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MG MGA - Switzerland

Has anyone out there imported a car into Switzerland..? Does anyone know if it is OK to import an MGA from the point of view of emissions and fuel type used..?

Thx

Robin
r gubbins

Hi Robin

If you import a car to switzerland and you want to register it, you need to do a "federal inspection" first, like MOT in the UK or the Tüv in Germany.
On this inspection, they will do an emission test or not, depending of the guy who does the inspection. I guess if your car looks clean, then they won't do an emmission test. You have to fulfill the emmission rules from the year of your car, so with a unmodified MG you will have no problems. The used fuel type has no influence.

I hope this helps
Beat
Beat

Where are you in CH?

From experience - (and adding to what Beat says): It depends! There are differences and attitudes that prevail in Zurich, but are a non-issue in Schwyz etc. So what I list here is Zürich specific, but is a good guideline for elsewhere too. testing is a government-run activity, though the TCS also has at least one centre it runs on behalf of the Kanton.

1. The car has to be standard - no big modifications, though an MGB motor would probably be OK if you have disc front brakes. A Moss SC would be very tricky in ZH, but OK elsewhere! If you can prove (with an original advert or article) that a modification is contemporary to the car, then the general rule is to accept it. There are however rules about minimum height of the bodywork above the road etc.
2. The car cannot have any bodywork damage - you will be made to fix it before getting the approval papers. No rusty sharp edges are permitted anywhere. (not even up inside the rear rubber bumper of an MGB!)
3. You are required to meet the approval regulations in place at the time that the car was manufactured. This means that you do not have to comply with emission regulations (though they will hang an extractor on the exhaust anyway during the running part of the test to remove the gases from the approval hall). Also you do not need safety belts, but wipers and washer must be fitted. Musical horns are not allowed. The normal rules about pitting/chipping and clouding of glass also apply.
4. You must hand in your old license plates to receive the new ones, so have a cheap pair made up to hand over if you have expensive embossed ones and intend to re-export the car after your stay in CH).
5. Unleaded fuel is not available here, but lead substitutes are available.
6. Oil leaks are a big no-no here (dark mutterings about the ground water etc). I am fortunate in living just 1km from the test centre in Zürich, so I can just give my car a good clean first..... A small drip would probably be accepted on a MGA
7. The car must be CLEAN to be tested. Normally you make an appointment with a garage to steam clean underneath unless you have a pressure cleaner and an off-street area to wash in (on street washing is prohibited). The government guys don't want to get their hands dirty at work....
8. The chassis number may be required be stamped into the bodywork somehere. The normal rivetted plate is not always accepted. The simple fix is to apply a skim of filler somewhere out of the way, then to paint it and engrave the body number in there. Mine is in the U lip in the front of the bonnet opening
9. The testers are VERY variable. In Zurich, if the car is in original state, and gets rejected, just accept the verdict and go back another day for the retest session. The chance is you will get another tester. If you still get problems, ask for the boss. (I had this experience with the routing of the battery-starter cable. The first tester refused to accept the original routing, and said it was dangerous. The next day (no work done) I just went back, and the item was just ticked off.). This will not work in smaller test centres (in Zurich they have about 15 lanes and work on 3 or four cars in each lane at once)
10. If you only do limited mileage, and the car is in good condition, ask for "Oldtimerstatus" (at least in DE speaking CH) and you will only have to test every 6 or 7 years. 3000km annual limit.
11. You have to carry a warning triangle, spare set of bulbs, and a mediacal kit. If you don't have, and they check (though they never have with mine) it will fail.
12. Tyres should match and have an appropriate size
13. Brakes and shocks are tested on machines, steering and wheel bearings are manually checked. Nothing can be loose.
14. You have to make an appointment in advance, you can't just turn up. You will need to bring the customs papers too, and show that any due taxes have been paid.


The MGA club of Switzerland (both Beat and I are members) is very welcoming - see the web page www.mga-club.ch One of the kantonal testers is our President, so there's additional guidance available (though always without any official status).

dominic clancy

Hi guys,

There must be a common link to Japan! Getting my car on the road was an excercise in futility. We must follow very similar guidelines here except the inspection is every 2 years and it can get ugly. This is long so please bear with me!

For me, the mandatory pre-inspection (yet another way to get money from you) turned up two full pages of items that would need to be fixed prior to regstration. Things like no headrests, no "JJ" stamp on wheels, no reverse lights, spinners, wrong color turn indicators, no reflectors in rear, no flare or triangle, and the list got pretty ridiculous.

The shop was inspecting my car against 2004 regulations and it failed on almost every one. Literally. I made the argument that this car was manufactured in 1957 and there is no way I could meet these regulations. The shop disagreed (they wanted my money to fix this stuff) but let me take the car to the government inspection office with the understanding that there is no way this would get registered.

I carefully planned my vist right before lunch. It was my turn to process my car through the line. I was nervous. I pulled the car in, was asked to stop and get out. The car was weighed, measured, and inspected.

The (young) inspector starting making notes, lots of notes. He then gave me a look and called me into the office. He was giving me the rundown of all the problems. Fortunately, we discovered that the law stated the car had to meet certain basic requirements BUT that the inspection rules follow the year of manufacture. There were not many rules in 1957. He pulled out an old book and on the very last page found the MGA specifications. We confirmed all the numbers and specs and 10 minutes later I was on my way in my brand new 2004, yes 2004 MGA.

Japan is known for its 'tunnel vision' attitude where it's uncommon to think outside of the norm. Since it was 2004 and the car had never been registered before, then it must be a 2004 model car and was viewed as such. Therefore it was almost impossible to get my MGA on the road. When I really pushed the issue in a very Japanese indirect way, I was able to convice them to do a little research on the rules to my advantage. If I did not push, there would be no MGA.

We are both winners, I got my MGA on the road with minimal effort and they now have the only 2004 MGA in the world running on their streets.
Tommy (A member that can't log in)

Hi Robin, Sorry to hijack your thread but do any of you Swiss based MGA owners know of my car in your country before 1996. Chassis number 91361 right hand drive it was exported to Switzerland (possibly) in May/June 1960 - black with red interior. I have nothing else of its history until 1996 when it was taken to Holland by a MR. FHW Stevens. Any info would be appreciated - cheers Cam
Cam Cunningham

This thread was discussed between 21/08/2006 and 25/08/2006

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