Registration question
 

So Im going to buy a $400 car, but the car hasnt been registered in 7 years. No non-op, no nothing. How do the back fees work for something like this?

As long as there are no leins (clear title), you don't have to pay anything. Just register and inspect.

Depends on the state. Some states don't care.... if it isn't registered you just can't drive it. Others want that money even if you do not intend to drive it. In that case sometimes a letter from a mech stating that the car was out for repairs and undrivable is enough. Other tiems they will still want that money. Sorry but I think that CA would be the worst at going after the reg fees. But you are going to have to talk to the DMV, or someone who has recently done that in CA. If you get a hard ass, and have more than one DMV close, I'd try another office.

I bought a car in KY that hadn't been on the streets in two years. They told me that there was no going around paying the previous reg fees for any reason. There also wasn't any close DMV (or whatever they called it there, here in MI it is the Secretary of State), and the 2 years fees weren't worth trying to get busted driving all over hell and back trying to get plates.

Good Luck.

In NY or CA?

No idea about CA. That's the way it is here. I bought an old car that had been sitting in a barn for a decade, and just brought in the title and registered it, no questions.

In CA, you're going to be on the hook for a lot of fees. Call the DMV and ask them.

not true.
true.

They will try to rape you up and down and sideways on fee's. You definitely want to call them and have them at least give you an estimate before purchasing the car

Bunch of damn nazi's in Cali.

yes yes, people hate california.

If I remember correctly CA dumps all the inactive reg data every so often, like 5 years. If you ditch the plates so there's no way to tell how long since it was registered, they may not charge you any back fees since no accurate determination could be made. Worst case I think you could wrestle them down to whatever the dump point is (5 yrs ) which is still better than 7.

I'd try it in a non-local DMV and just ask them how much the title transfer/reg will be... don't let them start the paperwork unless the fees are an amount you're willing to pay though.

I'd go ask before I bought the car. If this goes the wrong way, the reg fees might cost more than the car. However I do not know the story about this car. Would it be worth it? Looking at the CA DMV site, it looks like you caould also be responsible for outstanding parking tickets given to the car. I's get the license plate number and VIN and check this out in person at a DMV before handing over the cash. Good luck.

Register that crap outta state first. Problem solved.

So the DMV won't give me any info since I'm not the registered owner. So I go in blindly not knowing if the back fees are more than the value of the car. Lame.

At the price point of the vehicle in question, I don't think that it would be worth doing it right (i.e. getting a lawyer etc) or doing it wrong (risking fraud). CA cracking down hard on fraudulant reg has really been in the news the last few years. They are mostly looking for people cheating huge reg fees or emissions/certification on collector cars, but it would really suck getting caught and risk going to jail on a $400 car.

I would really go to the DMV and talk to them first, be straight and avoid suprises later.

Arnold says "No Fees Will Be Waived, those on welfare need to buy their cigarettes and Nattie Light" Cha-ching

I like how in California if you want to make a registered car into a racecar and never operate it on the road, you have to pay a fee to not register the car.