Registering a Caterham in USA
Discussion
Is the car fully built and registered and under 25 years old? If so then forget it - US importation rules make it a nightmare. The USCIS will want you to upgrade the car to meet all current DOT and EPA requirements. This includes airbags, crash testing evidence, environmental controls, etc. And all of this has to be done using one of their nominated providers. Lets face it a Caterham will not be able to comply.
Over 25 years old and road registered make the US importation process easier. Then you have to face Illinois State registration process - must be fairly straightforward - quite a few seveners there. There is no one federal registration process - each state is different and unique in their requirements.
If a kit still in its original box without engine then you will be importing parts just as Caterham USA do for all new Sevens.
Post a question on USA7s and you will get one of the Illinois guys to chime in on what needs to be done in that state.
LostCroc nailed it. The only thing to add, or rather emphasize further, is that there are two distinct processes in play: First is importing to the U.S., which has to do with the U.S. federal government only. The second is registration, which has to do with local government(s) at the state level and on down. One example is that in California, which county/city/town you reside in may impact what emissions control devices are required on the car. Still, registration is handled at the state level, and U.S. federal gov't is not involved.
Gassing Station | Caterham | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff