The Coolest Cars From The Year 2000 Eligible For U.S. Import In 2025

Availability of imported cars in the United States provides American buyers with a wide range of unique models from which to choose, often including vehicles with unique features or designs not seen on domestic models. Indeed, imported versions of cars in certain categories regularly offer vastly different design concepts to deliver customers vehicles built for particular purposes. For example, when American luxury cars back in the '70s offered extraordinarily large and plush sedans and coupes built with little regard to handling or economy, European luxury carmakers provided smaller and more nimble models that placed more emphasis on sophistication than comfortable cruising. Nonetheless, even with the steady flow of imported cars into the States, not all of them make it to port, and some of them are highly desirable and are sometimes seen as "forbidden fruit."

At one time, Americans who wanted a car built elsewhere but not exported they would import it directly. However, in 1988, President Reagan signed the Imported Vehicle Safety Compliance Act of 1988, commonly called the 25-year rule. Crafted after heavy lobbying from Mercedes-Benz, this act made it illegal to import any model not certified for sale in the United States for 25 years from the date of manufacture. This means Americans are made to wait for what can be some pretty juicy "forbidden fruit." Now that 2025 has commenced, cars built in the 21st century can be imported legally for the first time, and these eight desirable models become eligible this year for the first time.

Among certain circles of car enthusiasts, the term Evo gets thrown around a bit. For those who aren't tuned in to the Japanese tuner scene, that refers to the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, the high-performance version of its compact Lancer model. While Evo Lancers were sold in the United States, there are several of them we never saw.

Production of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution commenced in 1992, with American exports beginning 11 years later. Thanks to some clever engineering and a well-tuned turbocharger, Mitsubishi was cranking power out of its little four-cylinder engine that rivaled that of a V8 Corvette at the time and then sent it to all four wheels. Output hit 271 horsepower when it entered America. By 2000, multiple Evo models existed, but in 1999, Mitsubishi introduced the Tommi Makinen Edition.

Celebrating rally wins by team driver Tommi Makinen, Mitsubishi released a special edition Evo VI with multiple upgrades. The already powerful engine received a more responsive turbocharger coupled with quicker steering, a lower suspension, and stunning 17-inch Enkei wheels. Appearance upgrades included an altered front bumper, while the interior received Recaro seats and a Momo steering wheel in addition to limited paint colors. Production began in 1999, but only 2,500 were built, making them highly collectible. You can start importing early production models now, but you may have to cough up a bucket of cash — one recently sold in the UK for $140,500.

While Americans have had access to cars from Lotus, including many extraordinary cars, since the 1960s, they have been deprived of a few select models in that time. However, in 1996, Lotus introduced a new two-seater sports car called the Elise. It represented a new generation of Lotus cars and helped to carry the company into the modern era. Sold in the United States until 2011, the Elise demonstrated much of what a Lotus could do. However, in 2000, the Exige demonstrated the rest.

Like its Elise stablemate, power came from a Rover K-series four-cylinder engine. Although most Americans would likely not expect much from a 1.8-liter engine typically found in a few undersized British cars, the Exige could obliterate any preconceived notions of it. Even tuned by Lotus up to 190 horsepower, it still does not sound like much. With Lotus founder Colin Chapman's mantra of "simplify, and add lightness" applied to the Exige, it makes for something very exciting.

The Exige is built as a track-focused car with just enough equipment to make it road-legal. You won't find sound-dampening material, a multi-speaker audio system, and definitely not air conditioning. What you get with the Exige is an ultra-light car with razor-sharp handling that efficiently converts 190 horsepower into adrenaline-pumping speed. When it debuted in 2000, you would not get it in America. Now that 25 years have elapsed, you can. You just have to find one of the approximately 600 examples built first.

As Toyota worked to build itself into a world-class automaker in the 1950s, it released the Toyota Crown, aka Toyopet, as its first mass-produced post-war passenger car. Ill-suited for American roads and tastes, it sold for only a few years and in minimal numbers. Almost 45 years later, Americans still couldn't buy one, but Japanese buyers could opt for something directly inspired by it, the Toyota Origin.

Based on the Japanese-market Progrés luxury car, the Origin was built with the refinement and quality Americans had come to expect in a Lexus, but the styling of this car was heavily stylized to mimic the old Toyopet. It has distinctive curves and flourishes reminiscent of a 1950s car, and rear-hinged back doors complete the retro-fabulous package. Even the rear glass is curved, much like a 1957 Buick.

Powered by the legendary Toyota 2JZ inline six-cylinder engine, the Origin does not have twin turbos, nor was it ever intended to burn its tires like a Supra. The Origin was made in extremely limited numbers as a special edition car, although it is uncertain for whom this car was made. Furthermore, it may not necessarily be the coolest car you could import in 2025, but chances are it is the most interesting. It is also as unique as it is rare – only about 1,000 were built.

In 1992, Subaru introduced a new compact car with four or five-door versions and an 1.8-liter boxer with a four-cylinder engine to compete with cars like the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. It was a decent enough car, but in Japan, buyers could opt for the WRX version powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter boxer four-cylinder and all-wheel-drive. That car would eventually make it to American shores, but another performance model that came just before a major update to the Impreza was reserved for drivers in the United Kingdom only.

With only 1,000 built, the Subaru Impreza P1 is a rare car. It is also not a variant of the popular WRX STi, the top-level high-performance car from Subaru most are familiar with. No, for the UK importer, Subaru enlisted the help of Prodrive, the British company that had helped it win multiple WRC championships. And as they were building a car meant for home turf buyers, Prodrive warmed it over properly.

Modeling the build after the STi, Prodrive went about tailoring the car for European roads with a custom suspension setup and adding bespoke styling elements. It then tuned the boxer engine up to a 280-horsepower output, slapped on some gunmetal gray OZ wheels, upgraded brakes, and decorated the interior with some unique Prodrive branding. The Impreza P1 was built in limited numbers starting in 2000 and can now legally be imported. However, in addition to the import fees, it will be costly — one sold recently for £73,125.

Once-popular British motorcycle maker Ariel quit building bikes back in 1971 but you may be surprised to know the company is still around. The Ariel name was revived not for two-wheelers, but to be applied to cars with a setup as unique as the square-four engine once used on its motorcycles. Launched in 1999 as a 2000 model, the Ariel Atom demonstrated a new way to think of how a car could be built and what it could be.

Both built with a tubular steel ladder frame as a structural cocoon around the occupants, the Atom came with no roof and no doors. As a chassis with a few wheels and a Rover four-cylinder engine in the rear, incredible acceleration was possible even with as little as 120 horsepower thanks to being only slightly heavier than a motorcycle at just 1,005 pounds.

While the modern Ariel company has always been a niche manufacturer of low-volume vehicles with little name recognition at first, a segment on British motoring program Top Gear brought it some publicity. In the now infamous video, Jeremy Clarkson notes that Ariel only employs seven people and that the car's power-to-weight ratio exceeds that of a Ferrari Enzo just before he describes the skinless car "bending my face." The Ariel did arrive in the States in 2003 thanks to a deal struck with Brammo to build them locally. These days, you can legally import the original.

As the mass-market luxury brand from Volkswagen Group, Audi maintains a popular position within the market thanks to its history of offering elegant and sporty cars that provide a balanced mix of class, style, and capability. Despite nearly losing its American market thanks to unintended acceleration issues in the '80s, Audi bounced back, offering the A4 in 1996 to help clean up its reputation.

With options such as a 2.8-liter V6 over the base turbocharged 1.8-liter, four-cylinder, Quattro all-wheel-drive, Tiptronic dual-clutch transmission, and sedan or wagon body styles, Americans could get a stylish German luxury car with excellent power output. Even better output came from the Audi S4, introduced in 1999, offering buyers a turbocharged V6 with 250 horsepower. However, Europeans could buy an A4 turned up to 11.

With the help of famed British engineering firm Cosworth, Audi released the RS4 in 2000 to widespread acclaim for its excellent performance and handling. Equipped with a V6 engine and a pair of turbochargers, the RS4 managed to hit 60 mph in less than five seconds, while the Quattro AWD helped keep it planted through the curves. Cosworth made multiple changes to the engine and fiddled with the ECU tuning to squeeze an impressive 375 horsepower out of its modest 2.7-liter displacement. Along with some subtle but effective exterior enhancements, the completed package made for one of the most desirable weapons ever made. Now, for the first time, you can legally drive it in the United States.

While Americans had the chance to trade in their aging Volkswagen Beetles for the new and modern Rabbit in the late '70s, anyone actually wanting a smaller VW had no options. At the same time, for Europeans looking for something even smaller than the Golf (the Rabbit name was only used in the American market through 1983), VW offered the Polo, a remarkably popular model everywhere except the States. In 1999, a smaller choice debuted from VW called the Lupo.

The tiny Lupo offered excellent economy thanks to its range of engines, starting with a 50-horsepower three-cylinder. The most desirable of them was the Lupo GTI. That one received a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine good for 123 horsepower. While that may not sound like all that much, considering the little car only weighed just a hair over a ton, the performance was brisk.

A high-efficiency version of the Lupo contributed to the GTI. The Lupo 3L came with the 50-horsepower option, but to get the most efficiency out of it, engineers cut weight in as many places as possible, swapping steel for aluminum and eliminating whatever was possible, such as sound insulation. These efforts raised economy for the 3L, but when applied to the GTI, they increased performance. With a lower ride height and a few other enhancements, VW made the Lupo GTI a fun little car to toss around corners and sprint through city streets. Although it is a very niche choice for importation, the smallest GTI is eligible in 2025.