Okay we are going to try this again kids and I hope it doesn’t jump OT and have to ask the Mods to shut it down. Has anyone here had experience with buying a project car from Canada and brought it back to the USA. I have found one I am really interested in and need to know what I have to do to get it home to Tennessee. This will have to be on a trailer and hopefully the truck I have will hold all the extras that come with it. I like driving like the next fat kid but Canada is a good haul for me and I don’t want to make 3 trips LOL. So if you can sling some HBO this way (help the brother out) I would appreciate it Billy
Some basics for crossing the border: Make sure you have a valid p***port, make sure you have no weapons or drugs with you and if you are bringing cash to buy make sure you declare it. You're stay will be very brief if you violate any of these.
If you get hung up at the Detroit border and need a place to stash it until you get clear I can help on the Canadian side. I have brought a few the other way and followed the info I found on the web. It was pretty accurate.
I’m not sure where I might cross but if I come that way I’ll be sure to stop and say hey. Hopefully I can tote it across with no problems but if I need to I really appreciate the offer!!
We brought one up from Mexico years ago and all they wanted to see was the paperwork (bill of sale and ***le) and we were off. But I know every country has different rules for exporting so I’m wondering if I have to leave it and come back after customs or can I just drive across the border and come home. Oh and am I going to have to pay some fees for said rusty vehicle?
This is really an American issue, Canadian Border Services do not stop you on the way back into the US, your first contact will be American agents and those are the folks you should talk to about bringing the car/parts into the country. A little knowledge and advice should make this an easy trip. Good Luck!
It's all online what is needed and there is a number you can call for importing a car to the US. There is paperwork involved beyond a bill of sale and ***le.
A simple google search brought up the government page and lots of suggestions from respected sources like hemmings.
Are we talking a running and driving registered car or is this a project shell? I believe you need to show that the vehicle was last registered legally in Canada. If it has been off the road for years, the system is probably different. Best to discuss with a vehicle broker who imports into the USA from Canada as well as US Customs.
If the car was built in the United States you really don't have a problem other than filling out the 3 forms at the US border. Any border crossing can do the paperwork but if there's a few crossing points within an hr from each other sometimes they will try and steer you towards a certain crossing that may be more familiar with filling out the forms. It's best to contact customs at the border point you intend to cross at, they will tell you what all is needed on your end as far as bill of sale, ***le etc. If the car was built in Canada I believe you may have to pay duty, my car was built in the US so I didn't have to. Make sure and ask about the parts, maybe stick as much as you can inside the car and say it's all the pieces to the vehicle. They will x-ray your tow vehicle and trailer but may not know if the part actually goes to the car or not, they're mostly looking for drugs, guns, human trafficking.
My buddy and I grabbed a '58 Mercury (Ford) M100 Panel Truck out of Winnipeg a few years ago and brought it back to Minnesota. He called ahead to the border crossing we were going to use (I-29, Pembina, ND) and they walked him through the process. Like was said above, it was just a few simple forms. He had them filled out in advance. We ran up there, loaded the truck into my enclosed trailer, and came back across. At the US Port of Entry, we walked in and they stamped the forms and sent us on our way with out ever even looking into the trailer or at the panel truck. We could of had a metric ton of Grade A, Number 1 pure Bolivian marching powder in the trailer and no one would have ever been the wiser.
Another thing is depending on where the car has been stored make sure there is not a bunch of dirt, gr*** etc on the bottom of it. Depending on the border personal they can deny you for bringing organic material into the country.
I think this is my best option and I will be making the call and see if I can get my ducks in a row and go get the rascal. My luck I’ll be bringing in some kinda evasive moss or something, two years from now we won’t be able to see my house LOL
As frozenmerc stated call the border crossing that you'll be using and they will give you the info you need. I'm picking up a couple of T bodies in Alberta and that's what I did and the guy was very helpful.
At work we ship a lot of equipment ( fork lifts and construction equipment)from the states into Canada and use a broker. fairly easy . We fill out paper work on our end , broker collets some paper work from the seller and gets it all tidy and organized for the boarder customs guys. All paper work , make , model , serial number etc has to be 100% spot on accurate and at customs 24 hours before the car crosses . we have had stuff turned around at the boarder a few times because a 0 is an o or a 2 is a 7 or something seemingly “ minor” does not add up . FWIW either call customs on both sides of the boarder and figure out what all you need to drive the car over . Or if you’re getting it shipped , pay a broker , most companies that do cross boarder stuff will have brokers in hand and it’s not a huge cost for what they do . And if the paper work is not “clean” the broker is on the hook for additional freight and bull **** to get the car across.
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