Well then STAY out of it!

This van IS LEGALLY IN THE US, TITLED IN THE US, REGISTERED IN THE US. That
makes it friggin' legal, whether someone [over]paid you to 'import' it or
not, whether YOU like it or not. It WAS brought into the US through customs,
FYI.

Liability, my A**. 'Smuggling'---oh good god.

 On Mon, 29 Jan 2007 14:35:59 -0800, Jeffrey Schwaia <jeff@VANAGONPARTS.COM>
wrote:

>Ooops.  I was going to stay out of this one, but...
>
>First off, I AM A REGISTERED IMPORTER, and I can tell you, without a doubt,
>that just because an imported vehicle is legally registered in a state (any
>state in the USA), DOES NOT make it legal for use in the USA.  Any
>non-Canadian market, imported vehicle that is less than 25 years old MUST go
>through an RI if it is going to be operated in the U.S. on a permanent
>basis.
>
>Non-Canadian market means: any vehicle that was originally sold in a country
>other than Canada.  Vehicles that were imported by their owners into Canada
>are required to be imported into the USA as non-Canadian vehicles.
>
>
>Simply put, there are three things that MUST happen for a vehicle to be
>legal:
>
> 1 - A formal U.S. Customs entry (HS-7 form, etc.)
>
> 2 - DOT (NHTSA) certification and labeling from an RI.
>
> 3 - EPA certification from an ICI (often under contract with the RI).
>
>
>Individual states may have additional requirements, but these three things
>must happen for the vehicle to be legally operated in the USA.
>
>There are no LEGAL alternatives to this process.  Yes, there are many
>imported vehicles that are running around the U.S. that have never been
>touched by an RI and they are registered in their respective states,
>however, they are not legally in this country and pose a liability to their
>operators.
>
>If anyone doubts this, please feel free to call up your local US Customs
>office, or the DOT.  I can give you the phone numbers if you like.
>
>Remember, local state registration has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the
>legality of the import of a vehicle.  Any person who brings a vehicle into
>this country without a formal US Customs entry is guilty of smuggling.