people are comfortably willing to take big risks
Money doesn't buy knowledge. The owner may not even know the risks involved. The people who smuggle these cars in and sell them aren't generally truthful (or even knowledgeable) about the vehicle's legal status.
legal frame makes it all good in the eyes of the law
It's not actually that simple. Much, much more complex than that.
They swap over everything but the frame
What they're doing in the video does not make the cars they're selling legal to import into the USA. It also makes them kinda crap bastard children of a proper 70-series.
So that 70 is too new to be registered in CO, right?
Tricky question--more to unpack than seems apparent at first glance. Important to bear in mind the distinction between Federal laws governing imports, and State laws governing vehicle licensing. Not the same thing. It is possible to be in compliance with State laws that allow registration, and simultaneously be in violation of Federal laws that prohibit import.
Here are all the
legal ways to import a 70-series Land Cruiser into the USA:
1. The vehicle is over 25 years old and retains it's original, unmodified motor and emissions equipment
2. The vehicle conforms to all FMVSS* and has a manufacturer sticker verifying so. No import will have this.
3. Vehicle imported via Registered Importer and modified to meet all FMVSS. Impossible with a 70-series.
4. Imported solely for re-export. Never leaves the port.
5. Imported by foreign resident for personal or government use. Not legal to sell it here if it's less than 25 years old.
6. Imported solely for testing, training, or racing. Can't sell it or drive it on the street.
7. Vehicle not manufactured for use on public roads. Every Land Cruiser is built for use on public roads. There's no Federal "off-road" exemption for Land Cruisers.
8. Partial vehicles requiring further assembly. Needs to conform to all relevant FMVSS when done. If you bring in your 2025 Land Cruiser "Johnny Cash" style, that's not gonna work.
9. Imported solely for Show & Display. Can't drive it more than a few hundred miles a year (to events), and you can't sell it while it's here.
Pretty sure that's it.
Also, sorry to tell all the people spending oodles to put brand new 70-series bodies on old US-Spec 80 Series chassis, but that's not strictly legal in the eyes of the US government, either. All those parts technically need to conform to FMVSS for use on the highways of America. No part of any 70-series Land Cruiser is conforming, since they were never sold here. Toyota wouldn't go to the trouble or expense of DOT testing for a car they never intended to market here.
All the above said, can you get a newer than 25 year old Land Cruiser 70 series into the USA? Sure. Can you "modify" an old chassis with a bunch of new parts? Of course. Can you register it in Colorado or elsewhere? Probably. Will an insurance company sell you a policy? Certainly. Does any of that make it legal? No. But...Is a team of Federal agents going to come to your house and seize your treasure? Unlikely.
It's all just a measure of your resources and risk tolerance.
