My american dream ( or just a lefty supra )

hi guys first post,

im looking to buy another supra ( i sold mine 2 years ago ) the only problems i have are that i need a left hand drive version as i might be moving to america and dont want to be the only nob on the wrong side . the other problem is the price of american supras they are ridiculusly expensive , hold their price . i would of had a budget of maybe say 10 ish and that would be if i bought a jap import from a dealer here . do these import places import from other countries that drive on the right side and are left hand drive ? or could they at least source one ? cheers

Be different, drive on the "wrong" side.

Oh and welcome!

There is a conversion set for sale on here.

You will have trouble importing i think, i was sure they never allowed imports unless over 25 years old.

yeah Supra's are costly in the US, have you looked at the import laws as they are quite complex. Its not just shipping it over

Talk to Jurgen, he's the man in the know

Send a pm to jurgen, he's a good lad and is always helpfull, or you could just have a trip to cramlington where he's bassed.

Welcome to the club!!

If the car wasn't made in the states then it has to be 25 years old to be shipped over(unless you want to take 5 across so you can have 4 crash tested), so unfortunately, the US spec Supras are your only option

If the car wasn't made in the states then it has to be 25 years old to be shipped over(unless you want to take 5 across so you can have 4 crash tested), so unfortunately, the US spec Supras are your only option

What about that R33 GTR in your TX2k11 thread? There must be some way round it, as there seems to be loads of imports over there (Nissan Silvias, R34 Skylines, JZX100s)

What about that R33 GTR in your TX2k11 thread? There must be some way round it, as there seems to be loads of imports over there (Nissan Silvias, R34 Skylines, JZX100s)

That was one of VERY few that was legally imported as an importer had 3 or 4 R33's crash tested when he imported a batch over, however all R32's and R34's are there illegally (Customs are now starting to track them down and crush them as although a State will give it a license plate, it does not make it legal for road use).

It was quite funny though as I jumped in with Tristen to go grab some food and most people at Supra Natonals had never seen an R33 in the flesh before so when we pulled into the parking lot at the Omni, I could barely get out due to people flooding round it:d

Also, over there it was worth about $35k (it was a GTS-T but with a GTR kit on it)

As mentioned Jurgen can maybe help with this, if not then this document might be useful.

http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/Active%20RI%20list01042011.pdf

Also, over there it was worth about $35k (it was a GTS-T but with a GTR kit on it)

they're worth circa £3k here!

Would be worth having them tested and import over there, you'd make a fortune!

As most of the guys on here said, you won't get it to the states and not have to worry about getting caught unless the car's 25 years old. I thought about trying to go through Canada since I can get a Canadian title on it and drive it over the border but low and behold... it's not that simple haha. NTM, even with a conversion kit, you're still going to have problems since everything's placed on the car to be driven on the left side of the road, not the right like in the US. I'm am American living in Iraq, based out of Misawa, Japan and on to England for my next base for the USAF. If there was a way to get my Supra to the states, I'd do it... but it's either going to cost an arm and a leg (to crash 3 of the same Supra) or you'll get it in illegally for a shit ton of money just to get caught later and loose it all. Sorry bud BUT welcome Good people on this site and if there's a loop hole in getting it imported, Jurgen will be the man to speak too!

I don't understand the crashing 3 cars business? Surely if someone has done it once you don't need to do it another 5,000 times. Surely they have some sort of central driving agency which would hold these on records?

I too am an American stationed in the UK and was looking to take a RHD Supra back to the states with me do to the availability and cost of them over here. I also enjoy the drive much more shifting with my left and steering with my right. I looked into every possible route you can take to get a RHD imported. If you want to do it legally you either have to donate atleast 2 to the Department of Transportation for crash testing and then modify to meet there regulations or get the manufacturer on their letterhead to state that your specific vehicle meets US safety requirements for the year it was manufactured. The crash testing isn't very cost effective for an individual wanting to import and the latter is known to be untrue. I even went as far as to see if I could legally convert a LHD to a RHD, was informed that would be state specific and not every state will approve this and not knowing where I will be stationed next ruled this option out. As has been stated before there are a fair amount of RHD vehicles in the states and people do pay silly money for them. However even though an individual state has given them a license doesn't mean they are legal. I even read on another forum where a guy had registered his RHD Supra as a Nissani kit car. The federal government could at anytime take and crush their vehicle at a minimum.

Here are some sites:

http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/

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

HTH

i remember reading somewhere that cars can be imported as PARTS. i.e. completely strip it down and then rebuild. But then I suppose they could still crush it? No idea, but the USA is pretty locked down on this.

i remember reading somewhere that cars can be imported as PARTS. i.e. completely strip it down and then rebuild. But then I suppose they could still crush it? No idea, but the USA is pretty locked down on this.

Yup, as lonbhold said above, you can get it through as a kit car by importing it in pieces BUT if the law find out what you have done then it will still be taken away and crushed.

Basically, it just ain't going to be legal unless you buy a US spec one or have an obscene amount of money to crash test them, but before you crash test them you have to convert them to US spec which involves replacing the glass to US approved, replacing a ton of stuff under the bonnet and much more.

"USA the land of freedom"..... But your not allowed to import a car unless it's over 25 years old

I've lived in Canada for last 20 years and you can't import there unless the car is 15 years old or older. And I know they are restricting imports in some Province's such as Ontario where I was. You can no longer import right hand drive cars. They say to many accidents passing and making left turns at intersection, as we don't have roundabouts there. However you can still import a 1993 or 94 to Montreal, Quebec and then drive down to the states from there, which is only about 9 hour drive. But the cost to ship my camaro over here was going to be $5000 so wasn't really worth it. But I know there a supra with a big single can sell for upwards of $30,000- $50,000 in some cases and parts are really cheap in the states. You might want to check if you can import to British Columbia, Vancouver ,not sure what the laws are there and it's alot closer than shipping from here.

"USA the land of freedom"..... But your not allowed to import a car unless it's over 25 years old

I was just thinking the same So easy to carry a gun legaly in the states but once you want a RHD car it's too dangerous.

the other problem is the price of american supras they are ridiculusly expensive , hold their price .

I think American Supras are the cheapest LHD ones in the world. where are they going to be any cheaper? Not Europe that's for sure. I've been looking in importing one from the states and would even safe money instead of buying one here. So my advice would be just safe money and buy one in USA as importing and stuff is expensive.

hi bud ,

so what about all the jap import shops are there any in the US . if so how do they get round the laws . anyway thanks for the respose everyone helpful 4 me

hi bud ,

so what about all the jap import shops are there any in the US . if so how do they get round the laws . anyway thanks for the respose everyone helpful 4 me

They don't, it's illegal unless the cars are 25 years old or they have a batch crash tested.

As Seba said though, the US spec Supra's are the cheapest LHD Supra's.