Importing a vehicle built for another market into the United States means clearing a federal hurdle first. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration publishes petitions asking whether nonconforming vehicles can be made eligible, and most entries on its docket are requests rather than rulings. Here are eleven cars and trucks that landed on that docket, one of them with a denial on record.
1. GMC Sierra 1500: Petition Before Pickup
A registered importer petitioned NHTSA for a decision that model year 2020-2021 GMC Sierra 1500 trucks were eligible for importation, and the notice of receipt appeared on April 21, 2021. The filing is a request for a decision, not a finding that the trucks may enter, as the Federal Register notice shows.
Any buyer eyeing a foreign-market full-size pickup should treat a notice of receipt as the start of a review. Until the agency rules, the petition itself changes nothing about whether a specific truck can be registered.
2. GMC Sierra 2500HD: The Heavy-Duty Filing
The heavy-duty version could not ride along with its lighter sibling. NHTSA published a distinct notice of receipt for model year 2020-2021 GMC Sierra 2500HD trucks on April 21, 2021, the same day as the Sierra 1500 notice, as the separate notice of receipt shows.
Each model line gets its own paperwork, so an importer cannot assume one petition covers a whole family of trucks. The Sierra 2500HD filing, like its sibling, records a request rather than a granted import.
3. Chevrolet Silverado: Built Outside US Spec
Model year 2015 Chevrolet Silverado trucks built outside US specification required an eligibility petition, which NHTSA published on November 30, 2018. The notice describes the vehicles as nonconforming, meaning they were not originally built to meet US safety standards, as the published petition notice shows.
The notice only opened the question. Anyone tracking a gray-market Silverado should read the petition as a pending request and check the docket for any later decision before assuming the truck can legally be imported.
4. Ford Fusion: Paperwork For A Sedan
Not every entry involves a rare machine. NHTSA published the notice of receipt of a petition covering model year 2015 Ford Fusion SE passenger cars on January 31, 2020, showing that a mainstream sedan can also fall into the import process, as the Ford Fusion petition shows.
For an importer, the lesson is that a familiar badge does not exempt a car built to foreign rules. The filing is a petition awaiting review, so it should not be read as approval to bring such a Fusion into the country.
5. Jeep Wrangler: A 1997 Import Request
A 1997 Jeep Wrangler built to another country’s rules required a federal eligibility petition, and NHTSA published the notice of receipt on January 4, 2021. The notice marks the filing of a request, not a ruling on it, as the Jeep Wrangler notice shows.
Older vehicles are not automatically free of the process described here. A buyer considering a right-hand-drive or foreign-market Wrangler would still need the agency to decide on eligibility, and the notice alone settles nothing.
6. Mercedes-Benz GL500: A Petition For The GL500
NHTSA published a notice of receipt on November 30, 2018 for a petition asking that model year 2016 Mercedes-Benz GL500 multipurpose passenger vehicles be found eligible for importation. The document records the request and its filing date, as the GL500 petition notice shows.
A luxury sport utility vehicle gets no shortcut. Because the notice is a receipt of a petition, the GL500 listing should be read as an open question on the docket, not as confirmation that the vehicle may be imported.
7. Mercedes-Benz GL550: Canadian Safety Standards
A GL550 certified to Canadian rather than US safety standards still needed its own petition. NHTSA published the notice of receipt on November 30, 2018, the same date as the GL500 notice, but as a separate document, as the GL550 notice of receipt shows.
A neighboring market’s certification does not erase the federal requirement. Anyone weighing a Canadian-market GL550 should note that the filing is a request, and a notice of receipt does not grant eligibility to the vehicle.
8. Chevrolet Corvette: A 2005 Import Question
A 2005 Chevrolet Corvette built outside US specification was the subject of an import eligibility petition that NHTSA published on November 30, 2018. As with the other notices, the document announces a petition and invites review of it, as the Corvette petition notice shows.
Even an American sports car can leave the country and need federal clearance to return in a different configuration. The Corvette notice records a pending request, so it offers no assurance about the outcome.
9. Chevrolet Cheyenne: Denied By NHTSA
This one lost. NHTSA published a Notice of Denial of the petition that model year 2014-2018 Chevrolet Cheyenne trucks were eligible for importation on August 26, 2021, ending that request rather than granting it, as the notice of denial shows.
The Cheyenne shows that the process can end in refusal. Importers of foreign-market trucks cannot count on a petition succeeding, and the denial stands as the one outright rejection among the eleven filings in this list.
10. Mercedes-Benz G500: Two Body Styles
Model year 2012-2014 Mercedes-Benz G500 and G500 Cabriolet multipurpose vehicles required an eligibility petition, which NHTSA published on December 10, 2020. A single notice named both the standard model and the open-top variant, as the G500 notice shows.
The notice records a request covering a range of model years and two body styles. It does not state that either version was approved, so a prospective importer would need to look for a later decision on the docket.
11. Harley-Davidson Tri Glide: Three Wheels, Same Rules
Three wheels did not help. NHTSA published the notice of receipt of a petition on model year 2018 Harley Davidson Tri Glide motorcycles on December 16, 2020, bringing the trike into the same eligibility process as the cars and trucks, as the Tri Glide notice shows.
The entry is a reminder that the docket covers more than four-wheeled vehicles. As a notice of receipt, it documents a petition and not a decision, leaving eligibility of the motorcycles unresolved by this filing alone.
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