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Tiago · #1 25th November 2016

Hey guys, need some help here.

I have a 2001 sportster sport I love dearly. This bike has a long and somewhat convoluted story, so please bear with me.

The bike was originally sold in the US. The previous owner then imported it into Portugal, where it was fully registered and enjoyed a nice life for a few years, where it was then acquired by me.

At this point, the bike was heavily modified, with non-standard handlebars and speedo, loud exhausts, a Kuryakin air filter, a custom seat, even a xxxxxxx**g eagle with glowing eyes on the front fender!

Anyway, I acquire the bike and start to slowly revert it to original spec. It now has a set of exhausts and seat from an European spec 2001 model, a normal speedo and handlebars, and I thought, well, it's ok-ish, let's move to Germany with it then.

Upon arriving, I contact the local TÜV in nowheresville, BW, and they are totally dumbfounded by an American bike with Portuguese papers. Ergo, I hire my neighbor Harley mechanic to take care of it for me. After reaching out to his contacts, he replaces the headlight with an EU spec one, and finally I dump the Kuryakin air filter for the OEM ham can, and the bike looks as new.

And then, s**t hits the fan. The TÜV guys demand a spec sheet costing around €300 (fair enough) bitch about the exhausts (which are OEM) and find out I cannot pass without a seat strap on my seat (really?). In short, they can't even tell me if by doing all of that the bike will pass, and the potential bill to deal with that BS could hit the four digits.

I am advised to sell the bike back in Portugal, and keeping it registered there is not a viable long-term option, as I'm not that keen in riding it back and forth for annual inspections, when they begin in my homeland.

Does anyone know anyone who can help me out with this issue? I'm located near Freiburg, in SW Germany.

Cheers,

Tiago

bplinson · #2 25th November 2016

WOW!! That sucks. Can you only go to that TUV location? Have you talked with the local Harley dealer? Maybe that can help. I know how hard TUV can be.

night-train · #3 25th November 2016

Start a revolution, burn the government to the ground, rebuild with a kinder, gentler Motor Vehicles department?

/jk

bplinson · #4 25th November 2016

TUV is Germany is stupid. It checks all sorts of things. At the nursing home where my wife worked they would want to come in a check all the thermometers. It was cheaper to buy new ones and throw perfectly good ones away than to pay for the TUV inspection.

DéDé · #5 25th November 2016

go to an official HD dealer for your TÜV questions, they will take care of you
where you´re livin now?

Tiago · #6 26th November 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by bplinson

WOW!! That sucks. Can you only go to that TUV location? Have you talked with the local Harley dealer? Maybe that can help. I know how hard TUV can be.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DéDé

go to an official HD dealer for your TÜV questions, they will take care of you
where you´re livin now?

I've emailed then and I'm waiting for a reply. The closest dealer to me is in Baden Baden, about 100 km away.

FelixH · #7 29th November 2016

Hi there,

With the tax regarding the papers I would say there is little you can do, I guess. For all the other stuff, like the seat strap you could try to meet someone on your nearby who could lean you one, pass the inspection and then switch it back again. The same holds true for other parts.
Also, have you tried other TÜV stations? You can also get the certification on DEKRA stations. Here in Germany I only visited the DEKRA with my cars but, if the situation is like in Spain, I would try some other station. Maybe they let you slip something here and there...

Just my 0.02 €

Greetings!

Tiago · #8 29th November 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by FelixH

Hi there,
Also, have you tried other TÜV stations? You can also get the certification on DEKRA stations. Here in Germany I only visited the DEKRA with my cars but, if the situation is like in Spain, I would try some other station. Maybe they let you slip something here and there...

Getting the parts is not an issue - my problem is forking out my hard earned dough only to find out I'm still screwed. DEKRA is not an option due to the bike being non-EU spec, apparently. The inspection has to be carried out by a TÜV engineer.

eisenkopf · #9 30th December 2019

Hi, did you get tuv in the shop I recommended you? (Simons)

Folkie · #10 31st December 2019

It's over three years ago, and you're just asking now?