17 cars you can import in 2016

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07:43AM - 01.01.'16

News Source: autoblog.com

On the last day of 2015, the most important question for the dawn of a new year is this: What pieces of forbidden fruit have hit the magical 25-year mark for legal importation into the US? 2016 will be a robust year for these special import vehicles, with plenty of Japanese domestic market cars mixing with an array of European high-performers and city vehicles. Check out the complete list.

Suzuki Cappuccino

We love a kei car, and few of them can match the pure charm of the Suzuki Cappuccino. The diminutive two-seat roadster has the perfect blend of early 1990s style, and is powered by an adorable turbocharged, 657cc, three-cylinder engine. The Cappuccino is the car you buy if you think the MX-5 is too much vehicle.

Lancia Delta Integrale Evoluzione I

As homologation specials go, the Lancia Delta Integrale is hard to beat. While you’ve been able to import one of these turbocharged five-doors for a couple years now, 1991 will mark the first time American consumers can import the even rarer Evoluzione. With more power, a wider track and fender extensions, and some interior tweaks, the original Delta Integrale Evo was the final homologation car for Lancia's Delta rally program. The motorsport pedigree and unmistakable boxy silhouette make it a highly desirable icon.

Nissan Figaro

Have you ever wanted a 25-year-old car that looks like a 60-year-old car? Lots of people have since the Figaro went out of production, which is why it has a huge cult following inside and outside of Japan. Finding one is going to be tough, prices are high, and performance is pedestrian (or, to be more fair, "period-correct"). The lovely, friendly, almost cartoonish body covers up a very normal Nissan March, sort of a Versa of its time. Few cars exude such effortless charm. Don't get one if you're shy.

Fiat Cinquecento

Fiat’s return to the Cinquecento nameplate came in 1991 when the Type 170 replaced the ancient 126. It was a more modern car, featuring a front engine placement, fully independent suspension, and even a galvanized body. Bizarrely, you could get a longitudinally- or transversely-mounted engine in the same chassis – a novel arrangement. They're not pricey, so get one of each!

Toyota Aristo S140

Why buy an E34 BMW M5 when you could get the first Toyota Aristo, the car that would become the US-market Lexus GS? But the JDM Aristo had something its Lexus twin never got: the twin-turbocharged, 3.0-liter, straight-six 2JZ-GTE. Yes, the Toyota Supra's powerplant in a Giugiaro-designed sedan. You want an Aristo.

Mitsubishi Pajero / Hyundai Galloper

Mitsubishi debuted the second-generation Pajero SUV for model year 1991. At the same time, Hyundai kicked off production of a rebadged, first-gen Pajero called the Galloper. That makes this the rare case where you could import both a first and second-gen vehicle from the same model year.

Audi S2 Coupe

By 1991, the Ur-Quattro was long in the tooth. The S2, based on the 80-series Audis, was its functional successor. Its 2.2-liter, five-cylinder engine was a carryover from that ancestral rally legend, but made 230 hp in this application. Smother and slipperier than the old coupe, it brought Audi performance into the 1990s. It's still a great driving car, and surely some American Audi nuts are itching to get their hands on the never-officially-imported coupe.

ave to be a real Mazda nut to appreciate the special-ness of the AZ-3, but that's okay. The Autozam brand produced some of the weirdest and most wonderful Mazdas ever, like the AZ-1. The AZ-3 is mechanically identical to the MX-3, down to the tiny K-series, 1.8-liter V6. But the Autozam badging adds real JDM cred, and perhaps the respect the MX-3 never got on these shores.

Seat Toledo

The first Seat Toledo rides on the same basic platform as the Mark II Volkswagen Golf. That’s well and good, but it's the Giugiaro styling really sells it. The five-door liftback is, like so many Seats, a handsome little thing. While its powertrain is pedestrian, its form factor is very utilitarian. Since major VW bits swap around like Legos, a Toledo could be the basis of a really unique American build with upgraded power and styling like no other VW on the road in your hometown.

Mazda RX-7 FD

Finding an unmolested third-generation RX-7 here in the United States is a difficult task. That’s why you should look to Japan in 2016, when JDM examples of the rotary-powered icon will be legal to import into the US. You can even get one with the rare, ill-fated Efini branding from Mazda's luxury marque experiment. The sequentially turbocharged rotary is largely the same, but plenty of JDM-only trim levels and special equipment make a Japanese import the way to go.

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