, and then making them meet emissions and safety standards. For some reason they got into legal troubles, someone should look into it more. I believe that the skylines were actually legal, but twice the cost of what the car is worth.

VIN swapping is a FELONY

I don't know that you will be able to pull off the wholekit car thing because of what Yarik said.

I have spent many hours thinking about how to pull it off and I have come up with a couple ideas I won't share, but I will say having my smog license helps:) I would love to see somebody have a GT-4 LEGALLY pull it off, they would be my hero!

[richee3]

Oh yes, Skylines are indeed legal in the United States. So are GT4's, for that matter. You just have to pay the right people to import it and make it legal. The Celica GT4 simply isn't in high enough demand for an importer to bother with one though.

Block, you referred to your insurance agent. I'm also an agent You could use the VIN from your USDM Celica and get insurance on the car with no problems. But if there's ever a claim, that's when you're screwed. That's when the insurance company will actually check your VIN, the body shop will check it, and so on and so forth.

[bloodMoney]

Motorex was able to legally import the GTR33 Skyline b/c they performed DOT crash tests on them to prove that they were 'road safe' cars. This is why you can import an R33 legally.

Motorex got shut down b/c they were registering R32 and R34 Skylines as R33 to get around it. Unless someone wants to destroy a crap-ton of GT4s, Legally importing one involves more red tape than they are worth....

[yarik83]

Important thing to keep in mind is that we are talking about 16-20 year old cars with 16-20 year old car problems that has been driven on the road for 16-20 years. Even if they have low mileage it is important to keep in mind that for 10 grand or so you can buy a completely street legal evo or sti that is better, faster, has 4 doors and will outperform a stock gt4 on all levels. But then of course no self respecting owner will be babying a evo or sti so you will be buying a used and abused sport car with used sport car problems. Life is full of difficult choices.

[Espo]

To all of you talking about kit car registrations, that's not what I'm referring to here. Kit cars can only be driven so many miles per year - if you look at the link I posted, the custom vehicle registration is an entirely different registration - the DMV assigns the car a vin, you have to get it put on the car, insurance for the car, etc. etc. and it has to pass inspection. We're not talking about importing a car and swapping vins or registering it as something else, but as what it actually is - a gt-four. Only, on your title, it'll say 1996 Toyota Custom Vehicle, not Celica.

@yarik: I believe only certain years of evos and stis are faster than a stock gt-four. And who needs four doors?

[4-eyed-freek]

stupid question, why wont the gov. let gt-four's in without getting the panties in a bundle?

[bloodMoney]

Because they haven't been built to conform to US DOT laws.

IE: Headlight alignment. Just ask anyone who has bought JDM projectors. They should be adjusted for LHD use as to not blind oncoming drivers.

[4-eyed-freek]

oo ok, sounds like a bunch of crap if you ask me

[schmooot]

stupid question, why wont the gov. let gt-four's in without getting the panties in a bundle?

From what I've heard is in order for any car to be registered in the US the chassis (or a North American equivalent chassis) has to have gone through certain crash/safety testing in North America.

At the time, Toyota didn't have a comparable base chassis stateside for the DOT to have already passed...and they certainly aren't going to go through the money and trouble now 15 years later.

All other RHD cars that have been legally imported have an equivalent North American counterpart chassis that has been tested (so I've been told)

[4-eyed-freek]

hmm i hate it, i would love to have a gt-four sitting in my drive right now.

[JuMPiiN]

I read a HUGE write up on a company in California that were importing R33's legally. Then they got busted for importing R34s and registering them as R33s and R32s. I think because of them thats one of the main reason cars are hard to import legally. I know there are still long ways around it like buying from Canada and all that. Or doing the kit car and saying you made it yourself as a replica, but that will still take forever to do. And i think in my own opinion that by the time you imported one legit and paid customs and all that to get it registered you could have just converted the GT to AWD and just slapped on the GT4 front end and a nice paintjob. Wouldnt be quite the same but it would still look and preform about the same.

[krom8]

Me and my wife bought our old 5th gen Celica from a dealer who bought it at auction in Canada. On the Carfax it showed up as being totaled in Canada. there wasn't a single scratch on the car though, I looked everywhere.

[TRD_Ian]

your guys best bet is for someone to create and sell a kit with templates and everything needed to make ur self a gt4, then buy a front clip ur awd parts and astank and trunk floor and go to town. ther was a build on here a guy was in the middle of doing this building cross members and he quit. he was on to something...be a good cash cow for someone for sure if they took the time and money to do it, then for about the right price you could have your gt4. or suck it up and move to canada, it aint bad we have sweet bacon, maple syrup, great tasting beer and all the jdm cars you can shake a stick at

[Espo]

your guys best bet is for someone to create and sell a kit with templates and everything needed to make ur self a gt4, then buy a front clip ur awd parts and astank and trunk floor and go to town. ther was a build on here a guy was in the middle of doing this building cross members and he quit. he was on to something...be a good cash cow for someone for sure if they took the time and money to do it, then for about the right price you could have your gt4. or suck it up and move to canada, it aint bad we have sweet bacon, maple syrup, great tasting beer and all the jdm cars you can shake a stick at

You can already modify your car to look like a gt-four with genuine parts - the awd engine swap is the hard part, and costly part if you don't do it yourself.

Or, there's jmeyer's method.

[epocsirhc]

your guys best bet is for someone to create and sell a kit with templates and everything needed to make ur self a gt4, then buy a front clip ur awd parts and astank and trunk floor and go to town. ther was a build on here a guy was in the middle of doing this building cross members and he quit. he was on to something...be a good cash cow for someone for sure if they took the time and money to do it, then for about the right price you could have your gt4. or suck it up and move to canada, it aint bad we have sweet bacon, maple syrup, great tasting beer and all the jdm cars you can shake a stick at

The beer and the cars are enough to convince me! Isn't the drinking age 18?

[TRD_Ian]

? i know u can modify your car to look like one? im taking about if someone came up with a kit with templates of what to cut and to mark out were to weld ect ect along with a detailed step by step and a parts list and you would be set.
and yes legal age is 18 or 19 depending on location, we start early

[Johnnyny]

? i know u can modify your car to look like one? im taking about if someone came up with a kit with templates of what to cut and to mark out were to weld ect ect along with a detailed step by step and a parts list and you would be set.
and yes legal age is 18 or 19 depending on location, we start early

pss early try Ecuador ur legal as soon as u can walk to the store and buy it

now back on topic this is what is happening to some skylines that were brought as kit cars http://jalopnik.com/5371967/feds-seize-ill...e-gt+rs-in-cali
being impounded and sold export only

[freddy121389]

I contacted a company that goes through importing cars and this is what the head of their department sent me.

Mr. Guiffredo

Unfortunately, with regards to this vehicle, the US Department of Transportation has a firm position on the requirements for importing RHD vehicles.



Per DOT, "The DOT has determined that there are differences between right hand drive (RHD) vehicles and left hand drive (LHD) vehicles. The fact that most manufacturers do not manufacture right hand drive vehicles for the U.S. market means that the manufacturer has not performed U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) certification testing for a RHD vehicle. We recommend that any individual interested in importing a RHD vehicle into the U.S., request information from the U.S. manufacturer's representative that specifically identifies that the RHD version of the non-U.S. vehicle would meet the same Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards as the LHD version of the vehicle." This letter must be on Manufacturer letterhead and refer to your vehicle directly by VIN number. However, it is highly unlikely that the manufacturer will be willing to provide such a letter if they have not made a vehicle of this model for sale here in the states.



Without this documentation, we will be unable to do the conversion work on your vehicle without crash testing.



US DOT will require that at least one additional identical vehicle be imported for the purposes of crash testing. There is no guarantee that the crash test data will meet the standards of DOT.



Sorry I do not have more positive information.



Thank you,

Gina Benitez



Wallace Environmental Testing Laboratories, Inc.

2140 Wirtcrest

Houston, TX 77055

Phone: 713-956-7705

Fax: 713-956-0104

so basically if you want to import a rhd celica, you would also have to import a second one for crash testing which you would also have to pay for. It's a pretty penny, and it would have to pass the crash test in order to get one here. It's an extremely pricey process. Your best bet would do an awd conversion and 3s swap.

[cheela]

yep, it's all been said and done. just not worth it. unless youre loaded.