heys guys i have a e36 M3 but i came on here with some info u guys may or may not have . my son has been importing cars from japan , he recently bought a 92 mazda rx7 . i was looking on the site he gets the cars from and i came across a 90 E30 M3 with 60.000 kilometres on it which is about 35.000 miles . shipped to my door 9500.00 cnd . now for the guys in USA shipping prob will be less and if u live in cal its really cheap because 2000.00 of the 9500.00 is the shipping cost once its in canada to my door . im not a seller or a broker i just wanted to pass the info along . p.s. the one thing thats great is the cars he brought over are 100% rust free . he brought over a 89 325 mtec and is was so clean under the shocks still had the factory paint on them lol .

link?

ill get that info from my son . i dont my helping out . i thought about buying it myself but my wife only allows one M3 lol

heys guys i have a e36 M3 but i came on here with some info u guys may or may not have . my son has been importing cars from japan , he recently bought a 92 mazda rx7 . i was looking on the site he gets the cars from and i came across a 90 E30 M3 with 60.000 kilometres on it which is about 35.000 miles . shipped to my door 9500.00 cnd . now for the guys in USA shipping prob will be less and if u live in cal its really cheap because 2000.00 of the 9500.00 is the shipping cost once its in canada to my door . im not a seller or a broker i just wanted to pass the info along . p.s. the one thing thats great is the cars he brought over are 100% rust free . he brought over a 89 325 mtec and is was so clean under the shocks still had the factory paint on them lol .

Please send me a link or info also...been looking into buying one for awhile now.

Please send me a link or info also...been looking into buying one for awhile now.
ok will do

Sounds like a nice buy for the new owner.

Run a check on the vin....The miles seems a little too good to believe

Sounds like a nice buy for the new owner.

Run a check on the vin....The miles seems a little too good to believe
the milage is correct . my son has bought 3 cars from japan already . see in japan the cars dont get driven as much with the traffic and also they have to pass a tough saftey every 6 months after they are a certain age so people just buy new . all the cars are from an auction and are totally certified . all u need to do it make sure the car is rated a 3.5 or a 4 out of a 4 rating do not buy anything that rates lower . he is really particular in what he buys and his last 2 cars he had buyers before the cars where even here

here is the site http://www.ibcjapan.co.jp/ata/start_prelog.asp?id=canada . here is a pic of one . the one sold already http://img.jcarinfo.net/gi.php?op=ImkUdm3*IaPq45Kq7aeqdfIXM6PpAn0QhAnW8vAc dYUgQnN5LFS8Q5Vohb4ad3AKA5H.Ib082ndf4*6

k, im really curious as to how this is all legit. last time i checked you cant import the majority of these cars. is it limited as to what you can import? for example they list nissan skylines on the site for 7000. ok so say i pay the money and get the car sent here, now what? emissions? registration? last time i checked skylines are not available here cause they are all RHD and emissions is alot different then it is in japan.

id like some clarification on how that all works.

Importing a car is fairly easy. Its extremely easy if the car is over 25 years old. Where it gets tough and very expensive is when you have to alter the car to comply with DOT and EPA standards here. It can cost you up to an additional 12,000 to get the car in compliance.

ya i see your point guys . see in canada we have no emmission laws so its easy to safety them i guess u will have to check the laws in your state . here the car has to be a 92 or older

Hmm... here in Salem we don't have emissions either. Interesting.....

i asked and got this response

Greetings!

Please take note that all cars from Japan are not compliable for US use.
These cars do not meet US DOT or EPA standards for importation to US.

Please kindly contact any Registered Importers in your place so you can
get some ideas on how to import a car from Japan.

Should you have any other inquiries, please contact us anytime.

Best regards;

Vince
Customer Service Center


IBC Japan Ltd.

well there goes that idea....and my evo 5 that i was looking at...

E30 m3 is eligible for US import, German Japan Africa will not matter. However it is still expensive to do it legal and correct. Price seems way to good even with shipping cost! Canada is 15 years for cars, USA is 25 years!!!

On a side not is your son interested in brokering a sale of a Lancia Delta.

Tyler

heys guys i have a e36 M3 but i came on here with some info u guys may or may not have . my son has been importing cars from japan , he recently bought a 92 mazda rx7 . i was looking on the site he gets the cars from and i came across a 90 E30 M3 with 60.000 kilometres on it which is about 35.000 miles . shipped to my door 9500.00 cnd . now for the guys in USA shipping prob will be less and if u live in cal its really cheap because 2000.00 of the 9500.00 is the shipping cost once its in canada to my door . im not a seller or a broker i just wanted to pass the info along . p.s. the one thing thats great is the cars he brought over are 100% rust free . he brought over a 89 325 mtec and is was so clean under the shocks still had the factory paint on them lol .

I am looking to get a summer place in Calgary and would love another e30 M3 for the mountain roads. If your are serious about this (I assume you are) please have your son contact me. I would be very intersted to buy this and pay a fair 'broker fee' to your son if this is really as desribed. I am willing to advance the funds. I will PM you my email address now.

Canada is 15 years for cars, USA is 25 years!!!


15 and 25 years for what?

To import with out changing anything. In the US it's 25 years or older to be exempt.

so that really doesnt do any good then cause there wasnt really to many interesting cars back in 1981...well as far as m3s go.

I'm over in Germany now, wishing the laws were different. I could have my pick of a ton of different cars, but it's not worth it.

cool

don't trust that site i got a membership to look around and it has a 2002 323i listed and the picture is of an early 90's mercedes

Yea - getting federalization for the US isn't easy, especially for a Japan-spec car (a Canada car would be less). You can do it on the cheap, and there are some resources in Vancouver, etc. that can help, but for a car under 25 years, you are talking easily $3K-$5K (DOT glass, bumper/door reinforcement, exhaust replacement and EPA testing, DOT lamps, etc.)

There is a guy in western Canada who imports rare BMW's and Alpina's from Japan, and there have been some *nice* cars on his lot. A pal of mine just bought a Japan-spec M635 and brought it to the US, as well as a Alpina B10 (? - the E34 bi-turbo).

Needless to say...I'm jealous.

Anyway, if you're in Canada, you have lots of options from Japan and Europe to import BMW's with minimal fuss. Your neighbors to the South aren't so lucky...

Yea - getting federalization for the US isn't easy, especially for a Japan-spec car (a Canada car would be less). You can do it on the cheap, and there are some resources in Vancouver, etc. that can help, but for a car under 25 years, you are talking easily $3K-$5K (DOT glass, bumper/door reinforcement, exhaust replacement and EPA testing, DOT lamps, etc.)

There is a guy in western Canada who imports rare BMW's and Alpina's from Japan, and there have been some *nice* cars on his lot. A pal of mine just bought a Japan-spec M635 and brought it to the US, as well as a Alpina B10 (? - the E34 bi-turbo).

Needless to say...I'm jealous.

Anyway, if you're in Canada, you have lots of options from Japan and Europe to import BMW's with minimal fuss. Your neighbors to the South aren't so lucky...
Yeah there are quite a few skylines and jap cars that weren't legally sold here running around now. Since all you need is a car that's 15 years or older to not need emmisions testing because it's considered a "classic" and not too many people have them. The guys importing them from Japan also buy them all with rediculously low mileage 'cause face it, how many miles can you put on it in Japan... it's an island.
I found an E30 M3 for sale at mobile.de with 190,000 km (117,000 miles) for 4500 Euro.. MINT, the guy sold it in a heartbeat though... better luck next time i guess

Talk with Court M3 he impoted his 323 e30 from Sardina awhile back, did it the legal way and I believe it was semi pricey 8k range.

I was gonna import my M5 when Ileft Germany in 05 but I sold it prior to getting close as the thing was such a gas pig. I preferred the E30 anyway.

1. Vehicles 21 Years Old Or Older

If the vehicle is at least 21 years old, there are no EPA compliance requirements upon importation. The age of the vehicle is determined by subtracting the calendar year of manufacture from the calendar year of importation. If the calendar year of manufacture is unavailable, the importer may substitute the model year or year of first registration. For instance, to qualify in 2001, the vehicle must have been manufactured in 1980 or earlier. The vehicle must be in its original unmodified configuration. Vehicles at least 21 years old with replacement engines are not eligible for this exemption unless they contain equivalent or newer EPA certified engines.

No approval or Customs bond is required by EPA. The importer must also prove to Customs, as required, that the vehicle or engine was manufactured prior to EPA regulation. Documents such as a title, or letter from the original manufacturer may be used for this purpose.The importer must file with Customs, upon entry, an EPA Form 3520-1 and declare code "E" on that form.

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/factmtop.htm

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/imports/forms/3520-1.pdf

That still does not include the Safety aspect. Those are the two issues.

Safety 25 years
Emissions 20 years

Just a note, we have been importing to/from Germany, Japan, Canada, USA for the last 18 years, the cars from Germany are usually worn out, no matter what the ad says, anything that is cheap is worn out, anything good is very pricey, cars from Japan, many European cars had the K rolled back, when they were exported enmasse in the 1990's, unless it was sold new in Japan, chances are that they arrived with KM rolled back in Japan.

You can find a good M3 or M6 in Japan, that is US spec, many were exported from the US as used cars in the early 1990's, I just sold a 1991 M3 Us spec from Japan to Maryland.

To bring them into the US, some cars are easier then others, all must meet EPA, DOT, which is not as hard as many people think, E30's, Rallye Golfs, etc are not as hard, cars like the Lancia are.

But, when buying from Japan, buy from a DEALER, not a broker, many brokers end up selling junk, as they have nothing to lose, a Dealer stands behind the cars.

Good luck on your hunt, on a side note, sometimes rare cars like the 2002 Turbo appear in Japan, and they are 25 years old, so not a problem for all our friends down south.

Hey Guys,

For those of you looking at getting an M3 over here from Japan... it can be done and really not that hard. Most M3's that were shipped to Japan were US spec cars and pass DOT tests. I have imported cars myself from there and continue to do so. Today my 1990 M3 got on the boat. It has 73,000 kms and in imaculate shape. I paid a cool 18,500 delivered so beware of $9,500 cars as it took me months to find this one. It has to go through customs, out of country inspection and registered... all mine, drive away. I will post picks of it soon enough.

The price of these cars keep increasing every couple of months due to the fact everyone is after them and there just arent that many as we all know. Japan will soon have none. Europe is my next venture.

Good luck and happy car hunting.

I agree with you 100%, prices are up, there is more and more junk at the auctions, and its harder and harder to find a nice example. As for Europe, not worth it, we brought many tourings, E30 M3's, Italians E30 M3's ( narrow body ), Rallyes, Lancia's, all were for the most part lacking, except maybe the Rallye's, my personal M3 looked perfect, but ended having extensive rust damage behind the seam sealer. Europe is picked over, and the good cars are very pricey, not much left, and if sounds to good on Mobile.de or Autoscout, it usually is.