Need help with legalizing my S15 in California

[DJMS15]

Where is a good place in California to get an aftermarket EGR installed and anything else to legalize my 1999 Silvia S15 Spec-R? I currently live in Boise, ID but I used to live in Santa Cruz, CA and I know for a fact that the smog crap out there is a *****, in a year I'll be moving back to California so I want to know where I should go to legalize my S15. I know it can be done because I've seen a few legal S15's, I have about $8,000 to do that, but I also want to get a quiet-ish exhaust (any suggestions for S15?) and I'd rather not spend all my money. Thanks!

[180sxfaktory]

Can't help you with the registration, but for a quiet exhaust, Tanabe brand is good for that. That seems to be their claim to fame- being quiet and meeting noise restriction ratings. You'd probably would need to special order it. Also, check out JIC, since they have the S15 time attack car. I do't know if it is street legal/registered, but it could be a start on your quest for legal registration. Since it's California, wouldn't it be kinda tough to get a CARB legal exhaust for S15? I guess with money, everything is waiverable.

[Encryptshun]

Hey Neal! You wanna tell him, or do you want me to?

[dickie]

thats going to be tough to do legally (and legit) because that car was never crash-tested in the US and so it can't be legal to drive until it is.

its not just the motor... you would somehow need to get all new DOT-approved glass for it assuming you got through the title process. it makes my head hurt just thinking about the cost involved there.

any reason you're moving back to Cali? only reason i ask is because it would probably be easier to fool someone on podunk, ID over people in cali who are trained to look for that kind of thing.

PS pics of car or banz.

[DJMS15]

I don't have any pics yet, it's shipping and the craigslist add is expired :[

Looks like this:

I don't really have that much money lol. The main reason I got an S15 is because I used to have a 240SX S13 and loved it, but I wanted something that no one else would have :[

I grew up in California so I want to be there, there isn't really anything here in Idaho :[ I miss the ocean. I didn't think about the DOT-approved glass.

There's an option when registering it, I'm not sure what it's called but you drive it less than 1000 miles a year and you don't have to deal with safety regulations or smog. I'll just smash my odometer with a hammer or something. I don't know if this gets too hard I'm going to sell it and buy a really clean S14 or something :[

[Encryptshun]

Um. I'm confused. Did you just buy this? Do you have a title in your posession? Have you tried getting an insurance quote yet? Was the vehicle previously registered in the U.S.? Did you buy it from an individual or an import company? If the latter, please let me know the name of that company.

Thanks.

[smocan]

You saw it on craiglist and bought it without actually physically seeing it? hmm.... good luck, i hope it comes..................... eventually

[180sxfaktory]

If you get it registered in ID, why not keep it registered there?

Neal, speaking of importing into the USA, has anybody actually imported a 180SX? When and if I move my operations to the USA, I am not leaving my cars behind if I can get them in. I know every state has different rules.

[Encryptshun]

Okay, let's do a quick recap of all the INaccurate information thusfar in the thread:

1) An S15 can be legally imported2) An S15 can be legally registered3) OP bought an S15 and has $8K left over for legalization work4) "smash[ing] the odometer" is acceptable in order to stay *legal*5) OP didn't get scammed

Sorry, bro, but lemme make a guess about how your ride is getting delivered. Guy you bought it from had it shipped to a 3rd-party shipping company warehouse, where you'll be invited to come take a look at it and then, if you like it, pay all or remaining balance of fees. They will then make arrangements, possibly, to deliver the vehicle to your residence, since you can't drive it and probably don't have another method of transport.

Am I close with any of this? I really hope not.

[daconkiftador]

LOL @ this thread.

[redtop91]

Sounds like a scam in my book. Either way, forget about making the car street legal in California. Even if you pass smog, you won't be able to get it insured because the VIN won't register with your insurance company, it's not crash tested as aforementioned. Basically, you can forget about driving it on the street. If, that is

it comes.....................

Irregardless,

[180sxfaktory]

Sounds like a... scam?

I sure hope not.

[Encryptshun]

If you did buy this from a company who imports JDM vehicles into the U.S., please provide us with the name. If you bought it from an individual, find out if s/he works for a company such as I previously detailed. Then provide us with that name.

Please?

If I ever get a custom title, it'll prolly be "Joseph McCarthy".

[180sxfaktory]

Isn't that guy dead?

[180sxfaktory]

Is this the seller?

zerothread/267296

[Encryptshun]

McCarthy is dead, yes.

FYI -- Never buy a JDM car from someone who ends the conversation by saying "Many Bothans died to bring us this information."
Modified by Encryptshun at 6:57 PM 8/8/2007

[DJMS15]

I did go and see it, I'm not that retarded thanks. I haven't payed for it yet, the guy is delivering it himself and I'm paying him when he gets here, I bought it for $25,000 and I'm going to have about $8000 left for everything. He also just sold an R32. He said he has to sell a bunch of his cars because his wife is complaining about the money he's spending or something. If he doesn't show up then whatever, I haven't payed for it yet.

I've never sent over $50 to a private seller who was shipping something to me, besides eBay. I pick up everything I buy, because I usually buy locally. My friend spotted this on craigslist in San Jose.

I haven't done any of the title work yet. I basically bought it because even if I get over registering the vehicle, Spec-R's usually go for around $30,000 so I could make at least $4000 reselling it.

[180sxfaktory]

I'm still confused. You said you saw the car and then you said a friend saw it in SJ Craigslist. You said you haven't paid for it, yet you sound like you already have, since you mention you haven't done any titlework yet.

It's funny that the guy selling a 1999 S15 Spec-R is selling it for exactly the amount you stated, but he's in Illinois. Coincidence, maybe.

[Encryptshun]

I'm guessing it was the one Ben Taylor had for sale in the thread you posted, Dale. Ben's based out of Green Bay, right?

[180sxfaktory]

Yeah, it is. The OP of that thread says he's in Gurnee, Illinois. I don't know if Ben is from Green Bay. I really don't know him. That thread and this post seem too coincidental. Maybe it's because of the rarity of an S15 in the USA that makes it stand out. If this were Japan or other places the S15 was sold, this post would probably not have peaked my interest, but again, the make/model/year/color/asking price is the exact same, which makes me question this thread.

[hungryjoseph]

pics or it didn't happen.

maybe you could have it registered in a neighboring state, like nevada or oregon? do a vin number swap with an s13 and just say that it's converted? illegal way of legalizing but... yeah lol

[bluemax]

try to look for hazw8st(sp?) a user on this board. He might be able to help..

good luck

[anti_flag_army]

try to look for hazw8st(sp?) a user on this board. He might be able to help..

good luck

Ummm so what, he is gonna help him convert his car to an alternative fuel so he never has to smog it...? So then he has a car that he doesnt have to smog, but cant drive it because it doesnt have a title/registration/is legal?

[Fenris]

Bring it to NH, swap a different S15 SR20 into it, then get it titled as a reconstructed vehicle. State gives you a vin and does a saftey inspection, boom you get a new title. NH doesnt smog check. Win-Win... except for rust....

[180sxfaktory]

I guess I'll bring my cars to NH if and when I come to the USA with my cars. Doesn't a person need proof of residence in NH to register a car?

[Razi]

I guess I'll bring my cars to NH if and when I come to the USA with my cars. Doesn't a person need proof of residence in NH to register a car?

lol sneaky sneaky!!

[180sxfaktory]

A mang has gotta do what a mang has gotta do! Besides, NH is close enough to Canada, and I've always had a good time in Canada!

[Alfador]

The S15 is a grey import vehicle in the united states. Regardless of whether it meets state laws, regardless of it's passing emissions, it has not been eitherA) Shown to be generally equivalent to a car that has passed DoT crash test requirementsorB) Had several models sacrificed in the name of crash testing.

It is for this same reason that only the R33 skylines are legal here they were the only models that were crash tested and it was determined that the 32 and 34 would not perform identically in crash testing due to intrinsic structural differences. Anyone who has a "legalized" S15 in this country is either fooling themself, or has been hiding some key fact from the federal government.

The truth of the matter is if the right people figure out what you have, they can seize the car and then either sell it to someone who will be taking it out of the country, or scrap it. If you defrauded someone to get it done you'll probably spend time in jail too.

[dickie]

...The truth of the matter is if the right people figure out what you have, they can seize the car and then either sell it to someone who will be taking it out of the country, or scrap it. If you defrauded someone to get it done you'll probably spend time in jail too.

And there are more of these people in Cali than anywhere else in the United States... they WILL take your car and they WILL crush it if you move there, its not really a question of "if" so much as it is "when."

Don't mean to dump on your plans, but there is a reason that you don't see these cars driving around all the time stateside (besides the exorbitant importer markup). If you do get it, consider living in a state with auto laws a little less... communist?

[Encryptshun]

And there are more of these people in Cali than anywhere else in the United States... they WILL take your car and they WILL crush it if you move there, its not really a question of "if" so much as it is "when."

Don't mean to dump on your plans, but there is a reason that you don't see these cars driving around all the time stateside (besides the exorbitant importer markup). If you do get it, consider living in a state with auto laws a little less... communist?

Hey Dale. You might think about working a deal with the CA or fed government to buy all the grey-market cars they are going to crush, then import them into Bahrain and sell 'em. Imagine getting a confiscated R34 for like $200 + lading.