Hi Todd,
The rule in France is that the person who imports the car must pay the taxes (VAT) on the purchaise price of the car. So you need a bill of sale or something equivalent to prouve what you paid. Don't worry, the customs guys will look up the market values if you decide to bring in a real Lambo saying its a kit car, hoping to lessen it's value! (Mine cost 1500€ at the time, so I paid 300€ tax.)
Then you have to have the car inspected which can cost a fair bit because you have to use the certified inspection center UTAC at Paris. I think the fee is about 3000€? (Mine was imported just the year before the UTAC was imposed, so I had the inspection done at a local municipal inspection place, usually reserved for lorries, service vehicles, tractors, etc... They didn't like it, but it was legal to do at the time. They made me do two inspections never the less for the headlights and the rear light clusters! Only good thing was it was done for free, being a local municipal inspection, and I pay my local taxes!)
After all that you can start to apply for the paperwork. Which will take some time, and a lot of letter writing and finding the various documents that they'll ask for. (Homologation papers from GM: 100€ each time!)
If you manage to get through all this then the final thing is to pay the CV tax (fiscal horsepower, roughly based on engine size). They had rated my Fiero at 16CV, so at about 113€/CV at the time, I had to pay another 1808€!
And then you get your "Carte grise" - Grey Card/registration papers. (Pink slips, logbook, whatever...), and you can drive the car legally on the road, at last! But only after you have passed the bi-annual inspection (Contrôle technique, MOT, etc...) that all road going cars have to do. (Only another 78€!)
So that's why most Fiero's for sale in France are only good for spares, with no paperwork. The person who brought in the vehicle, cheap like me, probably paid the TVA. Then didn't have the determination and/or the finances to go through all the process.
Oh, and the last thing it's difficult to buy a "junk" car in France without a "Contrôle Technique". It's the sellers responsability to pass the Controle Technique before selling the car.
Add to that the fact there is no paperwork ("Carte grise") for the Fiero's on sale, then you have no hope of registering that car. And you can not do all the above process if it wasn't you who imported the car.
[This message has been edited by Frenchrafe (edited 07-02-2025).]
