Hello all! New to the board and already need big help!
Have been a long time fan of the Mini (although not very knowledgable) and it looks like I may have an opportunity to buy one in England.
Has anyone ever personally imported a Mini? What is involved with getting a right hand drive older Mini registered in the States?
We are scheduled to take a vacation to England soon and thought while we are there and if we found one, what the heck, might as well buy it and send it home.
Is there a model & year more desireable than others? If we have a choice, I want to choose the "right" one.
Thanks!
-steve

 

Steve,

Are you wanting to import an original MINI from the UK? Here is a link to MOTR. It is the MINI Owners Club of the Rocky Mountains link page. The page is useful an I am sure there are many who could probally answer your question. If you go the newsletter page they also list MINI's that are for sell on the last page of the newsletter. Could save you the hassel of importing yourself and trying to figure out registration since someone else has already done it for you.

E-mail the various clubs on the links page, I'm sure someone has one it and can help you out.

Good luck and let us know what it looks like once you get it!

 

Thanks for the advice. Will head over to the link you provided tonight. Yes, an older Mini is what we have our sights on. It's my understanding there is less hassle if it's 25 years old, but looking for some verification of that figure.

-steve

 

You can always check with Bank Garage in the UK. They sent over a classic Mini for a raffle in the 2000 Mini Meet West. http://www.racecar.co.uk/bankgarage/ They tend to be abit on the expensive side, but truely offer no hassle shipping.
I've seen more and more people here stateside in the business of shipping and selling Minis. Probably more classic Minis have been shipped to the USA in the 90's than were sold in the 60's. And there all not over 25 yrs old. Be careful, be sure to check out all the laws.

 

Here are some regs. Good luck.

 

I read a few weeks ago (Don't exactly remember where) that someone managed to import into the US a "Classic" 1998 Rover MINI without any problems. It appears to be that the car was imported as a 1968 model and since the 1959-2000 Rover MINIs look esentially the same, US Customs allowed the car to entered and totally missed the fact that this "1968" MINI had a driver's side airbag installed from factory.

 

When looking into importing a 'classic Mini' do look for the words 'reshelled' and 'rebodied'. This seems to be what gets the late model Minis into the states.
Sometime back I remember this guy on E-Bay selling a 2000 year, one of the last 500 Mini Coopers. He said he had no problem with getting it reg. and plates. When asked what year was on the title, the posts stopped.
Documentation and titles for older Minis are readily available. Switching them to newer classic Minis is easy. This is something alot of people on the internet do not want you to know! Be smart.

 

Thanks guys! Ya'll are great.
"Reshelled" & "rebodied"? Now some things are making sense .... sorta.
I've been seeing LOTS of Minis advertised with leather, fuel injection, power sun roofs etc on early 70s models when those options obviously weren't available.
Now I'm going to really show my ignorance ....... why would someone take a later model and "rebody" it as an older car just to get it into the US? Looks like this is kinda backwards - taking a NEWER car, that should be worth more and making it into an older model. Why would these "Mini dealers" do that?

 

Okay, here's why. In the UK it is necessary to have your car (Mini) inspected (MOT). That is it must pass inspection to be able to drive it. In some cases the bodies on Minis don't pass the test, too much rust, etc. So it is quite common to have body panels replaced, and in some cases the entire shell of the Mini is replaced. Since there is not that much "visible" difference between the shell of a 60's Mini and let's say a 2000 Mini the uneducated eye would never notice the difference.
So, you get a late model Mini, how bout a 98' Sportspack, you want to get it into the USA. Find a wrecking yard in the UK, buy a 'older' vin plate and reg. from a Mini that has been dismantled, put in on your 98' Sportspack, run it down to the docks, put it on a boat, and your all ready. I've made it sound easy, there is actually more to it, but you get the idea. The customs people here are not really up on the differences in Minis so if all the paperwork is in order, chances are you won't have any problems.

 

well, I went and looked at a "1971" model yesterday advertised for $10K. This car looked almost new! Disc brakes, leather, fuel injection, left hand drive, wood dash with full instrumentation - all things I didn't expect to see on an 1971! But it's been "upgraded" sez the saleman. uhhhh, OK.
The thing that really caught my eye was how slick the paint looked all the way up to the the "hood latch tray" where the two number plates were pop riveted. This one strip of metal (the hood latch tray) really looked 31 years old. It appeared to have been tack welded in on each end. The paint was even flaking off the weld.
If this '71 is really an '80 or even a '90-something model, I really struggle to understand how they can be making a profit. Would they have taken a wreck, done a cheap repair and sent that over to the US???
Thanks again for all the replies - I'm truly getting an education!

-steve

 

Don't get me wrong, there are many Minis in the UK that have legally been through all the reshelling and what not to make the Mini MOT legal. There are some very skilled body men over there. The best thing is that almost anyone who does body and paint work does know something about Minis. Pick up a Mini World or Mini magazine and look at all the adds for used Minis. Most have put a bundle of bucks or should I say pounds in their Minis and are now selling for alot less. The bottom line is that they are all Minis no matter what year. When buying used its always helpfull to be knowledgeable about what you are buying. I like my Classic Mini and my New MINI is 'great', check out the pics in 'Southwest Regional'.