Hello from the US

[evilGnius]

Hey all, just randomly found this site and so far....looks pretty cool. I am a galant owner myself but I have a 7G (E54A). Unfortunately we dont have any of the good engine choices the rest of the world has...had. But I love my car...will post some pics soon....I need to scour the site first and get used to it here. But thankz for a place to play! Cheers!

[Skidmark]

Gday mate and welcome to the site. Look fwd to seeing your pics

[ISKA8]

hi there mate,welcome to the site..

[evilGnius]

Thank you guys! So far so good...I'm loving some of these old skool models you have. We dont really have any on the road here in the states....damn near impossible to find around here. But this is a cool place..Me likes!

[A112H]

Hi evilGnius, welcome to the site mate. I am sure you will find some interesting reading and some cool pics, enjoy.
One good thing your 7G has over the American 1 and 2G's is by the 90's they had given up bolting on those horrible black bumpers to everything, lol

[evilGnius]

^^^This is true, but you guys have all the real good engine and body choices! We got squat! LOL We are all truly envious here....I mean you can LEGALLY drive Skylines....ours are getting impounded (the ones that were imported)Its just rediculous.

[woops]

^^^This is true, but you guys have all the real good engine and body choices! We got squat! LOL We are all truly envious here....I mean you can LEGALLY drive Skylines....ours are getting impounded (the ones that were imported)Its just rediculous.

I didn't realise that your government screwed you over so badly with the importation of overseas vehicles such as the skylines, 180sx, 200sx etc. I took a read of this http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/the-fa ... tes-1.html and realised that things are truly screwed up there. Over here we have many different workshops dedicated to the compliance of the many various import vehicles for use in Australia. There's no bullshit crash testing required to prove the car is safe but they do have to add in the side intrusion bars to the doors and child restraint anchorage points. I find it really stupid that over in the US they have the really high restrictions on the emissions and safety of the cars but most of these don't have to be followed when it comes to a SUV's. The SUV's are classed as trucks so they don't have the same level of stringent regulations so if the US government really wanted to do something about pollution and safety they should me looking more at this problem then the import car market.

[A112H]

Having a quick read through that it isn't very different from our process really. The main difference we have is that once a vehicle has been approved for import the required modifications can be purchased by a registered workshop and they can then import and comply that model.
We still need to alter a lot more than child restraints and side intrusion bars (side intrusion bars are not needed on vehicle made after 1995 as Japan started using them around then) we need to remove the HiD set up from headlights and set up a normal globe, side indicators need to be fitted to S13 and R32 Nissans, an Australian spec cat convertor needs to be fitted, only the inner brake lights can work on a Skyline not all 4, eye level brake lights need to be fitted to S13 and R32 or any car with the rear spoiler removed, child restraints must be installed, all new engine fluids and all new fliters, VIN needs to be stamped to RH strut tower, seat must meet Australian measurements, brand new tyres must be fitted, all part numbers from globes, lenses and windows must be noted and meet code, the indicators must flash between 80 and 120 times per minute, cars with out a dash light dimmer switch need one fitted, fog lights must be removed if they don't have a seperate warning light, auto winding windows need to be disengaged, exhaust must read below 96db and meet strict emissions rules, I could keep going but I think you get the idea.

On the other side of the coin there are ways around some of the rules. For example; technically all S13 180SX's and Silvia's DO NOT meet Australian standars because the front indicators are too close to the ground. I can't remember the height but the law say's they must be a certain heigh off the ground.
How did we get away with this?
While there is a law against lowering you car, there is nothing about how high it can be. We just put S14 front struts in as they are taller and raise the front about 4 inches, this also raises the front bar and the indicators are legal. The powers that be at our inspection station eventually gave up and it was okay to take a stock height S13 though.

I did all the compliance for a very well known importer here in SA for about 3 years and we were the first to get approval for the M35 Stagea and the F50 Cima. It is a massive task and we had constant inspectors flying over from Canberra to look over what I was doing, very stressful really. But once you get past that and the vehicle is approved for import it is between 8 and 12 hours per vehicle to get them up to code and fill in the paperwork. The paperwork is then sent off to Canberra for approval and then a VIN plate is posted back. After all this time and work you still need to take the vehicle down to an inspection station for final rego approval.

While our system may seem a bit easier on the face of it, it is still a government run system so will be difficult, lol

[woops]

I think the biggest different is that in the US they have to prove it passes safety standards with crash testing and the people who then go through the crash testing have intellectual property protection over what needs to be completed. Where as here the government sets what modifications need to be completed to have it comply and the information is available to other workshops and they don't have to complete destructive crash tests on the vehicles in the end to prove that everything is safe.

Actually i find it really stupid that the regulations also state that the mirror must have "objects appear closer in the mirror" on there just to remind people that the mirrors aren't exactly the same perspective as looking straight ahead.

[RaptorReed]

Welcome!

Thank you guys! So far so good...I'm loving some of these old skool models you have. We dont really have any on the road here in the states....damn near impossible to find around here. But this is a cool place..Me likes!

Depends on where you're located, there's a few of us rolling around the states, I can think of four other owners out here in the PNW.

[evilGnius]

^^^Its only a matter of time, there were several that made it all over the country imported as "kit cars" by Motorex and a couple other "legal" impporters. The government has gone through and tracked these cars down and is actually impounding and crushing the cars! That is nuckin futz....there are so many more issues that need to be addressed and I am sorry, but a car that wasnt released here shouldnt be one of em. Tell your friend to be careful and just watch out, I would be willing to bet the government knows where he is with that car (besides the obvious having it registered)

[Tils]

complete Bull sheisse! They want zero import tarriff and parity, then they play silly buggers with low volume imports. What a load of crap. Damn politicians have no idea and just push laws through on a whim. I rekon they should be strung up like musolini!

[evilGnius]

Raptor....my bad. You were talking about the old skool Galant! LOL That would be cool to see...I am surprised there arent more here in Cali...especially LA

[RaptorReed]

There was one for sale in LA a few months ago, I believe, and there are two in the bay area that have on craigslist, a '71 and 75. As far as owners go, they are around just hidden. Although not that active http://www.classiccolt.forumcircle.com you can find a few more of the active US colt owners on there or on the more active broader nostalgic forum, http://www.japanesenostalgiccar.com

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/cto/2065873812.html
EDIT: double link failure.
I believe we actually would have a better chance at importing a nostalgic import than a R32 or something along that young in age. For a car 25+yrs or older, they don't have much they have to abide all the transportation rules, because they are so old and vintage.

[woops]

here is the other car i think that you meant to post. Gee I wish we actually got the 16L galants here.

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/2060544058.html

[RaptorReed]

Ah thanks, didn't realize that happened, thought I had copied the other link.