No imported UK cars in the U.S.?

Question

I have been wondering why the United States doesn't have an agreement with the UK on importing it's cars. Would it have to do with the Embargo act in the 1700's?

Answer 1

Good question. Over here in Germany, we sometimes see British cars on the road (I like the Mini - sooo cute) -- I think it's because cars from the UK are quite expensive and the driver is sitting at the wrong side in UK cars! ;-)

Greetings from Germany...

@ MP: lol - you're funny....The Mini is British, but BMW is a German car. Everyone should know this....

Answer 2

The US goes by WTO rules which means UK cars get treated like any other imported cars. Maybe it's unfair, but the UK auto industry got a very bad rep during the 1970s that it's never recovered from in the US market.

Answer 3

??? There are British car dealerships everywhere here in the USA. Obviously whatever agreement you are talking about doesn't effect the availability of British import cars here. They just aren't particularly popular (with the exception of the Mini Cooper which had a short popularity spurt here a couple of years ago.) They do appear to be re-tooled so that the steering wheel suits us better.

Answer 4

The United States continues to use a unique set of standards for its automotive safety and emissions regulations, which do not always directly correspond to the standards of the European Union or Asian countries, which adhere to the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations. This means that vehicle manufacturers face considerable expense to type-certify a vehicle for U.S. sale, at a cost estimated to be upward of USD $2 Million per vehicle model. This cost particularly impacts low-volume manufacturers and models, most notably the makers of supercars. However, larger companies such as Alfa Romeo and Peugeot have also cited costs of 'Federalizing' their vehicle lineups as a disincentive to re-enter the U.S. market.

Answer 5

What? BMW's and Mini's are not British cars?
There is also a trend now toward the importing of the London taxicabs for use here.

Answer 6

We do have British cars over here but they're quite expensive so not many people can drive them.

Answer 7

No. It has to do with cars in the UK not meeting or exceeding fuel/air/safety/etc. standards in the US.

Also, the American oil interests might have something to do with lobbying against importing possibly cleaner cars and technology stateside.