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Aug. 21, 2009 12:38 a.m. neon4891 SuperDork

I'm looking for practicle advice on pulling off a "Go some place with less rust,buy a clean(er) car and drive back" My main concern would be based around registration and such.

How would I get a, lets say Miata, liscenced(road legal/whatever you want to call it) down south for the drive back to NY? Get it liscenced where I buy it and just run my FL/GA/??? plates till I get it NY registered? This seams like I would be paying to put it on the road twice, as NY wants this done in something like 90 days, IIRC.

Other option would be to make the payment online and have the title mailed to me, then I would do all the paperwork here and fly out with the plates to pick it up. Down side of this would be buying site-unseen.

Any tips on bringing clean iron back to the rust belt? Aside fron renting a truck and dolley and towing it back.
Aug. 21, 2009 12:57 a.m. mtn Dork

I'm not sure how it would work for a private owner, but from a dealer it is no problem at all--You just need temporary plates. The dealer should supply these. I'm not sure what is needed to get these for a private sale, though...
Aug. 21, 2009 2:06 a.m. EvanB Reader

In Ohio you can take the title with your name on it to the DMV and get temp tags for $10. I'm not sure if it is like that everywhere but if it is the case in the state that you buy the car you can just go to a DMV after you buy the car and get tags for the drive up.
Aug. 21, 2009 5:28 a.m. ddavidv SuperDork

PA is a PITA. They won't give you a tag without a title and a VIN etching, and I've never been able to get a temp tag from another state without being a resident there. I just get insurance on the thing and use a tag from another car registered to me to get it back home until I can get a home state tag on it. It's never been a problem.
Aug. 21, 2009 6:23 a.m. 914Driver SuperDork

Once you make the deal, the seller sends you a Title, you go to NYS DMV and register the car. Fly down with plates and drive it back.

I met someone at the $2004 Challenge that was selling a 1966 Datsun Roadster. Sight unseen I bought it and paid $700 to have it shipped from San Antonio Texas to Albany, NY. Money well spent! I would have driven for five or six days and spend that anyway on gas, food and lodging while driving a 40+ year old car of unknown integrity.

Dan
Aug. 21, 2009 6:41 a.m. John Brown SuperDork

-OR-

Pay someone in Metro Atlanta to assist you with the deal, maybe a few cases of beer and a quality steak dinner, and they might even be able to escort you from the airport in to the car.
Aug. 21, 2009 7:13 a.m. Hocrest New Reader

Temp Registration varies by state. I've gotten temp tags to drive cars back to PA from VT, NY and NJ. Check out the DMV website in the state your shopping to check out the procedure for out of state temp tags.
Aug. 21, 2009 7:29 a.m. jrw1621 HalfDork

It varies by state but here is a good reference website: http://www.dmv.org/
Aug. 21, 2009 7:35 a.m. spitfirebill Dork

Hocrest wrote:

Temp Registration varies by state. I've gotten temp tags to drive cars back to PA from VT, NY and NJ. Check out the DMV website in the state your shopping to check out the procedure for out of state temp tags.

This true.

You can also have problems with the states you drive through. That's if you get stopped of course.
Aug. 21, 2009 7:36 a.m. Rusnak_322 Reader

I would (and have) just drove with no plates. I had the title signed over to me and a hand written bill of sale. I never got pulled over and my insurance agent said that I was covered on a new car/bike for I think 10 days automatically when I buy a new car/motorcycle.
Aug. 21, 2009 8:57 a.m. P71 SuperDork

+1 on John Brown's idea.

The other is that in some states the plates stay on the car (Washington and Oregon come to mind) so you don't have to worry about it.

I have also pulled Rusnak's idea and driven on no plates, being extra careful to have the Bill of Sale, Title, and Insurance paperwork to prove I was just transporting the car immediately after purchase. I got pulled over once doing that and the officer said good job and let me get on my way.
Aug. 21, 2009 9:42 a.m. dyintorace Dork

Rusnak_322 wrote:

I would (and have) just drove with no plates. I had the title signed over to me and a hand written bill of sale. I never got pulled over and my insurance agent said that I was covered on a new car/bike for I think 10 days automatically when I buy a new car/motorcycle.

I tried that when I bought my e30 M3. I was living in Charlotte, NC and bought it in Asheville, NC. I didn't make it 20 miles before getting pulled over for no tag. I had all of the documentation, etc, but to no avail. I eventually had to call the PO, ask him to come meet me and put his old plate back on the car. I was able to get it home after that.
Aug. 21, 2009 9:44 a.m. Autolex Reader

wow, you guys made a thread with my question and answered the question before I knew I needed to ask the question! Good Job to ALL!

(bought that 1996 BMW 325 Ti and my buddy is driving it to me right now... with title, bill of sale, and insurance).
Aug. 21, 2009 12:11 p.m. neon4891 SuperDork

Thanks for the answers. The Miata market near me is is almost non-existant, and what you do find will be at least $4K. So it seams like the easiest way is to go thru a dealer and have them give me temp tags.
Aug. 21, 2009 12:21 p.m. John Brown SuperDork

No the easiest way is to pay some Hong for using their pimpin lot for car storage for a weekend while you come get your new booty...
Aug. 21, 2009 12:39 p.m. Junkyard_Dog Reader

When I sell a car I usually let the new owner drive it home on my plate and mail it back. I'll photocopy all the sale documents ,including his I.D., in case he abandons it somewhere just in case. That way its got my registration and insurance for the trip home just in case something happens and it comes back on me. Once the buyer confirms he made it home I'll cancel the insurance and remind them to mail back the plate. Works fine 99% of the time and makes for a much easier sale. Ask if the seller will go along with this. If they will it saves you a TON of paperwork and hassle.
Aug. 21, 2009 3:09 p.m. billy3esq Dork

If you're buying from Texas, the seller can either leave the old plates on the car, or, if the seller insists on keeping them, have him get you a transit permit.

I once bought a car from another state and the owner wanted to keep his plates. I explained Texas didn't have non-dealer temp tags and that if he wanted to sell me the car he would have to let me drive it home on his plates and I'd mail them back. Once I got home, they were no good to me anyhow.

Junkyard Dog, I don't know what state you're in, but the odds are extremely high that your insurance company will like you a lot better if you cancel the insurance when the buyer takes possession. He can get his own insurance at that point.
Aug. 21, 2009 4:12 p.m. minimac Dork

In N.Y. you can get a temp from DMV for about $25 . Have to have it insured, but as long as it is being brought into the state, you can get a temp. Do NOTattempt to register a car with a rebuilt salvage title in N.Y. It is a royal P.I.T.A. and if everything is in order, takes at least 3 months to get the D.O.T. inspection, even if it was done and registered in another state.
Aug. 21, 2009 4:41 p.m. Junkyard_Dog Reader

billy3esq wrote:

Junkyard Dog, I don't know what state you're in, but the odds are extremely high that your insurance company will like you a lot better if you cancel the insurance when the buyer takes possession. He can get his own insurance at that point.

No doubt. But even with copies of the sale documents its in MY name until the new owner goes to the DMV. Most of my buyers bring their new insurance card, but if they don't its worth it to me to keep mine valid. Technically until the DMV gets involved the car is in my name and the buyer is borrowing it to drive home. My nightmare scenario is getting a call from the cops saying MY car was driven into a busload of nuns and the documents burned up with it. I'd rather risk the insurance company's possible wrath than be sued by whoever is injured because MY car was uninsured.
Aug. 22, 2009 9:29 a.m. billy3esq Dork

Junkyard_Dog wrote:

Technically until the DMV gets involved the car is in my name and the buyer is borrowing it to drive home. My nightmare scenario is getting a call from the cops saying MY car was driven into a busload of nuns and the documents burned up with it. I'd rather risk the insurance company's possible wrath than be sued by whoever is injured because MY car was uninsured.

I know I'm not going to change your mind, but that's not how it works. Once you execute the bill of sale, it's the buyer's car. Just because the DMV will send you parking tickets doesn't mean its your car. If you don't believe me, go take "your" car back from the buyer who "borrowed it to drive it home" and see how quickly you wind up in the pokey for car theft.

You do need to keep a copy of the bill of sale (and, if you're paranoid, the endorsed title) to prove that you sold the car. Texas also provides a mechanism to notify the state that you have sold the car in case the buyer never transfers title. I assume other states do the same.

If you're still insuring what is now the buyer's car when it hits the busload of nuns you WILL get sued, and that's not going to make you or your insurer very happy.

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