Bringing a car back from Canada

[Carmine]

Ok, I don't usually spill beans but I guess if nobody here has purchased it yet...

I'm pretty serious about this one:

I've been in touch with the owner, he has a pretty impressive Mopar collection, including a few C's and D's, so not likely this car is just used for trips to McDs and the welfare office.

However, a huge part of the draw is making a road trip down the left coast in April to see some relatives who live in Portland, OR, then on down to the Spring Fling in Van Nuys CA. We'd fly into Seattle, meet the owner and immediately head south.

Here's the issue...

We're obviously going to use the car and pass through a total of four (4) states. I want to be legal and be able to drive it the moment I land. What I've done with state-to-state purchases is pay the seller and have them send the title. Then I walk into our Secretary of State (DMV) with an insurance proof and walk out the door with plates in 10 mins. No notaries, no inspection, no BS. The plates and insurance fly with me and we're golden.

I've also purchased cars and just had my insurance agent email me a card, print it on the hotel computer and drive back... Generally the cops in pass through states don't care as long as you have insurance. But this time i'll have my wife, a 2 y/o, and a 65 y/o with me, so I don't want to spend the night in a California re-education camp for crimes against the earth... In other words, I don't want to be stopped every 2 miles for not having a plate.

I did call my state, who gave me a list of four (4) forms on covering everything from duty to the EPA. One of them even requires a po-po inspection! It's starting to sound like a nightmare.

I'll entertain your ideas on how you might handle it. Once we're done in LA, we are going to leave it in Phoenix, so that leg of the journey will be done separately.

 

[Pete Kaczmarski]

I would ask if any members live near this car to inspect it. I did that twice before here and it was worth paying them for their effort. One car I did not purchase and one car I did purchase. If all appears O.K. then check with the state you will be crossing into DMV for any issues and perhaps with Canadian authorities. Remember its not just you in the car to think about.

 

[Carmine]

I would ask if any members live near this car to inspect it. I did that twice before here and it was worth paying them for their effort. One car I did not purchase and one car I did purchase. If all appears O.K. then check with the state you will be crossing into DMV for any issues and perhaps with Canadian authorities. Remember its not just you in the car to think about.

I'm not even thinking about mechanicals unless the legal issues with driving it are surmounted.

 

[FURYGT]

Carmine, I have brought a car in from Canada. When I did this several years ago, I had to go into Canada and bring the car back through Customs. Going through Customs can be a real PIA. I trailered the Van that I bought back home. Unless things have changed, you will have big problems if the seller comes across the border. Strongly suggest that you call the Customs office that is located closest to where the seller lives and determine what you need to do. When I did this with a '74 Dodge Van the Customs folks had to go dig out a book and look through to see the procedures for importing an older vehicle. The car you are looking at may be new enough to be less of a headache. The car has to meet US Crash & EPA regulations to be imported. Also talk to someone at your state's motor vehicle department who is knowledgeable on registering cars from outside the U.S.

I found a document on the internet titled Importing or Exporting a car. Some excerpts from this document are:

Imported motor vehicles are subject to safety standards under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, revised under the Imported Vehicle Safety Compliance Act of 1988; to bumper standards under the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act of 1972, which became effective in 1978; and to air pollution control standards under the Clean Air Act of 1968, as amended in 1977, and 1990.

If vehicles manufactured abroad conform to U.S. safety, bumper, and emission standards, it is because these vehicles are exported for sale in the United States. Therefore, it is unlikely that a vehicle obtained abroad meets all relevant standards. Be skeptical of claims by a foreign dealer or other seller that a vehicle meets these standards or can readily be brought into compliance. Vehicles entering the United States that do not conform with U.S. safety standards must be brought into compliance, exported, or destroyed.

Check with your local Customs office about acceptable ownership documentation for cases in which a title cannot be produced. Most used vehicles, however –and this includes used cars legally bought and sold in the United States—must be accompanied by the original title, or a certified copy, as proof of ownership.

The source of the foregoing authority may be found in 19 CFR Part 192 that contains the Customs regulations.

Hope the above helps.

Bill

 

[Carmine]

Per the seller, FWIW:

its pretty straight forward to import the car to the states.
basically you pay the tax on it when you register it in your state; i dont know if i have to get a stamp on some papers when i cross the border but thats about it. i will look into it.
i know when i sold a 77 t&c wagon to someone in atlanta he stopped at US customs and then drove it home to georgia ( he came to victoria and drove it back).
yes it is a canadian car, so it has metric predominant on the speedo.
i would have no concerns about driving it to LA via portland.

 

[FURYGT]

U.S. Customs has to inspect the car and the paperwork AND give you a form(s) showing that you passed through Customs and the vehicle was approved for importing etc.. At least that it how it was in 2006. In 2006 my options were to pay some big dollars to import the vehicle through Customs or I had to do it myself. U.S. Customs would not allow the Canadian seller to bring the car to Customs for inspection etc.

 

[300rag]

U.S. Customs has to inspect the car and the paperwork AND give you a form(s) showing that you passed through Customs and the vehicle was approved for importing etc.. At least that it how it was in 2006. In 2006 my options were to pay some big dollars to import the vehicle through Customs or I had to do it myself. U.S. Customs would not allow the Canadian seller to bring the car to Customs for inspection etc.

I just went through the motions last year. A Canadian can do it, but must be the importer of record, therefor a business, as you are importing to sell. If you have already sold it, then you become a transporter, which adds a whole new dimension. Always best for the US party to come to Canada and bring it across themselves.

 

[bigmoparjeff]

Bringing the Chrysler to the US shouldn't be a big deal. Since it's over 25 years old it will be exempt from the crash and EPA standards and you won't need letters from the manufacturer to prove anything. Thanks to NAFTA, there wont be any import duties to bring it in, though you may have to pay a small border crossing fee. Here's a web page that covers most of what you need to know. http://www.ezbordercrossing.com/the...port-a-vehicle/importing-vehicle-from-canada/

I bought my Sterling tractor in Canada back in 2015 from a dealer, and they had a customs broker handle all the paperwork, so I didn't have to do anything. That might be the way to go if you were buying something less than 25 years old. My problems were with the state of Pennsylvania. Apparently, PennDOT hates imported vehicles, and they will do their best to punish you for making them do some extra work. They managed to loose all my paperwork, including the title and border crossing documents. I had to get a local state rep. involved to get things straightened out. I think it ended up taking close to six months to finally get a PA title for the truck.

Jeff

 

[Davea Lux]

Ok, I don't usually spill beans but I guess if nobody here has purchased it yet...

I'm pretty serious about this one:

View attachment 166898
I've been in touch with the owner, he has a pretty impressive Mopar collection, including a few C's and D's, so not likely this car is just used for trips to McDs and the welfare office.

However, a huge part of the draw is making a road trip down the left coast in April to see some relatives who live in Portland, OR, then on down to the Spring Fling in Van Nuys CA. We'd fly into Seattle, meet the owner and immediately head south.

Here's the issue...

We're obviously going to use the car and pass through a total of four (4) states. I want to be legal and be able to drive it the moment I land. What I've done with state-to-state purchases is pay the seller and have them send the title. Then I walk into our Secretary of State (DMV) with an insurance proof and walk out the door with plates in 10 mins. No notaries, no inspection, no BS. The plates and insurance fly with me and we're golden.

I've also purchased cars and just had my insurance agent email me a card, print it on the hotel computer and drive back... Generally the cops in pass through states don't care as long as you have insurance. But this time i'll have my wife, a 2 y/o, and a 65 y/o with me, so I don't want to spend the night in a California re-education camp for crimes against the earth... In other words, I don't want to be stopped every 2 miles for not having a plate.

I did call my state, who gave me a list of four (4) forms on covering everything from duty to the EPA. One of them even requires a po-po inspection! It's starting to sound like a nightmare.

I'll entertain your ideas on how you might handle it. Once we're done in LA, we are going to leave it in Phoenix, so that leg of the journey will be done separately.

I would be worried about the US EPA stuff more than anything else. If memory serves me correctly, some parts of Canada used US standards and some of the far North rural areas did not. In many states, you would not be able to register this car unless it conformed to US EPA standards. In years past, the DMV could tell from the Vehicle serial number if it was built to US standards or not, do not know if that data base still exists or if it would still be an issue given the vehicles age.

Dave

 

[bigmoparjeff]

You'll also need to get a temp tag in BC. You won't be able to use your old method, because it's likely that you will need the border crossing document in order to transfer the title to MI.

I just remembered one other problem that I had, and that was getting temporary insurance for the trip home, but that was because it was a commercial vehicle and I didn't have an existing commercial policy. There were multiple companies offering temp insurance for trucks, but they didn't cover Canada. Your regular policy will cover you, no problem.

 

[bigmoparjeff]

Another tip: Don't cross back into the US on a weekend. That's when the border agents that don't know what they are doing are on duty. A few years ago I was stuck at the border for seven hours while various people were trying to fix a paperwork error. Once a seasoned agent went on duty, the matter was fixed in minutes.

It sounds like Bill was dealing with agents that weren't very familiar with importing vehicles.

Going through one of the busier entry points would be a good idea too, probably the one right on I-5, though it's possible that the agents at the truck crossing on 543 could be better versed on importing. It would be a question worth asking, if one of the two would be a better bet.

 

[bigmoparjeff]

On to the car itself. The fact that it's still for sale makes that article that I found really bizarre. The article was written as if the writer was now the new owner of the car, one that he had been searching for, for many years.

 

[Davea Lux]

On to the car itself. The fact that it's still for sale makes that article that I found really bizarre. The article was written as if the writer was now the new owner of the car, one that he had been searching for, for many years.

Hopefully he does not know something that we do not.

Dave

 

[FK3 Sport Fury]

I would ask if any members live near this car to inspect it. I did that twice before here and it was worth paying them for their effort. One car I did not purchase and one car I did purchase. If all appears O.K. then check with the state you will be crossing into DMV for any issues and perhaps with Canadian authorities. Remember its not just you in the car to think about.

I'm local to the seller and could take a look at it.

I did this a few years back on a Charger for an out of country buyer and he was pretty happy I looked at it thoroughly as the car wasn't nearly as good as it sounded online and he passed on it.
I've been wrenching on Mopars for 30+ years now so I know what to look for and how to evaluate cars.

Another option for logistics would be to pick up the car in Port Angeles Washington as the there is a direct ferry from here in Victoria going there and you could have the seller bring the car over and do the paperwork at the US customs station in Port Angeles.Might be easier than trying to do in it Seattle as the customs station is pretty quiet after the ferry traffic has gone through.There's also a direct bus from the Sea-Tac airport to the Port Angeles ferry terminal as well.

I don't have much for advice regarding importing a car to the US but it sounds much simpler than doing it the opposite way.

 

[Davea Lux]

Ok, I don't usually spill beans but I guess if nobody here has purchased it yet...

I'm pretty serious about this one:

View attachment 166898
I've been in touch with the owner, he has a pretty impressive Mopar collection, including a few C's and D's, so not likely this car is just used for trips to McDs and the welfare office.

However, a huge part of the draw is making a road trip down the left coast in April to see some relatives who live in Portland, OR, then on down to the Spring Fling in Van Nuys CA. We'd fly into Seattle, meet the owner and immediately head south.

Here's the issue...

We're obviously going to use the car and pass through a total of four (4) states. I want to be legal and be able to drive it the moment I land. What I've done with state-to-state purchases is pay the seller and have them send the title. Then I walk into our Secretary of State (DMV) with an insurance proof and walk out the door with plates in 10 mins. No notaries, no inspection, no BS. The plates and insurance fly with me and we're golden.

I've also purchased cars and just had my insurance agent email me a card, print it on the hotel computer and drive back... Generally the cops in pass through states don't care as long as you have insurance. But this time i'll have my wife, a 2 y/o, and a 65 y/o with me, so I don't want to spend the night in a California re-education camp for crimes against the earth... In other words, I don't want to be stopped every 2 miles for not having a plate.

I did call my state, who gave me a list of four (4) forms on covering everything from duty to the EPA. One of them even requires a po-po inspection! It's starting to sound like a nightmare.

I'll entertain your ideas on how you might handle it. Once we're done in LA, we are going to leave it in Phoenix, so that leg of the journey will be done separately.

Some states are ok with a temporary registration sticker on the vehicle, some are not. (Some states will make you buy a temp sticker for their state) It all has to do with the reciprocity agreement between the various states. I would be worried about the People's Republic of California, might be best to check that out first. The US and Canada have a reciprocity agreement that allows vehicles that are properly registered in their home country to freely transit the border and operate in the various provinces and states. Probably does not help you as unless you are a legal resident of Canada the reciprocity does not apply for the use of Canadian plates on US soil.

Dave

 

[Carmine]

Going into Canada isn't really something I have time to do. I agree that all the stuff about epa, crash standards, etc. won't be a barrier. I legally drive a 18 y/o truck that was never even sold in the US... far more exotic than a 40 y/o R-body.

I also know that used cars traveling between CAN and US aren't all that uncommon. I see $1000 "Chrysler Intrepids" with MI plates locally, I don't imagine anyone goes through great hoops for one of these.

As for that other website making the car appear sold... they also featured my Mexican RC and that truck didn't sell for weeks afterwards... To a guy in WI who never saw it on that site.

 

[78Brougham]

Have the guy you bought it from leave his plate/tag on the car and mail it back to him when you get home. Just sayin' You've got insurance on it and that is the biggest offence.
These guys have to understand that.

 

[vidsal]

I bought a car from a Canadian while the owner was in the US. We did the transaction, get this, at the Port Of Albuquerque at the Sunport (ABQ)! The agents were quite confused until someone that knew what they were doing showed up. After that, all went smoothly and even kept going smoothly through the NM Dept of Motor Vehicles since I needed an original title created from the customs paperwork. A miracle! This was a 1989 vehicle meeting all US standards.

 

[drpreposterous]

Different source than Jeff's--dunno if it'll help:
Importing classic or antique vehicles / cars for personal use

 

[Rwc]

In the peoples republic of Maine after it clears customs and EPA compliance checks it has to go to a state certified inspection station with a form for them to fill out verifying the VIN numbers are all in place and matching.
A dual citizen cab drive it accross, do the sale and it's over.