Should I bring it?(importing a bike)

Hello All,

I will be moving to Mildenhall in August or thereabouts. I'm coming in from California. I have a 2005 SV650 I'd like to bring with me. I put a lot of time and money into this thing and don't want to sell it just yet. Is there anything major I'll need to do to get it street legal? Lights, exhaust, etc. Thanks in advance for your help. Here's a couple of pics:






Regards,
Rob

Nice bike , am getting a red one and would like to do it in similar way, questions later .

about your move, it's normally the other way .

you will find ALL the info here: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Advanced...ing+motorbikes

re your bike, what exhaust is that, can you fit the back pegs? what headlights are those?

i hope someone on here will advise you on the size of numberplate and the legalities of your exhaust. your bike is new so no need for MOT check till it's 3 years old.

A fine looking bike.

Looks pretty close to what you need to import it, I should think you need some mirrors, a rear reflector and a stamp on the exhaust saying it is for road use.
As it is a black frame pointy (BFP i guess) it will not need an MOT for atleast a year so maybe it is easier.

AFAIK - you'll need an exhaust that isn't marked 'off road use only' and isn't 'excessively loud' - which is a bit subjective. You may need to change your headlight if it dips to the right - if it dips straight ahead it should be OK. And (someone back me up here!) if you don't have a pillion seat, you don't need pillion footpegs - so keep the seat cowl on. Assume you have a MPH speedo anyway? You'l need a red reflector at the back somewhere. So not much cost involved =-and you could probably borrow a legal exhaust if you need one. Your bike looks way too good to leave behind!

This might help you decide..

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring...le/DG_10014623

and
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring...cle/DG_4022105

Some police forces get the hump about exhausts that aren't 'e' marked which yours won't be as it is all federal spec. It might be an idea to make sure that the headlights are dipped to the left so you don't blind oncoming drivers but as there are so many US spec cars and bikes running around in that part of the country I don't think you'll have too many problems - my aunt drove round in a completely unmodified federal spec 3-Series without issue before shipping out to Texas.
I'm guessing you'll be based at Mildenhall? I can assure you you'll feel at home there, it's like a small American city with an airfield conveniently attached.

Nice bike... What make is that exhaust?

It might be cheaper to sell your bike in the states, as standard.

Ship all your mods across to the UK and buy another SV, and put them back on.

Yes, bikes are more expensive over here, but im guessing the difference will be less than the cost of shipping a bike, paying import duty/tax of some sort and getting it registered and UK legal.

Once you have one, stick all your bits on over here and you have a very similar bike (cosmetically the same), for less.

That is however, just a guess.

Dan

[SoulKiss]

Nice bike

How about puting it in storage/leaving it with a relative.

That way you have it when you go back to visit or if you move back

David

[Duke]

Rob,

I imported a Ducati 750 F1 form California to England when i moved back to the UK in 1993. If you are moving your home and have had the vehicle on the road in CA for 6 months or more then it is very beneficial to bring the bike in. You will not have to pay for all Duty that would normally be payed for on a new vehicle.

As for making it road legal, you should have no problems. If under 3 years old you will not need an MOT, but I found no problems in pasing and MOT on the Ducati. The F1 at the time could not be sold new into CA due to the emissions laws, so it was first sold with 2 miles on the clock "second hand". it also had a race can on it and made quite a racket.


I have found that at non UK number plate can give benefits when coming in contact with the police. It is usually seen as too complicated. I was going some up the M1 motorway with the CA plates on the back and was shown a 70mph sign by a copper in a squad car, I just node and slowed down a bit, the car did not stop. Just my lucky day I guess.

Oh by the way it is colder in the UK as in CA!

Duke