Best Laid Plans

For months, plans were made for my move back to Atlanta.  I was going to take a cross-country road trip, see some sights, and meander my way there.  Looking into the costs of camping (when did camping get so expensive!?) I ended up revising my plans.  Five days from Vancouver to Atlanta, a short road trip with my mother.  Hotels and the flight for my mother booked, travel plans made, route mapped out.  All ready to go!

Then the snag.  I received my letter from my car's manufacturer and it turns out my car can't be imported to the USA.  Why you may ask?  Surely a car that has been driven back and forth across the border any number of times, much like any other car in Canada, would meet the requirements for importation, right?

You'd think that.  I certainly thought that.  Apparently back in 2007, the US passed a law requiring all new vehicles sold to have TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System).  Canada has no such law, so many manufacturers chose not to install it on the cars shipped to Canada.

OK, so what's the big deal?  Just get it installed, right?  Much easier said than done.  I called the different dealerships (both in the US and Canada), spoke to two supervisors at the border, and talked to a registered importer.  The answer?  It can't be done.  Why?  Not only do you need TPMS, it has to be installed with OEM parts.  This means you can't just get a kit off Amazon or go to the dealership and have after-market TMPS installed on your system.  The manufacturer of my car says this can only be done at the factory.  They can't do it at the dealership, and even if they could, they'd have to rip out the computer, all the wiring, and completely redo those systems.

Wow.  OK.  So I guess I'm selling my car.  If I had known about this a year ago, I could have traded it in, had the year of ownership, and everything would have been fine.  Except I didn't.  I waited until closer to moving.  Thank goodness I didn't wait until the last minute though.

I'm pretty upset that I have to sell my amazing car, the car I planned to drive until the engine fell out.  My perfectly good-has-never-had-an-issue car, but at least I have time to do it.

Luckily, carsharing is widely available here in Vancouver. should I actually end up needing a car.  I can rent a car for a day if need be, for about thirty bucks.  I don't anticipate needing a car as the transit here isn't that bad, and it's pretty easy to get around as long as I'm staying within Vancouver or near the Skytrain.

What a PITA though.