I'm trying to ship my USA Mini to Israel, but encountering some bureaucracy as follows:

In order to get an import license from Israel MOT (Ministry of Transport) I would need to get a letter from the official importer of Mini to Israel stating that they are capable of servicing that car. This is a classic case of letting the cat guard the cheese.. Surely they refuse to give such a letter, claiming that the US model is vastly different than the model they are importing to Israel (From EU), they lack the knowhow, tools and parts to service a USA Mini.

Could this be true?? Just how much different is a USA Mini from ones that are imported to Israel?

The VIN number for the ones that are imported to ISrael have "MF31" or "MF71" in the 4-7 digits of the VIN, whereas my Mini (USA) has "MF33".

Thanks for any useful information that I can refute their claims and prove they are not telling the truth.


By the way, BMW Told me that there is a world wide 2 year unlimited warranty and that there is an internal bulletin numbered #01 12 04 that states the above.. Still the Israeli importer is most likely trying to control their local market and prevent anyone brining mini's from the USA.

 

A few years late to your post! But, did you ever have any luck in importing your mini cooper. Let me know if you get this. I'll be trying the same very soon. Thanks! -micromachine