In a strange move, the state of Maine has started actively deregistering imported Mitsubishi Delicas that were perfectly legal until now.

The story was first picked up by Crankshaft Culture, which published a letter that a Delica owner received from Maine’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) stating that the registration for their van had been “cancelled.”

“This vehicle is not eligible for motor vehicle registration in Maine and may not be operated on the public highway,” the BMV wrote. “You must remove the plates from this vehicle and return the plates to the BMV main office in the provided self-addressed postage paid envelope by May 10, 2021. The operation of these vehicles on the public way is a traffic violation.”

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The vans in question are generally third- or fourth-generation models produced before 1995, making them eligible for import. The 25-year rule, though, is a federal one, and states are allowed to decide which vehicles they allow to be registered and which they don’t.

Why Maine has decided not just to stop Delicas from being registered from now on, but to actively start deregistering them, is a little complicated, yet it seemingly comes down to what the state views as their purpose. Speaking to Autoblog, the office of Maine’s Secretary of State said that it’s because it sees Delicas as off-road vehicles that don’t meet federal safety requirements.

“Given that these vehicles are generally right-hand steerage and have few, if any modern safety features or emission controls, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and EPA have both ruled that this class of vehicles may be only used for off road farming (or similar) use,” the office wrote. “Maine considers these vehicles to be ATVs.”

That’s a pretty stunning statement considering the fact that an ATV’s design shares little besides its four wheels in common with a Delica. More noteworthy still, Mitsubishi actually sold the Delica in the U.S. in some forms.

Speaking to Jalopnik, the Special Assistant to the Secretary of State, Emily Cook, confirmed that the state of Maine believes that imported Delicas don’t comply with legislation, thus they’re having their registrations revoked.

“Vehicles which don’t meet [federal regulations for safety and emissions] aren’t supposed to be registered. When we find that any such vehicle has been inappropriately registered, we revoke that registration, which is what recently happened to a handful of pre-1995 Mitsubishi Delica vans,” said Cook. “This is all, of course, to ensure safety on Maine roads and protect the environment.”

Cook did say that exceptions exist for “antique vehicles” that met the regulations of their day but said that they can only be driven in certain circumstances. The small number of Delicas that were sold in the U.S. between 1987 and 1990 may then be allowed to stay on Maine’s roads.

As for other imported vehicles that were never designed to specifically meet U.S. safety and emissions standards, Cook said that any vehicle the state defines as “mistakenly registered,” like the Delica, will receive a letter such as the one quoted above.

Does this mean that other JDM models that have been imported under the 25-year rule, like Nissan GT-Rs or Silvias, could also be targeted? We (and their owners, we guess) certainly hope not, but that statement is not very reassuring.