Moving FZ-10 from Canada to SF, California. EPA regulations

Moved to CA from another state (not another country) 3 1/2 years ago and brought my old '06 R1 with me so I went through this. Basically it goes like this, IF it is actually 50 state/CA emissions compliant. You'll need to make an appointment with your local DMV (department of motor vehicles) for a VIN inspection, THEN you'll need to make an appointment with a CHP ( CA highway patrol ) office for them to sign off on their own inspection. THEN you'll need to go back to the DMV with all the correct paperwork IE Title, VIN inspection sign off, proof of insurance etc. in order to get your plates and registration. And the appointments can be weeks out, so get them set ASAP. Expect a headache, it was an awful experience for me. Plus, you'll have to retest for your MC endorsement on your drivers license. I moved from Colorado to Nevada and then back to CO, the endorsement followed over each time but not in CA. CA is like it's own damn country with its own weird rules and way of going about things.



If your bike is not 50 state/CA compliant, it'll need to have over 7500 miles in order to register it in CA so make sure it is.



Welcome to Kalifornia! It's beautiful place but you sure do have to pay the beauty, weather, and nanny state tax!

About ten years ago I was transferred from Texas to Nova Scotia, Canada for a 2 1/2 year temporary assignment. The company shipped up my Subaru WRX and then I had to have it titled and registered in Nova Scotia. There is a reciprocal arrangement between the US and Canada for these types of situations. Since my move was temporary the stipulation was I could NOT sell the vehicle in Canada, it had to be shipped back to the US eventually. The vehicle regs are close enough but the car had to have a speedometer that read kph (it did) and it had to have DRL's (daytime running lights), and it had to meet Nova Scotia inspection standards. NS does not allow any tint on the driver or passenger window so that had to be dealt with. Then when it was imported back into the US I had to take it to the local police station in Houston so they could verify the VIN before I went back to the title office in Texas to get it retitled. Even though it was a temporary move it was still a freaking sideshow getting it all done.

In your case I would assume a Canadian and US spec m/c are very, very close but you never know what quirk you will run up against, especially in the lighting area. At the minimum you are almost certainly going to have to have a mph speedometer readout to get approval for CA use. Is the Canadian spec bike changeable between kph and mph? I am not sure what the People's Republic of California will require as far as emission compliance is concerned on imported bikes.  There is the 7,500 mi rule for non-CA spec bikes as already mentioned, but I don't know if that covers imported bikes, it may and it may not.  Since you only have about 3,000 miles on it it will have problems getting over the CA emission regs.  Make sure you understand completely what hoops you will have to jump through to make it all legal in the USA. And if you aren't planning to re-export it back to Canada be aware it may take a hit value wise when you sell it as will be flagged as an imported bike. Some people will stay away from it.

Good luck, but be prepared for a major hassle jumping through all the hoops, and expect surprises when you are told you have a 'problem'.  The truth of the matter is it may be a lot less painful to sell your Canadian bike and buy a new one in CA.  It may cost some $$ but in the long run may be easier.  Something to think about. 

If you subtract the estimated 2.4 million illegals in CA the number gets closer.

Yup, the bureaucracy here is mind boggling and frustrating to say the least. But once you get past pleasing the nutty do-gooders it's a nice place to live.

Did you end up getting the bike shipped?