Moving to GTA from California - Few Questions | GTAMotorcycle.com

Moving to GTA from California - Few Questions

hacktastic

hacktastic

Member
I'm a long-time San Francisco/Bay Area rider moving to GTA. Does anyone have experience bringing bikes into Canada? Both bikes have aftermarket pipes on them. Am I looking at having to bolt the OEMs back on to get them into the country? Anything else I should be looking out for?

I know I'm gonna get some cold weather riding comments. FYI, I ride up in the mountains all year round and have winter gear. :D

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Don't have an answer for you, but welcome! My companies HQ is down San Mateo way, and I have had many enjoyable trips to the Bay area. Hope you like it up here! :)
 
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Dude, I have imported a few cars from when I was living in the US. There is a minimum amount of time you need to have owned the vehicle. I can't remember now if it was suppose to be 6 months or 1 year, so that you don't have to pay duties and such.

Put the stock pipes back on. MOst likely you will need to pass a Federal Inspection.
 
hacktastic said:
I'm a long-time San Francisco/Bay Area rider moving to GTA. Does anyone have experience bringing bikes into Canada? Both bikes have aftermarket pipes on them. Am I looking at having to bolt the OEMs back on to get them into the country? Anything else I should be looking out for?

I know I'm gonna get some cold weather riding comments. FYI, I ride up in the mountains all year round and have winter gear. :D

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I think you'll find CDN cold weather, and your cold weather is a little different. Sure, you get cold in the mountains, but do you get sustained bitter cold? If you plan on riding through the winter - Electric gloves or hand-grips/vest/insulated pants and boots are pretty much necessary.

There are riders out there that ride year round, but they are very few and far between here. One V-Strom rider that comes to mind, runs full-on knobbies during those months that snow/ice is a threat.

For most riders, bikes get parked from November through to the middle of March, myself included. I've got a sidecar rig, so stability isn't an issue. Being a wimp perhaps, is.

I don't see an issue in importing your bikes over as personal property. Customs are more interested in making sure that any revenue source is paid, rather than emissions standards met.. Oh, and be prepared for a major wallet-shock when it comes to insurance.. huge expense.
 
I think you'll find CDN cold weather, and your cold weather is a little different. Sure, you get cold in the mountains, but do you get sustained bitter cold? If you plan on riding through the winter - Electric gloves or hand-grips/vest/insulated pants and boots are pretty much necessary.
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If there's ice on the ground, I won't be riding. That's what a snowmobile is for! I'm a bit of a polar bear. I prefer riding in the cold over the hot.

Electric grips - check
Electric vest - check
Insulated riding gear - check

For summers, I have a perforated leather Vanson riding suit. Been doing this for a while, so I've got the gear.

As for the rest, thanks everyone. I'll err on the side of caution and bolt the stock pipes back on.

Yeah, the insurance is a bit more expensive. I pay $600/year for my SV and DRZ with full coverage. It's going to be a little more, but not that bad. Having a clean record, 15 years of a full license and being a married female is to my advantage. (If they only knew how naughty I was back in my 20s!)
 
One V-Strom rider that comes to mind, runs full-on knobbies during those months that snow/ice is a threat.
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It'll be tempted to put the dirt wheels and some knobbies on the DRZ and try it out. I rode in an ice storm once and slid halfway down a hill, almost off the edge. Granted, that was on the SV with street tires and I was being REALLY stupid. Truly stupid move.

Studs are illegal, correct? Do people do it anyway?
 
No, studs are illegal and people don't use them. They are legal for use in Northern Ontario though.

You might want to consider getting documentation regarding any and all recall notices being completed, from the manufacturers, on your vehicles. I know that it's required for importation of a vehicle from Canada to the US, so you can be damned sure it's needed the other way too.
 
Folks, San Fran is almost the same latitude as us. While they dont get snow in the Bay, the surrounding mountains do. It gets cold there to be sure!
 
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