What neat car did you see today?

[Kaido]

I saw a Lucid Air the other day. Two notes:

1. A lot better-looking in person than in photos

2. It's HUGE! Nearly as big as a Model S, but it looks bigger than the S does lol

 

[AdamK47]

Drove my R8 today. Came across another R8. First gen V8. Rode side by side for a couple of miles. First time that's happened since getting mine a year ago.

 

[sdifox]

Volvo XC40 Recharge.

 

[sdifox]

Toyota Hiace right hand drive. I don't understand the thinking behind importing these things.

 

[sdifox]

BMW iX
And a bizarre Bentley SUV. Like why?

 

[sdifox]

Brabus E V12 800

 

[Muadib]

I saw the Ford F-150 Lightning finally. If it wasn't for the nose, I wouldn't have noticed it.

 

[bbhaag]

Spotted this neat little AMC Spirit today while walking into Menards. It was in really great shape considering the age. Didn't get a chance to talk to the owner but snapped a pic.

It was a really cool old school two door hatch back.

 

[NutBucket]

Toyota Hiace right hand drive. I don't understand the thinking behind importing these things.

Funny, you reminded me I saw one yesterday. The most surprising part is how it had CA plates. I don't think they were dealer plates either but I could be mistaken.

 

[Perknose]

My grandma kept her model T up until she passed a few years ago. Absolutely amazing to see the craftsmanship that went into a 100-year old car that literally changed the economy of America!

My Dad had a friend, maybe related, who in the mid '50s drove his tiller steered (I want to say Reo, but probably not) from Bryn Mawr to our house in Ridley Park, Pa. on a Sunday. You really couldn't do that today. Far less traffic and a slower pace.

 

[sdifox]

Funny, you reminded me I saw one yesterday. The most surprising part is how it had CA plates. I don't think they were dealer plates either but I could be mistaken.

oh it had Ontario plates, so it is road legal, it's just such a stupid thing to drive here. It's tall and has skinny tires, totally the wrong setup for NA.

 

[NutBucket]

I meant CA as in California. JDM vehicles are illegal to register...unless some law has changed recently which I doubt. But I've seen more than one so who knows what loophole someone found.

 

[Jon-T]

Drove by a small used car dealer (low budget, very low) and they had a Triumph TR7 sitting out front. Haven't seen one of those in well over a decade.

 

[Kaido]

My Dad had a friend, maybe related, who in the mid '50s drove his tiller steered (I want to say Reo, but probably not) from Bryn Mawr to our house in Ridley Park, Pa. on a Sunday. You really couldn't do that today. Far less traffic and a slower pace.

I remember learning about tillers & being shocked that we didn't just "always" have steering wheels. What a genius invention for the human interface!

 

[sdifox]

I meant CA as in California. JDM vehicles are illegal to register...unless some law has changed recently which I doubt. But I've seen more than one so who knows what loophole someone found.

I got the Cali part, didn't know JDM was not allowed there.

 

[Perknose]

I meant CA as in California. JDM vehicles are illegal to register...unless some law has changed recently which I doubt. But I've seen more than one so who knows what loophole someone found.

Plenty of JDM vehicles in CA and elsewhere. You have to wait 25 years to bring them in, is all.

 

[WelshBloke]

Does this count? (very much not mine though)

 

[Kaido]

Does this count? (very much not mine though)

View attachment 81008

A long time ago in a galaxy far away, I had a weekly service project requirement, which I fulfilled by volunteering at the local car museum. I was assigned to detail one of these bad boys every week. It was really fun lol. Such a great design!

 

[WelshBloke]

A long time ago in a galaxy far away, I had a weekly service project requirement, which I fulfilled by volunteering at the local car museum. I was assigned to detail one of these bad boys every week. It was really fun lol. Such a great design!

I did concider "borrowing" it for a bit!

 

[NutBucket]

Plenty of JDM vehicles in CA and elsewhere. You have to wait 25 years to bring them in, is all.

How do you register a car that requires an emissions test if said car was never sold in CA? Per state laws you cannot.

 

[Perknose]

How do you register a car that requires an emissions test if said car was never sold in CA? Per state laws you cannot.

Don't know, but maybe > 25 years = exempt?

But you definitely can.

All our cars comply with the 25 year rule for the import of foreign vehicles. Once a car reaches that age, it becomes exempt from specific regulations from the NHTSA, EPA, FHTSA and DOT. Federal law prohibits the import or sale of cars less than 25 years old to the United States, so we endeavor to find the finest examples of classic Japanese domestic market autos from 1994 and earlier.

 

[Perknose]

A long time ago in a galaxy far away, I had a weekly service project requirement, which I fulfilled by volunteering at the local car museum. I was assigned to detail one of these bad boys every week. It was really fun lol. Such a great design!

As a kid I favored the seemingly more famous 55-57 T-birds. But I've come to love the early, 53-62 Vettes, and it seems other folks have as well.

 

[NutBucket]

Only vehicles 1975 and older are emissions exempt here. Anyway, not curious enough to figure out how some of these cars are plated....life goes on

 

[Perknose]

Only vehicles 1975 and older are emissions exempt here. Anyway, not curious enough to figure out how some of these cars are plated....life goes on

What state do you live in? Because, afaik, any number of states are like CA, wherein you CAN safely import a JDM (or other country's car) if it's more than 25 years old, because it is then exempt from emissions.

The law you state is for domestic vehicles. I remember, because I lived in CA circa 1975.

 

[NutBucket]

CA emissions laws don't care about anything other that 1975 or older for gas powered vehicles, period. Even hybrids get emissions checks now. However, driving into work it occurred to me that diesels 1997 and older are exempt. So that would cover the HiAce and an 80 series Land Cruiser I saw a few months ago...I think. There's no caveat for imported vehicles, etc. The rules are the rules.

Trust me, I'd know since I've had a number of cars in the past couple decades that didn't exactly satisfy the rules.

Decades ago the intent was cars 25 years and older would be emissions exempt. Obviously they changed their minds around Y2k.