LEON'S GT-R: CRUSHED BY THE FEDS! FULL STORY & SPECS.
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- čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
- We cover a lot of ground in this video with guest expert, Sean Morris:
The full story of Leon's GT-R - where it came from, why it was used, why it didn't get a bigger role and the mod list;
We also cover the importation of Japanese cars UNDER 25 years old to the USA - importing cars is heavily restricted in the USA.
We also cover how you can import one and how you SHOULDN'T import them.
This is a very candid conversation between Sean and I - we've known each for 20+ years. We are very direct and open in our discussion. The discussions cover actual facts on importation from Sean who has been doing this legally for nearly 20 years. - Zábava
I've always felt that Leon should be brought back into the franchise
Yeah, he really just disappeared with no mention. All that family stuff and he just got left behind and forgotten.
@@Floordford He developed a Meth addiction,hence the sold GTR
@@Floordford right!!!!!
He'll be back in Fast and Furious 10 together with Jesse
@@ggj1987 haha on the Jessie part but in actuality you may be right
It really saddens me that this car was crushed, it should be in a museum, this car was a piece of car and movie history
I know, there should've at least been some loophole like "decomissioning" similar to how they'll put wax into the barrel and moving parts of a gun and then it no longer is required to meet all of the requirements of a typical gun sale because it's inoperable. Hell, fill the cylinders with wax so it can't run, they shouldn't be driving it around risking it getting wrecked anyway.
"Streets closed, pizza boy. Go find another way home."
Leon was such a cool character. Shame he was only in one movie.
goddamn street racers!
The pizza guy was the director
I wish Leon was or could have been in some other films
Eric and Emily somers maybe he’ll be in fast 27
Eric and Emily somers
Gone to soon...😢
@@nickys1008 lol
I mean shit they brought Vince back or whatever . just sucks cause that Johnny guy is a decent actor really. but like someone said maybe he will be in fast 27, I'm thinking he will be in fast in furious in space
He's gonna be the bad guy in Fast 10, he's going after Dom for never contacting him after all those years and now he wants revenge.
The livery on his R33 was replicated in GTAV on the Elegy Retro Custom, the livery is called "Not Tonight Pizza Boy".
and?
What do you mean "and"? That's it.
@@Vin80_ why you even mention this? :DDDDD
I dunno, in case someone didn't know? Oh well, I already posted it a year ago.
Elegy Retro is actually based on R32
Years ago, I needed a part for my R32 and I was having a really hard time not only finding the part number, but even finding the actual part. Got in touch with him and he immediately replied with the exact part number, and pointed me to one I could buy. Bought it and installed it and was perfect. There's very few people in the US who know GT-Rs like this guy. Sean is a fucking legend.
Streets closed pizza boy.
Thanks for the vid.
These two are obviously having a blast doing this interview.
I want a craig hat.
That R33 should of definitely had way more screen time!
But I’m glad it had a spot in the movie at all.
Thanks you Craig for making these nostalgic behind the scene videos.
Leon's R33 will always be my favourite from the franchise, it's a shame we never really learnt what happened to him after the first movie...
He die
He was a side character who went MIA after the movie. Just like the villain from Tokyo drift.
I’m stoked to see a full rebuild restoration of big bird 2 with the stickers and all
“The big bird name came from this character on Sesame Street”. I can’t tell if that was intended to actually be informative or hilarious, but I definitely laughed.
perryman333 It was for people overseas who never saw that TV show.
@@craiglieberman sesame street does exist over here, but in our own languages. in germany, big bird is called "Bibo" wich has no specific meaning. so knowing where this name comes from is good. thanks.
RIP Big Bird 😔
The way the US government acts over imported cars is fucking disgusting. They act like importing cars a lot of times is the same as an act of terrorism. Crushing people's hopes and dreams and calling themselves righteous.
Feel a little lucky in the UK, never knew these problems with the US importing cars. I guess it helps were RHD also
Too many lawyers and morons and environmental twits
All about the money
Politicians get $$$$ for making laws that funnel sales to business owners who in turn make more $$$
Protection money and protection agreement you may say.
The normal people get the shaft.
Mercedes?
The r33 is my favourite skyline.Leon's r33 is insanely beautiful and underated
This R33 is one of my favorite cars in the whole franchise (in top 3)
Sometimes I wonder if Craig ever realised people watch him mostly because they like his personality and not just because of the cars.
yeah i like the way he talks, he doesn't drag it out, and he is a good story teller.
When I was kid Leon’s car fascinated me because I had no clue what it was. I remember pausing the movie and rewinding to shots of Leon’s car trying to figure out what it was. Good times
Yeah good old days
Thanks to Gran Turismo I knew exactly what it was
This channel is probably the most underrated car channel on CZcams
*Streets closed pizza boy!*
Isnt that the director?
Yes
Rob Cohen.
Can't register it because of no extra steel bar in doors but you can rip off entire doors off a Jeep and perfectly legal. America.
Jeeps are also body on frame. The frame takes the force of the side impact, not the doors on a Jeep.
Really appreciate all the content Craig, The Fast and the Furious is my favourite movie of all time. Seems to me they dropped the ball on not having you advise for the rest of the movies. You changed the tuner scene for sure, and it's great to know the background stories on all these cars. Keep it up Craig, these videos are invaluable
@Craig Lieberman can I just say thank you for FINALLY putting this whole thing to rest? I was personally too young when this all happened to fully understand the complexity of what was going on at the time but I have been frustrated as to what happened over so many years. It's really something else to be able to get info straight from the people who were involved. thank you! best regards to you, your family, and friends
It is neat to see people still talking about this, I live in the same city as the owner Justin that had a really sad ending on that r33 yellow bird, His parents and him are really good people, They even offered the judge to part the car, or sell it and ship it out of the states and give every penny to charity, the judge refused and crushed it anyway, Wisconsin is horrible.
Brandon walsh trades poor car:(
Fast & Furious franchise forgot this regular street racing dude, when Dom and friends took a mission impossible meanwhile this dude still become street racer in LA
Are you serious?
Itsuka Shido do you know anything about movie business? The main thing is “making money”
Would be cool if he has been keeping contact and keeping a handle on what’s going on in the west coast while the group is doing whatever. He will have an r35, his kid will have the r33.
Pretty clear warning to Adam LZ.
kdoeone He doesn't have the R33
kdoeone Plus his car is street legal
It kinda sucks that if Owner of MotoRex wasn't a fucking party animal they would've have been successful.
Now there is nothing wrong with going out on a Weekend night to have fun. But he was going out 4 to 5 times a week, spend $2000USD a night at Hostess clubs.
I just rebuilt this car in Grand Theft Auto, such a badass car. The R33 is so underrated.
Full respect to this video. I'm a fan of adamLZ but damn would hate to see any of those cars crushed. No money and no time can replace such amazing cars.
Exactly I like Adma but dude his car is def not federally legal. Sean & Craig know their shit, esp on the import side of things.
DJAlex Ryan who the fck cares if it’s not legal...it’s obvious he’s snitching on Adam. It’s not hard to figure out who owns a purple R34 in Florida. If something happens to Adams R34, Sean could be to blame. Adam didn’t like top rank even before the R34. He has said they have been flaky in the past
Fuck adam his videos are trash in my opinion
@@thebanksfilms4426 A business professional snitching on a owner with an illegal vehicle is not morally wrong lol. Sean got clean paperwork, his hands are clean.
kenS87 yet he continues to post on IG talking shit about Adam. Sean is the only one the US that can import R34s legally I forgot 🤣 dude is obsessed with Adam.
“Street’s closed,pizza boy! Find another way home!”
Joel Sims who knew Rob Cohen delivered pizzas 🤣
It’s sad such a beautiful car was destroyed when I first seen yellow bird in THE first Movie I fell in love with the ugly duckling of GTRS the R33 has a special spot in our hearts
Guy in Florida: AdamLZ 😂😂
@@DatSupraKid a number of his cars are that's why he doesn't do drift events in Canada
@@1sbende Does he even go to Canada? I haven't heard of him ever being invited
The first was always the best. Its a shame to see where the franchise has gone. After Tokyo drift they just turned it into Rambo with cars. Now the new ones aren't bad movies, they're just not car movies.
action movies make money street racing does not. Craig had a whole video explaining it.
@@joey5395 I know but the point is that the they should make a movie just for car guys even if it earns less. We know that will never happen but hey, its an idea.
As a car community we should all unite to create our own street racing movie not for the money but for the experience and for the memories
@@glocklesnar713 Yeah but i think real car people are more into building and driving cars than making movies.
Just time because now we can legally import R33 GTRs in the States🇺🇸
Definitely going to put the Yellow Bird wrap when I get mine😇
BASITH PH I ain’t complaining about that!
adrian zambrana thanks! Do you have a website where I can view your inventory?
R33's are 50K. R32's are 30. Illegal R34's 80. This is insane. I remember looking at BATFA like 15+ years ago, and R32 GT-R's were like 12K. I want an Evo 6 the worst. And yet, it'll probably be the most costly Mitsubishi. Even more than a GTO, I'd imagine later Galant Super VR4's up there close.
What's crazy is I have a new Mustang GT, and an Evo X, yet some old quarter century cars that aren't cost next to nothing everywhere else cost as much or more. And at the current time, it's not like I can't buy them. R32 GT-R's were less than my Evo when I bought it. I just couldn't justify it after seeing what they cost elsewhere. I plan to sell these cars once they hit dyno goals this season. I can replace them with a C7 Z06, a Ferrari 360...or an R33 GT-R. That doesn't even make sense. Even when I can afford them, there's always going to be a 'better' choice. Right now at 50-75, I literally can't think of anything but a C7Z or the 360, maybe, MAYBE a Hellcat. I feel like the cars that I have were also better choices. I mean you or I can fanboy over Skylines but my cars, are 'better'. My Evo X is better than a Evo 6, but I want the 6 more. Same thing comparing a S550 Coyote car to a Skyline.
These cars are priced out of sensibility. I want an Evo 6 since 99, and yet, I have to "settle" for an Evo X. I mean one that will rev to 9000 and hopefully make 700, but that MIGHT buy a stock Evo 6. Luckily I got to drive one in Japan last year, and next time I go, I'll drive en R34 GT-R, that'll have to be good enough.
A "few" years back, when i got my R32, R32's where actually more expensive or pretty similar to most R33's. And R34GTR's were like nice R32's are now.
@@KuRo88 The R33 wasn't legal yet. Even now, 1998 R33's are less expensive than the ones that are legal.
@@diegoaccord That doesn't count for me tough, since i'm not american. And it was before the R32 was even legal in the US. You could get a nice R32 GTR for 15000$, R33 for 12000 sometimes. I can see why, because R32's are more fun to drive on the streets. Then again, you could get an RHD TT Manual Supra for a similar price.. RHD N/A manuals where about 4000$. It's hard to think about it, because i sold my R32 for less than half it is worth now. Oh well.
Leon's r33 is and still was my favourite car of the franchise. Beautiful car.
I live 10 minutes from where it ended up in Wisconsin. All the car groups up here tried to get a petition to save it from being crushed. But sad fact is it is gone. Along with his other r33 he had at the time.
Thanks for sharing that. Interesting frank and straight up conversation. As a person from the UK we are fortunate not to have so many hurdles to jump through to get a JDM car onto our roads. As for the emissions discussion I’m one of the firm believers that there is no place for de-catting cars. If you want more exhaust flow run a 200cell or 100cell sport/race cat instead. If you can’t afford to get one then save up until you can do it properly. The only one who will moan and cry will be you when the car gets caught and impounded or crushed, which would cost more than doing it properly in the first place.
A2KLAU I'm also from the UK and was thinking exactly that. We have a lot of rules but as you say it seems a lot easier to get a car driving legal over here.
Guy in FL lol Adam LZ lol
Let’s all have a moment of silence for the big Bird skyline gtr!!!!🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺
Thanks for the clarification and I'm a R33 owner myself. I live in Okinawa Japan and if you guys visit I wouldn't mind touring. Great episode 💪🏾🏎️💨🔥
So awesome! Thank you for sharing =)
Lol at anyone saying Sean's doing this for clout... If you've been in the GTR scene long enough this is legit not even the 10th time this has happened. Won't be the last either.
truth I remember the horror stories from back in the day about GTRs.
Always love these updates Craig, thanks for spending the time to make these and give us information.
Thank you for the advice. It is always humbling watching the video.
22:50 Tru about the CBP line, lol
When I was importing my GTR I had a customs guy geeking who honestly made the process go smoother hovering around the other agents who were slightly confused and pushed along the importing into only a 40min endeavor where my car didn't actually receive a full inspection (Even tho everything was in order and it wouldn't have had a problem otherwise).
Always excited to get a notification from you about F&F. such a great insight
Fantastic video as always Craig. Thank you for the deep insight. It's a true tragedy that Big Bird got crushed. Truly a domino effect of bad coincidences. Looking forward to see updates on Big Bird II .
Thank you always for the behind the scenes looks and info on the cars. Always wanted to know more about Leon’s car.
I remember that article on Jalopnik in 2012 when they said they're gonna crush it and I was in high school at the time
not gonna lie tho, Craig supra, maxima and R34 skyline looks beautiful before they got into the movie.
7 Dislikes! : 4 are from the guys who crushed the big bird, 3 from an extremist police officers who caught Justin Beno.
The eclipse with the evo 4 bumper and fog lights is sick af
the late 90's early 2000's had the best looking cars.
Nice catch! It looks really unique like that. Perfect rally DSM. I wonder what body kit that was back in the day.
This car has a very deep story, shame it was just a side-character car.
It didn’t deserve to be crushed, I’m honestly heartbroken
Welp, it looks like I know what to make my next video about. I swear the car community will make a "controversy" out of anything. Sean was just trying to set the story straight on what is legal and what isn't and the risks of doing things illegally.
The Racing Joker The comedy is that no names were mentioned - it was commenters who brought Adam’s bane up, not Sean.
Craig Lieberman Well I’ll try to help set the record straight. Hopefully to at least clear up the obvious legal status of the car in question
@@craiglieberman facebook.com/morris.sean/posts/10158293044498760
There’s a Frost White R33 GTR with gold wheels and a blacked out Hood, Roof, Trunk, and Wing in my neighbourhood.
Painter Lava Lamp video or it doesn’t exist
UPRD... XS... Lots of old names there. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
Craig how do you not have 1 million subs?! These videos are awesome!!!
Always preferred the looks of the R33 vs the R34
Thank you! Underrated car; should of had more screen time
Destiny of that skyline worried me for a long time, I heard a lot of stories about that skyline and now we have answers. Great work on that video
Feature length!!! Thanks Craig & Sean.
The sound the white del sol makes when dropping to the ground is still hilarious
Always love the conversations you two have on the subject of importing.
First of all, why the hell is the government regulating cars and car parts? I dont know much about making imports US legal, so forgive me if I sound ignorant.
But this is just crazy too me. Why can't we import a skyline from Japan legally, in terms of the legit title and paperwork, but still have the car the way it was build for japan? Why do we need to swap a bunch of parts and go through a certification process to make the car federally legal?
If the car isn't stolen, if the car doesn't have any stolen parts on it, why do the feds care? What are they trying to "protect" or "prevent"? I mean its s damn car, not a nuclear bomb. I would love to know.
I think it's just about power and control from the government. Since owning a car isn't a right, since it's a privilege, the government can do what ever they want.
They have been trying to do this with firearms, but since owning a gun is a right not a privilege, they cant do anything they want. Not on a federal level at least. But some states have gone too far with laws and gun laws, and they are unconstitutional, and needs to be addressed asap.
@C K Yeah. But I heard it was because there was a company importing cars from Japan legally, then boosting the prices by like 20x the cost. But then people realized it was cheaper to buy a car from Japan and import themselves, than to go to the dealer in the US for the same car.
So that dealer paid off a few people to get a law passed, that made it near impossible and extremely expensive to import cars from Japan, unless they are 25 years old.
So basically that dealer got a law passed, just to make it harder for people to buy cars from Japan legally, just so they can sell the same cars for 20x thier original value.
$20,000 import tax on cars not intended for US market. It’s almost nothing if the car is over 20 years old. Importing for museum use also has a lesser tax, but it won’t regersterable. Another way around it is to import “destroyed” cars. I’ve heard of people taking brand new diesel land cruisers and cutting them right in half, just to import the drive train to put on US market bodies.
Basically Mercedes usa had a problem with people importing cars back in day(70-80s) that could compete with their cars they were trying to sell. So they lobbied for a import law and the government did the rest.
Indonesian here, same situation even worser (cannot import 2nd hand cars unless if it's a gift from other countries like ambulances and firefighting trucks) but if caught it'll be auctioned off later... And registered! (unlikely to be destroyed)
They said to protect local industry. Protecting my ass? All they gave is downspecced products!
But hey, we can use parallel importer for new cars
That guy in FL has more illegal cars than just an R34
who is it?
@@trainsbangsandautomobiles824 you're not allowed to ask that question
@@donovanwallace1449 I just seen it in the other comments, its LZ dude. I never cared for his channel
R34 Skyline, Two JZX100 Chasers, CP9A Evo 5, and S15 Silvia
@@96st206 daymn. Guy just asking for it. Since his wife left him he may be in a fuck it all mindset and just having fun until he decides to go..
What a amazing time to be alive and watch this stuff come around. As my life was progressing and learning about Nissan's with my little truck being that start of it all. All of the research was pretty sweet the more and more I learned the more I feel in love. Being the underdog is probably my most favorite part. Long live the Nissan and the awesome history it had !!!!
Awesome video. Devastating that it ended up crushed, all the memories gone just. Wow
He is for sure talking about adam LZ when he talks about this high profile youtuber.
blakeslide and he couldn’t just talk to him ? Dry snitching at its best.
@Sean Price i guess people just don't realise that, look all this comment section, is full of people angry with this guy (Sean) for saying the truth
Sean Price that’s on them. That doesn’t mean it’s ok to snitch on them. Where I’m from you don’t do that to people. People that do that end up with a permanent limp. Or worse.
@Sean Price 🤣🤣🤣🤣👏👏
the funny thing is all he said was a guy from Florida. Until all the commenters blert our who it actually is as far as the government is concerned it could’ve been any Tom dick or Harry
25:21 I would be very disappointed if Adam LZ gets that midnight purple v-spec crushed
SheriffCuddles my thoughts exactly. All because of someone snitching on this video. Sean should’ve gotten in touch with Adam first.
@@Mr.clintontoney bruh...
This is my favourite Craig Leiberman video so far in his amazing series, this video was even more informative and interesting then the video he did for Brian's GT-R. It's also on the same level of intrigue as the one for the black heist Civics. In Canada we don't have to worry about all these early compliance headaches and waiting because our import laws are for 15 years. I actually saw an R33 Skyline (non GT-R) silver sedan in a local parking lot.
Even though I brought my R33 GTR here legally I keep it under the radar, no social media, no talking about what’s done to it, no showing off. I keep my circle of friends tight and they know about it and they’re about it.
I know a guy who daily drives a R33 GTR with big turbo and external wastegate, on the STREET in Los Angeles county.. Pretty insane build and knowing how hard that has to be.. I dont like rare stuff though, blow a crank angle sensor or something and it takes weeks to get the part from online.. Just seems like wayy too much money to make them fast. I want a boring fast car like a Z28 Camaro or Chevy SS. Cheap and 400hp stock.
Damn, These guys lowkey lived the real fast & furious life.
Damn these stories are captivating. And Craig, you really tell the stuff so it's fun to listen! Thanks for these!
Who’s here after the LZ serger?
Street's closed pizza boy!
I think the black car in 19:45 was in Omaha, Nebraska back in the day! I know the owner got rid of it because they were seizing those cars and he sold it to a person that was going to use it as a “show car”. I remember back then it was like $80k to get a Motorex Skyline!
What’s funny I’ve seen more Skylines and Vettes than any other cars now! The last 1320 “Ice Cream Cruise” all that was there was Skylines and Vettes. 🙄
Hell yeah new video! Love this channel please keep creating content! You have more fans than you think!
I was just talking to people about osha violations and illegally modifying cars on youtube. I was wondering if anyone was being easily fined via the well documented evidence. Haha. This was cool thanks!
Excited for Big Bird II !!
Welcome to Florida. It's the wild wild west here. Who gives a f**k? No one. There are plenty of R34's in this state. Love it.
but canada has a 15 year classic car rule
Facts it’s like 3 R34’s I know owned in Miami
Florida and Floridians get a lot of shit but I fuckin love Florida! I've NEVER had a bad time there and the car/motorcycle scene is great
Great video, Craig! Lots of info on importing and telling us facts from the dudes who experienced it. It played a small part in the movie but we all know its a legendary car.
I'm glad this video was put together. I had also assumed that you could purchase the car and maybe store it for a few years until the 25yr mark hit BUT.... that makes sence. If it didn't go through the proper and legal procedures to start with, then trying to skip those steps is completely out of line.
Thanks for clearing this up!
Biggest plot hole in movie history ! . . . WTF happen to Leon ??
He just showed up one day and never left. Till he left lol
@@brandonwuertz3480 He realized the movies were about to turn into utter shit and decided that going broke was the better choice.
The only smart one :)
Maybe he is the smart one.
Kept a low profile and off social media so no one gets a whiff of his Motorex R33. Stored it in a barn and waiting until 2025 for his reappearance in Fast Furious 15. hahaha
Think he tried his hand at a music career.
“Streets closed pizza boy find another way home”
“Goddamn street racers”
Would still love to have a review/overview of that white del sol on bags.
With the Civic front? First movie?
@@willthenismoman4854 yes, though i could do without the ek front.
C Lo as I’ve said many times, I don’t have any info on background cars. There will never be any video on background cars.
#justiceforbigbird
Send who ever sentenced that car to the car crusher so they get the same treatment?
Kacpa2 👏
These cars are "illegal". However they should not be. With that said we should not promote these laws. The more we accept these law's the more law's that will come as a result. The 25 year rule does not make any legitimate sense. We should be working towards removing these laws not enforcing/catering to them.
Just takes money to do it. 20 years, all talk no action. Took Bill Gates money to make Show or Display go into effect. Even then they failed to get the EPA side of it exempt.
This was always my favorite car from this movie, it didn’t have a lot of screen time, I’ve always preferred the R33 over even the R34
Even @9-11 years old, yes I knew exacty what this was( thanks to gran turismo)
Always a pleassure watching your vids Craig.. Thanks for all the info!
I like that you’ve listed your cars in the intro keep up the great work
Man this was a great watch! Keep theses coming love the content
Gary King jr SUPER SAIYAN GARY
Uncle Gary what you think about all this
Thanks Gary. We had a great watch...ing you eat. Not saying we were stalking.
They should get these guys for some vinwiki stories about the import business
The first movie was the most relatable!! The cars in the first movie is exactly how the car shows and parking lots would look like. I’ll never forget opening day and all the cars that filled every downtown and movie parking lot. 🤘🤘
I cried when I saw "Dish Network" decal...I miss the old days.
Really Good episode! Thanks Craig and Sean!
Adam LZ's next CZcams vid:
Sending my car back to Japan!
Or they will crush it
He just needs to send it to Canada. It's legal up here.
Nathan Kay No, that's false. My god did you not pay attention to the video? State titled cars are usually just auctioned off for export only. It's Tampered vin cars that get crushed
WilltheNISMOman Never knew that. 👍
I've always loved the look of this car, so simple, yet stricking, the wheels made the look as well.
Even though it was forced into an early grave this car had a hell of a life lol
I was raced at Pikes Peak, quite rad
That's so sad... I love all the GTRs, but the R33 is the perfect aesthetic for my taste. That perfect mix between the retro-futurist R32 and the chonky muscle boy R34...
For some reason, I see the R33 has Western styling in its design than the other two.
Craig you see that sad time square burnout in the c class Benz? Exactly what you were saying.
Always wanted to see more of Leon's GT R .Had no idea that car had done so much . Awesome car .Sad its no more .RIP GT R . I go to a lot of car meets here in the UK and so many people have a Skyline . There are a fair few about here . There's a white R33 five doors down from my house .