sunlord

Now that it's legal in the US since R32's are at the 25 year rule, does anyone have the slightest clue what it would cost to import an R32, make it street legal, get car insurance, and registration on one? Someone told me you could be looking at 70-80K or more to do it (that includes the cost of the car). Seems a bit high but I guess you probably have to jump through a lot of government hoops and red tape.

Tibbi

http://rivsuimports.com/



/thread







DIYing it is just asking for trouble. The ports on both sides know whats up and will jack you for it. They can be had cheap, but import fees will eat you alive and if you don't have a Fed bond release you'll still get impounded (at best.) Plus a lot of the private sales are cars with TONS of rust, which (and believe me I'm currently fighting this) frame rust. That's a monster to fix and twice as expensive. Stick to a known registered importer or pay the price. I know a few people who have bought from fly-by-nights and most of them got crap cars. Canadians have stockpiled them and are now commanding huge prices, and if you DIY you damn well better know EVERYTHING about the trim of the car you want and most importantly the law.



The owner of that shop knows his sh*t VERY well. He had a state legal R33, but because of the lack of bond release it was taken after years of ownership. And there is no statute of limitations on that. Since then he's brushed up on the law and made this nice and legal. He's a good guy who will treat you well. Just don't jerk him around, inquire if you can afford it.

Copa

I dont understand how some people have R34's on the road. They must have went through a crazy amount of BS to get one here or they're on the roads illegally.

pas1216

Come to Canada they're all over the place. I see one or two RHD imported cars a day on the road.

Tibbi

They are "state legal." Which is an ENORMOUS gamble. Basically it's a grey market import with no federal bond release, and questionable history. This is fairly easy to do, but you always run the risk of coming home to find your baby on the back of a tow truck and I.C.E. serving you with all kinds of papers and, worst possible case, fines. I did this many years ago with an AE101 Levin. Used a salvaged VIN and moded everything to "look" correct (minus the 4-door vin on a 2 door car.) The problem was after my moron of a brother wrecked it, the insurance company found out what it was and not only failed to pay ANYTHING for the wreck, leaving him on the hook for damages to all property involved, but almost dropped my whole family from coverage. Some quick goat-thinking (lying) got us out of that, but the cost of the accident was insane. Plus it was COMPLETELY illegal the way we went about it. In fact, I don't think I'd buy another JDM that didn't have proper radiation testing. Yes, this is a thing and from what I can tell, required at most every port today.



It was either state legal or one of the hand full of Gallardo priced Motorex cars. In other words, more money than brains.











Either way the worst investment advisable. Wait a few years and when the 33s start coming available. People with 32s will drop them, like a prom-night baby into a dumpster, and the price will go through the floor. you'll probably see JDM prices for GTRs all day at that point (5-6k).

Also, scope the R31. I had my hand at one of those this weekend and it blew my mind. It's WAY underrated and much cheaper. A GTS has an RB25, a bad ass auto-spoiler which was decades ahead of it's time, 3-way adjustable suspension on the fly, an interior out of an early 2000's Lexus... in 1986 mind you! It's phenomenal!! And can be had for about 1/2-1/3 the price of an R32 GTR. Plus, it actually has a functional back seat, unlike the 32 which is only suitable if your wingman is a double amputee.





I might know a thing or 2...



ya jelly?



(naw, mine hasn't been delivered yet. Working on that tho! But I got my butt in Nismo #280 anyway.)

187sks

I really want an R31.

Tibbi

They raffled one off last Christmas. It was pretty sweet, I bought a few tickets. They're likely going to do another auction this year, but no clue what the prize will be. It WILL be awesome though, that's for certain. Maybe the twin turbo 1JZ Soarer they had a NOPI this weekend. I'd buy a butt load of tickets for that!