Bond loses to Red Tape

[ozsamurai]

I just have to tell you all about the run of bad luck I have just had. As you know I just bought a Beat to take home to Oz, knowing that I could import it without restriction as it is 15yrs old now. Well, the Australian government in their infinite beurocratic wisdom have changed the rules! I now have no legal way to get my car home, I will be Beatless again, until I can find one already in Australia, anywhere near the mint condition this one is...its a very sad day.......

:(

Looks like I'll have to sell this one only 2 weeks after buying it, 2G of modifications etc..... make you wanna cry!!

Oz

[Midship]

Your kidding.... there must be some loop hole. Have you tried posting on any of the Australian jap car forums?

[ozsamurai]

There was 3 possible ways I could get the car in.

1) A letter from Honda stating that the car conforms to the Australian Design Standards of 1991, I pulled all the strings I had right to the top of Honda, they can't issue this letter, as simply it doesn't conform.

2) Personal Import, I have to have owned/ and used the car for 12months, I haven't and there is no way to forge the central registry documents here in Japan, trust me I have checked. If I stay here another year, then I have another shot, but if I leave then I cease continuous use and become ineligle.

3) RAW scheme, allows a certified garage in Australia to import and compliance certain vehicles, up until Dec last year there were places that did have a license to do the Beat, but with the NEW rules, they had to re-apply for licenses, due to low volume I expect, no one now does the Beat, in fact any honda cars at all, thanks to the high license fees most concentrate on the money cars Nissan ZX etc....

One guy suggested I cut the car in half then I could import it, I asked then if I could put it back together and he said no, so I really can't see any point in that!!

At the moment I am one pissed Beat owner I can tell you!! Its rare you get one in the condition this is in 44000 on the clock, and now I have to give it over, as travel plans are underway, and it comes down to a time factor...


Oz

[adrianp]

Dam that's unlucky Oz... :(

Like Midship said, it might pay to post on as many Oz forums as you can just incase there is someone who knows someone who knows someone if you know what I mean...

I was about to apologise to you about not being able to post off the chips to you last weekend due to having our kitchen ripped out and wasn't able to get to the post office...

If you do still want them just let me know and I'll pop them into the post straight away.

Ady.

[john s]

Bad Luck, Oz. So sorry to hear your news. I wanted to import my (ex) UK registered Beat back to Queensland but finally gave up because of prohibitive cost, paper mountain and rapidly approaching departure date. Shame. We could use a few more good examples back home.

[ozsamurai]

Dear Mark,

There isn't a Registered Automotive Workshop that can do the compliancing of a Honda Beat. The SEVS list shows that a workshop could become the compliancer of the vehicle provided they go through the appropriate testing procedures for becoming the compliance plate approval holder for that Model of vehicle.

Regards,

The government

[adrianp]

Just a long shot here Oz,

Do you have to still be in Japan to sell the car or is there someone who could look after it for you for a while???

I was just thinking that if you could keep hold of it untill you get there, you might be able to have a word with a couple of the testing places just in case they might be interested in becoming compliance tested.

You might want to offer to cover part of the costs (obviously depending on how expensive it actually costs), Maybe they would then compliance test yours for free... Might be more expensive than normal compliancing but might mean you (and a few others) could get one into the country if needed.

Like I said above, if you still want the ECU chips just let me know, all here waiting to post. (note to self, need to get some more components...lol)

Talk later

Ady.

[ozsamurai]

Adrian,


Thanks for the suggestions, believe me they have all been examined. I have a buddy who will come home in Dec next year, so could sell the car to him, get him to register it etc. then bring it in for me as a personal import, however, he can't sell it to me for 2 years, so nearly 2 yrs wait for it to arrive then, 2 yrs till I can drive it (registration, insurance etc.), even Lambo's can be ordered faster than that!! Plus having to put him through all the paperwork and tax issues is a big ask.

I have also been on the blower to some of the garages that do this kind of work in Oz, they told me straight that the application process takes A) one car they need to wreck to sacrifice to the compliance board as an example of their standard of work, and then B) pay the $20,000 application fee, of course for one car, they can hardly see the benefit. Then of course they would charge me the fee to actually do it, how do you say the worlds first million dollar Beat!!

The chip, I would really still like it if possible, the ECU at least is not leaving my hot little hands, as I have a lead on a Beat in Qld, that may shape up, although its red! (no offense to Red Beat owners) So I am getting as much info as possible, and potentially strip out all the parts from this yellow, sell it standard and ship my goodies over, the ECU of course will be the first thing packed in the suitcase. And I'll shoulder the Bumper on QANTAS if I have to, I WILL find a Beat, its is my new mission.


Thanks for all the suggestions, if anyone else has any keep firing away, I may not have thought of everything yet. Although its been all I've been doing of late...

Cheers

Oz

[adrianp]

Ouch... That works out to about £9000 just for them to get the licence without paying for the beat they will wreck doing it...

AND, if it's the same there as it is here (for newer imports), the car has to be put back to standard factory spec before it is tested also...

Hopefully the red one will be a good one and you can start rebuilding again soon.

Chips will be on their way to you either Fri PM or Sat AM I've put a set of capacitors in the box also for you whilst I was at it.

Ady.

[porweasley]

erm, i watch but hardly get involved.......
(just an old voyeur at heart)

is there any law on kit cars in OZ ?

maybe, (just maybe) you could dismantle and import as spare parts, then, using a similar sized vehicle, (fiat 500) re-register as a vehicle built of spare parts, much like a kit-car. you'd possibly have to go through some form of sva compliance and register it as something other than a beat, but, you'd still have your baby.

or


find a damaged, un-economical repair and simply "use" the spare parts, completely, to officially rebuild your love.

just a thought.......


cheers for the best beat site (that i can read) in the world.

p.

[MajorTom]

Yeah that's how they do it in many countries.

Buy a wreck (registered Beat in OZ) and just use the subframe and license plate.

Can you import the Beat as is (assembled) just for parts? As in most countries you can import a fully functional car as parts you just can't register it.

Tom

[ozsamurai]

Good suggestions both of them, unfortuanltely they didn't pan out, kit car manufacturers in Oz still have to comply with ADR (Australian Design Regulations) unless you don't actually want to drive the car. and as for parts

Vehicles for Dismantling

The importation of complete vehicles for dismantling purposes is not permitted.


So there you go, like the guy said I can cut it in half possibly and get it through, I think I will end up selling it to my mate, I don't care how damn long it takes, I'll wait for it 2-3 years, I do not want to lose it.

Its all been a PITA, but I have resided myself to the fact that I will not be able to take my Beat for now, but it will come over eventually, till then I will have the guys at work turn her over frequently and burn a years worth of registration, this seems to be the best way/only way.

But I do thank you for your suggestions

Cheers

Oz

[ozsamurai]

The seller with the Red Beat in Qld want about 4500 Pounds for his Beat, ECU is NG, soft top NG, 20W Skysound, no options at all with 76,441 km on it, seats worn through. A little more than I would pay for something in this condition, or have I just been spoiled over here?

Oz

[Midship]

To me 4500 seems quite steep. The car would be worth less than half that in another country.

I definitely think waiting for your own to be sent over is the way to go... its an absolutely spotless example!

It could be a bit of a risk mind you, by the sounds of things the OZ govt like changing their rules. If they were to change in the meantime they might not let it in at all.... :eek:

[porweasley]

ok...........

i have (had) a friend (just the one mind, didn't want to appear greedy) who.........................
chopped the top off of his austin / bertish leyland mini, he then set about reducing it's length, by cutting out the bit between the b pillar and the c pillar, as a result, the mini still existed in essence, but had been modified. this meant, for all intents and purposes, the vehicle was "not import, not kit, simply modified" just like an adapted vehicle for paraplegic's

would you be able to get away with "that sort of mod" in your hinterland mein heir?


can you see where i'm going with this?????

if you were to reduce the length and width of the HUGE mgf, you're nearly there..... (same design team etc)

and, maybe, if you took baby on a visa / passport holiday, fully insured for 90 days (we call it a green card) to OZ, and she got pinched..................

mist's clearing ?


only drawbacks would be having to claim insurance and the insult of insuring a re-built mgf ! i'm sure that's liveable


my words are simply a suggestion, in the hope that one who has been everso assistive to so many, can retain his joy in his passion. will keep on thinking................................
p.

[jcs]

Oz - could you sell to your friend in Japan (nominal amount), then, in a year's time when he comes back to Oz with his "personal import", you "rent" it from him at a nominal rate, just to keep the books straight. At the end of two years, you pay it off for a dollar?

John

[porweasley]

any idea what constitutes a complete car?

does it have to work, at all, as per the original design brief.
and, who's gonna be there, at the docks, checking just how complete it is.

we used to be able to import yank tanks into the uk, and not pay motor vehicle import duty, if the car was immobile (no carb)

i understand the little hitler approach of your government, but, they are so short sighted. upset people means replacement hitlers !

i still think you should get her on a cruise ship, drive her off the other end and hide her until your government burns out!

wasn't there some strange law in oz, that, if you entered, stayed for 5 years without being caught, you could be naturalized? maybe that could apply to cars ! or, maybe, you could marry her ! (stranger things have happened)


sorry, hard day at the dealership. must be going bonkers.
i'll sit quietly, in the corner, and only speak when prodded.

best of luck.

p.

[adrianp]

Originally posted by porweasley
who's gonna be there, at the docks, checking just how complete it is.

Actually, thay do check stuff as they come in...

Guy I work with has family over there and said that whilst they were over their visiting, a car dealer had 2 newish landrovers cut in half for scrap because the paperwork was a total mess :eek:

Although his uncle did manage to 'aquire' one of the engines to put in his old lightweight landrover he owns over there... ;)

Aparently the chassis ended up in about 6 pieces just to make it virtually impossible to be rebuilt so unless Oz decided to sneak it in via a landing craft on a beach in the middle of nowhere at night, I doubt he will be able to get it in early.

Ady.