I don't know if it still exists, but the comprehensive TÜV inspections in Germany used to create a sort of grey market for US military people stationed there.

I don't know if it still exists, but the comprehensive TÜV inspections in Germany used to create a sort of grey market for US military people stationed there. Personal vehicles for US military were plated by the US government, and weren't subject to the TÜV. So you could get otherwise nice german cars at bargain prices, with the caveat that you had really no idea why they failed. It could be something like emissions issues, or something safety related, but subtle and hard to find.