[LKR]

Hi all,
I am a young bloke from Western Australia and have just recently moved to Vancouver, British Columbia.
I am looking to buy a nice traditionally customised Harley from the States but am completely unsure of how I would go about getting such a bike legally registered here in Canada.
I have scoured the information available by Transport Canada and the Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV) but cant seem to get a definitive answer about the possibility of importing a pre-customised motorcycle, so I would like to see what the wealth of information on here thinks are my options?

1) Can I import a pre-modified bike ie. 1970's model motor, rigid frame, custom tank etc. and register it in British Columbia?
I understand that an inspection must take place to determine the roadworthiness of the bike, but is a custom bike able to be registered as opposed to a stock bike?

2) Can I import a frame, motor, trans, parts etc. from the USA, build the bike myself and legally register it here in British Columbia?

Any advice would be much appreciated, thanks!

 

[diirtbag]

Call icbc and ask away, should not be a problem. They will have tomeet an inspectionThe earlier bikes dont have the same requirements for signals

 

[tattered]

my understanding is:
complete and registered bikes only...no basket cases, no special construction titles.
paperwork needs to be at the border where you intended to bring the vehicle into Canada 72 hrs prior to the bike arriving at the border
inspection may be necessary depending on the age of the bike and is strictly to see that
it has safety equipment (signals etc) and is not necessarily an inspection that will go over every inch of the bike
I have never actually brought a bike in but that is the info I gathered when I was considering purchase south of the border
good luck and let us know how it goes

 

[panhead_pete]

LKR how long are you in Canada for and are you thinking of bringing it home when you are done there?

 

[iflybyu]

Get it sent up in pieces. Ship it in 2 or 3 shipments. Don't ship the drive train with the frame....Not an issue getting it in the country, just need to get it registered.

 

[fifty]

it is easy to import custom bikes into canada. make sure the bike is a harley with all harley numbers. if its from the 70's you have to have propper motor and frame numbers. if its from the 60's and earlier you need proprer HD case numbers. stay away from aftermarket cases as they are not registered as a HD in Canada. stay away from special construction as these are not under the RIV

I have imported a 63 and a 51 with no issue at all

 

[LKR]

Thanks for getting back to me guys, some very helpful information there...
Panhead Pete, I will be in Canada for the next 2 years at least, and yes will bring the bike home hopefully...
I have a few more questions if you all wouldnt mind chiming in once more:

1) Can I legally register and import a registered and titled bike from the USA if it has an aftermarket frame?

2) Does anyone have a link to, or have information relating to minimum standards for registering a 1970's Harley Davidson here in BC (ie. either one that I home built or is already built in the USA using matching numbers motor and trans, aftermarket frame, wheels etc.)?? In Australia we have rules relating to fenders, indicators, lights etc.

 

[fifty]

IF the bike came with indicators and fenders stock from the factory you will need them. I believe pre 1970 HD's did not have frame numbers... I know my 63 was registered by the case number alone. customs will let in bikes on they RIV, looks to make sure it is an actual harley/triumph/etc based on the numbers.... BC will inspect to make sure it meets standards to get a plate.

 

[panhead_pete]

Well if you plan to bring it home with you after that sort of duration you should qualify for bringing it in as a "Personal Import" as you'll own it longer than 12 months and be out of the country longer than 12 months. You need to sus out what it needs for rego once it gets here but basically if it can get a RWC you should be fine. Just look into it though. Let me know if you need a hand getting it from there to here as have bought in quite a few and happy to share what I know.

Having lived OS and owned HDs I'd suggest you buy something that you can do LOTS of miles on so you can go see Canada. It might not be as "cool" as you are thinking but more practical. A REALLY nice near stock FLH or FXWG would be my choice and these are starting to appreciate in value, are comfortable and pretty easy to find in VGC and will offer you the easiest rego.

Why not buy one local to you in Canada? Winter is coming so prices will start to fall and its ALWAYS much better to go look at what you are buying as they are never as good in person as they are in pics The $ you think you are saving may soon vanish once you repair/replace stuff.

 

[LKR]

Hi all, I am still looking for a bike and was just wondering if there are any issues bring a bike over in parts and putting it together here in Canada and then registering it? Does the bike need to be complete to import it into Canada and register it later?

 

[magnum45pete]

can't ya just buy a bike in the USA, with a good title and ride it over to canada, then exchange the title???...it's how it's done here in europe....as long as ya have papers and it's legal where it came from it's all done in 10-15 mins at our DMV (DVLA)

 

[LKR]

Hi magnum45pete,
Yes thats an option here I believe, however the bikes I am looking for are projects for me to complete over winter, and would most likely be partially disassembled so I am wondering if anyone out there on the board has had experience bringing a basket case bike into Canada and then successfully registering it here once built??
Any and all advice is appreciated...

 

[Tony the torch]

duct tape a gun to the frame.

they will be freaking out so bad about the gun, they'll never even notice the bike.

I hear there is one province up there that is even banning all hard-tailed bikes for safety reasons.

 

[tattered]

there is a phone # on this site, they were quite helpful when i called them

http://www.riv.ca/VehicleAdmissibility.aspx