There's a small outfit in SoCal importing Elises. They could get DOT
waivers for two reasons: small number of cars produced, and small number
of cars imported (I forget the cutoffs, but it's something like 100 cars).
The EPA, however, was intractable, since the Rover K-series has never
been federalized. The EPA cares about a LOT more than just passing a
tailpipe test. This group replaces the K-series engine with rebuilt
scrapyard Integra engines, which are lighter and more powerful to boot.
The DOT regs do appear to be odd. You can waive for some cars, but
can't for others. For example, if you're selling a non-US car that has
a similar US model (recent Ferraris are an example here), you have to
upgrade them using the US parts. There was a recent flap about Ferrari,
not the DOT, trying to stop this practice. For cars for which there
are no US models, the rules appear to be different. There are also
different rules for personal imports v. for-sale imports. I used to
own a Euro Mercedes that had been converted to US specs by nothing more
than a headlight change, yet the bumpers and glass are clearly different
between the US and non-US models. The car was brought in privately.
The engine was part of a Federalized *family* of engines, even though
this particular example wasn't (3.5L v. 4.5L). This was, apparently,
close enough to appease the EPA.
I've been given incorrect information from government officials before
(DOT, IRS, DMV, etc), so I'd not trust the word of one DOT official.
I'd do a lot more research before I decided it was impossible to do.
If the form really states all *current* standards, that's probably
unconstitutional. Standards for the MY of the car, perhaps, but it's
unreasonable to expect a 1990 MY car to meet 2003 MY standards, and any
such regulation would violate Article 1, Section 9 of the US Constitution.
james montebello
On Sun, 5 Jan 2003, George Graves wrote:
That's not what I was told by someone at the DOT. The EPA only cares about pollution. If the car passes smog, they should be happy. If the EPA were the problem why does the Customs release form stipulate that the car be brought-up to ALL current US safety standards within 180 days? Regards George On Sunday, Jan 5, 2003, at 08:43 US/Pacific, James Montebello wrote:On Sun, 5 Jan 2003, George Graves wrote:The short answer is you can't.[...]Actually, George, for self-imported cars, I believe it *is* possible toAt any rate you CAN'T make it comply, so don't even bother to try. Why? Because Alfa Romeo has never made US approved glass, running lights, or impact absorbing bumpers for these cars and having these things fabricated is simply out of the question.
waive the DOT (crash test) requirements for a limited number of cars.
It's the EPA that's the real trouble. You can only waive those
requirements if the car is 25 years old or older.
james montebello
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