Getting kit from Ontario to California

[kreb]

Hi guys. I'm looking very seriously at an unfinished/untitled kit car in Almonte Ontario. registration-wise, I'm thinking that it will be a straight SB-100 deal. But I'm looking for advice on:

-Getting it across the border. What's likely to happen, and how should I be prepared?

-Trnasporting the darn thing. It's a private party sale, and I don't have the time or inclination to drive over and pick it up. The seller is hassle-averse, and wants to do it as easily as possible, so the ideal scenario would be a trucking company picking it up on site. But I've never done that. The other possibility would be for me to fly out, rent a truck and drive it back myself. One way is a lot more manageable than 2.

Thoughts?

[Warren Nethercote]

You will never get a one-way truck rental from Canada to the US, or vice versa.

Check on imports: if it's too close to being a complete car it may be embargoed from registration from what I've seen from other US posts.

[Lonnie-S]

Boy, that's quite a challenge. You live in the S.F. Bay Area, right?

Does it roll now? Are there boxes of parts, or loose parts associated with it? There are a lot of these small outfits that haul cars on trailers behind a big pickup with dually axles. That might be economical, but having a lot of parts could be an issue.

I see it as a 2-part problem: 1) get it from Canada into the U.S.; and 2) get it from the east to west inside the U.S.A. If you can get it into the U.S. that's more challenging than transporting it within the country, I think.

As to SB100, who knows who build the chassis? I think that's a non-issue if you have receipts for the engine and mechanical pieces.

Cheers,

[jdunn]

Regarding crossing the border, my advice is definitely hire a customs broker. A few yrs ago, I bought a vintage formula ford chassis along with multiple parts(incl. wheels) in a box that fit inside the chassis from a seller in Ontario. I had no idea how to negotiate US customs paperwork, documents, etc. If you look online at what's required, it is daunting.

Someone on a race car forum advised me to choose online one of the customs brokers operating at my desired US port of entry (Niagara Falls for me). In my case, the Canadian seller dropped off the chassis at the broker's, who handled everything. The chassis was then picked up by a transport/trucking company on the US side of the border who then delivered it to me in MS.

IIRC, the broker charged less than $100 for everything. And it went like clockwork, so a customs broker is absolutely worth the money.

Thus, it is possible to buy, clear customs, and have a complete chassis delivered in the US from Canada using a phone and your computer. Maybe I was lucky, but it worked for me.

Jack

[kreb]

Thanks for the information. Do you have the name of the customs broker in Niagara Falls? That would be a logical point of entry, since this vehicle is in the same general area.

[ZiG]

Just be aware that importing a non-street-legal car can be very different from importing one that you (I assume?) Intend to eventually drive on the street.

[jdunn]

Thanks for the information. Do you have the name of the customs broker in Niagara Falls? That would be a logical point of entry, since this vehicle is in the same general area.

I don't remember which broker I chose, and I'm not sure it makes any difference. (I may have chosen the biggest one?). Google "customs broker+Niagara Falls", call several and ask them about what you want to do. And go from there. I promise, those brokers know the ropes and will give you good advice.

BTW, my race chassis was just some welded up tubing with a box of parts inside. They may have looked at it and figured it was just a bunch of old car parts on a pallet. Which, in truth, it was. I wasn't there, so I don't know.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

Jack

[wemtd]

Thinking outside the box since you're on the Locost forum: why not cut the frame in half: ship in two boxes with all other assorted parts unbolted and boxed separately. everything enters as it truly is 'parts'.

[Miatav8,MstrASE,A&P,F]

To echo Zig, how it is imported can prevent you from registration for road use.
https://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyPDF.cgi?Dockey=P10081IS.pdf
https://www.cbp.gov/trade/basic-import- ... orting-car
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail ... rsonal-use
https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files ... p015_3.pdf
https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publication ... 5-eng.html
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/218

It is also a gamble because it requires many people in positions of authority to make sound decisions/reasonable interpretations with little accountability. What could go wrong?

[jdunn]

ZiG and MV8 make good points.

In my case, I had less than $1000 invested, and I had no intention of making a street legal vehicle. I would do a thorough due diligence investigation (including talking to customs brokers and internet research, e.g., kit car forums) before I risked significant money buying and trying to import a kit car for the street.

Jack