Importing a Td5 Defender: the 25-year window is open now

For two decades the rule that kept right-hand-drive Td5 Defenders out of the United States has been quietly expiring — one model year at a time. Under the federal 25-year exemption, a vehicle becomes legal to import once it passes its 25th birthday, free of the FMVSS and EPA conformity rules that apply to newer cars. The late-1990s Defenders are through the gate; the early 2000s trucks are arriving season by season.

How the exemption actually flows

The 25-year rule is administered between U.S. Customs (CBP), the EPA, and DOT. In practice you do not file federal conformity paperwork yourself — and you should not try to. The clean path is a customs broker plus a forwarder who handle the entry, the EPA and DOT exemption declarations, and the port release. Budget roughly $10–11k landed for a sound truck shipped from the UK to a U.S. East Coast port, inclusive of the vehicle, ocean freight, duty, and broker fees.

The configuration trap

Pickups and two-door utilities can trip the so-called chicken tax — a 25% duty on certain light trucks — depending on how the vehicle is classified at entry. Station-wagon and SUV configurations are treated differently. This is exactly the kind of ruling where the right broker earns their fee; get the classification confirmed before the container ships, not after.

Titling it at home

Once landed, titling is a state matter. Most states title a 25-year import on the strength of the bill of sale, the foreign registration, and the CBP entry documents. A few are stricter on pre-1986 vehicles. Georgia, for instance, will not title a vehicle older than 1986 through the normal process — worth checking your own state's cutoffs early.

Then: record it

An imported truck arrives with a history that lives in another country's paperwork. The moment it lands is the moment to start its U.S. provenance — register it in the ClassicRovers registry against its chassis number, attach the import documents, and the record follows the truck from here on. When you need parts, the Defender parts guide routes by model and engine.

ClassicRovers does not provide import or customs services and this is not legal or compliance advice — import only through a licensed customs broker. This guide is orientation, not instruction.