The A3 is neat because it is light.. A chip, exhaust, air filter.. man cool! To bad only front wheel drive.. Anyone do this before?<br>

Here was my plan:<p>Call a major nationwide moving company and tell them you are moving things and need a closed semitrailer to pick up a few last things in San Antonio. Tell them you will need a pair of ramp faces to load a car into the trailer box. Call a buddy in San Antonio who can give you the address of an easy-to-find address with a nearby alleyway. This is where you will load your A3 into a closed trailer for transport.<p>Fly to Mexico City Airport, already having a map to the local Audi dealer and an address to give to the taxi driver from the airport. Take an A3 for a test drive, and pay the salesman on the spot. Pay him in cash, dollars USD.<p>Drive the car back to San Antonio and call your buddy back in San Antonio on your cell phone as soon as you're in US cellular range. Tell him you'll need the moving truck to be ready (time). Drive across the border with 1000 miles on your A3 and go through customs with nothing questionable. Ideally, you should be traveling with a backpack full of clothes, the remaining cash from your car purchase, and your US passport and driver's license hidden in your pants. Nothing else. Once across the border, debadge the A3.<p>Drive to San Antonio and drive your A3 into the moving truck. Give your home address in Chicago to the truck driver and let him radio it to the central moving company location. Catch a flight back to Chicago. Drive home from O'Hare International Airport and wait for your A3 to arrive. It doesn't appear in any of your records because the car was purchased in cash, yet you hold the title to the car because it was in the glovebox and it is an almost absolute bearer contract (the person in possession of the titling for the car, if it hasn't been reported stolen, is the owner). There is no point of entry new-car information because the car was a used car coming in from Mexico. The car isn't spotted because it's in a big moving trailer. Take it to your local Audi dealer, pay cash for an A4 CD-player and install it yourself. Call TireRack, ask them about Audi wheels and tires, get 17" wheels and Pole Positions for your A3.<p>You have an A3. Voila.<p>Cameron

Or just buy a new golf 4motion (or whatever they're calling it) when it arrive stateside..<br>

You can't legally import a new car that is not approved by the Feds-ie-EPA-as in emmisions and components. crash test etc..........The A3 is not approved for sale in the USA-if you see one driving around, it will have Manufacturer Lisence Plates-these cars are brought in legally for "testing" and cannot be SOLD. Then you have the problem of border corssing with Mexican plates and <br>American ID-unless you're Mexican and can prove it and are here on business or pleasure, you can't drive it here! Why not wait for the new Golf4? It's based on the A3-Saw several in England this year and sat in them but did not drive-the fit,finish and build were "Audi like"-(I have a 98A430v and a 95GTIVR6)-The Golf 4is lightyears ahead of the Golf3. It's worth the wait if this is the kind of car you want-Jan.99-No, Audi can't fix the car here unless they imported the parts special for you-it's a convoluted mess thanks to Washington! <p>

Where have you been lately??? Mars?? I live in South Texas (SanAntonio) and cross the border on several occasions during the year, on business by car-believe me-the Border Patrol will nail your ass! <br>

I've been thinking about this for a significant period of time. It's not worth it to put the car on a boat in Mexico (might be from Mexico to Chicago, since there are ports available in both places, but I'm assuming ports are inspected even more carefully). Any ideas from you, since you're in the area?<p>Cameron<br>

or states that require the driver to provide proof of insurance when pulled over?<p>cops are renowned for pulling over unique or heavily modified cars just to ask the owners a few questions about the car.<p>i see way too many holes in this plan. they all lead to impoundment for the vehicle and some jail time and/or stiff fines for the owner.

nt<br>

From personal experience, I know what's involved with getting non-EPA'ed, non-DOT'ed vehicles into the country, both legally and not-quite-legally. <p>If you show up a the border and claim American citizenship, but have a car with Mexican/Canadian/Someplace else/ tags, registration, title or other paperwork, you're gonna get stopped, and they're gonna talk to you. <br>The Customs people are really pretty savvy. They won't let you bring it in without a U.S. title, a U.S. MSO, or other U.S. doc's. If you bull**** them, they'll impound the car and you'll NEVER SEE IT AGAIN. <p>Then, you'd have to try and register it in your home state - but you don't have a transferable U.S. title, and you don't have that most important thing, an MSO (Manufacturers Statement of Origin).<br>This will set off all the alarms. <p>Trust me, it ain't easy, and even if you figure out how to physically get it across the border, you haven't seen even part of the problem. <p>I have personal knowledge of someone bringing in a Norton Rotary in 1989 from the U.K. (and I know how it was done), I know how an RZ500 2-stroke got here from Canada when the US EPA wouldn't let them in the country (and it's sitting happily in my garage right now) and on and on and on. <p>If you'd like further details, email me. <p>John<br>Trained Seals Racing

and then buying an A3 of the same color. You could sell the Golf for whatever you could get WITHOUT having to surrender the title etc. Then you could debadge the A3, and possibly even put the Golf badges on it, though probably not necessary. Then you could put your Golf plates on the A3 and drive back across the U.S., passing the car off as your Golf. Though the net cost of the transaction would probably be high, it might work.<br>

Brought in a Mercedes back in 1986, bonding, insurance, red tape. Wanted to bring my BWM into the US in 1994, possible, but the modifications would have cost more than the car -- it wasn't a US model. If the Golf 4 is made in Europe???? Why not get Euro delivery, at least part of the thrill remains. Saw a few A3s last month, nice car, however, an A4 ain't costing much more.