So you want a GT4 JDM?, how to ship a gt4 from japan Options

[GeEkBoY]

Canada is not an option unless the car is more than 15 years old!!!

I checked into this and the rules are VERY strict here. Thank the autoworkers for protecting their jobs...

If it is more than 15 years old, it is easy...

Here is a very good article on the rules and a guy who imported a london taxi:

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/mj/import.htm

[saleeka]

ok, first off i must admit i did not read all these posts, so sue me if im making someone else's point, but has anyone thought about how you would get insurance on this car? You sure cant use the oringinal vin in the states being that it isnt street legal or in any insurance database. Yes, you could get a title from a wreck and claim it as a st or gt, but if your car gets broken into, stolen, or in an accident, you are likely going to kiss the car goodbye. Not to mention if the accident is your fault, cause then you are likely to have your car impounded permanently due to the fact that it isnt street-legal unless you paid tons of cash to have it provenn that it meets crash test standards. It has always been my understanding that the rules are so strict that pretty much it's impossible to make a car that was not sold or intended for sale in the u.s. street legal. Anybody remeber the porsce 959 back in the late 80's? Bill Gates wanted to have one to drive here in the U.S., but even he couldent make it happen after he found out he would have to crash test a few to prove its saftey. So, i'm assuming that if he couldent make it happen, im thinking most people can't. I'll wait till i have proof before I become a believer.

[Inferno]

Riiight..."Bill Gates can't afford a few cars." Uh-huh.

[saleeka]

its true- it was a big joke i dunno, about 6 years ago or so on the news, i swear to it- They said that since porsche diddent crash test anybecause it was so low volume, he would have to buy about 10 of them and have them crash tested to see if they would meet federal standards. He said forget it and gave up.

[iamblades]

I wonder if you could take the car apart and rebuild it, then register it as a kit/replica car?

hehehe

[FallenHero]

take it and a US celica.... put your door panels, rear end, interior parts that will fit, and anything else that has any chance of fitting on it...(including your vin number and such) and claim you built it from the ground up. You are ever-loving screwed if they discover you did it,(insurance fraud anybody?) but if you never had any problems, you would be the man!

Jon

[Inferno]

*Bump*.

[jayi12-15psi]

bringing back old threads---grr

[awdturbo]

well i am new here and just saw this thread. wich is kind of funyn because i have been trying to fidn a way to import a gt-4 for quite awhile now. a lot of good sounding ideas on here. i actually have all the paperwork needed to get a replica/kit car/rebuild title. you need all the major reciepts showing that you built it. you have to have the title of the chassis, and it coudlnt have been in a accident. and it has to be american parts.....damn. i then called all around trying to find out what would have to be done, the DOT, and i got the ultimate run around, each person i called would give me someone elses number and so on, i ended up calling about 22 people and the last guy i talked to gave me the number of the first girl i taked to....great....so that went nowhere. right now i am talking to an importer in miami to see if he can get a gt-four, but thats only half the problem. i still need to make it legal/register and inusre it. so right now im still baffled. but i want one really bad.

what ever happened to coustoe?....did he ever import his supra?

[nik]

#bump#

[Inferno]

I haven't heard from Coustoe in a while. I hope to hear from him soon.

[awdturbo]

so i guess nobody has anyhting new for his huh? this was such a good thread too, woulda been nice to know if someone pulled it off.

[BigEdge169]

I've got a question: what about kit cars that you see people driving on the street? I see people driving around dune buggies where the body is nothing but a tube cage. Does anyone know how these are legal to drive on the streets, maybe there's a loophole that might work, just a a thought.

[BigEdge169]

So nobody knows about these types of cars??

[neoklis]

Hey guys I feel so sorry for you.
I got my GT4 by just making one transfer of money to Japan and a month later i went to the port, pay customs about 1.5 times additional duties and taxes and drove off.
A lot of people in my country just put the GT4 engine in their regular Celicas. It just fits in but the some problems arise with the gearbox if you abuse it.

[NEVERSTOP]

I am not familar with other states laws but in Iowa there are NO emissions.. we have not tests or inspections or anything. I would think if you could find a seller in japand or europe or where ever you located a gt4 and had then stript the car down and ship as much as poissble via ups or fedex or another company like that... im talkin hood fenders interior motor etc.. the car that would be shipped over would basically just be a shell.. think that would be real easy to pass off as parts

something you also have to think about... we all own celicas as it is.. which means we have a full set of vin numbers that are already street legal.. yea it's kinda shady but in a state like iowa where they're not too strict on things it would be easy to pass a left hand gt4 off as a repainted gt with the same vin#

that would also cover the insurance thing.. just tell them that you did a motor swap and such.

I know what I am talkin about is illegal but hey I would take the chance.

Personally if I where to import a GT4 then I would just save up a litte more and get a skyline..which I am serisouly thinking about doing if I dont end up getting a 350 nexy year.

another thing you will have to consider about getting the gt4 is the avaliablity of parts for the 205 3sgte.. there EXPENSIVE> its one of the reasons I swapped the top end on mine to a 185

[Kardboard]

OMGSH this is something I so want to do! Since I'm in Canada I'll have to wait till 2009 before I can import a GT-4 T.T

Oh well, I won't have enough cash before then anyways.

[poix]

im bringing thios thread back.
can we make this thread a sticky??

well i read couple replies, and btw how bout that guy whos sellin his GT4 in New York?? damn its just like an hour away from my place.
where is that guy on this site??? i wanna hear ur reply
is his GT4 strett legal?? can u just take a vin number from regular celi and say u put bod kits and engine swap on it?? when insepction comes cant u just buy an inspection sticker???



my dream is to import a 97-99 GT4 with c-one front bumper. if its possible

[BigEdge169]

That guys name was truejigga and I'm not sure if he actually sold it yet
NO, it wasn't street legal, he just had some Florida plates on it and never got pulled over.
You could possibly take your vin number off and say that you've put a body kit and all that stuff but its very illegal and your car would most likely be impounded indefinetly if you got caught.
Pretty much same thing with the inspection, it would be illegal but I'm sure it happens all the time.

[Kardboard]

OMFG.......someone get this..QUICK