HI YA from Okinawa Japan.

[eg'sforlife]

depending on what state its going to you can register it a show car.....they might require a few changes to the car though......as gay as it sound the best thing might be to get ahold of a company that bring in cars all the time and find out

 

[jdmJynks]

Because that's a federal offence.

not if i register it as a kit car. like i said im getting ino on this now. just in case. without engine and trans its a kit car. makes it easier to register.

depending on what state its going to you can register it a show car.....they might require a few changes to the car though......as gay as it sound the best thing might be to get ahold of a company that bring in cars are the time and find out

to do this it wuld be restricted to how ar i can drive, how i drive it and what not. the kit car sounds like the way to go for me.

 

[double0Si]

I was referring to swapping vins. You can get a "kit car" vin for registry as a kit car, but you can't just take the vin off a junk car, stick them on the JDM model, and try to title it as salvaged. Swapping original manufacturer issued VINs to another car is illegal.

 

[jdmJynks]

I was referring to swapping vins. You can get a "kit car" vin for registry as a kit car, but you can't just take the vin off a junk car, stick them on the JDM model, and try to title it as salvaged. Swapping original manufacturer issued VINs to another car is illegal.

tht was just sarcasm, but i did get some more info on the kit car. its like 200-500us to get a kit registry for the civic, ill get more info soon. also with the military they send back 8,000lbs as married to go back to the US. i know that i only sent about 3,000 lbs here from the US. and we havent really bought that much since then so i think im in the green for weight.

 

[double0Si]

OIC. That's not too bad on price. The hoops you'll no doubt have to jump through to finalize the process will probably be a bitch. Good luck with the import though.

 

[jdmJynks]

found the info.

In Virginia, custom-built cars, kit cars, street rods, and vehicles built from parts of other vehicles are known as specially constructed or reconstructed vehicles. There are no special registration or titling classifications for them except for antique vehicles and antique trailers. Certain foreign vehicles may require extra documentation for titling and registering.

When titling and registering a hobby vehicle or foreign/imported vehicle, you must state on the application whether it is antique, specially constructed, reconstructed, or foreign/imported. The DMV requires evidence of previous registration, such as a certificate of title, and may require additional documentation to prove ownership

Transportation Restrictions on Antique and Specially Constructed Vehicles
While Virginia is friendlier to car hobbyists than other states, there are restrictions as to the use of hobby cars. Antique and hobby vehicles are not to be used for general transportation purposes. You can drive them for participation in club activities, exhibits, tours, parades and similar events; on highways to test their operation or get them serviced or repaired; and for occasional pleasure within 250 miles of your home.

To use an antique vehicle for general transportation purposes, it must pass a safety inspection like any other vehicle, and you must pay the normal registration fee. You must also display current decals on the license plate(s).

The Code of Virginia lists specific guidelines for the registration and use of antique cars and trailers.

 

[double0Si]

Good thing you're from Virginia then, right?

 

[jdmJynks]

Good thing you're from Virginia then, right?

hehe, yeppers. i think my dad will hate it but i dont care. i have always had a thing for 4 cyl, im not a fast and the furious douche either.

 

[double0Si]

It's a nice clean looking hatch. No shame in bringing it back. I was raised a Chevy guy but I got my Si when I was moving to Chicago and needed a gas friendly dd. I caught shit at first, but the car really surprised us all with how decent of a ride it was.

 

[jdmJynks]

thanx. my dad raised me MOPAR or NO car,lol. and i have had all mopars growing up but now im in Oki and well no mopar so i settled with my enemy,lol. but i always liked the Hatches.

 

[double0Si]

Awww don't worry. My uncle has lived with the same issue and he's still doing ok for himself.

 

[xj0hnx]

not if i register it as a kit car.

Trust me, you're not the first person to have this idea. Shit was real easy in Florida too, that's why a shop there had a bunch of Skylines confiscated, they were doing pretty much what you're talking about. My buddy, he's got an account on here, maybe I can point him here to post what he knows about it, had one of the cars I believe, not a Skyline, 240 I think. Specialty cars have to be grandfathered to not have to meet certain DOT requirements, and no Honda Civic is old enough.

Transportation Restrictions on Antique and Specially Constructed Vehicles
While Virginia is friendlier to car hobbyists than other states, there are restrictions as to the use of hobby cars. Antique and hobby vehicles are not to be used for general transportation purposes. You can drive them for participation in club activities, exhibits, tours, parades and similar events; on highways to test their operation or get them serviced or repaired; and for occasional pleasure within 250 miles of your home.

To use an antique vehicle for general transportation purposes, it must pass a safety inspection like any other vehicle, and you must pay the normal registration fee. You must also display current decals on the license plate(s).

That's the section that's going to kill you bringing the car back. That additional documentation will include the NHTSA safety specifications, for which there is no US equivalent to any of the foreign models, and that's the killjoy, and has been with importing just about any Japanese car that is desirable enough to import. No one wants to pay what it cost, or take the time and risk of failure to do the DOT test.

Believe me, I saw more than my fair share of shattered dreams in Germany on post from soldiers thinking they were going to take their hot new Civic/Integra/Accord Type R, VW, Mercedes, BMW back only to sell them for next to nothing before they PCS'ed. EVERYONE, is looking for that loophole that will let them import, or bring them back, and some have found them, but they almost always lose in the end.

 

[jdmJynks]

the thing about the shop in Fl was they was selling the cars right?

im not trying to sell my civic. the grandfather clause works too, but my 98 wont meet that standard, but if i disassemble the car down to the shell ie. no doors, hood, hatch, fenders basically just the frame, the military should send it back in my houseing goods. like i said i got to find out. but also. Honda America is a group of cars that is produced here in japan that meets the safty and smog standards of the US. if my car is one of those then the DOT stuff will be fixed. also if you change everything yourself to the US standard, glass, bumper braces, door braces, fender braces, and the like. it will pass DOT inspections easier and be acepted intot he US. i have been doing some reading. i may not like to but for something i want i will study,lol.

 

[xj0hnx]

the thing about the shop in Fl was they was selling the cars right?

Not sure if they were selling some, but I know a lot of them were owned by individuals when they got busted.

im not trying to sell my civic. the grandfather clause works too, but my 98 wont meet that standard, but if i disassemble the car down to the shell ie. no doors, hood, hatch, fenders basically just the frame, the military should send it back in my houseing goods.

An engine, and some parts? maybe, a non rolling 1,500lb shell? Doubt it, but maybe, dealing with a PCS move sounds a lot better than it turns out to be.

like i said i got to find out. but also. Honda America is a group of cars that is produced here in japan that meets the safty and smog standards of the US. if my car is one of those then the DOT stuff will be fixed.

Problem is, unless they have the US DOT paperwork done, and they are on the list it's just not that simple. I went through this exact same thing. I talked to sooooo many .gov people it would make your head spin.

also if you change everything yourself to the US standard, glass, bumper braces, door braces, fender braces, and the like. it will pass DOT inspections easier and be acepted intot he US. i have been doing some reading. i may not like to but for something i want i will study,lol.

No. YOU can NOT make the modifications yourself. they have to be done by the registered importer, that has prior DOT approval to modify that particular model. If they haven't received approval THEY have to have all the DOT testing done, and then do all the mods, which is why no one does Hondas, they are just not worth it to import, hell, $50-90,000 Skylines were barely worth it. There is a list of models that are already approved, IIRC it's called a VN list, it names every model of car that has already been approved for importation, I think there was one Honda on that list, and it isn't a car.

 

[xj0hnx]

Ok, so I talked to my buddy, he did have a 1996 GTR33 that was brought into the country in pieces and reassembled as a kit car, this is what the place was doing, and making titles for them legally. Once the car was stripped, the frame was cut in half, and then they were shipped as parts. Once in America the frame were welded back together, and the car was reassembled, and a company titled it (how I am not sure). Eventually the DOT and US Customs came and shut it down. Some people kept theirs, since they were legally titled, my buddy tried to pull a fast one with VIN's, and didn't get away with it. There are a lot of people in this country driving around in legally titled RHD Japanese cars, but a lot of them are in a grey area, some are fully legit.

One thing you could look into is a salvage titled kit car, that is if you can get the car back to the US. I think importing the frame whole is going to pose a problem, and I am not sure that the military will even let you do that.

 

[jdmJynks]

Ok, so I talked to my buddy, he did have a 1996 GTR33 that was brought into the country in pieces and reassembled as a kit car, this is what the place was doing, and making titles for them legally. Once the car was stripped, the frame was cut in half, and then they were shipped as parts. Once in America the frame were welded back together, and the car was reassembled, and a company titled it (how I am not sure). Eventually the DOT and US Customs came and shut it down. Some people kept theirs, since they were legally titled, my buddy tried to pull a fast one with VIN's, and didn't get away with it. There are a lot of people in this country driving around in legally titled RHD Japanese cars, but a lot of them are in a grey area, some are fully legit.

One thing you could look into is a salvage titled kit car, that is if you can get the car back to the US. I think importing the frame whole is going to pose a problem, and I am not sure that the military will even let you do that.

the problem with the cutting the car in half is it never has the same rigidy as it did before the cut. the frame will never be as stright as it was before eitehr.

also with the skylines they are not worth it back in the US.lol. here they are like 6000 for a GTR. i cant see spending 50-90,000 for a cheap car that is over 3700lbs.ish) the civic weight is half the GTR so i dont need to cut it in half. but ill keep you guys updated.

 

[xj0hnx]

the problem with the cutting the car in half is it never has the same rigidy as it did before the cut. the frame will never be as stright as it was before eitehr.

Yes they can if they are done right.

also with the skylines they are not worth it back in the US.lol. here they are like 6000 for a GTR. i cant see spending 50-90,000 for a cheap car that is over 3700lbs.ish) the civic weight is half the GTR so i dont need to cut it in half. but ill keep you guys updated.

Japan is not America. There was not a Skyline in America, there are more Hondas than we know what to do with. Cutting the frame in half isn't about the weight, it's about the legality of importing it. The frame has VIN numbers and if it's whole it constitutes a car, cut in half it constitutes parts.

 

[TurboMirage]

if you want it quick and easy cars that exist here have a much better chance of not getting caught.

ie. import an older evo and swap the vins from a mirage.

 

[xj0hnx]

if you want it quick and easy cars that exist here have a much better chance of not getting caught.

ie. import an older evo and swap the vins from a mirage.

Don't swap any VINs, that's the reason my friend lost his Skyline. If you do you move from a gray area to straight up illegal.

 

[jdmJynks]

Yes they can if they are done right.



Japan is not America. There was not a Skyline in America, there are more Hondas than we know what to do with. Cutting the frame in half isn't about the weight, it's about the legality of importing it. The frame has VIN numbers and if it's whole it constitutes a car, cut in half it constitutes parts.

also a little more info for the shipping in cars that i have found out. its easier to ship a car over if it has a US version. will keep updating on what i find out. but still i hope so if not ill cut the damn car in half myself and ship it back in boxes through UPS,lol.