How to title a hot rod

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How to title a hot rod, in 50 US states and various countries. [[Image:Title_california.jpg|300px|thumb]]

*[http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/ NHTSA- Vehicle Importation and Certification Requirements]

====Cars Built from Parts====

===Major Components===

There's a new demand for customized, altered, and "repurposed" cars among motor vehicle enthusiasts. People with mechanical abilities are making vehicles for themselves and others using car kits, components from otherwise wrecked cars, or simply writing a plan and building the car from the ground up. Alaska has certain requirements for the registration and titling of custom, rebuilt or altered vehicles.

 

1. Bonded Title

In this method the owner must first get a form signed by a licensed police officer verifying the VIN of the vehicle to be titled. The owner must then file with the state for a bonded title.When the state returns a “Letter of approval” and assigns a value to the vehicle the owner must then post a bond with a corporate surety bond, certificate of deposit with assignment, or an irrevocable letter of credit filed with the Commissioner within thirty (30) days from its effective date, '''for an amount equal to one and one half (1 ½) times the value of the vehicle as determined by the Commissioner'''. The bond,certificate of deposit and assignment or letter of credit shall be delivered to the Commissioner, and accompanied by:

Recently Arkansas has enacted a '''Street Rod/Custom Vehicle Bill''' modeled after the SEMA Model.

 

"The new law allows for the use of non-original materials, provides for special license plates and permits the use of blue dot taillights.  In addition, the measure exempts street rods and customs from a range of standard equipment requirements and emissions controls (only that equipment required in the model year that the vehicle resembles).  Vehicles titled and registered as street rods and custom vehicles may only be used for occasional transportation, exhibitions, club activities, parades, tours, etc. and not for general daily transportation"

Further Documentation:

 

REGULATION 1993-3

First of all you need a bill of sale or receipts for all of the major components, body, frame, motor, transmission and or rear ends.  They will accept an Ebay page showing you bought the things you say you did. If not a receipt, you have a statement of facts that you can fill out telling where you acquired the part, and how much you spent for it.

Call the CHP with your paperwork, and they will assign you to a Vehicle Verification officer, somewhere in the county that you reside.  Normally, it takes about 6 weeks to get an appointment, depending on where you are in california.

What you will have titled is a "1924 Dodge Brothers 5 Window Coupe, 2008 New Construction".  Make sure you put in the year and what you want it to be called, as what you submit on the paperwork will be the title of your documents for ownership.

This is an easy and straightforward procedure if you get all your ducks in a row.  Approach it with incomplete paperwork, bad choices of motor or illegible numbers, and you could be in for a nighmare.  The above post suggests using AAA club for it, that is a good choice, and if you are unsure, you are far better having an agency do the legwork for you.

====HOW TO TITLE AND SMOG EXEMPT YOUR VEHICLE IN CALIFORNIA====

=====Definitions from California DMV webpage:=====

======Specially Constructed Vehicle======

(2) new or used, or a combination of new and used, parts; or  

What is the Specially Constructed Vehicle Emission Control Program?

 

====History of my car:====

'27 T roadster body only. Plans call for a homemade frame, turbo'd 2.3L, T5, etc. Remember, T's had the original VIN on the engine block and it's long gone. The only things I walked into DMV with were a 'bill of sale' from the previous owner, the craigslist ad where I found it, a picture of the car in my backyard, and these forms...........

Form 343..........Application for Title or Registration

Form 124..........Application for Assigned VIN plate

Form 5036........Statement of Construction

Form 256..........Statement of Facts

Make sure whoever helps you is knowledgeable in the Specially Constructed Vehicle registration process. My clerk took the 3 of us at one time. One guy had a Factory Five '65 Shelby clone and the second guy had a '55 Chevy gasser.

First thing the clerk did was enter my T into the system. That's where forms 343 and 124 came in. Next, he rushed immediately to the telephone and began to call Sacramento to get us assigned the SB100 number. That is the holy grail! A number within the 500 allotted numbers. The local offices have one designated phone number to call to access the SB100 database. Needless to say, the first time he called the line was busy. He was a great clerk. He brought 3 telephones to his desk, sat there and for over an hour just kept hitting redial on all 3 phones until he got through!! Unbelievable! At 9:20 he finally got through! 10 minutes later he came over and handed me the appropriate paperwork. I was number 90. I paid $96 in fees and now have the choice of having my car smogged as a '27 or '88.........guess which one I'm choosing!

 

 

Next, I go to the BAR referee where I'll choose to have it smogged based on the year of body, 1927. Oh wait! 1927 is outside the jurisdiction of current smog laws! Oh well!

 

I hope this info will help someone else. There's a small chance there are still some SB100 slots left for this year. If not, camp in front of DMV on the first business day of 2011 and get your SB100 Sequence number! Good luck!

*[http://www.dmv.org/co-colorado/custom-built-cars.php Custom Built Car Registration]

* Florida title from original car frame, which must be in your name or at least with a completed application to transfer the title into your name.  

* The body kit MCO, assigned to you. A bill of sale is acceptable if the manufacturer didn't issue an MCO.

* Completed Application for Certificate of Title.

* Notarized affidavit, stating that the vehicle is able to be operated on public roads. The statement must also list the repairs made to the vehicle.  

* Bills of sale or receipts for all parts and equipment that weren't part of the original frame or the body kit. All documents must include name, address, and signature of seller. Components may include front end, rear end, doors, engine, transmission, frame, cowl assembly, and airbag, or any parts of those elements.

* Applicable sales tax (or fill out the statement on sales tax on the application form).

* Florida license plate number for the vehicle, or an affidavit of non-use.  

* Applicable title fees. (Use the License Plate Rate Chart to calculate all specific charges.  

* All documentation listed in items two through eight, above.

* All documentation listed in items two through eight, above.

Hobby and antique vehicles over 25 years old (or vehicles manufactured to resemble such vehicles) are eligible for a special license plate through the state of Georgia. These cars do not require any special permits to operate on the state's roadways, as long as they display a valid tag.

Registration Periods

A few of the counties―Calhoun, Charlton, Clay, McIntosh, Mitchell, Randolph, Stewart, and Turner―have a four-month registration period. In these counties you must renew your registration any time from January 1 to April 30.

USRI [http://www.usri.org United Street Rods of Idaho] have a lot of info on their site. Idaho seems to be one of the better states to deal with. Street rods are titled as the year the body most closely resembles. You have to meet requirement for that year, Your fiberglass 31 roadster will meet requirements for a stock car of 1931. You need to keep receipts of all your parts and the inspector likes to see picture of your build.  USRI recommends you get a meeting with your area inspector when you start so you will not have any problems later.  Vehicles with no title need a bill of sale and an inspection by the DMV or sheriff or police to verify year. model, make vin  or id number.  They do a search of information of file  then if clear issue you a new title.  Most difficult  to title would be a custom build car that has no resemblance to a production vehicle.  Would have to meet new requirements. You can go to IDAHO DMV and print out the forms you will need, eg,"  bill of sale, inspection form, application for title , etc.

[http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/vehicles/title_registration/apply_custom_rod.html Illinois DMV Info]

[http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/rtopr2615.pdf Bonded Title Info]

 

===Indiana===

====No title, missing VIN tag and purchased vehicle out of state====

Any documentation you can get of the vehicle is important, especially a Bill of Sale. You can use Indiana Bill of Sale State form 44237 @ www.in.gov/bmv/forms or make your own stating as much information as possible about the vehicle, purchase price and the seller information. Both seller and buyer sign and date the form. A police officer will have to inspect the vehicle. Provide him with all the documentation you have and indicate you have no VIN tag. He will fill out a Physical Inspection of an Indiana Resident's Vehicle Form stating no VIN tag or Plate number/State. If you have a VIN number they will verify through a IDACS/NCIC check to make sure the vehicle isn't stolen. Once completed you take this form and your Bill of Sale and any other information about the vehicle with you to your Indiana BMV and apply for a new VIN number which will be mailed to you. Once you receive the new VIN number, have a legible tag made by a local trophy shop with the new number and affix it to the vehicle in or about the original location of the VIN tag. Once completed a Police officer again will have to come out and verify all documentation, new tag location and charge $5.00 for the Physical Inspection form he signs stating everything is in order. The last step in this process is to return to the BMV will all your documentation and apply for Certificate of Title. At this point you will pay your sales tax from your Bill of Sale form and a fee for Title Application. Once completed your New Vehicle Title will be mailed in 4-6 weeks.

[http://www.iowadot.gov/mvd/ovs/bonded.htm Iowa Bonded Title]

 

[http://www.iamvd.com/ovs/abandoned.htm Iowa abandoned vehicle questions & answers]

 

[http://www.dot.state.ia.us/mvd/ Iowa motor vehicle division]

 

[http://www.iowadot.gov/mvd/omve/iac450.pdf Specially Constructed/Reconstructed Equipment Requirements]

 

[http://www.iowadot.gov/mvd/omve/iac400.16(321).pdf Specially Constructed/Reconstructed Equipment Application Process]

a: You will either have to transport your vehicle(No driving it) to the DMV office, or the investigator will come to you. My person acted like it could be done either way, and she came to me, but some have said they had to go to the office. Depends on the investigator I think. Let them know that you have the above list of requirements and believe that you've met all of them. Have a printout in hand when they show up, they'll ask for it (as hard as it may be for some, remember you are in kiss-*** mode if you want your inspection to be successful).

 

b: The actual physical inspection. All investigators are different. Some will only give your project a cursory once-over, some will nit pick it all the way. Mine only looked to see that I had lights,horn etc, didn't even ask to see that they worked. When she started down the list of requirements and I was able to show her each of the first 3 or 4 she pretty much gave up, she knew it was a waste to check each one.  I think what it comes down to is if your vehicle looks like you knew what your doing, it's safely constructed, and you won't kill somebody else the first trip around the block, the inspector isn't gonna have a problem with it. Put together something questionable and you'll be in for a battle.

c: Review of documentation. Again, better to show them you're on the up and up than try to hide something. If you have a 2" thick pile of documentation your gonna be better off than if you have 2 Walmart receipts. Also, they will want copies of all receipts, it's probably in your best interest to have 2 copies ready for them. Mine took them back to the office for copying and delivered them back to me the next day. Having a set of copies will save them the trip, and get you registered one day sooner.

Also, your receipts will determine the taxable value of your vehicle, which determines the amount of Iowa road use tax that you will pay. You will be taxed at the state sales tax rate(5% as of 2007) on all parts you have not paid tax on. See hints below.

d: VIN assignment. Seems to be standard procedure that the inspector will bring the assigned VIN sticker with them and will attach it once the inspection is complete. They will also ask to stamp the new VIN somewhere in the frame. You will want a bare metal spot masked off for the stamping, or you will have to grind off a spot for it. It has to be stamped on bare steel. You can paint or clear coat the spot after.

e: Actual registration. Once your inspection is complete, your investigator will notify your county treasurer's office with the information from your vehicle. In my case she Emailed both me and the treasurer's office right from her car before leaving my house. They will include your vehicle description, assigned VIN and the amount you owe tax on. You go to the license plate office, fill out the application for title, pay your taxes and your done. Even though it took 3 people and a review of a couple procedure manuals, it was probably the shortest trip I've had there in a long time.

CONGRATULATIONS, YOUR DONE!!!!

1. Again, remember to be on the up and up with this deal. You've probably got several thousand dollars wrapped up in this deal, not to mention many many hours of your blood sweat and tears, the last thing you want to happen is to have it all fall through at the last step.

Here's a fine example: I built a V8 powered trike, inspired by one that I had seen done when I was in high school 25 years ago. The original builder got caught driving it on his father's dealer plate and the local investigator found out about it. Strike one. When he finally called to have it inspected, he had almost no documentation on any of the parts, including a fair amount of Harley parts, that he had used building it. Strike two. Besides all that, he pushed the requirements right to the limit, one taillight, one mirror, funky exhaust, marginal fenders etc. Having started out on the wrong foot, this was the last straw. Strike three.

I know where this trike is. To this day it sits, never licensed, never legally ridden on the road. It's a shame, a beautiful project that got scuttled before it was officially launched......

2. Receipts and taxes. Probably the one sticky spot I ran into was that during the building of my project I bought about 80% of the parts off Ebay. Buying the actual parts was no problem at all, I had excellent luck and made some good deals, saved alot of money on parts that I needed.

The problem was that the state of Iowa is gonna get it's tax share no matter what, and I payed no verifiable tax on about $9000 worth of parts. Ouch, but what do you do?? The investigator can ask for a receipt or documentation for any part on the vehicle, you can't hold some back and not others because you don't know what they'll ask for. You obviously can't ask them to inspect a $30,000 vehicle and only hand over $1000 worth of receipts, questions WILL come up.

So, you have 2 choices. Buy all your parts locally so you can show that the tax was paid up front, or simply turn over your receipts and pay the tax later. Maybe I was a fool, I turned in approx. $12000 worth of receipts and ended up paying tax on $9000 worth of it. I ended up paying a $450 one-time road use tax, but at this point I had a huge investment in time and materials, what's $450??

3. Do your research up front. You don't want to get all done and find out that your chopped coupe with a 4" windshield doesn't meet the requirements, the law says 6". You might sneek by, but then again you might not.

In Kansas, you must follow the below instructions which entails a massive amount of paperwork, receipts, inspections, etc.

*http://www.ksrevenue.org/dmv-titleused.html  

 

*http://www.ksrevenue.org/pdf/tr91.pdf

Kentucky permits the use of a Year of Manufacture plate providing the owner of the vehicle purchases the required Kentucky Historic plate and keeps the historic plate and the current year registration in the vehicle at all times. Vehicle must be 25 years old

===Titling===

=====Homemade, two-stage or reconstructed vehicle=====  

The fee for registration varies by the type of vehicle, its weight, and/or its intended use. See Fees for Registration Plates for more information.

MVA

6601 Ritchie Highway, NE

Glen Burnie, MD 21062

MVA Customer Service Center:  

Sales receipts Application – You may use either the back of the Maryland title, if applicable, or the Application for Certificate of Title to request the new title (and registration, if applicable). When the Maryland title is used as the application form, complete the section entitled Application for Title and Registration.

Application for Assigned Vehicle Identification Number (if applicable) - A new vehicle identification number (VIN) may be assigned to the completed vehicle.  The Maryland State Police will install the new VIN plate after they have inspected it.

You can apply for a title at any of the MVA’s full service branch offices. You also can mail the documents to the MVA’s Mail  

In Title Unit in the Glen Burnie office, or go to an MVA licensed tag and title service where they will assist you in applying. Typically, you will need to submit the following documents:  

A two-stage vehicle is a vehicle that has been built by two separate manufacturers. The result is a standard, complete vehicle capable of performing its intended function. You can apply for a title at any of the MVA’s full service branch offices. You also can mail the documents to the MVA’s Mail In Title Unit in the Glen Burnie office, or go to an MVA licensed tag and title service where they will assist you in applying. Typically, you will need to submit the following documents:

Proof of ownership – The certificates of origin from both the first and second stage manufacturers are required.

Application – The Application for Certificate of Title must be submitted to request the new title (and registration, if applicable).

 

Proof of purchase price – You must submit the bills of sale and/or receipts for all parts and labor.

 

Odometer disclosure statement - The odometer reading will be certified on the certificate of origin or you may submit a separate odometer disclosure statement.

 

Contract from a board of education - This is needed for titling a school bus only. It certifies that your vehicle has been approved for use as a school bus.   

Proof of ownership – The ownership document must be for the vehicle frame used in building the reconstructed vehicle:

If the frame is new, the certificate of origin included with the kit is required.

If the frame is from a used vehicle, a title for the vehicle in your name or a title that has been properly assigned to you is required.

If the frame is from a salvaged vehicle, a salvage certificate in your name or a certificate that has been properly assigned to you is required.

Other documents that may establish ownership are:

Registration document and bill of sale – ONLY if the state from which the frame was obtained did not issue a title (usually because of the vehicle’s age).

Application – You may use either the back of the Maryland title, if applicable, or the Application for Certificate of Title to request the new title (and registration, if applicable). When the Maryland title is used as the application form, complete the section entitled Application for Title and Registration.

Proof of purchase price – You must submit the bills of sale and/or receipts for all parts and labor.

Odometer disclosure statement - You may use the manufacturer’s certificate of origin or the title to document the mileage of the vehicle. A separate odometer disclosure statement may also be submitted.

Application for Assigned Vehicle Identification Number (if applicable) - A new vehicle identification number (VIN) may be assigned to the completed vehicle. The Maryland State Police will install the new VIN plate after they have inspected it.

Proof of ownership – Proof of ownership is required for the frame, engine and transmission used in building the motorcycle:

*If the frame, engine and/or transmission is new, the manufacturer's certificate of origin is required.

 

Other documents that may establish ownership are:

Registration document and bill of sale – ONLY if the state from which the frame was obtained did not issue a title (usually because of the vehicle’s age).