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It's obvious that the U.S. is essentially retarded when it comes to gas mileage. I mean, when you ask your friends and they say the low 20's in mpg they can achive is "pretty good" you know there is something dreadfully wrong.

So, my question is: What is stopping me from getting a car that actually makes sense to drive from another country and importing it into the U.S?

For example, I travel to Canada, or Europe or whatever, buy a car there, then have it shipped back home. Can that be done without spending more than I would save on gas?

Supposedly there are companies that will import cars from overseas, however most of them usually import sports cars from what I hear. My guess is that you'll likely be hit with high shipping charges, import taxes, and any local inspections that pertain to your area(inlcuding emissions).

If you were to import a micro car from Japan you'd probably be ok. However bringing in a diesel from germany to california might not fly due to the emission regulations.

What about Massachusetts? I don't really understand how the emmissions regulations compare.

Do you know the names of these import companies?

These are just a couple links I found with google

http://foreignborn.com/visas_imm/entering_us/7importingyourcar.htm

http://www.abimportexport.com/articles/Import_Restrictions-Motor_Vehicle_and_Boats.php

http://www.worldexpressonline.com/newsite/worldexpress/asmain.htm

US Customs article (http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/newsroom/publications/trade/importexportcar.ctt/importingacar.doc)

Mintsk8er, it used to be that you went on a long vacation to Europe, had a new car waiting when you arrived, and you drove it 1,000 miles. Then you had it shipped back to the US as a "used" car, making it cheaper to ship, including taxes. I want to believe the whole deal was called Europacar, or something like that. There were some "exemption" forms to fill out for some of the pollution devices. Anyone ever hear of such a thing?

ok I think I got my answer from that second link mtbiker278:

EPA strongly recommends that current owners of non-U.S. version vehicles sell or otherwise dispose of those vehicles overseas rather than ship and import them into the U.S. because of the expense and potential difficulties involved with importing a non-U.S. version vehicle.

I've been wanting to import a diesel version of the VW Eurovan for years, but it just didn't seem to be possible. Among other things, it wouldn't meet the US EPA standards. I've read of a select few who got one in through the grey market, but it always seemed like a really shady proposition.

Mintsk8er, it used to be that you went on a long vacation to Europe, had a new car waiting when you arrived, and you drove it 1,000 miles. Then you had it shipped back to the US as a "used" car, making it cheaper to ship, including taxes. I want to believe the whole deal was called Europacar, or something like that. There were some "exemption" forms to fill out for some of the pollution devices. Anyone ever hear of such a thing?

My parents and I did something like this. European car mfrs who also sold cars in the US would sell you a US model for delivery in Europe. You drove it around and then shipped it to the US. I believe Volvo and Saab had arrangements where you could bring it back to the factory and have it put in with regular shipments of new cars going to the US. If you drove it long enough (6 months I think?) you paid minimal duty. But in any case it was "used" when it came through customs so I believe you saved at least something. When you factored in not needing to rent a car in Europe, you basically broke even.

I did this with a 1974 Alfa Romeo Spyder 2000 and paid only $150 in duty when I brought it back in 1976. I had expected that duty would be a lot more. I used a shipping company and shipping was quite reasonable too.

My parents imported a 1958 Mercedes 220S and a 1968? Triumph TR-250 as part of European trips for my father's work.

All were "US" models so they met the emission and safety specs of the time.

This would be tougher with non-US models, hence the need for companies here that modify them as needed to pass US regs.

Importing from overseas will be very nearly impossible. All cars registered in the US need to meet North American safety and US emissions regulations. Certifying a non-North American spec car requires jumping through enormous hurdles, most likely including crash tests. Even in cases where overseas standards are stricter than ours, the standards are still different. Besides crash and emissions testing, cars have to meet dozens of requirements on everything from instrumentation to bumper height, and you will have the burden of proof of demonstrating compliance with each and every one of these requirements.

Several European manufacturers still have "overseas delivery programs" where you buy the car in Europe, drive it around and then ship it home. But only North American spec vehicles (i.e., the same cars you can buy off the dealer lots here) are eligible for these programs. You CANNOT buy a Euro-spec vehicle and do that with it, though I think that may once have been possible.

There used to be a gray-market law that allowed US citizens to import ONE non-compliant vehicle into the US in their lifetime, and in the 1980s many citizens did so. That is no longer the case. About 15 years ago Bill Gates famously tried to import a Porsche 959, and the car ended up sitting in a US customs warehouse for years until he got the "Show and Display" law passed that allowed him to have it. Under that law a car must be driven no more than 2500 miles a year (and carry a special insurance policy enforcing the limit) and the owner must "persuade" [their verbiage] USDOT that the car is "of such historical or technological significance that it is worthy of being shown or displayed in this country."

Short answer: NO. The urban-legend loopholes have been closed. But there are two possibilities that I can think of:

1. Canadian vehicles. I looked into the possibility of importing a VW Jetta diesel from Canada a couple years ago, after they stopped selling them here. I checked with my state, and their requirement for registering foreign vehicles is a manufacturer's certificate that the vehicle was manufactured to North American standards. There was nothing about meeting US-specific standards, though the car (as any other) would still be subject to emissions testing. Oregon DEQ is generally pretty lax about smog testing of diesels (mostly just an opacity test AFAIK) but it's possible that they'd apply the 2007 emissions standards (which kept VW out of the market) to a 2007 vehicle and you'd still be SOL. It might be doable, but I'd definitely consult a lawyer before attempting it.

2. Engine transplants. Let's say you're driving a European or Asian nameplate car with a 1.8L engine, and that's the smallest engine offered here, but the same car was offered with a 1.4L engine overseas. If you can find the smaller engine overseas, import it and transplant it into your car, and get it to pass emissions tests, you might be OK. That last part might be tough, because the overseas engine probably doesn't have an OBD-II interface and you won't pass an emissions test without it. Oregon doesn't inspect vehicles except at initial registration though, so if you could clear the OBD-II/emissions hurdle I think you'd make it. Other states do inspect, so it may not be possible everywhere. Again, I'd consult a lawyer (and a good mechanic with engine transplant experience) before beginning the process.

I believe Euroford imported a vehicle from England a couple of years ago.

The other tricky part in all this is actually convincing your insurance company to insure it.
You can be sure to check VIN's and if you have a VIN for a non-US car, you could run into issues insuring the thing in the US

Yep, I sure did... Importing a car will empty your bank account quicker then a bad crack habit.

Theres a number of ways to get non-compliant cars into the US. I brought a car in that just qualified for the 25 year old law that lets you bring anything in as long as it was first registered at least 25 years before it lands on US soil.

You can get some special cases in under a show and racing exception.. Not suitable for a car you plan to use daily.

If you’re creative you can get any car in if you can classify it as "parts". This means disabling the car in such a way that it is no longer functional/complete. e.g. remove the engine and ship the car and engine separately. Then, reassemble the "parts" once it clears customs. Titling it and registering it is something else. I've heard that Nevada is very lenient with titles. I took my British V5 registration for the car I imported to a small tag office in Florida and took advantage of an unknowing clerk...