Importing a Motor Vehicle To Canada (the be all end all) | Page 32 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Importing a Motor Vehicle To Canada (the be all end all)

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How long does it take for a Recall Clearance letter from Suzuki of America? Anyone know?
I just sent them a written request together with bill of sale and copy of title and confirmed with them that they've received it, but I have no idea how long it will take for them to issue that letter for me.
 
Quick question, I'll be heading down south to pickup a new bike soonish.
I have the time, so I'm willing to do the driving to save some cash, what's the cheapest/best way of bringing a bike back from a location that's approx 1400km away? I'm willing to rent a caravan or a trailer, I have a 07 Yaris, but no hitch.

Apperently uhaul does hitch installs which should be around $200 installed + $45 to rent a trailer for 3 days, then I have Yaris fuel mileage and get to keep the bonus hitch.

Or I can rent a caravan and drive down, more expensive on fuel, but probably slightly safer.

A, what would you do? B, any suggestions on a good rental company that allows high mileage, US travel and has caravans?

Thanks for helping me figure this out.
 
Persian-Rice said:
Quick question, I'll be heading down south to pickup a new bike soonish.
I have the time, so I'm willing to do the driving to save some cash, what's the cheapest/best way of bringing a bike back from a location that's approx 1400km away? I'm willing to rent a caravan or a trailer, I have a 07 Yaris, but no hitch.

Apperently uhaul does hitch installs which should be around $200 installed + $45 to rent a trailer for 3 days, then I have Yaris fuel mileage and get to keep the bonus hitch.

Or I can rent a caravan and drive down, more expensive on fuel, but probably slightly safer.

A, what would you do? B, any suggestions on a good rental company that allows high mileage, US travel and has caravans?

Thanks for helping me figure this out.
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I just got back from the US where I picked up my bike. What I did was rent a cargo van from Discount for a total of $90/day(rental fee+insurance+additional kms) with 3000 kilometers included. Gas was around $150 for the trip(15L/100km consumption).Other rental companies don't give you any extra kms for a reasonable price. I only had to drive about 1200 km return trip. Unfortunately I scratched the van which ended up costing me an additional $550 to fix(insurance deductible was up to $1000 - a complete ripoff).
IMO I'd install the hitch on the Yaris and rent the trailer. It'll cost you much less in fuel which will proly end up saving you $$$ for the trip.
 
rorider said:
How long does it take for a Recall Clearance letter from Suzuki of America? Anyone know?
I just sent them a written request together with bill of sale and copy of title and confirmed with them that they've received it, but I have no idea how long it will take for them to issue that letter for me.
Click to expand...

rorider said:
I just got back from the US where I picked up my bike. What I did was rent a cargo van from Discount for a total of $90/day(rental fee+insurance+additional kms) with 3000 kilometers included. Gas was around $150 for the trip(15L/100km consumption).Other rental companies don't give you any extra kms for a reasonable price. I only had to drive about 1200 km return trip. Unfortunately I scratched the van which ended up costing me an additional $550 to fix(insurance deductible was up to $1000 - a complete ripoff).
IMO I'd install the hitch on the Yaris and rent the trailer. It'll cost you much less in fuel which will proly end up saving you
$$$ for the trip.
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If you call suzuki USA and fax the info they will email it to you to speed it up so you can forward this to the RIV people. You will get the orrig mailed to you in about a week or so.

Another option is have the bike delivered to the U.S border and pick it up there. Saves $ and all your time involved in driving to and back. My bike was approx 800 km each way which translated into two days of driving, a hotel stay, food , gas etc. Instead $350 and It was picked up and delivered in enclosed bike trailer to me in Niagara falls and then I put it in my trailer. Well worth $350!!
 
Hope someone can help me here ..

I am looking to purchase a 1980 Yamaha 1100 from a guy in New Hampshire and bring it back to Ontario .. The bike is currently registered in New Hampshire and is plated and very drivable ..

The current owner does not have a title for this bike .. New Hampshire DOV does not require a title to register any motor vehicle over 15 years of age.

When the current owner bought the bike a couple years back, he did not get a title from the previous owner, and all he was required to do to get it registered for plates was to get the local police dept to run a VIN check to verify the bike was not stolen .. the police gave him a note stating the bike was not stolen and he got it registered with the New Hampshire DOV ..

Here are my questions..

1) Since he has no title for the motorcycle, am I gonna be able to get this imported into Ontario ?

2) How will the CBSA handle this at the border when I cross back in with the motorcycle with no title ?

The bike is very roadworthy and I plan on getting a safety done here and licensing it for Ontario .

I can get a bill of sale from this guy and probably the registration papers and that's it.

Being that it is a 30 year old bike, it is RIV exempt, but I still need to get it here and get it registered in Ontario as a non branded bike ?

Anyone run into this issue before ?

Thanks .. :)
 
Sorry if this question has been covered already in this thread but there are too many pages.

What if u wanna purchase a clean title frame off ebay and have it delivered to you directly...what's the course of action then?

Thanks in advance for any info provided.

T
 
Has anyone imported via Port Huron/Sarnia crossing lately?

When I first talked to the Port Huron border they gave me a fax # and told me the only thing I needed to send to that fax # was the title of the bike 72 hours in advance of import. Didn't even need a cover sheet - just a 1 page fax of the title.

But when I printed the RIV checklist tonight, it states that I need to send 72 hours in advance: Vehicle title documents, registration, and sales receipt.

I haven't even looked at the bike yet - i'm buying it on the assumption the seller's description is accurate and it passes a compression test. Therefore I won't have a sales receipt until I actually go to pick it up.

Anyone imported through that crosing recently, and if so - what exactly is required at the US side in advance of bringing the bike into Canada?
 
Xhumeka said:
Has anyone imported via Port Huron/Sarnia crossing lately? Yes, Last Thursday...and be prepared to wait, they are slow...it took 2 hours to get out of there.

When I first talked to the Port Huron border they gave me a fax # and told me the only thing I needed to send to that fax # was the title of the bike 72 hours in advance of import. Didn't even need a cover sheet - just a 1 page fax of the title. All they wanted from me, when I arrived, was the title and a fax confirmation showing that I had given them 72 hours notice.

But when I printed the RIV checklist tonight, it states that I need to send 72 hours in advance: Vehicle title documents, registration, and sales receipt. I bought new from a dealer and they sent all this info in advance, but again, the only thing the US side asked me for was the title.

I haven't even looked at the bike yet - i'm buying it on the assumption the seller's description is accurate and it passes a compression test. Therefore I won't have a sales receipt until I actually go to pick it up. The CDN side asked for the receipt. They also do some research on my paperwork to confirm the price I had paid. It was a pain, but I think it was still worth it.

Anyone imported through that crossing recently, and if so - what exactly is required at the US side in advance of bringing the bike into Canada? See above.
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DISCLAIMER: This was my experience, with infernobuster in tow...;)

Good Luck & I hope things work out for you...
 
hope this hasnt been asked before i read the 1st 20 something pages.
Ive recently got to Canada on a working holiday visa and am planning to be in Canada for the next 3 / 4 months then head down the west coast of US. Ill be heading home from LA in December. I was looking to buy a buy as rental will be too expensive for this time scale.
2 options i was thinking were either heading into US buying a bike riding it around up here for the few months then taking it south and selling before i leave.
Or secondly buying a Canadian bike them exporting it to States
Any advice would be appreciated.
I dont really want to have to go through hassle of buying and selling bike twice before leaving
 
If you are American, buy a bike from Cali and plate it there, then have it shipped here and back with you when you leave. Bikes are sooo much cheaper in the US. Just my 2 cents...
 
If you buy a bike in California and want it in Toronto, let me know. I would be happy to ride it up for you. Haven't rode to Canada since last June.
 
toraider said:
If you are American, buy a bike from Cali and plate it there, then have it shipped here and back with you when you leave. Bikes are sooo much cheaper in the US. Just my 2 cents...
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slight problem that im irish then so no address in usa thinking i might just buy up here and sell again in about 4 months
 
irishphil said:
id be shocked if its worse than uk or rep of ireland i will check before i actually buy anyway
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Then prepare to be shocked, because it is much worse.
 
is there any possible way to ride back from the states? I've found some good deals, but by the time you drive there and back to pick it up or have it shipped there's no point...

edit: I've checked the NY DMV site and you can purchase an 'in transit' permit good for 30 days for $12.50. Haven't checked any other states yet, but I"m sure each state has something similar. I'm still looking into obtaining something similar for Ontario. I'd have the paperwork sent in advance, and I still have to see about insurance too, but it looks like it might be do-able.
 
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If you get title registered in your name in whatever state it's in, ontario will sell you a temp plate/permit for $15.
 
You cannot get a temporary permit for any vehicle that has not been registered in Ontario. Before you can get the temp plate in Ontario, the bike must have had the RIV inspection done and in compliance.

You can use the temp permit from the state you bought the bike until it expires (in ontario)
 
Skurj said:
You cannot get a temporary permit for any vehicle that has not been registered in Ontario. Before you can get the temp plate in Ontario, the bike must have had the RIV inspection done and in compliance.

You can use the temp permit from the state you bought the bike until it expires (in ontario)
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that's what I was looking for. really I'd only need it for a few hours anyway since i'm about 3 hours from Buffalo and about 6 from Windsor. even if I got it here and still couldn't plate it, it wouldn't be a problem getting it on a trailer to get it back to Barrie. Now, to find an insurance company that will issue me either a temp policy, or an actual full policy since I'll be insuring the bike anyway.
 
Skurj is 100% wrong. I just did it. My bike was registered in my name by the dealer in ohio. Ohio would not sell me a temp plate because I was canadian, the Ministry of ontario sold me a temp and made me get a safety because of the ohio registration. If the dealer did not register it in my name in ohio i didn't need a safety on top of the RIV inspection.
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