diff --git a/py/services/civitai_client.py b/py/services/civitai_client.py
index 56a9adcb..b4c9561f 100644
--- a/py/services/civitai_client.py
+++ b/py/services/civitai_client.py
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import asyncio
 import copy
 import logging
 import os
+from collections import OrderedDict
 from typing import Any, Optional, Dict, Tuple, List, Sequence
 from .connectivity_guard import (
     OFFLINE_FRIENDLY_MESSAGE,
@@ -45,6 +46,14 @@ class CivitaiClient:
         self._initialized = True
 
         self.base_url = "https://civitai.red/api/v1"
+        # In-memory cache to avoid redundant get_model_version_info calls
+        # within the same import/scan flow. Only successful results are cached.
+        # Uses OrderedDict with LRU eviction at MAX_CACHE_ENTRIES to prevent
+        # unbounded growth in long-running server processes.
+        self._version_info_cache: OrderedDict[
+            str, Tuple[Optional[Dict], Optional[str]]
+        ] = OrderedDict()
+        self._MAX_CACHE_ENTRIES = 500
 
     def _build_image_info_url(self, image_id: str) -> str:
         return f"{self.base_url}/images?imageId={image_id}&nsfw=X"
@@ -57,22 +66,57 @@ class CivitaiClient:
         use_auth: bool = False,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> Tuple[bool, Dict | str]:
-        """Wrapper around downloader.make_request that surfaces rate limits."""
+        """Wrapper around downloader.make_request that surfaces rate limits,
+        with retry for transient server errors (5xx, Cloudflare 524, network flakiness)."""
 
-        downloader = await get_downloader()
-        success, result = await downloader.make_request(
-            method,
-            url,
-            use_auth=use_auth,
-            **kwargs,
-        )
-        if not success and isinstance(result, RateLimitError):
-            if result.provider is None:
-                result.provider = "civitai_api"
-            raise result
-        if not success and is_offline_cooldown_error(result):
-            return False, OFFLINE_FRIENDLY_MESSAGE
-        return success, result
+        max_retries = 3
+        for attempt in range(max_retries):
+            downloader = await get_downloader()
+            success, result = await downloader.make_request(
+                method,
+                url,
+                use_auth=use_auth,
+                **kwargs,
+            )
+            if success:
+                return True, result
+
+            if isinstance(result, RateLimitError):
+                if result.provider is None:
+                    result.provider = "civitai_api"
+                raise result
+
+            if is_offline_cooldown_error(result):
+                return False, OFFLINE_FRIENDLY_MESSAGE
+
+            # Transient server error — retry with exponential backoff
+            if self._is_transient_server_error(str(result)):
+                if attempt < max_retries - 1:
+                    wait = 2**attempt  # 1s, 2s, 4s
+                    logger.info(
+                        "Transient error on %s %s, retrying in %ds "
+                        "(attempt %d/%d): %s",
+                        method,
+                        url,
+                        wait,
+                        attempt + 1,
+                        max_retries,
+                        result,
+                    )
+                    await asyncio.sleep(wait)
+                    continue
+                logger.warning(
+                    "All %d retries exhausted for %s %s: %s",
+                    max_retries,
+                    method,
+                    url,
+                    result,
+                )
+                return False, result
+
+            return False, result
+
+        return False, "Unexpected error in _make_request"
 
     @staticmethod
     def _remove_comfy_metadata(model_version: Optional[Dict]) -> None:
@@ -512,6 +556,14 @@ class CivitaiClient:
                 - The model version data or None if not found
                 - An error message if there was an error, or None on success
         """
+        # In-memory cache avoids redundant API calls within the same
+        # import/scan flow (e.g. _resolve_base_model_from_checkpoint
+        # followed by _resolve_and_populate_checkpoint with the same id).
+        if version_id in self._version_info_cache:
+            logger.debug("Cache hit for model version info: %s", version_id)
+            self._version_info_cache.move_to_end(version_id)  # LRU bump
+            return self._version_info_cache[version_id]
+
         try:
             url = f"{self.base_url}/model-versions/{version_id}"
 
@@ -521,6 +573,11 @@ class CivitaiClient:
             if success:
                 logger.debug("Successfully fetched model version info for: %s", version_id)
                 self._remove_comfy_metadata(result)
+                self._version_info_cache[version_id] = (result, None)
+                self._version_info_cache.move_to_end(version_id)
+                # Evict oldest entry when over capacity
+                if len(self._version_info_cache) > self._MAX_CACHE_ENTRIES:
+                    self._version_info_cache.popitem(last=False)
                 return result, None
 
             # Handle specific error cases