Importing parts... enough parts to build a whole bike

[Badger18]

I am looking at a scooter restoration but I would basically be replacing everything with imported parts.

 

I know you can't import cars and assume it's the same for scooters... but does anyone know if there's a limit on replacing parts? You could see what I'm thinking of doing as buying the Thai plate and putting it on an imported vehicle.

[VocalNeal]

Well I suppose if the Scooter has a Thai plate then export it, fit the parts and then reimport it.

[seedy]

If the scooter you are restoring comes with a green book, up to date, and the frame serial number matches the book, any and all parts can be replaced, leaving the frame intact.

If an engine swap, then the green book will need to be changed to reflect this. Which means a trip to the DLT to ensure the numbers are correct before the green book is amended

[Kwasaki]

2 hours ago, Badger18 said:

buying the Thai plate and putting it on an imported vehicle.

I tried that 15 years ago when things rather easy.

The cost was worth double and maybe more of the bike.

I guess now it's pretty much imposible.

[Badger18]

On 1/5/2022 at 2:20 PM, seedy said:

If the scooter you are restoring comes with a green book, up to date, and the frame serial number matches the book, any and all parts can be replaced, leaving the frame intact.

If an engine swap, then the green book will need to be changed to reflect this. Which means a trip to the DLT to ensure the numbers are correct before the green book is amended

Great info, thanks. No way to amend the frame number in the book then?

[Gsxrnz]

This sounds suspiciously like Radar O'Reilly mailing a Jeep home piece by piece from Korea.

[Crossy]

37 minutes ago, Gsxrnz said:

This sounds suspiciously like Radar O'Reilly mailing a Jeep home piece by piece from Korea.

 

Or "Trigger's Broom" (17 new heads and 14 new handles but still the same broom).

[Pepper9187]

Where do you intend to buy all those parts ? What scooter is it ?

Because every time i have ordered spare parts from Japan for ex I was hammered by VAT and import fees,
I can't remember for sure but totally i think overall it was roughly 30% of taxes.

 

Now you can always find some sites that let you declare the package's value and you can lower it, but not sure what happens if you get caught.

 

As for importing a bike, forget it, what people used to do back then was to dismantle the bike and import it as spare parts (lower import fees on spare parts), then reassemble the bike in Thailand and with some magic trick / tea-money at the DMV they used to be able to register the bike.

 

Plenty of CB400SF and CB1300 have been imported like that back then.,

Edited January 9, 2022 by Pepper9187

[Kwasaki]

2 hours ago, Pepper9187 said:

Where do you intend to buy all those parts ? What scooter is it ?

Because every time i have ordered spare parts from Japan for ex I was hammered by VAT and import fees,
I can't remember for sure but totally i think overall it was roughly 30% of taxes.

 

Now you can always find some sites that let you declare the package's value and you can lower it, but not sure what happens if you get caught.

 

As for importing a bike, forget it, what people used to do back then was to dismantle the bike and import it as spare parts (lower import fees on spare parts), then reassemble the bike in Thailand and with some magic trick / tea-money at the DMV they used to be able to register the bike.

 

Plenty of CB400SF and CB1300 have been imported like that back then.,

Well the OP is keeping what scoot it is so how can anyone help. 

I've ordered parts from Japan for my old Honda motorbike and it stayed at what was paid maybe taxes were already in the price in the first place.

Bought good stuff from China too. 

[Pepper9187]

10 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

Well the OP is keeping what scoot it is so how can anyone help. 

I've ordered parts from Japan for my old Honda motorbike and it stayed at what was paid maybe taxes were already in the price in the first place.

Bought good stuff from China too. 

It depends from where you buy.

 

If the seller declare the item's value to customs then you're <deleted>, otherwise you may not pay anything or they may hold your package at the main post office somewhere freaking far in Bangkok and they will check (with you) what's inside and ask you about the value and apply taxes accordingly (happened once for computer spare parts bought on ebay).

 

 

[Kwasaki]

17 hours ago, Pepper9187 said:

It depends from where you buy.

 

If the seller declare the item's value to customs then you're <deleted>, otherwise you may not pay anything or they may hold your package at the main post office somewhere freaking far in Bangkok and they will check (with you) what's inside and ask you about the value and apply taxes accordingly (happened once for computer spare parts bought on ebay).

 

That's never happened to me yet with bike parts also getting from eBay as well.

[Badger18]

On 1/9/2022 at 11:47 AM, Pepper9187 said:

Where do you intend to buy all those parts ? What scooter is it ?

Because every time i have ordered spare parts from Japan for ex I was hammered by VAT and import fees,
I can't remember for sure but totally i think overall it was roughly 30% of taxes.

I fancy an old Vespa. You can buy them locally but I'm having some trust issues... definitely not confident that I'd pick up on any problems with a restoration, and there are bound to be some. Another option is to get a fixer-upper, strip it right down and start from scratch. Some replacement parts would be available locally but I would think most of them would have to be shipped from Europe.

[Pepper9187]

22 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

That's never happened to me yet with bike parts also getting from eBay as well.

It happened to me one time only (among tenths of orders).

 

But oh BOI it was annoying, the post / custom station you have to go is really really far in Bangkok and then you wait in queue and open your packet in front of someone working for the customs i guess and she'll check it and ask you the value.

 

AKA how to waste half a day, but that's probably 1/1Million in terms of probabilities.

 

EDIT : I was going to say they were maybe looking for drugs but i remembered she didn't even check anything in the package.

Edited January 11, 2022 by Pepper9187

[Smithson]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:18 AM, Badger18 said:

I fancy an old Vespa. You can buy them locally but I'm having some trust issues... definitely not confident that I'd pick up on any problems with a restoration, and there are bound to be some. Another option is to get a fixer-upper, strip it right down and start from scratch. Some replacement parts would be available locally but I would think most of them would have to be shipped from Europe.

Why would you need to import most parts? Vespas were made here and there's a big local scene restoring them. If plated they are not cheap either. They can get 58hp from an air cooled 185, pretty impressive and I don't think don't think they're getting that in Europe 

 

[Badger18]

On 1/17/2022 at 4:29 AM, Smithson said:

Why would you need to import most parts? Vespas were made here and there's a big local scene restoring them.

You're right, I'm overcomplicating things.