688 blabbing

[Yukonart]

The race car driver Stuuck in Germany had this car ordered and changed his mind and purchased a RUF instead...so I decided to step up to the plate and get her. It's all Europen and extremely fast. No worries on anything here and if she goes to the shop, it is just in back of my estate and I call in one of my workers... Subarus rock but Kompressors blow!

HAHAHAHA!!!!!11 OMG, please post more in this thread. You can't BUY entertainment this funny!

Estate? I hope you bought your estate with lottery winnings, because whichever college you attended to "make your millions" should have their staff fired. I've seen better grammar and spelling out of 8th graders!

No one. . and I mean NO ONE with real money and half a brain flaunts it like that. What's more, anyone with any respect (whether the wealth is real or not in your case) sure as hell wouldn't need to come onto a first-gen Legacy BBS to brag just to make themselves look good and increase the size of their e-penis.

Seriously. . . I'm not trying to make you go away, I really want to hear more about all your "toys" in the barn. I hope they're all to scale and can actually be driven, though. I'd be very disappointed to find later that they all say "Hot Wheels" on the bottom.

[legacy92ej22t]

I've seen better grammar and spelling out of 8th graders!

Woah, I think you may have just stumbled onto something!

[dscoobydoo]

I love this forum!

You guys rock. I don't get so many laughs anywhere else!

I love Washington people! Nothing like the PNW.

I SOOOOOOOOOO would love to do a PNW meet this spring- say - March- April and get together and just BS.

That and we can get all 688 cars together

[123c]

I love this forum!

You guys rock. I don't get so many laughs anywhere else!

I love Washington people! Nothing like the PNW.

I SOOOOOOOOOO would love to do a PNW meet this spring- say - March- April and get together and just BS.

That and we can get all 688 cars together

That would be a great idea, have a PNW meet and all 688 cars would be together .

[scottzg]

and half a brain flaunts it like that. What's more, anyone with any respect (whether the wealth is real or not in your case) sure as hell wouldn't need to come onto a first-gen Legacy BBS to brag just to make themselves look good and increase the size of their e-penis.

Peut-etre GT8 est "nouveau riche?"

I don't know about gt8. He seems to know twice as much as most obnoxious children, and half as much as an enthusiast. I know I would figure out enough about a rare kompressor to at least know hans' first name before i dropped some serious coin on it. Ahh well, i guess thats the trouble with being a wealthy and severly boring individual.

[BAC5.2]

No one. . and I mean NO ONE with real money and half a brain flaunts it like that.

Unless you own a Porsche:

(quotes from Rennlist)

"I have decided against tracking the GT2 again and will keep it until I get my stradale next year."

"Sure glad I didn't opt for the CGT ,but spent it on a new townhouse (second hobby-skiing)in Whistler Cn."

"This is amazing I have a GT 2 that Porsche will only warranty if I drive within the limit. Meanwhile Dodge encourages me to use my viper on the track and has warrantied everything I have broke at the track. This is going to get real ugly when I try to get my deposit back on my 200 mph Carrera GT that they want me to drive under 65 MPH."

"The reason I purchased the GT2 is because, at that time, it was advertised as THE hottest street legal car Porsche had ever built."

Porsche guys are so funny, lol.

[Yukonart]

Sweet! I'm officially the thread starter in this forum!!!

[evolutionmovement]

A lot of Porsche guys are douche bags. Newer Ferraris, too. Actually, I'd say, in general, any newer exotic car owner. The older ones (which are often worth more, incidentally) usually have more class, less apparent penis issues, and are pretty down to earth. Of course I might exempt the concours-queens especially a lot of the 7-figure 1930's stuff.

Eh, maybe I just don't like rich people. The only ones I've liked are the self-made ones that earned their money through brains and hard work. Most haven't earned it.

Steve

[entirelyturbo]

Agreed.

When I go to concours, I usually end up talking to the old guys who actually have enthusiasm about the cars they drive. A guy here locally (I expected to see him at this year's concours but didn't) has not one, but TWO, Jaguar XJ220's, one in silver and one in burgundy. He's easily in his 60's, but he's like a 12-year-old boy when it comes to those cars. He would actually have recognized me if I saw him this year, because he says I'm one of a scant few people my age that he's ever seen share the same enthusiasm.

This isn't an exotic, but a story on the flip side nonetheless. I was with the local Subaru group (who doesn't give me much respect since I don't have a WRX or STi, but I had nothing better to do that night anyway ), and we were at a ricer meet, pretty much just for the entertainment value, when I stopped dead in my tracks and ordered everyone else to do the same. There, right in front of us, was a Nissan Pulsar GTi-R, straight from Japan . I immediately began inquiring as to who the owner was, and was so very disappointed when I found him. He was about 25, just standing around and here is how the conversation went:

Me: Hey man, this is awesome!!! I never thought I'd ever get the chance to see one of these in real life!!!

Him: Thanks man.

Me: So... How did you get it over here???

Him: A friend imported it for me.

Me: Oh... I see. It's definitely a sweet car!!!!

Him: Thanks.

As if it was a Ford Taurus. What a waste.

[dscoobydoo]

I have to wonder if it was a real pulsar GT-i

I was in Japan in the early 90's and have seen in real life alot of early skylines and the small pocket rocket cars. ( Don't ask me what for, but yes I do speak Japanese)

Currently I work for a (let's leave it nameless) Govt agency, and I know all about the importation requirements for vehicles.

Reading the conversation, it leads me to believe that the car is not real.
You can import parts to your heart's content, but a WHOLE DRIVEABLE TITLED car can only come in in certain circumstances. ( We call them Gray market cars)

Heck, the few companies that can import Skylines now had to jump through so many hoops, and they have to mod the car so that is adds another 10 grand on to the price ticket ( before they jack the car price up to make a hefty profit).

A one-off car like the GT-i is possible, but this guy is so full of shit how he got it that it makes me laugh.

[vrg3]

Weelllll.... there used to be loopholes that made gray market cars easier to get, back in the 80s. Employees of international NGOs could import cars without federalizing them. They wouldn't be able to get a title, but the bill of sale was enough to register them.

That's how I got my old German-spec Benz.

Then when they get old enough you can sometimes convince the DMV to issue a title, and then sell it or transfer it.

[entirelyturbo]

Oh it was a real GTi-R, no doubt about it. RHD, SR20DET with TMIC, everything. What else could it be? There's nothing in America that even remotely looks like it that you could bolt the body stuff on!

[azn2nr]

did i miss something or did gt8 post again and get jumped on...again

[dscoobydoo]

Well, if it was RHD and the real deal, he did not "just have someone get it for him". LMAO

and if it was me, I would get something better than a GT-i. Like the mitsu FTO, or a mazda cosmo ( for the engine of course) or an EVO 7, or ( you get the point)

NGO's and certain returning dignitaries are allowed ONE CAR PER DUTY PERIOD. Meaning after they come back from a 5-25 year stint, they can bring back one car. I have a friend in the Insurance industry who had to total out a 96 MB 600s full size bulletproofed coupe. This ex-consulate official brought it back and gave it to his 18 year old soon who ran it into a tree. Now, who gives a 3800 lb, V-12 MB coupe to an 18year old?

And just running a tangent to this, if you have seen F&F2, is it just me, or just finding a skyline sitting in some lot in Texas is SERIOUSLY a load of BS!

[LaureltheQueen]

whatchutalkinbout?

I saw a beat up skyline at a used car lot in wisconsin a few months ago. I woulda bought it, but the police were after me.

[azn2nr]

speaking of skyline. i met a kid that can hook up a leaglaized r33 for me. it will take my lifes savings but it might be worth it. for realls too

[THAWA]

Currently I work for a (let's leave it nameless) Govt agency, and I know all about the importation requirements for vehicles.

I'm sort of interested, what are the requirements?

[dscoobydoo]

OK- keeping to the basics, unless the car is older than 1972, is has to meet the DOT and EPA requirements before it can be legally licensed to drive on the road.

If it was a car that was never brought to the US before( eg pulsar GT-i, Mitsubishi FTO, the old EVO's etc), it has to go through a battery of tests first meaning you better have more than one. With the exception of the gray market cars of course.

Thus, the first legal importer of Skylines, had to give up around 10 of the cars so that the EPA and DOT could destroy, disassemble, and do other nasty things to them. Then when they were done, they decided the importer could bring them in, but licensing was after a few mods. That and an expensive permit to do so.

You have to remember, we run 87-92 octane, have bumper and impact standards, and require crash tests and other stuff the other countries do not.

You can bring in all the car parts you want, but if you have a chassis you are going to license on the road, it has to jump through all the hoops.

Now, don't get me wrong, in certain locations/states, if you get the car to the border and lie, it may make it in. But different states have different titling requirements. But if you ship it in, the container will be looked at, and you have no chance of getting it on the road illegally.

Now, I have thought of buying the title to a postal subaru (RHD) and buying a jap-spec version of the same and doing some fudging.

But next time you are working on your car, notice the VIN etching on the firewall. This is to keep you from swapping VIN numbers. There are plates in 1-3 other locations too.

VIN coding
Made in japan- starts with a J or 4
made in mexico- starts with a 3
Made in Canada- starts with a 2
Made in US - starts with a 1

The next letter will be the manufacturer. F- Fuji, N-nissan, etc

The rest is up to the vehicle.
I have done alot of research at work on trying to bring in cars. But I can't find a cheap and or easy way to do it.

[vrg3]

I think 4 means USA. SIA-manufactured Subarus start with 4.

[entirelyturbo]

Yes, American-made Subarus start their VIN's with 4's. Japanese-made Subarus (and pretty much all cars) start with J.

[THAWA]

Is the 1972 thing based on the current year or is it a set year?

When you say a car that was never brought here does that count for different models? Like would a v3 sti or something work since the car was brought over ehre but not in that trim level?

What satisfys a car being a gray market?

What are the DOT and EPA requirements?

[scottzg]

What about calling it a kit car?

[evolutionmovement]

Kit cars still require an EPA-approved engine that matches its year of mfg. Some state rules vary when the kit cars in question are replicas of pre-smog vehicles (incl new hot rods).

Gray market cars are non-mfg imported vehicles that are scrutinized by DOT and EPA and pass the requirements. They are legal cars, unlike black market, which are not, of course (like a postal Legacy IDd B4 or something).

DOT and EPA requirements vary for year of mfg.

Steve

[dscoobydoo]

OK, if I am wrong on the 4, then it means Japan parts, US assembly.

The 1972 thing is roughly a 25 year or older thing. So every year it moves up one. ( actually I think it is 72 for EPA and 74 for DOT, but I kept it to 72 to simplify.)

As for different models/trim, If it was never brought to the US by a Manufacturer, it does not qualify.

Thus, even though we had 93-97 Imprezas, we can't bring in the STI ja-spec versions. Different cars, different engines, and that is what matters.

Again, gray market are cars that are one-time exemptions for certain people/organizations. They may or may not be DOT and EPA certified. But they have been permitted in and are legal to own and drive.

As for the DOT and EPA requirements, you might go to the US Customs website or the EPA and DOT ones also. I don't think they outline EXACTLY what the requirements are, but they go through some of the process.

[dwreck30]

Just go here http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/ I'm sure it will tell you anything you need to know about impoting vehicles. By the way ther is a shop here in Hayden, ID that does turbo installs and stuff. I went there to see what a rebuild might cost and I saw a Pulsar GTi-R there. While not knowing what it really was I'm assuming it was the "real thing" since it did have a top mount and RHD.