Bizy
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Hey there, I created an account just to reply to this post because I was also able to successfully import my car without an OEM TPMS, using the steps provided by the OP. Here are the details:
I have a Canadian 2016 Mercedes-Benz C300 4-Matic Sedan that has the "passive" TPLS system and my compliance letter indicated that my car was not compliant with the following:
#101, namely: Instrument Cluster
#138, namely: Tire Pressure Monitoring System
I also called a bunch of registered importers as well as Mercedes-Benz in both Canada and the USA and was told that there was nothing that they could do, it would cost too much, just sell it, etc. I bought an after-market TPMS system from Amazon for like 89 dollars CDN (Vesafe TPMS CL-201) with 4 Bluetooth sensors that screw on to the stems tips and a small, flat unit that goes into the cigarette lighter and shows the PSI for each of the tires.
I took the Vesafe TPMS system to a tire place (I went to "OK Tire" in Etobicoke) and they "installed it" for me, basically just screwing the sensors into the stems, and gave me an invoice indicating that they "Installed customer-provided after-market TPMS system", which I signed.
I took the OK Tire invoice, along with my ownership, the compliance letter from Mercedes, my bill of sale, my proof that I paid off my financing, and semi-completed forms HS799-Short and EPA 3520-1 to the rainbow bridge at like 8am on a Wednesday. I was the only one there and I'm not sure if that made a difference or not. The officer asked me to turn on my car and show him my speedometer in MPH, which I can configure for the center LCD display in my car but my physical speedometer and other dials still showed KMs. I also showed him the working TPMS receiver in the cigarette lighter and showed him the sensors plugged into the tire stems and then we went back inside to fill out forms. I had already downloaded the forms and filled out the easy stuff like my name, manufacturer, model and VIN number wherever I could, to show initiative and make his life easier I guess...
On the EPA form, I did not have to fill out fields 3, 8, 9, 10, 12 or 15 and I put my name and address in field 11. They told me to select code EE in the box below. This will likely be specific to your car.
On the HS799 form, I just put in the make/model, year and VIN. The officer put my name in the "registered importer" field and put in the port of entry (0901), customs port code (0901) and entry date (today's date). The customs entry and vehicle eligibility numbers were left blank, so was the "description of merchandise" box. The officer then selected "2A" for my car, saying that it conformed to FMVSS. He stamped each with a seal from homeland security and I signed in a few places and he photocopied the above forms and some of my stuff, including my TPMS invoice from OK Tire, for their records and gave me back all of the originals. He said that I would need these forms to register the car at the DMV, so make sure to keep them safe.
I was also given a form called Resident Personal Vehicle Importation - Informal CBP 7501 "Entry Summary" which has some of my information on it, which I also signed and kept the original. I think this form helps the officers to make sure they get all the required information that they need but I am going to bring this to the DMV too, just in case.
I was at the CBP for about 20 minutes total and I head back to Canada as soon as I was done. I have been researching this importing process for more than 3 months and this is the only post on the entire internet that I was able to find that had anyone saying they were successful. I am so glad that I found it, as I would not have been able to import the car successfully otherwise. The key to this is having a professional tire place install the TPMS and getting an invoice, then showing the officer the TPMS working on your vehicle and having all the documentation that you need.
Thanks again to the original poster - I will follow up once I go to register the car in Seattle.
Must Pay Off Car Before Importing It? [split topic]
in Canada
Posted
I had to pay off my financing before I could import. You need to provide proof of payment to customs when you go to import as well.