Hi all.

I've decided that my next vehicle is to be a 560 SEL.

I'm going to look at one this week, a 1989 model. The owner told me that he brought it with him when he moved to Australia from Hong Kong. The odometer reading is a very low 70,000 km.

Is there any reason why an imported vehicle is a less desirable choice than a locally delivered one?

I have read plenty on the net about this model, but this is the first one I am going to inspect.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

I don't think it is less desirable, and I assume you live in Austrilia. If you are in the USA you would have to have it federalized.

 

maybe because of the hassles on paperworks?

 

Any importation issues should have been shouldered and addressed by the previous owner who imported it. I'd say enjoy the car.

 

It is the Federelization business, besides the paperwork, the car has to be brought up to the DOT standards of the year manufactuered. I knew a guy who brought in first generation 6 series BMW and after all was said and done it cost him around $10K to federalize the car. There are exemption, for show cars, things like that, and cars made before 1980 I believe can be brought in with mim federalization. The guy I mentioned above, couldn't get his hands on the car until it went thru the whole process and were certified. I understand they relaxed the rules a bit and you can do it in stages now, as long as it is done with 12 months of entry.

PS: The guy with the BMW told me he would never go thru the hassle again.

 

It was imported by the previous owner. Each subsequent owner doesn't have to "federalize" the car again. It's done when it's done, the first time.

 

Well, I had a look and decided it's not the one.

It looked like it was owned by someone who did not treat it with the respect it deserved.

There were many, many minor paint blemishes and a couple of big ones.

Plus, no service record.

 

Was it federalized the first time around? also, I agree with Shunt, this car was not taken care of it would seem? Le the b\uyer beware, as it is said, My son and I went thru the 450 SLC and still have some minor to semi mahor problems with the car, mostile the ACC system and perhas the front suspensio, But the car is original except the right fron fender, which is a MB part.

I have known people who have bought these gray market cars, and were the third or more buyer, some of them were not federalized and the orignial pruchaser got away bringing it in on the assumption to the Feds it was for racing or show, and some of them got burnt\, that's all I have to say.

the 450SLC didn't have a title, and at first my insurance company didn't want to register it. My son told them to call the RMV and they told the insurance company any car built before 1985 did not have to have a title as long as there was a proof of ownership, plus the previous owner had it registered and inspected every year he owned it. Now my son is getting a title on the car. Insurance company clerks are no too smart I found out. However this year, the insurance company told us this law was taken off the books of the RMV but any car that came under the law previously is grandfather'd

 

Well, I suppose it could have been smuggled in or illegally claimed as a racer or show car or something. Why assume that, though? I think non-federalized cars can only be imported by licensed importers. So, to get a racer or show car exemption, the whole thing would be scrutinized against a licensed importer and would most likely be legal unless a smuggling ring sneaked it in. I think you're going a little too James Bond on us here.

In Georgia, older cars don't need a title. I don't have one for my Chevelle, BelAir, or Jeep. All I have are hand-scribbled Bills-of-Sale.

 

Your correct, about importing cars, you need to be somebody that has a good reason, but these gray market cars I see in magazines now and then, and quite a few on Ebay. They got them into the country. Go take a SCCA driving course and get a license and your a race car driver and then can you import a non federalized car? There are also licensed dealers I am told who can import these cars, how that works is a mystery to me.

Yea, Mass had the no title law until this year, now everything back to 1950 has to have a title of some sort. I am not entirely sure how a title would be obtained for a 50 year old car, but one of these days I will sit down and read the "new law:.