So I may be one of the only to say this, but I think owning a Right hand drive mini (2002-2007) in the US would be cool. I've seen a few right hand drive cars here in Seattle and they are cool, my whole thing is to not be the same and stick out, I saw a right hand drive mini a while ago and thought it was cool. Anyone know how to get one? couldn't find any for sale in canada

 

I think the novelty would wear off quick unless you deliver mail. It's very hard to see when passing.

 

in short ... you can't ... US will not allow the import of a RHD if the car is available as a LHD




but if willing to jump thru many hoops and pay dollars, you might
http://www.automoblog.net/2013/06/06...and-drive-car/




there are a few exceptions like military folks (non-US) assigned to the US being allowed to bring a car ... diplomats .. vehicles produced for the post office etc


and of course you CAN get a "classic" under the 25 year rule . . .





p.s. if it was allowed, I'd imagine MINI would have an option for RHD!


& RHD is fun - I used to give the kids a small plastic steering wheel to hold ...


but as mentioned below: toll booths (I use a transponder now), drive thru's of all sorts, security gates where you need to punch in a code or swipe a card are all among the issues you face . . . and people routinely ask "is that legal?"

 

Driving a car with the steering wheel on the "wrong side" for traffic makes one feel very odd in some situations...having driven a US car in the Bahamas, traffic circles are challenging, as would parking garages, toll booths. Etc...might be "cool" for a weekend car, but after a few days, would IMO, become a pain.

 

What would be 'cool' would be to have your big ol' hound dog sitting up in the normal driver's seat and watch the look on other driver's faces...but I'll bet that's already been done.

 

Yup. I've seen it.

 

I drove a right hand drive London Taxi as my daily driver, in the US, for years. The driving position was not a problem at all.

Dave

 

I've driven a friends RHD classic Mini quite a few times. It wasn't a problem the car is narrow & easy to move left a bit to see around traffic. That would be a bit tougher to do in a larger modern MINI. Not sure you could even bring one into the states.

 

A former co-worker of mine had a very early 240Z in RHD. He and a buddy of his were driving out on the freeway from the SF Bay Area up to Tahoe early one morning. Buddy was totally crashed out in the passenger's seat, obviously asleep. Some little old lady in a big land-yacht comes cruising past them at just 1 or 2 MPH faster. She gets alongside, looks over and sees this guy completely dead to the world in the left-hand seat. Her eyes get THIIIIIIIS BIG, she looks straight ahead, and speeds up 15 MPH and drives off...

One of my favorite stories from that guy.

 

+1,000,000

 

I know it is legal for a new mini here, plus any car you are willing to chop off an arm for. I think it would be cool, and all the pranks would be fun. I'm not worried about any of the driving or anything, I just think it would be cool to be different.

 

I know it is legal for a new mini here


PLEASE enlighten us as your insight


as you have asked us a question to wit you already know the answer . . .


or perchance you have a typo and wasted my time? Because you know it is illegal?

 

dude calm down. I never asked if it was legal?

 

You might get lucky and find a RHD for sale already in the US.

Otherwise, you must import one through a registered importer, who will modify it to meet US safety and emissions regulations before it can enter the country. The importation process will probably cost more than the purchase price. Start here:
http://icsw.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...-vehicle-parts
http://www.cbp.gov/trade/basic-impor.../importing-car

 

To the op...
I know in one post you say "I am young and don't know much" then in another you know everything...we have all been there....
The simple fact is importing a car that is newer than 25 years is very hard...
Sure, its been done...
We are just telling you, unless you are made out of $$$, it not an option...guess the car might be an oddity when done...but millions were made in both configuration... So value is dubious....might get a laugh or two...with some posters I understand folks are just trying to get a conversation going...chat stuff up, have the great bar room debate...but if none of the chats ever have a meaning ..then all involved have wasted their time...nothing more than "hanger flying".....

 

Doohhhhh!!!!

 

...If I were to do a home build version, I would take a classic MINI, and them make a cold rolled tubular steel box frame, mount a Vtech Honda engine in the back, and make it a center seat configuration* ... similar to the ZCar (as far as I know they do not do a seat relocation MOD).

EXAMPLE:

http://www.zcarsuk.com/store/index.p...ory&path=61_67

If you want a NEW MINI with right hand drive, I wonder if they offer a Postal Letter Carrier Version of it here in the US.... like Subaru and Jeep?

Motor on!

 

Don't denigrate hangar flying, Zip. A comment made by an old pilot during one of those sessions saved my bacon once when needle, ball and airspeed escaped proper parameters and I needed an immediate solution. Otherwise...

 

Nawww...every technique goes into my "bag of tricks" and I use what I like, make it my own...then keep the rest for as needed...
Kept me safe and accident free for some bush flying, years of flying obsolete junk with mail/boxes, dodging thunderstorms, tornado's and imbedded cumular granite and seemed to amaze my copilots/Dispatch with great on time and safe numbers when I switched to fractionals flying self loading cargo (passengers)....
Just trying to get back into it after a couple years off due to the downturn in fractional/corporate stuff...hopefully the low fuel prices will help that part...

 

My days aloft are long gone, can't pass the physical and I don't trust my vision. It's OK for avoiding soccer moms but not the finer details. 'Bout all I can do now is whistle 'The High and the Mighty' and recite High Flight while cross controlling a slip into a tight twisty on the back roads.

 

Sorry if you get pissed mate but there are some things I don't know... that's the point of a forum.. I was already thinking about not posting anything because Capt. BJ always comments and gets pissed at me, which... is quite annoying. Car culture isn't about saving seconds, It's about making moments. I don't understand why people get so pissed, I've gotten so much hate with my posts it makes me sad to see how far off from a culture most of these mini people are. I want to like this forum because well BMW is an odd sort and them making the car... makes it difficult sometimes. Well hopefully this forum gets better.. sucks seeing a bunch of trolls.

 

Just curious: Where do you get 'pissed' out of the Zipster's comment? Seems to be an acknowledgement of the main roadblocks involved in the original idea and recognizing it as a fantasy along with the overall value of speculation and nothing more.
Reading more into posts than what is actually there has caused ruffled feathers on many occasions where no conflict was intended. Sure, sometimes a snarky voice appears but they are generally ignored and soon fade away. Body language and inflection are lost on the screen so trying to read those things into a string of letters becomes futile and for some, frustrating.
We spent 6 weeks in NZ and driving there was a cinch after a quick check ride around the block but driving one of those over here would be a whole different can of worms. Riding lookout for a fellow practicing instrument approaches under the hood, he handed me the controls on the down wind leg for the final landing. Sitting on the right hand seat, perspective is completely different. I turned base and was ready to turn final and things just didn't look right so I gave the yoke back to the pilot and never tried that again.