# The logistics of buying a car from China?



## rayhaque (Apr 1, 2013)

Bumping my own thread with some information I found ...

This site is a great start to see how you might go about importing a car into the United States. And it looks like a royal pain in the arse.

This PDF is also very helpful and includes a flow chart.

The manufacturer would have to have attached certifications to the vehicle which show that it meets EPA guidelines for emissions standards (called an EPA certificate of conformity) as noted here ...


> Vehicles imported to the U.S. must pass through a port of entry and be cleared by U.S. Customs. For Customs clearance you will need the shipper's or carrier's original bill of lading, the bill of sale, foreign registration, and any other documents covering the vehicle. You will also need a completed EPA Form 3520-1, or a manufacturer's label in the English language affixed to the car, stating that the vehicle meets all U.S. emission requirements.


If that is not available, you have to send your car through an "ICI" who will certify or modify and then certify your vehicle. And yet it states: "only import certain vehicles"? What a joke.


> You may make arrangements to import your vehicle with an Independent Commercial Importer (ICI). In this case, the ICI will import your vehicle and perform any EPA-required modifications and be responsible for assuring that all EPA requirements have been met. ICIs can only import certain vehicles, however, and in general, their fees are very high.


And that's only the EPA. You also have to show that it meets Federal Highway Safety standards. Which, it obviously would not. Because these vehicles are intended to be sold as LSV or NEV's. And yet - not mention of these vehicle classes on pages about importing vehicles.

And if you get through all of that ... there are the taxes, which are rather huge.

So I could just see going through all of these processes, paying all the related fees, and then getting your vehicle held up by U.S. Customs anyway - because something wasn't filed correctly, or they don't understand that these vehicles don't meet highway safety ratings and don't need to.

And I imagine that all of this ... is why most NEV/LSV manufactures do not list the United States as a country that can buy one of these. I wouldn't want to deal with the United States either!


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## ken1939 (Sep 4, 2010)

No Cars newer than 25 years old, that's the list. Trust me on this one.


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