titling an import vehicle?

[scott]

it's not a series. i bought my kid a 68 iia marshall ambulance but he did get excited. instead he went and found himself a 64 trabant p601. it's in MD and has no title from a US State. what should we be looking for it to have? what kind of documents does it need to have to insure that it was not illegally imported?

[greenmeanie]

Typically you'll need:
-EPA clearance form. This should state the vehicle is in categrory E which means that emissions equipment is not necessary. You will still need to meet any emissions requirements set by your state but are not required to have cats/air pumps or whatever.
- Customs clearance form. This is just to say that import tax was paid when the vehicle entered the country.
- Proof of ownership at time of import. This is basically to say that the vehicle was obtained legally and the importer had the ownership rights to do so.

Look for the vehicle to have been already titled in the US as this gives a modicum of insurance that it has met the basic requirements. Pay a lot of attention to the title to make sure VINs match and it is titled correctly. If you can check the address where it was titled as backwaters or third party titling agencies are a flag that someone was slipping something through the system. Before the 25 year rule made import legal there were a fair number of 110 wheelbase, coil sprung land rovers floating around that claimed to be series built in the 70's.

Bear in mind if a vehicle is an illegal import it cannot magically be made legal by the 25 year rule. There are companies that can provide this service shall we say but to protect yourself it is best to inisist on a Kosher paper trail.

Finally approach your insurance firm and send them as much info on the vehicle as you can. Make sure the know what you are driving so that they have no wiggle room in the event of an accident.

[NickDawson]

Greenmeanie covered the required forms to a T.
I'll add that you'll need patience. The person working at the DMV in Virginia was insistent that I tell her which state England was in.

[LaneRover]

I would double check on a Trabant before purchasing. If I remember correctly I saw a TV show where someone had a Trabant but could not drive it on US roads at all. It was either that it was completely unsafe (even by US 1960's standards) or because it was a 2 stroke.

That being said, it could have been a Trabant from the late 80's so a 60's could be fine. I would just check into it.

I would also recommend watching the Top Gear episode where they drive some Soviet era vehicles.

Brent

[scott]

yea it's a two stroke two cylinder with a body made out of oatmeal impregnated burlap. his mom is never going to let him take it out of the driveway.

it has never been registered in the states. NM only has one county w/ emmissions requirements and it's my county but cars manufactured before 1975 are exempt. my boy has acertained that the current owners are a couple, one was from pre wall fall east germany, moved here from london. he's waiting on their answer to why they nevered titled it in MD.

[Linus Tremaine]

the difficult part is done

The car is off the boat sitting in your yard. That means no EPA person, or shipping person is going to look at it-unless you take it to them. If its not in the dmv computer, whos to say that it hasnt been sitting in your yard for twenty years. Perhaps your dad bought it new in england and titled it in florida when you were younger. When he died, you towed it home intending to restore it and the title is long gone... that was in 1984 and now.....

Anyway, my point is that you dont have to prove any title transfer from england. I would go to the dmv, tell them the above story, get a vin inspection and be done with it.

[scott]

the hard part is yet to come

the owner says he has the DOT and EPA exemption documents. the hard part is going to be driving it from MD to NM...a 600cc two stroke!

He tells us that for about $200 a company call International Title Service (ITS) will get you a Maine title and registration that's good for a year. Has anyone here every dealt with ITS. changing a ME title into a NM tilte is not to painful.

[yorker]

Better solution:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1385&dat=19910428&id=JAcWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=chQEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3836,4900612

http://books.google.com/books?id=NvQDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA16&lpg=PA16&dq=bacteria+to+eat+trabants&source=bl&ots=EOaOmadtpU&sig=SGWFdjG6prU7KGRoH7bCilmJX1U&hl=en&ei=rgNqS-j7LpHj8QaBh53BBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CBAQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=bacteria%20to%20eat%20trabants&f=false

Gee if I knew he wanted something odd like that there is a DAF 600 near here for sale...

[LaneRover]

the owner says he has the DOT and EPA exemption documents. the hard part is going to be driving it from MD to NM...a 600cc two stroke!

He tells us that for about $200 a company call International Title Service (ITS) will get you a Maine title and registration that's good for a year. Has anyone here every dealt with ITS. changing a ME title into a NM tilte is not to painful.

Maine didn't start titling vehicles until 1973 or 4 they finally started because Massholes would come up and steal vehicles in Maine knowing they weren't titled. Not sure if they back track to previous years now.

[Jeff Aronson]

I did not need a title to register a 1966 II-A, purchased in Vermont, in Maine. I needed to prove ownership through a bill of sale, that's all.

If title becomes an issue with your state, then consider taking out an insurance bond - quite inexpensive - that will assure your right of ownership pending any claim against the car. I used this once on an MGB in Vermont, when I could not prove title because it predated the issuance of titles. My insurance company took care of the paperwork.

I would not stress out a 2 cycle engine, 2 cylinder engine on a long drive between MD and NM. If you must have one, then consider having it shipped to NM.

BTW, even nostalgic East Germans don't want Trabants anymore. Does he realize what an awful car it is? Why not look for a 2-cycle Saab instead? Or if it must be so small, find a Reliant Robin.

Jeff

[greenmeanie]

The car is off the boat sitting in your yard. That means no EPA person, or shipping person is going to look at it-unless you take it to them.

Anyway, my point is that you dont have to prove any title transfer from england. I would go to the dmv, tell them the above story, get a vin inspection and be done with it.

That's where they get you in AZ. You have to get an inspection to register the vehicle. If it doesn't appear in their books they send you to the county assessor to judge which emissions standards you have to meet. In order to determine the year of emissions you have to provide proof of year of manufacture (something I forgot to mention in the first post.) Here at least, the county inspector can insist on the full paper work trail to prove legal import. I've had to do it three times in 10 years for my 101.

It suprised me that in conversation they stated they know the difference between a Series LR and a Defender. Apparently they had rather a lot of people try and register them illegally in this town. A title from another state means squat as far as legal titling in this state.

I am not saying this will happen everywhere but if they are testing emissions in Scott's county I would expect it to be a city which tend to be more ****.

I supose what I am saying is caveat emptor. I'd do the legwork and make sure you know what is required by your state and ensure that you cover yourself before parting with cash.

[scott]

i just titled my 68 ambulance, it only took 4 hours at mvd but it had an IN title and an IN vin inspection. normally NM MVD wants to do the inspection but excepted IN's cause i explained that it would be awhile before i could get it here. i titled a new beetle from TX here and it took 11 hrs, it was a deisel and i forgot to mention that in the first line they had me standing in. so here other state titles help a lot. being a state employee i got the inside scoop (mvd play book on titling imports) and it's just so much easier with one of the other 49's titles. which brings me back to this International Title Service company. has anyone used 'em? the only word i've heard about 'em is from the seller.

[Jeff Aronson]

I would be leery of a Nevada company that titles a car with a Maine title. That doesn't sound very straight to me.

Jeff