# Recall Clearance Letter



## jlaurell (Jan 10, 2014)

I will be importing a 745i later this month from California to Alberta. The process is pretty straight forward but when it comes to BMW wanting $500 for someone to click print on a computer, that's where my issue is. I have checked with BMW US, BMW Canada, dealerships in US and Canada and they all say they cannot release any documentation that states the car has not outstanding recalls. CarFax is not accepted by RIV as I did a qucik recall search and CarFax does not report on BMW recalls. Does anyone have ideas on how to get a Warranty Vehicle Inquiry for free or even a Recall Cleaerance Letter without being squeezed by BMW for $500 for a simple click of the mouse?


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## need4speed (May 26, 2006)

jlaurell said:


> I will be importing a 745i later this month from California to Alberta. The process is pretty straight forward but when it comes to BMW wanting $500 for someone to click print on a computer, that's where my issue is. I have checked with BMW US, BMW Canada, dealerships in US and Canada and they all say they cannot release any documentation that states the car has not outstanding recalls. CarFax is not accepted by RIV as I did a qucik recall search and CarFax does not report on BMW recalls. Does anyone have ideas on how to get a Warranty Vehicle Inquiry for free or even a Recall Cleaerance Letter without* being squeezed by BMW *for $500 for a simple click of the mouse?


BMW is very good at parting clients from their money. N4S


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## jlaurell (Jan 10, 2014)

Persistance pays off. I managed to get a warranty vehicle inquiry report from the BMW dealership in the US where the car was originally purchased. Sent to RIV and was accepted.


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## Dave 20T (Apr 7, 2013)

Good news, eh!

This dealer should be rewarded by having a few bimmerfest users buy a car from them or bringing it in for service!

Let us know what else you needed to do and how much it cost.


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## jlaurell (Jan 10, 2014)

Well, success on the import. My 745i is now registrered and licenced in less than a week. No roadblocks and the process is pretty straight forward and steps laid out pretty well. For anyone who wants to import a car from the USA I wouldn't let the process scare you off. My biggest thing was the Recall Clearance Letter. I refuse to pay BMW $500 to print off a report. In my situation I dealt directly with the US dealership (with a Service Manager) the car was originally sold at and they were really good about sending me a Warranty Inquiry Report. 
- Drove with cars Cali plates from Palm Springs to Sweetgrass border crossing
- US side, 5 minutes to get title stamped
- Canada side, 15 minutes for paperwork to be filled out (Form 1)
- Paid duty, taxes (~$800)
- Drove to Calgary with in transit registration
- Registgered with RIV online and paid fee
- Got Form 2 online in a couple of days 
- Got DRL programmed (only modification required) 
- Federal and out of province inspections were done same day
- Brought out of province inspection form and Form 2 to registry
- Day 5 everything was done


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## banglebut (Jan 5, 2018)

recently purchased X5 - 3.5xi sports activity package, in Indiana. will exporting it back to Ontario next.

reached out to the original dealer (service Manager) to request a warranty inquiry report. He did not say no. He was very helpful and suggested i contact the local BMW dealer first. If they dont help you, he will get information I need. Keeping my fingers crossed.


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## mydavestrong (2 mo ago)

jlaurell said:


> I will be importing a 745i later this month from California to Alberta. The process is pretty straight forward but when it comes to BMW wanting $500 for someone to click print on a computer, that's where my issue is. I have checked with BMW US, BMW Canada, dealerships in US and Canada and they all say they cannot release any documentation that states the car has not outstanding recalls. CarFax is not accepted by RIV as I did a qucik recall search and CarFax does not report on BMW recalls. Does anyone have ideas on how to get a Warranty Vehicle Inquiry for free or even a Recall Cleaerance Letter without being squeezed by BMW for $500 for a simple click of the mouse?
> Speed Test​


This dealer should be rewarded by having a few bimmerfest users buy a car from them or bringing it in for service!


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## banglebut (Jan 5, 2018)

banglebut said:


> recently purchased X5 - 3.5xi sports activity package, in Indiana. will exporting it back to Ontario next.
> 
> reached out to the original dealer (service Manager) to request a warranty inquiry report. He did not say no. He was very helpful and suggested i contact the local BMW dealer first. If they dont help you, he will get information I need. Keeping my fingers crossed.


Update
December 6 2022. I got the US dealer to get the vehicle warranty inquiry letter. No issues. Drove the car across the border crossing with temporary tags, it took hour and half for both US and Canadian border services to do the paperwork & took care of the taxes. Drove back home the next day and paid the RIV fee and sent over the warranty inquiry letter. Printed the inspection form and got the inspection done at my local Canadian Tire store. No cluster to change, DRL lights active, it passed the inspection. Sent the inspection report to RIV canada. Got my plates after paying the provincial tax and ownership tags. Worth the effort. Thank you for reading.........


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