16 replies to this topic

[REVCAT]

Bought my last sled in the states in 2005 and got the clearance letter from BRP easily and for free back then. NOw I hear its $300 bucks ( "edit for bad language"s ) . My questions is I am looking at another sled in the states and wondered if the clearance letter can come from the the US owner and If its cheaper to get the letter from a US dealer. IF anyone has experience with this please let me know. I will still buy either way but hey money is money.



thanks for the info



MIke

[x-treme]

If your talking about a letter to verify that all recalls and or service bulletins have been done, I sold a sled to a canadian a few years ago and my dealer faxed the information to him for free.

[Boddysurfer]

American dealer will supply recall letter for free. Seller will be able to get the info no problem.

[adamadam]

Good things to know, I may have to get my next sled out of the states, hard to find race sleds in Canada it seems.

[Ditchbangr zx]

RIV.ca is the site you have to read, the rules and everything is listed and by the sounds of it you have to pay $200-300. Never done it but I would check the web site out for info before you show up at the border with a sled.

[REVCAT]

yah I had to pay 190 last time to register the sled with RIV, everyone does for any plateable vehicle or trailer. No big deal but now that BRP charges ( ive read ) $300 it puts at least $500 on top of anything we buy over in the US. Usually its still cheaper , I ve been looking at 09 summits that I can buy in US for cheaper than anyone selling any 08 xp with twice the miles in Canada. MOst of that is due to the ridiculous prices we pay in Canada for sleds compared to US.

[razer]

If the recall letter comes from bomb they will flag that ser# and void warranty, Can or US.

[hparaptor]

Did this when selling my 05 REV.

RIV wasn't an issue, but required the recall notice from the dealer. Once they learned how to do it, its a simple procedure. Bringing the machines in is another headache. My customs agent was a hardass and found the most expensive price to determine the machine value and maximize the import fee.

As posted, check out riv and the cibc websites for importing vehicles from the states.

[JayC]

As I have stated in previous posts....I have done this many times. If you are buying a sled privately (ie: from some dude out of his garage in NY State for example) there is NOTHING in it for any US dealer to provide you with a recall clearance letter. I happen to have made nice with a dealer in NY state that has provided me with a letter (on his letterhead) accompanied by a printout from his BRP database that states there are no outstanding recalls on the machine that I intend on exporting to Canada. (this dealer knows my face and sees me buying oil, gear, parts etc from his shop) What I found interesting: right on the printout from BRP's database when querying a VIN, in BOLD letters...it states "NOT TO BE CONSIDERED A RECALL CLEARANCE LETTER" This is obviously because people have sent this in with their import package to RIV when exporting a sled from the US to Canada.

Now, if you bought a used sled from a US dealer, and you were planning on exporting it home to Canada, I dont see why they wouldn't check their DB for you and provide a recall clearance letter. However, if you just walk in and say you bought a sled from Joe Blow and want a RCL....they may not be so quick to help.....

To answer your question....No, the "owner" cannot provide you with a RCL....as RIV states, it must come from the manufacturer with the BRP's letterhead (or an authorized dealers letterhead) as well as the VIN and a signature from an authorized person. It's a PIA.

I called some Ontario Ski-doo dealers and asked about this last time....they just laugh and say "sure, I'll get you a clearance letter....bring me your VIN # and $300"

How can we blame them when BRP discounts the same sleds sold south of the border in which they are made??

[hydroman]

When I imported a used sled, the dealer of the seller gave the letter as a favor to the seller. Probably cause he wanted to sell a new sled to the seller.

If BRP has to resort to terror tactics($300 letter), then it clearly shows how crooked low they are willing go, rather than be moral and practice fair pricing.

[razer]

the last used sled I imported cost me $250 for the rcl, paid it to my dealer, total bs.

[MX-Z Man]

When I sold mine last year my dealer provided the letter free of charge.

As always, there is more than the purchase price when considering a dealer, and things like this are another example of that. Get a dealer you can work with and they'll work with you too.

It also benefits your dealer to help you out - as long as you're buying another one.

[westrip]

I sent in my letter from the states that has the red ink, This is Not A Recall Clearance Letter, to RIV. My sled needed manifold bolts recall, I had the guy get that done and sent that printout with work done to RIV also. They RIV accepted these papers as a clearance letter. As a bonus, Canadian Tire did not charge for their inspection, part 2, form 2.

[JayC]

I sent in my letter from the states that has the red ink, This is Not A Recall Clearance Letter, to RIV. My sled needed manifold bolts recall, I had the guy get that done and sent that printout with work done to RIV also. They RIV accepted these papers as a clearance letter. As a bonus, Canadian Tire did not charge for their inspection, part 2, form 2.

Canadian Tire never charges anyone.....always free to the importer...RIV pays them

[REVCAT]

I dont think there ever was a charge at Canadian Tire, I never got anything my first time either. That is what the money to the RIV covers is what was explained to me at the border. What about notifying the US side that you are bringing a sled through? I have heard supposed to be 72 hrs notice, I did not know that the first time but I had no issues going through at the Sioux side.