Are non-US market URJ200s eligible for "Substantially Similar" import into the US? (2 Viewers)

[Pulgasari]

I was looking at this Cars and Bids listing this morning and was surprised because it seems like this URJ200 is actually a VX trim variant, instead of the LX trim that was sold in the US. The vehicle seems to be registered and titled in California, so I'm assuming that it's a legitimate import (and not one of those "it got through the port in Miami and has Florida dealer tags" situations).

The US NHTSA has a few documents (which seem to be a bit outdated, unfortunately) outlining the process in which vehicles originally sold outside the US, which are "substantially similar" to US-market equivalents can be imported:

• Overview
• This seems to be a 2021 list of eligible vehicles? (Excel download warning)

Notably, the 80 and 100 Series Land Cruisers are included, but there's no reference to the 200. I'm curious what the status of "substantially similar" imports of the 200 Series is, so I have a few follow-up questions:

1. Does anyone know if the URJ200 is actually eligible for import to the US?
2. Has anyone actually gone through the process of importing a 200 to the US?
3. Are the emissions systems different for US-market and non-US-market URJ200s?

Any info would be greatly appreciated...

 

[Brown98LC]

TOYOTA DIY vin check says this is a US market 200 but I see no spoiler or shark fin antenna. no wood trim no radar etc.
Maybe its a rare special order

URJ200-GNZVKA
The A at the end means North American market vehicle.

I was always under the impression you could only get fully loaded 200 LC in the US starting MY2016 ( with exception of heritage edition 2020/2021)
but maybe this was a special order vehicle.



Anyway all US spec 200 will say VX/VX-R on some sites when you run the vin as that is what they are/are equivalent to internally with Toyota even if they don't have a badge to say it.

LX is the higher spec trim of the LC70 and some older JDM Prado.

dont confuse that with the Lexus LX

 

[paulunm]

Look at pics 84 and 85 on the C&B auction. Those two stickers sure look like it's a USDM Land Cruiser...

 

[TimCFJ40]

I’d bet the Sharkfin, spoiler, and wood grain delete were done when the vehicle was armored. Some of the 2016s may have been slightly less optioned, or perhaps this one was special ordered by the company that did the armoring. Probably trying to look as simple as possible.

That said, unless you have a use case for an armored 200 (and who am I to judge) you’ll likely be much happier with a lighter stock truck.

I’d have no qualms buying this one from an import perspective. If it has a clean California title as advertised, I’d have no reason to believe it’s not a US truck.

 

[gaijin]

Look at pics 84 and 85 on the C&B auction. Those two stickers sure look like it's a USDM Land Cruiser...

I agree, but looking at those stickers raises a new question - with a stock GVWR (3350KG) is the vehicle for sale, with all the added armor, still below that GVWR? I would doubt it.

So... even if it was somehow legally imported from Mexico, and has a clear CA title, is it road legal if it weighs more than the GVWR? Probably not, IMHO - which means it may be legal to own it, but you'll never be able to register it for use on the road.

Food for thought

 

[stonepa]

I agree, but looking at those stickers raises a new question - with a stock GVWR (3350KG) is the vehicle for sale, with all the added armor, still below that GVWR? I would doubt it.

So... even if it was somehow legally imported from Mexico, and has a clear CA title, is it road legal if it weighs more than the GVWR? Probably not, IMHO - which means it may be legal to own it, but you'll never be able to register it for use on the road.

Food for thought

I bet half the 200s on mud are over GVWR, with all the armor, bumpers, and other mods. Not sure about any limits to register a vehicle that is over weight - I have never been asked in any of the states I have registered vehicles.

 

[gaijin]

I bet half the 200s on mud are over GVWR, with all the armor, bumpers, and other mods. Not sure about any limits to register a vehicle that is over weight - I have never been asked in any of the states I have registered vehicles.

You may be right, but maybe a good question to ask the seller of the armored vehicle in question would be if it has ever been registered for road use in the U.S. If I were a potential buyer, I'd want to know that.