The safety of vehicles imported from right-hand-drive vehicle configuration countries when operated in a left-hand-drive vehicle environment

Vehicles over 15 years of age imported into Canada are exempt from complying with Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (CMVSS) applicable to their years of production. This has led to a developing market for older imported vehicles in British Columbia (BC). But while mechanical inspections are carried out on such vehicles before they can be registered in BC, vehicles from countries that drive on the left side of the road (such as Japan) retain their right-hand-drive (RHD) control configuration.