Do you DD a car with historic plates? Get in here!

"offroadkarter" (04RauderDTR) 12/27/2013 at 14:19 • Filed to: None

1

41

As some of you may or may not know, I'm going to be buying a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! to drive over the winter while my car is locked away. If I don't immediately regret buying this rolling illegal immigrant, I might keep it even longer.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

So pretty much, I want to register this car as a historic so I will have 3 year registrations (instead of 1 year), and no inspections.

Currently the car is registered in Maryland as a historic car. My friend who owns it has registered everything he can as a historic, from the e23, to his 928, countless F bodies, even his 88 K1500 which was nothing more than a junk hauler.

The laws for both NJ (where I reside) and MD state that historic cars or trucks aren't for primary transportation. My question is, how would anyone who wants to question this know? Unless they watch where you go every day, historic cars have no mileage limitations unlike cars registered as "collector" cars. I figure since I HOPE I can pick up a S60R this year (arguing for 4 car spaces is going to be hard) I won't need to DD it for that long, and I still have my truck to drive this winter when the going gets rough.

Does anyone here DD a car with historic plates? Ever catch any crap for it?

Also, does anyone think it'd be worth the extra hassle to get personalized historic plates? I have personalized plates on my truck which I ordered online. To get historic plates I have to go to a few specific MVC's, apparently I can't just go to the one closest to me. To get personalized historic plates, I can only mail in my application to the state capitol.

If you have any good ideas for a personalized plate for a 1985 bmw 745i turbo, leave it in the comments.

I also hope I don't get crap for the car having BMW type 118's on the car. If the MVC wants to argue that the car has been altered to far from stock I'll tell them it came from the factory with 15.5" wheels that you really can't get tires for anymore. I dont think my friend has the 14" wheels with tires anymore so I can't put those on.

NJ MVC Special Vehicles Plates

With-a-G is back to not having anything written after his username > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:23

1

I'm just under two years away from qualifying for historic plates on my Miata. You bet I'm gonna continue to DD it with those.

505Turbeaux > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:23

1

up here in Maine it is like a joke. You see em on the rustiest 86 Yota pickups you have ever seen. They make you sign an affidavit saying it isnt your primary whip, you need to have one regular plated car on record, and they say 6K miles a year max. That's ok they never check, and if they do the odo doesn't work anyhow. I DD them all the time in the summer. What are you going to tell me my Peugeots or Alfas aren't antiques??? No inspection required. Down the road you go! Never gotten yanked for it.

I even drove my Alfa to C and C in CT on Antique plates. No issue.

offroadkarter > With-a-G is back to not having anything written after his username 12/27/2013 at 14:24

0

I won't tell if you won't tell

offroadkarter > 505Turbeaux 12/27/2013 at 14:25

0

My 96 bronco is plated as a normal vehicle, so I can argue that if anyone ever tries to give me shit for it. They'll be on the same insurance plan

505Turbeaux > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:27

0

It is a bit shocking to me the cars that fall under our 25 year or more requirement. In CT it is 20 yrs and up.

Feeling hella old when I saw a freaking Cressida wagon the other day tagged antique

190e30-Now with COSWORTH > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:27

0

DD of a historic-plated car in CT here. I get more questions about it than I expected...how old does the car have to be, what are the benefits, etc.

No one really cares, as far as I can tell.

Who needs sway bars anyway > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:28

1

My brother just bought this Bad Larry too use as a DD and I'm buying a 63 Falcon in the spring when I get my tax return. The pickup is perfect for my Bro because he doesn't have to drive too much and loves the style and utility, plus for a 40yo Pickup its gets pretty good gas mileage (15-20 with the ford 302). I am buying the falcon because I don't care much for new cars, can't afford one anyways and would rather drive a giant stiletto to work than a Economy car. I figure with the Falcon I'll get between 25-35 mpg's, Great style, Something that's fun to drive and Ill be able to spit on the damn thing to fix it.

rabbitman > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:28

0

This is done a lot everywhere. I think it depends more on how much you see the same local cops and if he likes you or not.

Party-vi > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:29

1

The MVC isn't going to car about wheels on the car, and from what I can tell there is no system in place to verify your yearly mileage. I would be concerned about the insurance side of things - check with your carrier and ask if you can still drive a historic vehicle regularly. As I understand it they usually have you state it's only for recreational purposes (like weed, I guess) and never to work.

Aaron James > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:30

1

That's your primary right there, I wouldn't worry about it at all.

With-a-G is back to not having anything written after his username > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:31

0

NOBNGLB

"no Bangle B"

offroadkarter > 505Turbeaux 12/27/2013 at 14:32

0

In NJ, if you want to register the car as a collector car, its 20 years or newer with a 3000 mile limitation, and thats on regular plates. You also need collectors insurance on top of that.

offroadkarter > Party-vi 12/27/2013 at 14:33

0

The MVC requires you to send pictures of the car in, and if they deem it to altered from stock, they'll tell you to get bent. Maryland isn't like this, but New Jersey is.

Ilike_cougars > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:34

0

Dont be an BMW Asshat! Park the car right please, we BMW owners take a lot of crap as it is,.

offroadkarter > Ilike_cougars 12/27/2013 at 14:35

0

I didn't do this, my friend who works for the Federal Patent Office did that, and he said just about everyone at the office parks like that.

for proof, here is his 2004 taurus

DatASSun > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:37

1

Heres my Daily .. works great and its 37 years old ..

offroadkarter > Who needs sway bars anyway 12/27/2013 at 14:38

0

thats a good looking dentside, I have a friend putting a 6bt + ZF5 5spd into one of his 76 highboys

vdub_nut: scooter snob > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:38

0

Did they seriously come with 15.5 inch wheels?

DatASSun > Who needs sway bars anyway 12/27/2013 at 14:39

0

I spit on my old datsun regularly then she runs fine .. just like a pornstar from the 70's sometimes she just needs to be slapped around a little bit

offroadkarter > vdub_nut: scooter snob 12/27/2013 at 14:40

0

Yeah it came with TRX wheels stock, they are long gone though. The wheels were ditched when the car was imported, when my friend got it, it had 14" BMW bottlecaps on it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelin_…

Aaron James > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:40

0

A quick note here that may avoid headache or heartbreak later, I would call or visit the NJ MV place with the Vin number to make sure it can be registered, also check it with your insurance company. nonconforming vins can be difficult (or not depending) to get insured. I only suggest this because every state is so different with requirements.

Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:41

0

I DD my 1971 BMW 2002 in MD. Now, I am a college student so I am not on the roads all that much, besides the summer. But, to try and further get away with having historic plates, I bought a nice license plate frame that perfectly covers the word historic. As for the front plate, I removed it and will be buying a Euro plate at some point. In MD a new law was passed that if your car wasn't made with accommodations for the front plate it isn't required. I will simply say that the holes drilled in the bumper were Euro spec only. I have had cops wave and give thumbs up to me. I really doubt your average cop is looking for the historic plates.

I know the one exception in MD is if you are taking your car to be worked on. So, my mechanic gave me his card and said to call if I was every pulled over and he would say that I have an appointment and I was late. I am sure this exists in NJ as well. Overall, having historic plates isn't all that restricting in my opinion.

vdub_nut: scooter snob > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:41

0

Literally just wandered onto that page.

Damn germans...

505Turbeaux > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:42

0

I run it anyways because my liability insurance co didnt want to do an agreed value. Valued the 505 Turbo S wagon at $1200 bucks replacement value. Um I dont think so

offroadkarter > 505Turbeaux 12/27/2013 at 14:44

0

well this car isn't really worth dick so if something happens to it I'll just part it out and scrap the rest

offroadkarter > vdub_nut: scooter snob 12/27/2013 at 14:44

0

hey, the italians did it to lol

you can still buy TRX tires but I don't know anyone who would, maybe on a ferrari but not on a e23

Bullitt417 > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:46

0

Primary use on a historic vehicle wont be an issue until you get into an accident and the insurance company notices you put 8,000 miles on in the last 6 months. Most historic/ classic insurance means their is a mileage limit. I'm not sure how the registrations work though.

offroadkarter > Chuck 2(O=[][]=O)2 12/27/2013 at 14:46

1

Shit, I wish NJ had a law about no front plates like that. I haven't had a front plate on my bronco in 2 years (it broke off) and have never caught crap about it, so I'll wing it with the BMW. I actually have a circa 1982-94 Munich BMW Manufacturers plate that I'm going to put on the front so it looks period correct.

offroadkarter > Bullitt417 12/27/2013 at 14:49

0

note to self - don't crash

the insurance should be as any old regular car, I mean I can't register the car until it is insured.

505Turbeaux > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:49

0

I pay very little extra to make sure I can hit ebay if the car gets messed up and find another...

offroadkarter > Aaron James 12/27/2013 at 14:50

0

I have seen other 745i's registered in NJ so I'm lead to believe its entirely possible to get done

Party-vi > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:51

0

Hopefully the person looking at the car isn't a BMW expert haha - honestly if the wheels have BMW logos they would be hard pressed to tell you "sir those aren't the right wheels". What are the options for registering as a street rod? That's an option here.

offroadkarter > Party-vi 12/27/2013 at 14:53

1

Street rods have to be..... well, I'd have to take the hood off and put a 350SBC with zoomies on it to even have a shot in hell.

I don't think anyone at the MVC is an expert on anything, and that could be both good and bad. When I took my marauder in for inspection, the tech pointed at the supercharger and said "Is that the engine?"

"Uh... yeah?"

Takuro Spirit > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 14:59

0

Here in WI if you register with "collector" plates, you cannot drive your car JAN-MAR

Kinda defeats the purpose of DD'ing a classic, but I guess that's what normal plates are for.

The fee differences are nominal, from what I remember seeing.

Aaron James > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 15:02

0

There's always a way but it's nice to know what you are getting into as far as the registration and insurance process before hand. It might go smooth as butter (hopefully) or be a real hassle. I'd want to know what to expect before I lay down the cash. There was a guy on here a while back that bought a Humvee with a nonconforming VIN and his insurance refused it and other companies wanted ridiculous amounts of money to cover it. He eventually was steered in the right direction and got it covered for a reasonable amount. It's easier to get your ducks in a row before hand, it just takes a few phone calls.

offroadkarter > Aaron James 12/27/2013 at 15:49

1

valid point, i should at least make sure my insurance company will accept it

offroadkarter > Takuro Spirit 12/27/2013 at 15:50

0

Wow I'm real glad ours isn't setup like that. I guess they figure your "classic" car will be off the road for salt

Paul, Man of Mustangs > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 15:59

1

I have a Washington Collector Vehicle plate on my Mustang. I think the limitation is once a week, but I think the only way they can enforce it is to pull me over twice in the same week. I am a more responsible driver than that, so that just doesn't happen. I've had the plates for pretty much the entirety of the 10 years I've had the car, and I haven't had any issues.

Zoom > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 18:40

0

Dealer plates have roughly the same enforcement implications.

Without looking, in Michigan the law states 'For demonstration purposes only' and 'no longer than xx hours straight on any one vehicle'.

I had a rough time with this when I was a kid because I had an old beater Omni on a dealer plate, and the local park hangout was frequented with the same patrol. He was an asshole.

I have three or four cars that will have/have just passed over the magic quarter century mark.

Just remember a few things. If your car looks like you DD it, you do. Personalizing things, parking stickers, clothes, coffee cups, radar detectors even, anything else not used during a exhibition type car show? You DD this car.

And stay away from regular local cop patrols. ))

AM3R > offroadkarter 12/27/2013 at 19:54

0

A friend of mine DD a Jeep CJ-5 through high school in Virginia. Limited mileage but his odometer was broken so who cares.

CalzoneGolem > offroadkarter 01/07/2014 at 09:34

0

Just disable the odometer. How would insurance even know then?