Right Hand Drive in US (1 Viewer)

[SandSpider]

Hi, I'm contemplating a Japan import right hand drive 80 series Landcruiser. Hoping for some input from those who have experience with this.

What should I know?

Just get used to it and drive as is? How hard is it to get used to? I guess drive throughs are out of the question...

Are there any states where I might run into legal issues?

Convert to left hand drive? Is it possible, how involved is it, and what are the potential expenses?

Any issues with getting parts for a Japanese market vehicle? Engine is the 4,2l turbo diesel, are parts for that readily available in the US?


Any and all tips and opinions are appreciated. Thanks!

 

[zapatius]

At least you could still go to Rally's/Checkers. They have a left and right hand drive thru.

It's not a state issue but a federal one. As long as you're over 25 years, you are good to go. You don't have to convert from RHD to LHD. Parts are no harder to find than most of the 4.5 parts I would guess. I get most of my parts from the Middle East, where your truck is standard (and the rest of the world). There's a lot of people on the forum from Canada, South America...well, everywhere, that have the diesel LC.

 

[zapatius]

Hi, I'm contemplating a Japan import right hand drive 80 series Landcruiser. Hoping for some input from those who have experience with this.

What should I know?

Just get used to it and drive as is? How hard is it to get used to? I guess drive throughs are out of the question...

Are there any states where I might run into legal issues?

Convert to left hand drive? Is it possible, how involved is it, and what are the potential expenses?

Any issues with getting parts for a Japanese market vehicle? Engine is the 4,2l turbo diesel, are parts for that readily available in the US?


Any and all tips and opinions are appreciated. Thanks!

Buying Right-hand Drive Cars in the USA: Everything You Need to Know

Can you buy right-hand drive cars in the USA? And Can you convert an existing car? Read on to find out everything you need to know.

www.nadaguides.com

 

[FolsomTony]

I was in Australia for work (a long time ago) for 4 weeks straight, and rented a car. After a couple of days driving on the right side of the car, it was 2nd nature. Even got use to driving on the other side of the road pretty quickly. Driving out of the airport rental car lot was another story.

I don't think it will that big of a deal.

 

[Gun Runner 5]

There used to be a regular contributor on ‘MUD that often said “if you can’t drive a RHD you probably shouldn’t be driving a LHD either.

 

[Skippyd]

I tend to hug the center line, until I get into the groove. If you have to drive a lot of 2 lane highways, it can be very interesting trying to see around large vehicles to pass.

 

[Njck22]

I tend to hug the center line, until I get into the groove. If you have to drive a lot of 2 lane highways, it can be very interesting trying to see around large vehicles to pass.

Maybe have a set of these for when on highway trips? Looks silly but would probably fit in the glove box.

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[98 SNAKE EATER]

I hate driving RHD cars

Everytime I change lanes I turn on the wipers

 

[WarDamnEagle]

I lived in the UK for 7 years and went to the continent often so I was constantly changing between RHD and LHD without issue. I also occasionally would drive our RHD land cruiser to France to take the family snow skiing and, again, not a big issue. Having said all that, I would never want a RHD in the US for a daily driver. A nice Aston or Bentley for the weekends; sure. Having to deal with the inconvenience every day; no way. You can convert from RHD to LHD but that's expensive and not worth the investment IMHO.

@zapatius not sure exactly what you meant by this sentence: " I get most of my parts from the Middle East, where your truck is standard (and the rest of the world). " South Africa is RHD but all of the middle east is LHD. Not sure that's what you meant but wanted to clarify in case.

Good luck with the decision. I think if I was going to import something from Japan it would be a 70 series; much better investment for the US market. Too many LHD drive 80s here.

 

[zapatius]

I lived in the UK for 7 years and went to the continent often so I was constantly changing between RHD and LHD without issue. I also occasionally would drive our RHD land cruiser to France to take the family snow skiing and, again, not a big issue. Having said all that, I would never want a RHD in the US for a daily driver. A nice Aston or Bentley for the weekends; sure. Having to deal with the inconvenience every day; no way. You can convert from RHD to LHD but that's expensive and not worth the investment IMHO.

@zapatius not sure exactly what you meant by this sentence: " I get most of my parts from the Middle East, where your truck is standard (and the rest of the world). " South Africa is RHD but all of the middle east is LHD. Not sure that's what you meant but wanted to clarify in case.

Good luck with the decision. I think if I was going to import something from Japan it would be a 70 series; much better investment for the US market. Too many LHD drive 80s here.

Thanks! I just meant the diesel aspect, not the RHD part.

 

[WarDamnEagle]

Thanks! I just meant the diesel aspect, not the RHD part.

Gotcha. But to also be clear, there are almost no diesel land cruisers in the middle east. Gas is too cheap. Until the new 79 series came out with the V8 diesel you never saw diesels. They are getting a bit more common now but my guess is they are still a very low percentage of sales.

 

[Navyator]

I hate driving RHD cars

Everytime I change lanes I turn on the wipers

We called that the "Tokyo Wave" when I lived in Japan.

RHD really isn't that tough to get used to, but I did drive British style for 3 years in Japan before bringing it back to the US, so I had some experience with it. Drive-throughs you obviously have to reach across. Any where people take your car they will definitely get in the passenger side (car wash, mechanic, etc...). You get quite a few stares and call outs, people seem to love it. Other than that, there's really nothing to it. Heck, it should be easier for you than me because you won't wind up driving on the wrong side of the road for 15 minutes in rural Texas only to realize your error when you're head on with a truck thinking "what is this idiot doing!" DOH!!!!! Never made that mistake again.