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USAREUR NEWS RELEASE 980908-2
September 8, 1998
Shipping Scooters Stateside is Costly Luxury
By Robert Szostek, USEUCOM Customs PAO
Mannheim, Germany – Nifty motor scooters are very popular among style and energy-conscious Europeans. But Americans catching the scooter bug face a cold shower of federal pollution and safety laws when they try to ship one of these two-wheeled dream machines stateside. Converting foreign motor scooters to U.S. specifications is a tricky business as many cost more to convert than their value. A commercial importer approved by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation must do the expensive emission and safety conversions. The DOT will also demand a bond for one and a half times the vehicle's dutiable value."This office is receiving numerous inquiries, especially in reference to the importation of the Italian Vespa 49cc motor scooter," said William Greenwood, operations officer at the U.S. European Command’s customs executive agency. According to DOT officials, Vespa does not manufacture its motor scooters to U.S. safety or emission standards. The cost of bringing these vehicles into conformity exceeds the price of the scooter itself. No Vespa products are on the DOT eligibility list of vehicles that can be converted to U.S. specifications. A registered importer can still petition DOT to do the conversion but the process costs about $500 and takes four months. "Foreign motor scooters over 25 years old do not need DOT safety conversions done to them," Greenwood added. He explained that scooters made before Jan. 1, 1978, do not need EPA emission conversions but the shippers of veteran scooters must still sign a contract with a registered importer company to import their scooter.
Vehicle importation guidelines and a list of registered importers are available on the Internet at www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import.