Fairlady Z in Accident in Ottawa
This story has been in the news a lot lately, and I thought I should say something about it.
The first news article I saw was this one on Yahoo News via the Ottawa Citizen. Long and the short of it is that that a driver of a Fairlady Z (JDM version of a 300ZX) was racing, lost control hitting and killing a man, and critically injuring his wife. The man and wife were at a bus stop minding their own business when it happened.
It's horrible, and I'm not trying to downplay that. But the fact the car was an RHD was a big part of the article. This didn't bother me much, but the follow-up mentioned it too.
This accident had NOTHING to do with the fact the vehicle was a right hand drive. 300ZXs were released in Canada with the same motor and the same amount of power. In fact, being an RHD the driver would have had better view of the sidewalk, since he was on that side of the car. The driver lost control due to the way he was driving the car, not where he was sitting in the car.
This accident was due to the driver, not the car. And it really bothers me that the handedness of the car even made it in to this article. I feel that RHDs are viewed negatively in media and that it is unearned negativity.
rob
Website update schedule
Hi all,
Looks like the next four months are going to be pretty busy for me. So, I'm going to back down to posting new blog posts once every two weeks. If news is breaking, I'll try to get it up as soon as possible - breaking my own schedule.
I already have one lined up for next week, so you can look forward to that. And a really funny one two weeks after that. If you're in dire need of more reading, be sure to check out the archives. There's some pretty good nuggets back there.
If you'd like to post something, or even become a regular poster, get in contact with me. robg@righthanddrive.ca.
rob
Manitoba cracking down on RHD Compliance
A friend of mine got a registered mail from MPI (Manitoba Public Insurance) that he was to make an appointment to get his vehicle checked out for 'unsafe parts'. He had 10 days to make an appointment. Chances are (though this is still up in the air) is that he will have 30 days to make the necessary changes or they will pull his plates.
He called in to see what they were looking for. Headlights, seatbelts and compliance issues.
He has a post here, on minitrucktalk.com.
He's got a Daihatsu like me... so clearly I have vested interest.
I'll try to keep things updated.
rob
Importing a Right Hand Drive into the USA
I realize this is a .ca domain... but I have a substantial amount of traffic from the USA, and don't want to leave them out in the cold. So, today's topic, how to import a Right Hand Drive into the States.
WAIVER: I don't know a lot about this, but I'm sharing what I know.
The USA has an interesting way of banning these vehicles: They are not allowed to be imported. Once imported you can register them. This isn't saying that it'll be _easy_ to register them... some insurers might be completely unprepared to register a Daihatsu Midget. Operator: "Uhhh, that's not in our system". Be prepared to find someone who knows how to handle edge cases like that.
The NHTSA
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is in charge of controlling what hits the roads in the States. Their site is http://www.nhtsa.gov/ and the site we care about is the Importation Requirements page. On the requirements page there are a bunch of interesting documents, and an outline of thing like what you can import easily, who modifies vehicles for use on the road, and so on.
If you're considering importing a RHD, the first thing you should look at is the List of Nonconforming Vehicles Eligible for Importation. On this document you can see which cars are available to import.
The 25 Year Rule
Much like Canada's 15 year rule, the USA has a 25 year rule. From the List of Nonconforming Vehicles Eligible for Importation document
(a) All passenger cars less than 25 years old that were manufactured before September 1, 1989;
I believe this is a sliding window, but if it's not, then the RHD needs new seatbelts that are DOT standard, instead of JIS.
All the vehicles on the list that are RHD are marked as so. If you do a quick 'find' on the document you can quickly see which RHDs are available for import. Sadly, there's so few I can list them here in short order.
- Bently Azure - 1998
- Honda Accord - 1994 to 1997
- Jeep Cherokee - 1994 to 2001 (Postal Jeeps!)
- Nissan Skyline - 1996 to 1998 (that's the R33) GTS and GTR
Annnnnd... that's it.
Other things to note on the Rules Site is the Vehicle Importation Guidelines (Non-Canadian). Even if your RHD comes THROUGH Canada, it's not Canadian, and falls under this umbrella. There is a list of "Registered importers who conform vehicles manufactured for sale in Other countries than Canada". Sounds like a major cash-grab situation. I haven't heard a review of what they might have to do to get, say, an RX-7 street legal. In my opinion moving the steering wheel is out of the question.
Some extra interesting reading here: NHTSA: Importing a Right Hand Drive Vehicle, though I'm not totally sure what to make of it.
Other ways to import
There are other ways to import too. You can import a vehicle for racing without much hassle (as per the epa).
Apparently.... if you're military returning from service there's a loophole to get basically ANY vehicle into the States. BUT, I can't find any evidence of this on the web.
Also, if you're not using it on the road it's fine. Racing falls under this category (kind of... though there's a little more paperwork involved). So, farm vehicles or off-road would be relatively simple.
Overall
If you can get the car into the States you can insure it. Importing it incorrectly or illegally could result in the vehicle being seized. This is rare, but if you're importing something nice it'd sure be nice to keep it.
Fight for the Right!
A new challenger appears!
Since Quebec has banned right hand drive cars, there has been a lot of stir. The latest movement is on the part of Dominique Poirier, a fellow right hand driver. He has recently founded the Vehicle Choice Freedom Foundation to fight the change that Quebec has made. Dom has been part of the fight for a long time, but this is a solid rallying point for Quebec RHDers.
He's organizing a rally on September 6th (Labour Day) and all Quebec RHD drivers and supporters should head out to support the cause.
Dom: Thanks for creating a rallying point for our common cause. We're all behind you.
Somewhat related
I thought this was odd.... someone posted a link to my site on the CNet forums. It looks 1/2 like spam, 1/2 like a cudos. I'm flattered either way. I just REALLY like the title: Speakeasy: Quebec, so left wing they won't even allow Right Hand Drive. I don't even think it makes sense... but it's awesome.
Site news
Other news: Site is back up. The cable internet connection at my new place was totally fubar'd. There'll be spotty service until my servers settle into their permanent spots in the house. Bear with me during these changes.
Delica Meetup in BC
I can only approve of this. I'm glad to see people getting together and enjoying their Right Hand Drives. AMAZING photos on the site helps too! Cudos to Delica.ca's members for organizing this and sharing!
rob
Citroen Racing in the UK & site news
Citroens line up to race! Image from bbc.co.uk
I'm glad that Canada/North America isn't the only place that reveres old vehicles. I just stumbled across a great race that happens in Wales. It's a 24 hour race, where the only vehicles allowed to race are Citroen 2CVs. Great idea!
Check out the article here, and a video here!
All that aside, there'll be some server downtime this coming weekend. The server will be under maintenance from Thursday or Friday night to Monday or Tuesday.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
rob
Skirting the law
There are a few ways of skirting the law to get an RHD into your hands in Canada that would otherwise be impossible. This isn't supposed to be a tutorial on how to skirt the law, but as a way of avoiding accidentally getting one that has been illegally (or legally-grey so the legality is questionable) put on the roads.
How people illegally register RHDs that aren't 15+ years old
The VIN number swap - this one is pretty obvious and the most common. Buy two cars, one legal LHD and one illegal RHD. Say you did a right hand drive conversion... take the VIN off the LHD, put it on the RHD. Done. This is called 'VIN Fraud', and is illegal. If you do a proper RHD conversion..... it's... well... it's complicated. That topic will come up later when I know more about the legal side of it. Buyer beware of these if you're in the market.
Insuring as a different car - "Yeah, it's uhhh... a Nissan Sentra......." Yeah right. This is about as legal as swapping VINs. You're insuring one car as another. If you get in an accident you might not be covered by insurance.
Not actually importing the car officially - The registrar of imported vehicles won't give you the paperwork to insure your fancy RHD that just came off the boat. You have it as a shiny paperweight on your driveway. Well, you can find plates for it somewhere and just drive it! Yeah, that means you're driving without insurance.
Have the car insured somewhere legally and drive it in Canada - Now you're getting clever. This is possibly legal, depending on your insurer. Most insurers require the vehicle and owner be in the province/country/state/place where the vehicle is insured for some amount of time per year. So, again, if you're not smart you're driving without insurance.
Illegal stuff on Legal RHDs
JIS logo you may see on your car
This can happen too, and you need to protect yourself from it.
Compliance - I talked a little about this last week, and still implore you to go to ivoac.ca if you have compliance questions. I've heard of a lot to bad stuff going on here. Not all provinces will accept JIS (Japanese equivalent of DOT) as acceptable parts for cars. This really affects headlights, seatbelts and taillights. Some people that can't find a good DOT replacement stamp DOT onto the non-DOT stuff, or in the case of seatbelts, will sew on DOT tags from a different car. Clever, yes.... highly illegal? Yes. Adding fraud to a list of offenses.... not clever.
Aftermarket mods - This is a common problem for any car, not just RHDs. People like shiny things that just aren't legal. Tires that stick out further than the fenders, taking off catalytic converters, not street legal tires (racing or offroad).... the list goes on. Any old codger car buff can tell you all the stuff that he's done to cars that's illegal.
In Conclusion
The new JIS logo, as of 2008
Ok, so what does it matter that you're driving without insurance. Other than the fact it's illegal, if you get in an accident you are liable to pay all the bills even if the accident wasn't your fault. If you wrecked someone else's car.... you're buying them a new one. If you maim someone, you're paying their wage for the rest of their life. Well, it might not be quite that bad, but it's not inconceivable.
You're allowed to love and want an RHD, but don't bring the RHD name down by being an idiot.
rob
He’s got the Beat, he’s got the Beat….
91 Honda Beat
I recently met with Barry, who is the owner of a 91 Honda Beat, to take some beauty shots of the Beat and to ask him about his experiences. Photographs by Derek Martens, who did a fantastic job capturing the Beat. More photos can be seen in the gallery.
Righthanddrive.ca: Great ride! Did you import yourself, or buy it once it was in Canada?
Barry: I know some people who do importing and worked with them to get this car across. Shipping was very cheap, since the car takes up very little room. The shipping I used charged a rate per cubic foot, and the Beat isn't really very big at all.
Righthanddrive.ca: Any troubles getting it a safety and getting it on the road?
Barry: Not really. Japanese cars are usually in very good condition when they get to Canada. I had to add some extra lighting. Canada requires that signal lights are visible on the side of vehicles, while Japan does not. I bought some DOT markers with LEDs and a wired them in right before the door and right near the rear of the car. It wasn't too hard. There were a few other things, but nothing too major.
Righthanddrive.ca: What about parts for something as rare as this?
Overhead view of the Beat
Barry: Amazingly easy. Tie-rod ends, oil filter and many other mechanical parts are the same on the same aged civics. There's some things that are going to be more difficult to get, but there's a great Honda Beat club in the UK that parts out Beats for reasonable prices.
Righthanddrive.ca: What kind of modifications have you made?
Barry: The main thing I did was replace the radio. Since I brought it in myself it still had the stock Japanese radio. The Japanese FM band is different than here in Canada, so it would only get AM... which isn't great. Replacing the radio wasn't quite as simple as it should have been. I couldn't find a deck that had the same dimensions as the existing one, so I had to modify the dash and widen the hole for the deck. While I was in there I put a sub in the front (which I had to put into the spare tire) and some speakers behind the seats. It's kind of a big portable radio now.
I also had to make a custom tonneau cover for the convertible top and the speakers. It wasn't hard, but it wasn't easy.
Righthanddrive.ca: Well, since this is here on the prairies, how does it do on the highway?
Front end of the Beat
It does highway, yes.
It's revving pretty high... about 5000rpm. It's not too bad, and handles pretty well at 100. I guess the 3 cylinder doesn't have the power to push it that fast without revving it up a bit. I've had it up to about 140, where the speed limiter kicks in.
Righthanddrive.ca: Any problems driving it in Canada?
No... well.... I've been pulled over a couple of times. Each time the officers ask me what the car is and where I got it from. I guess it's so unique that they just feel that they have to check it out! Other than that there's just a lot of people who watch me drive. I'd say most people in Winnipeg or Canada haven't seen one before, and are surprised by the Honda badge.
Righthanddrive.ca: It has to be asked.... how much room is in there?
Well, I wouldn't want to be much taller! I can fit in fine, but I don't think too many people bigger than me could fit into this car.
Righthanddrive.ca: What does 'Midship Amusement' mean?
Midship Amusement?
Barry: Honestly... I don't really know. Functionally, it could mean the mid-engine... that is amusing. Or, it's Engrish... Which is more likely.
Righthanddrive.ca: Thanks for your time! You've been great. Hope to see you around!
Some Honda Beat facts and stats:
MR drivetrain: The 3 cylinder motor is mounted over the back axle, which makes the car very well balanced, much like 1st generation (and to a lesser extent, 2nd generation) MR-2s.
The Beat is a Kei car, following the same regulations as Kei trucks and microvans. the 660cc (that's about 40 cubic inches) does well in the beat, due to the very light weight of the car.
Since the car is light, well-balanced and rear-wheel drive Beats are often modified to be used in Autocross-style events.
The Beat was only made in a convertible model, much like the Mazda Miata (or Eunos Roadster.... since this is a right hand drive website) was only produced as a convertible.
Thanks again to Derek and Barry for their help!
rob
Right hand drive in a parking garage
Doing the drive through
There's a big post coming up next week... I'll leave this here to tide you over!
Hope you all had a good week!
rob
Winnipeg Meetup Review
660s At the meet
I give it a resounding ok. Not a huge turnout, but given the circumstances.... we'll call it a 'win'.
For those who don't know, meeting at the Pony Corral is a Winnipeg tradition, but it's better known for the 60s and 70s muscle cars. So, some rhd-ers where a little intimidated (though most of them have more horsepower).
Also, last weekend the VIU, or Vehicle Inspection Unit, was cracking down on non-compliant gear on cars, especially ones that are... unusual (heavily modded, or an RHD). So most RHD drivers were too afraid to leave the house!
I have a compliance post I'm working on... expect something along those lines in the future.
So, in hindsight, long weekend, not the best place and circumstances were all against me. The next one I'll plan will be somewhere else, and maybe on a Saturday!
Check out the gallery for some new snaps!
rob