US Department of Justice Demands Export/Surrender of Kaizo Skyline GT-R

Mazx6 · 08-18-2009, 02:31 AM

http://www.2009gtr.com/2009/08/us-de...r-60-days.html

I've been hearing about this stuff lately and its starting to look like... well.. it got real. And thats coming from a LEO point of view.

sxShep · 08-18-2009, 02:45 AM

so whats the difference between this GTR and a kit car, or a custom fabricated car made from scrap?

it sounds like a fake letter to me, but who knows...

PiranhaMatt · 08-18-2009, 08:56 AM

It reads exactly like a fake letter, or one written by a crappy official. The wording is not official AT ALL, ie "very truly yours, Thomas P. O'Brien." Who the fuck signs an official letter that way?

Edit: I googled him and he is a real person, I'm thinking it is either a fake, or a letter sent on his behalf by a subordinate. Either way, how embarrassing to have your name attached to such a horribly written letter.

oneslowgtp · 08-18-2009, 09:03 AM

Its a Stegea (Sp?) with a GTR body kit... they have different models one has the Rb26dett, other has a RB25DET AWD, Rb25det or a Rb25de... There are a few here but there more common in AUS...

They are illegal in the states which is why its a big deal..

PiranhaMatt · 08-18-2009, 09:07 AM

The Kaizo cars are just skylines that were imported in pieces or at least without motors installed, reassembled in the states. Then sold as kit cars, which they are not. They are not all Stegeas, if they were, this would be an issue because those are very ugly, and few people would bother with them.

99slobra · 08-18-2009, 09:53 AM

hmm. Contact number is real. Thomas O'Brien is real but is stepping down.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/ar...stepping_down/

Brrcats · 08-18-2009, 10:19 AM

lol at Ivy Wang.

but yeah, is that for the new GTR? I would have thought that nissan would have been smart enough to have thier cars meet the regulations

oh I guess its for the older ones

Mazx6 · 08-18-2009, 12:50 PM

quoted from Sean Morris from the former "Motorex" on supraforms.com

Quote:

Originally Posted by tyndago

The letter is real, and I put that on my reputation. You can look me up, you can ask people. Have you heard of Kaizo ? Did you hear that ICE seized 3 cars plus records from Kaizo.

http://vehicleimport.blogspot.com/20...ith-kaizo.html

http://vehicleimport.blogspot.com/20...gation-on.html

This is as real as a heart attack. The wording is very unclear, as Kaizo has not been charged with anything yet.

Letter from New Jersey requesting safety inspection . http://vehicleimport.blogspot.com/20...equesting.html

If anyone really doubts it, I suggest calling the DOJ and seeing what they say, but like most internet doubters, I don't think anyone here cares enough, or wants to waste the 5 minutes to find out its real. The DOJ is coming down on imported cars, and its not just a small or isolated thing from what I am seeing or hearing.

Forget the machine guns, drugs and terrorists, lets go after guys that have cars. Lets go after maybe 300-400 cars in the grand scheme of say 100 million cars sold over the last 10 years....

I personally cared a lot more about this stuff when I was at Motorex. After I left there in 2002, I started to care a lot less about people importing cars around the edges of the law. In 2009, I don't think they hurt anyone or anything, however seizing or exporting all these cars will effect many hard working citizens. There are many levels of involement, ignorance of the laws is not an excuse, but as I said above, we are talking about 60 Kaizo cars, and maybe a few hundred others. I know a lot of these people, and they are not bad people, but a lot of people are going to lose a lot of money. Just the perfect kind of economic stimulus this country needs.

ItalianDave · 08-18-2009, 01:04 PM

real or not it's a bunch of fucking bullshit.

you would think that the government has bigger fucking fish to fry than a couple hundred cars that aren't even causing any damage to anyone or anything. it's absolutely ridiculous that they're doing this bullshit. from what i know about Kaizo they're 100% legal and the fact that the government is doing this is bullshit. and if Kaizo isn't legal, then i kinda sorta understand. But i've also heard that the government is seizing 100% legal Skylines, like actually legal, just because they have the Skyline name. Like what kind of bullshit is that. You can't just fucking take a legal vehicle because you feel like it. thats horse shit. fuck this god damn country. its being run into the ground by ignorant fucks who only care about their own fucking agendas.

doesn't matter because as soon as they become historical they can't tell people no!

Scar Bro · 08-18-2009, 02:27 PM

Even the kaizo website is closed now kaizoindustries.com

bjonesy77 · 08-18-2009, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 99slobra

hmm. Contact number is real. Thomas O'Brien is real but is stepping down.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/ar...stepping_down/

Sounds like his last horrah before he leaves his position. This is legit, and there are multiple skyline owners who have received this letter. One guy in Texas bought an R32 GTR for $24k from a private seller. The day after he had the title changed, the DOJ was at his door and they wanted the car. Apparently, they aren't even allowing the cars to be unregistered and used as an offroad vehicle only, but they must be exported or will be seized by the government and crushed. They took his GTR and it is currently sitting in an impound lot waiting on a final decision.

Another guy had his R34 GTR seized and crushed earlier this year. They say the cars were illegally imported and cannot stay in the US. People are now trying to figure out how to "ship" their cars to japan, then re-import them legally.

noTe · 08-18-2009, 03:38 PM

It says right on the letter that it can't be drove on public streets or highways. Having it sit in your garage waiting to be trailer to a private track day should be completely legal.

That letter sounds like it is just trying to scare people.

turbo200 · 08-18-2009, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bjonesy77

Sounds like his last horrah before he leaves his position. This is legit, and there are multiple skyline owners who have received this letter. One guy in Texas bought an R32 GTR for $24k from a private seller. The day after he had the title changed, the DOJ was at his door and they wanted the car. Apparently, they aren't even allowing the cars to be unregistered and used as an offroad vehicle only, but they must be exported or will be seized by the government and crushed. They took his GTR and it is currently sitting in an impound lot waiting on a final decision.

Another guy had his R34 GTR seized and crushed earlier this year. They say the cars were illegally imported and cannot stay in the US. People are now trying to figure out how to "ship" their cars to japan, then re-import them legally.

I would go into that impound lot with a fucking shot gun and pop off a few heads.

Joey · 08-18-2009, 06:37 PM

I'm a member on a Skyline Owners site and several members have had this problem.

New Jersey has "lost" all the paperwork on short digit VIN numbers. ( HCR32-001144 is the car's serial number and thats what most people are registering there car as )

A member in San Diego has around 50 days to export the car, he received a similar letter.

They are trying to figure out the situation and get the stuff rolling before too long.

So far it only applies to Kaizo sourced vehicles. Apparently Motorex cars are "grandfathered" in.

When they seized the computer from Daryl at Kaizo they used the info on it to find owners of the cars. If you brought your Skyline in another way, then they havent gotten them yet.

It's just because Kaizo sold them as kit cars, with "new" VIN numbers. Supposedly the RB motor isn't a legal US motor.

I have nothing to worry about though, by the time I get back to the states my Skyline will be old enough to LEGALLY import.

25 years is the rule, no exhaust regulations, nothing. Falls under some bullshit "classic" car rules.

oneslowgtp · 08-19-2009, 04:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PiranhaMatt

The Kaizo cars are just skylines that were imported in pieces or at least without motors installed, reassembled in the states. Then sold as kit cars, which they are not. They are not all Stegeas, if they were, this would be an issue because those are very ugly, and few people would bother with them.

You can ship one over as "parts" as long as its in seperate pieces.. hell the military will pay for that.. you just cannot get em licensed... but soon 32s will be runnin all over the place...

Slow6.0 · 08-19-2009, 04:31 AM

I don't understand why people just don't do things the way they are supposed to. If you want a certain vehicle you have to go about getting it here in the correct ways, otherwise this can happen to you.

Cobra Insurance

Roca Fella Bryan · 08-19-2009, 07:46 AM

This is just retarded. You'd figure during times like these, the government would have something better to do aside from fuck around with some JDM cars. How come they aren't sending people with busted-ass shitbox cars letters saying that their POS will be taken and crushed in the safety interests of other drivers on the road.

I mean I saw some mid 90's Lincoln Continental speeding past me on Ronald Regan doing 80+ with two baby balloon spare tires, busted suspension so the car was riding lopsided to the passenger side, no working taillights, plastic for a rear window and only one working headlamp.

I think that's more of a problem than a clean and good working condition JDM Skyline.