Member
Hello everybody!
I am willing to train myself on how to adapt a car from USA to EU standards. To be more specific I am talking about front lights, stopping lights, turning lights, mile conversion to Km, farenheit conversion to celsius, gallons to litres, radio frequency changes etc.
What equipment do I need to start doing it, and maybe someone could share a good information source where I could learn about it?
Thanks!
Member
Hi,
This is the wrong section to ask - it's dedicated to car audio and associated electronics.
Get in touch with the vehicle registration authorities in whichever Eastern European country you live in. They will have rules and requirements for importing a vehicle and if it's actually allowed or not. Once you have that information and assuming you can import a vehicle, then research all the parts required and then any mandatory requirements as laid out by your country's government. I'm in the UK, and have imported a USA truck and it's relatively straightforward to do here. If it's cost effective to do so in your country, then consider it. What car are you thinking of importing ? There's a few aspects I might be able to help with.
Cheers, Dennis!
Member
hi, thank you for your answer!Originally Posted by DennisCooper
It is not that we are planning to import cars from USA, but rather to offer a service to those who import their cars from USA to Europe.
We are going to focus on BMW and AUDI mainly, and I just could not find relevant information on this topic. To be more specific, what equipment do I need to get (to calculate the approximate cost for it) and a source where I could learn about the process itself.
Member
Hi,
You'll need to comply with the specific rules for importation of cars/motor vehicles for each country you intend to import into, they'll all be different to an extent. The costs will be different for each based on what's required by that country's laws. Do a online search for 'Importing a car / vehicle into X' where 'X' is the country.
Cheers, Dennis!
Great Teacher
I’ve converted a few US cars to Euro specs, not hard at all on the older ones. City lights, rear fogs, headlights etc.
If I were to give my Touring a first name, I'd probably name it "Alan".
Mostly because I like puns.
Mutual Admiration Society #5
Member
Hi Onizujachan,
Which Euro country specifications did you change the US cars to ? did you then export them out of the USA to a 'Euro' country or further afield around the world?
Cheers, Dennis!
Member
There's some cars/vehicles that are only available in the USA and people from around the world want those vehicles in their country. This is the 2nd F150 100th Anniversary Edition Harley Davidson F150 Truck we had here in the UK for instance.
Cheers, Dennis!
Great Teacher
Not for export, for fun and to be different in the US, mGBs (Italian spec), e34s, e46, DSM, etc.
Basically the EU equivalent of JDM.
If I were to give my Touring a first name, I'd probably name it "Alan".
Mostly because I like puns.
Mutual Admiration Society #5
Member
Hi, I just imported 2017 BMW 330ix from US to Portugal and need to change the turn signal from red to orange and add the back fog light. I went to BMW service dealer and but not able to help because they need to change the whole computer system which they can't do. I maybe clueless about this but do you need to change the computer system to change the light panel? Doesn't make sense to me. Any suggestions? Thank you.
Member
Lighting, other then color, is controlled by a lighting control module (LKM in BMWspeak). It requires software to change the LKM. Check the diagnostic software sub-forum for information on the software. As for the rear fog light I’d pull the tail light assembly in which the rear fog bulb would be and see if it can be mod’d. In some older bimmers adding a rear fog light was a matter of a bit of wiring and reprogramming the LKM. However, BMW may have used different a different tail light assembly for cars sold in the US.
Member
For my 2016, 340i I bought a light switch from Germany and was able to code the switch into the car so I have rear fog lights. We are moving to Portugal where cars are expensive. It was easy.
Member
I am also looking to adapt my 2017 x3 xDrive28i to EU standard. I would like ship it from the USA to Portugal.
Can anybody tell me what needs to be changed (or where I can get info to what needs to be changed)? I would like to have this info beforehand shipping and then to find out that it costs too much or is not even possible to adapt.
Can anybody share process in shipping and recommend shipping company?
Thanks for any input!
Member
Hi,
As per above - get in touch with the government department in Portugal to see what the laws are and what you need to do to make an imported car road legal there. Once you know that, the costs etc, then you can evaluate further and then get in touch with shipping companies for a quote to then get a total cost for you then to make a final decision.
Cheers, Dennis!
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