F18drvr

I may have the opportunity to station in Cologne later this year. Has anyone ever shipped their car and converted it to German specs?

Investigating shipping companies and ports, and approximate cost to ship.

I have some good intel that the headlights, speedo and exhaust will need conversion. JW if anyone has done this before.

The real excitement is to be able to drive the car there!! Visit/drive the Ring, SPA, and a few others too!

Might be the right time to do a sunroof delete, among many other things. The thought of bringing the car back to its birthplace, driving it around a bit and then having some quality work done is kinda surreal.

Railmaster.

Or sell Your car and buy another i Germany! Easy to find one there without sunroof and with the sought after G5021 gearbox!

WI-Ing

I am planning to do the same thing with my '96 C2. Already have the lights, don't know about the speedo. I think the biggest thing is the rear fog light. FYI you can drive the car with valid US plates, insurance and registration for 6 months. As long as your insurance covers internationally. I will ship the car with US plates to Bremerhafen and drive it home.

The 993 values over there are quite higher, import duty is 0% as long as you import it under household goods!

Alfa40

Planning to do the same eventually. Didn't know that Speedo was required, ours show both mph and kmh anyway. Lights require headlights, rear fog light and conversion to orange indicators. Many of us have aftermarket exhausts, those likely have to come off, too, unless they are approved by the German TÜV. Further info is here, in case someone is inclined to translate these into English: RE: 993 USA Import: Was ist umzurüsten?

Would love for others to share experiences with specific shipping companies, cost shouldn't be too bad, actually.

Regarding higher values in Germany, these seemed to have levelled off a little in the recent past. If you factor in the conversion and shipping costs and the fact that US cars tend to yield a little less on the German market, a sell-and-buy approach is becoming more attractive by the day.

Railmaster.

Why / what do You have to change with the headlights?

Ah forgot about the ROW headlight leveling equipment!

VadGTI

If you're military, I don't think your car needs any components converted.

paulkromz

nothing like walking through a small town in Austria and seeing a heavily modified and lifted Ford F250 rolling coal with WA state plates.

blew my mind

That's what I would do

VadGTI

If he intends to bring it back before the car is 25 years old, he's out of luck.

If he intends to bring it back to California once the car is 25 years old, he's out of luck unless he's willing to shell out a good amount of money to have it be BAR referee approved. This label is what he'll be spending the money on:

WI-Ing

With a "I identify as a PRIUS" sticker?

F18drvr

Not planning on selling yet. Wouldn't mind finding the gearbox though...

F18drvr

Can you expand a bit on the lights?

F18drvr

[QUOTE=VadGTI;15599256]If he intends to bring it back before the car is 25 years old, he's out of luck.

If he intends to bring it back to California once the car is 25 years old, he's out of luck unless he's willing to shell out a good amount of money to have it be BAR referee approved. This label is what he'll be spending the money on: [/QUOT


I assume you mean if I purchased a different car while there, correct? Why would I have to pay a fee to have the car returned to the states? Having never done this before can you explain "BAR referee approved".

crb8783

So I've done this before, and it's very easy to do. I shipped my car to Bremerhaven and drove it home from there. There were zero duties due, as this was a vehicle I owned for over 6 months. Under 6 months, you'll get assessed VAT, which in Germany is 19% of the purchase price. With US plates, I was able to drive the car for 12 months. That may have changed, but you can definitely use your US plates for a while if you have international insurance. You then take your car to a shop that will prepare it for your TÜV inspection. The only modification I needed was the rear fog light. Not sure if you really need to change the headlights - but the shop will tell you. You don't need to change the speedo if it also shows kmh, which they all do. Reimportation into the US is not a problem as long as the car was originally manufactured for the US market. If you can show customs the sticker that states "this vehicle meets all the federal standards at time of manufacture" you'll sail through.

I'm not sure if you're exempt from all of the above if you're with the military, however. Definitely worth checking out.

rg0115

Good luck with everything. One of my bucket list items is to ship my car to Germany and do a European tour. I grew up in Germany but moved to the US when I was 16. Always thought it would be cool to have my 993 shipped there for a while and catch up on all the driving I have been missing out. I still have lots of friends in my home town Bochum Germany, so storing the car should not be a problem. Wish you the best of luck, Germany is a great country and you will love opening her up on the Autobahn. Lots of cool country roads as well.

WI-Ing

For the front indicator lights, I got the EURO clear version with orange blubs. The headlights have to bear the E proof mark. I did do an HID upgrade without the level adjuster. The level adjustment is not required because there is no baggage compartment in the back, therefore, the level of the light cannot change.

If you want a German registration and TUV certification you have to get the rear fog lamp. According to my expert (-> boxermotor.de , you might not need a CAT and you can run aftermarket exhaust systems.