by "Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
Published 05/20/2017 at 11:15
by "Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
Published 05/20/2017 at 11:15
Tags: ottointhestates
; oppositelock
; ottositelock
; hehe
STARS: 1
...and how much trouble is it to get the tags and title?
Just wondering for when I’ll have to look for my own car in a couple of weeks - is it worth it to get a car without tags and get that done? How expensive is the process and how long does it take?
Same question goes for the title. Oh, and smog? That I think is way too much trouble to be worth it, right?
Thanks Oppo
"My bird IS the word" (mybirdistheword)
05/20/2017 at 11:21, STARS: 5
Title or GTFO
"TheHondaBro" (wwaveform)
05/20/2017 at 11:23, STARS: 0
Car was stolen.
"facw" (facw)
05/20/2017 at 11:29, STARS: 6
You probably want that title. You can get a replacement title, but it’s shady not to have it, and there’s a real risk that you learn something bad about the car while dealing with hours of DMV bullshit trying to get it titled.
Expired tags means at least one of:
They can’t renew because they can’t or won’t spend the money
They can’t renew because they don’t actually own the car
They can’t renew because it won’t pass smog or other inspection
They can’t renew because they can’t or won’t insure it
All of those things are bad, just varying levels. If they won’t pay for the paperwork, it probably tells you something about how they feel about paying for scheduled maintenance. Smog may be a very expensive fix (at the very least, check the car for codes). Other inspection failures are less damning. If they don’t own it, that clearly makes buying it a very bad idea.
"E90M3" (e90m3)
05/20/2017 at 11:30, STARS: 0
GTFAC*
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
05/20/2017 at 11:30, STARS: 0
Depends on the state. I’m guessing CA, by the pic?
"Manwich - now Keto-Friendly" (manwich)
05/20/2017 at 11:33, STARS: 6
No title obviously means a Queen or a King hasn’t given it any royal blessings. Thus you’re not allowed to refer to it as Ser, Lord, Duke, Emir, Prince, etc.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_and_noble_ranks
And ‘tags expired’ obviously means there was military service, but that service is done now.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_tag
"Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies" (jordanwphillips)
05/20/2017 at 11:35, STARS: 0
No title is a massive red flag. A vehicle (unless below a certain year in certain states) with no title is unregisterable.
"DipodomysDeserti" (dipodomysdeserti)
05/20/2017 at 11:35, STARS: 1
I would not buy a car without a title. Most of the time their either stolen or a bank still has a lien on the car.
"My bird IS the word" (mybirdistheword)
05/20/2017 at 11:36, STARS: 0
LQTM
"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
05/20/2017 at 11:42, STARS: 0
If the ownership of the car is well and truly established, then it’s really not a problem. You go to the DMV -- not the one in Hayward because worst DMV anywhere on Planet Earth -- and fill out the requisite forms and write the requisite check(s) and the stuff comes in the mail. If you are buying from someone, then could be much more problematic. The fees for a replacement title, replacement plates, and so on, are found on the DMV website.
"Eric @ opposite-lock.com" (theyrerolling)
05/20/2017 at 11:50, STARS: 2
I wouldn’t touch a car with a missing title and I’d be reluctant to touch a car with expired tags. Smog is a little less absolute, but note that if the car is registered in any location in CA where smog checks are required it is illegal to sell a car that requires smog checks without providing a smog certificate acquired within the preceding 2 months.
If they can’t get these things in a row to sell a car, they’re far too shady to buy from.
The prices are crazy, but at least dealers will have all the paperwork in order. If you don’t know what to look for, it might be worth the peace of mind.
Considering you’re looking at such frightening options: What did your budget end up being? The Bay Area is ridiculously expensive for housing and cars are expensive there.
If you want a cheap workable car, SoCal is the only place I know where you can usually get decently reliable used cars in the $2-3k range. Some even under $2k...
It’s not the U.K. Where you can get running cars for like £200-500...
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
05/20/2017 at 12:08, STARS: 1
If you’re buying a car you’ll need to register it as yours anyway, so whether it currently has them can be irrelevant from a cost perspective. That said, it might matter WHY it doesn’t have them. Every state (and some cities/counties) is allowed to establish their own criteria for registration. If it’s not tagged because it won’t pass emissions or a safety inspection, it’s not worth it. If it’s somewhere those aren’t required then it might be fine. My Tercel isn’t currently tagged because of emissions.
And I’d stay away from anything that doesn’t have a clean title available. No title/liens/salvage title aren’t worth the hassle in your situation.
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
05/20/2017 at 12:12, STARS: 0
Also wanted to come back and tell you to check individual locations for registration costs before you solidify your plans! It’s stupid cheap to get tags for a car in Virginia (was $25 when I lived there but now I’m not sure), but you also need a safety inspection and your personal property tax on the vehicle is separate. On the flip side, it can cost hundreds of dollars in other states.
"sony1492" (sony1492)
05/20/2017 at 12:39, STARS: 1
Don’t buy unless there’s a title on hand.
For smog, if they don’t have one it can be because they don’t have the money to get it smogged or the car has a problem. In Cali they no longer do exhaust analysis(sniffer test) they just make sure the car has no codes, and that all monsters have been run. So if possible get the car hooked up to a scan tool and look and previous codes, they can give you a clue. Also if the lights on don’t clear the codes because then the car will have to run the moniters again(which can take forever. Basically if it’s newer than 95 and it has no smog but also no check engine light it should pass(but get a scan tool on it and see if it’s had a previous codes that are alarming, cat efficiency, misfire, 02 sensor, evap etc.)
Also I could be wrong and some parts of Cali may do a more thorough test.
"The Snowman" (the-snowman)
05/20/2017 at 13:27, STARS: 0
Depends on the state, CA is a nightmare. UT is cake.
"John Norris (AngryDrifter)" (angrydrifter)
05/20/2017 at 13:58, STARS: 1
Probably not a good idea if this is your first car and only car. When you are buying a project car / extra car and have time to get through the paper work and have time to talk to a few people in your state that have gone through it, and you can get the benefit of their experiences, then perhaps it’s time to get a little bolder. The process does vary from state to state. I’m guessing California is more bureaucratic than most.
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/20/2017 at 14:07, STARS: 1
Oh, I see. This is the only comment that made sense here, tnx
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/20/2017 at 14:16, STARS: 0
Thanks for the info, that seems to be the consensus, I’ll be sure to take your advice on that. I’ll even check the dealers.
Well the budget has thankfully grown a bit, so now I’m at around 1900 bucks when I get there. The safe plan is to have the 1000 dollars for food and other essentials until my first paycheck. We found a place on AirBnB for 700 per month which is a great price, in East Palo Alto, and it’s not a total shithole. The first month is already paid for.
The 900 will be for the car and necessary repairs. I know the idea that I can get a running and driving car/truck for that kind of money is very unpopular here on Oppo but I’ll just have to risk it. I’ve weighed my options and I think that I’ll be much more sorry to have never even tried. I can live without the money if it fails.
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/20/2017 at 14:17, STARS: 1
Sure, thank you for the tip. I’ll even consider paying a mechanic to take a look at it if the budget will allow and if I’m set on the car.
"NJAnon" (NJAnon)
05/20/2017 at 20:18, STARS: 0
What car is it?
with expired tags you could still get the car probably.
if there is no title its probably a little harder since theres going to be research there in tracking it down. DMV?
"Eric @ opposite-lock.com" (theyrerolling)
05/20/2017 at 20:20, STARS: 0
How long will you be in the US?
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/21/2017 at 05:30, STARS: 0
Working in Palo Alto until September (3 months), then we’re traveling across the states for a month. Hoping to see LA, the Grand Canyon and NY, and a bunch of smaller locations in between.
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/21/2017 at 05:40, STARS: 0
I dunno what car it’ll be yet. I have a tight budget so it’ll probably be a beater pickup or something. Thanks for the info!
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/21/2017 at 13:07, STARS: 0
Cool, thanks for the info. Do you know what the general cost is to transfer the car to my name? And what’s the process, I go to the DMV and fill out some documents or..?
"Eric @ opposite-lock.com" (theyrerolling)
05/21/2017 at 13:49, STARS: 0
Have you looked into long-term rental cars? It might be a better bet with less risk than buying a car.
"Otto-the-Croatian-'Whoops my Volvo is a sedan'" (otto-the-croatian)
05/21/2017 at 16:57, STARS: 1
I thought about it but I don’t really
need
a car, I can theoretically travel to work by bicycle, it’s 15 minutes away.
I’m getting the car because it’s something I’ve wanted for a long time, it’s sort of on my bucket list to buy a car in the states. Now I have this opportunity so I’ll take the plunge.
The absolutely perfect, ideal scenario is that if I get something that I like so much and earn so much money I’ll ship it back to Croatia.
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
05/21/2017 at 20:49, STARS: 1
Honestly I’m no help there - the US is a cluster of requirements and I haven’t done it myself in a decade. (I haven’t yet transferred the Tercel title and my other car was done by the dealer). Yes on DMV, but I’m not sure of the cost or on what you need to bring.
"bhtooefr" (bhtooefr)
05/22/2017 at 10:57, STARS: 1
As I understand, California’s a bit weird (and more like Europe) in that registration follows the car, not the owner. And, it also means that if the car’s sold, the buyer may be liable for unpaid registration or something like that. (But, the seller’s liable for making sure the car passes inspections to allow it to be registered there, AFAIK.)
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
05/22/2017 at 12:24, STARS: 0
Yeah, I’m not sure if he had clarified whether he’s actually starting his trip in California or if even that is still up in the air. Personally I’d fly somewhere cheaper and less regulated if buying a car was in the cards.