V10RAM

First of all i'l say Hi to everyone, been lurking around on this site for while but this is my first post, right here goes, the wife and i are planning on moving state side around about October next year and i wondered if anyone had bought their own shipping container, loading it and doing all the relevent paperwork themselves?
Also i have 2 cars that i want to ship over, they are both over 25 years so i don't think meeting emissions etc would be too much of an issue, however neither run, and the one happens to be stripped down, also i don't have a current registration document for it only an old green log book, could this be a major problem when i come to import it?
Thanks Paul

S Folinsky

This is an FAQ -- the answer is generally it will be a BIG problem.

chartreuse

On the container thing: (a) you'd need to be at the docks when it arrived, to accept it (this is why most folks use an agent) and (b) you'll be looking at an almost certain inspection by CBP (this is why most folks use a shipper).

On the cars - I'm guessing these are classics of some description, or better? You don't say what state you're moving to, but in addition to federal laws, you'll need to consider both the laws of the state where they are unloaded from the ship and the laws of the state that is their final destination.

Bob

a) Not worth the hassle, it won't really save you any money at the end of the day.

b) No idea, but it's never easy, though I think Nicebutdim ? He moved a couple of classics over, but a lot of it will depend on the state as well as the paper work you've got.

Welcome to BE though

S Folinsky

OP stated that his cars were only 25 years old. 1985 cars are NOT classics. The emissions and safety standards were pretty rigid by then. If the cars are 1967 or older, it is a different matter.

chartreuse

Actually, he said "over 25 years old", which is why I sought clarification.

S Folinsky

True enough. However, we are 44 years on from the 1967 model year.

My daughter and I went to Fresh N Easy yesterday for grocery shopping. On alcohol products, the auto-check-machine summons a store worker. I am cleared on sight and off-spring is request to produce ID. Why the difference -- we're both over 21 years of age, no?

V10RAM

Ok well to me it will be worth the hassle, , i shouldn't any poblem with emmisions on the one, it's a 1959, but that's the one i'm going to have to try and obtain a current registration for, so i'll have to get ont the DVLA i guess, that will probably take longer than when i apply for my visa, lol. and my other one is a 1971 car, not sure how that would fair though? oh and i'll be moving to Indiana
I'm not looking to buy a container and do the paperwork myself to save money, more so i can start filling the container with the contents of my sheds and garage at my own leisure, i'm guessing that if i load it myself i'm not going to be able to organize a shipping agent to deal with the paper work on my behalf? or would that still be feasible? i've contacted several shipping companies but they're under the impression it's household effects (even though i've stated what the contents would consist of!) and want to send someone out to determine what size i need

lisa67

I would think that if you did any of the packing yourself then a shipping company are unlikely to want to take responsibility regarding customs. As someone has already pointed out, this will mean an inspection at the port and probable delay of your goods. IMO not worth the hassle!

Pulaski

This is probably not practical as most, if not all, container ship owners do not accept shipper-owned containers. "Pre-owned" containers are certainly available to but BUT a freight container (i) needs regular maintenance and (ii) has a limited life, and so there is a significant risk of the container failing if it is not properly maintained, and in practice the way that the ship owner ensures that only well maintained containers are loaded on the ship is to only accept those from pre-approved container leasing businesses. Containers may fail either under the weight of their payload, or when they have half a dozen or more others stacked on top. By restricting containers on their vessels to those owned and leased out by the major container leasing businesses they avoid the risk of this happening: http://www.cargolaw.com/2003nightmare_pinata.html - there is also some advice on what to expect if you decide to go ahead with your idea of buying your own container.

TimNiceBut

*Waves* That'd be me, and it was a bunch of classic motorbikes.

I used a specialist shipper that mainly does bikes but also does household items. They arranged for the container, strapped down the bike and recommended a customs agent over here in the US to clear everything with customs. I doubt that the cost for the container rental was high enough to warrant buying my own container; the customs agent charged slightly less than $300 to clear everything and while that might sound like I'm full of myself that wasn't enough money for me to try and potentially spend days dealing with the government over here.

Getting the bikes in wasn't that big a deal, here in NV you then have to get them inspected by the DMV and provide some paperwork (EPA et al) to get them registered. That's the stage I'm at right now, I need to pull the paperwork together for one of the bikes, get insurance and then try to get it registered. Apart from the additional EPA paperwork it's not much harder to register than an out-of-state vehicle, but that's NV for you, plus the county I live in doesn't require smog checks.

Oh, and a word of warning when it comes to containers - if you are bringing cars in, make sure that you have access to a loading dock or a crane to take the container off the trailer. The trucks aren't normally equipped with a crane and you'll find your belongings and motorcycles about 1.3m in the air. Fortunately I had been warned about and had lashed together a 16' ramp to get the bikes out with some help from the truck driver.

You can import vehicles over 25 years old fairly easily as they don't have to meet EPA specifications anymore and IIRC are also exempt from the requirement that you have to prove they are either identical to a vehicle sold in the US or have to prove they meet NHTSA standards.

If you live in a place where you have to get the vehicle emissions tested it will have to be able to pass those unless you can register it in such a way that you don't have to get it emissions tested - here in NV you can register vehicles as a classic with limited mileage use (less than 2500 miles/year IIRC) and don't need emissions testing in areas that require it.

Bob

That's quite nifty

Up in Maine, it's cheap to register as a classic, but they can only be on the roads during weekends, but as it's cheap to register a car there, you hardly ever see classic plates

TimNiceBut

It is - I actually just checked the Nevada DMV website and didn't misremember it.

I'm not quite sure what benefits registering something as a classic offers here, I'll probably ask the next time I'm at the DMV.

Bob

You save $20 bucks? Insurance issues is the other main one I'd think.

TimNiceBut

I think you can probably get classic car insurance on them without having classic plates and vice versa. Out here I'm not sure if you can get the classic 'look' plate with a classic car registration so if you don't, you'll end up with the current style of plate on an old car. Not that that's unusual given that the plate is assigned to the owner rather than the vehicle out here (as opposed to California, where the plate is assigned to the car).