US Government Loosens Gray Market Importation Laws

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) amended their rules on August 13, 1999, to allow non-complying cars of special interest to be imported into the US - and here's the important part - without having to meet the crash test provision.

This new ruling applies to individuals only and not to dealers or manufacturers. Prior to this ruling, you were able to import a car only if it was a race car and never be driven on the streets. Now you can import your special-interest classic or high-performance exotic car (as determined by NHTSA ) with a provision that will allow you to drive it up to 2,500 miles a year on the highways.

This is an incredible breakthrough and a milestone for Maserati enthusiasts who would like to import a Shamal, Ghibli 2, Ghibli Cup, or even a Quattroporte 4. The rules remain relatively unchanged on the emissions side for the EPA requirement. However, "emissions" was not the problem with importing these cars in the first place, as most of them already met emission standards for countries that are more stringent than the US - for example, Switzerland and Sweden.

By dropping the crash test requirement our government has, for us enthusiasts, done the right thing. Following is the complete text of the Code of Federal Regulations 49, Part 591. Have a good read, and let us know what you think. Importation of Vehicles.