A friend is trying to buy a 20+ year old car from connecticut which no longer issues titles for cars that age. Will he be able to register this in NJ? What type of documentation is typically needed for this. My google-fu failed for this one. Or are these no-title CT cars not worth the hassle?
In Illinois which issues titles on vehicles back to 1896 they have a big book that they reference for what constitutes ownership in all 50 states. To bring a car without title from Maine it had to have current or expired registration in the Bill of Sale signatories name.
No guarantees on how NJ works with CT but that is a reasonable type of documentation to assume to establish that the CT owner is in fact the current legal owner of the vehicle and that the BOS has transferred that ownership to you.
Feel free to ignore my information if someone with experience in CT/NJ chimes in.
I've gone through something like this last year: imported a Japanese market Lancer Evo II GSR from Canada. It was a 1993 model, but didn't have a modern 17-digit VIN (just a chassis plate) and the official model name was "CE9A" ... so the words lancer, evolution, etc. don't appear anywhere on the title. It totally flummoxed the DMV folks.
I had to go through the "Special Title Unit" in Trenton. You have to call them and explain the situation. Then follow their instructions. They do everything by mail and it takes a couple of weeks, but they'll be able to sort it out.
Can you get a title from the owner in CT? Just because it doesn't have to be titled doesn't mean the owner doesn't have one. I'm in CT and I believe the no title after 20 years is a relatively new thing, so the owner may have one, especially if they've owned the vehicle for a while and it's paid off.
Here in MA, all you need from a no-title-required state is the last previous registration, a bill of sale, and the right forms stamped by your insurance company. When I bought my Power Wagon from Maine, the previous owner provided the previous registration and a bill of sale, and I got the right form stamped by my insurance agent. The MA RMV was good with that. They ran the VIN through the database to make sure it wasn't stolen, and once it cleared, I was good. Applied for a new title on the spot, registered it, and it showed up a week later in the mail. And MA is notorious for being difficult with this stuff!
Most states do know what other states do, so it shouldn't be an issue. Here in Georgia, if you have an older vehicle, you can get a title for a bit more money. They, however, will not go back and issue a title to you later on if you choose to not get the title when you purchase it.
Was many moons ago but when I lived in NJ I got an old chevy from a no title state and just required a bill of sale (as that was the requirement in the state it was leaving). I think most of this is pretty coordinated now and a quick (ha!) call to the DMV may be the way to know for sure.
BTDT a few times when I live in NJ, Bill of sale and whatever passes for the identification document (usually the registration card) If in doubt call NJDMV before proceeding.
81cpcamaro said:Most states do know what other states do, so it shouldn't be an issue.
This. As long as the car is legally owned in CT it should be okay to register in NJ. He can contact the DMV to confirm.
I imagine it's all computerized today but the one time I went through buying a car from another state, my DMV had a big book that described the procedure they needed to go through for transferring cars from any other state.
I'd get a bill of sale from CT and a copy of the registration from that owner.
In CT, they want either a title or a bill of sale with a chain of ownership to the last registered owner in whatever state that was in.
Here's our wonderful DMV site... https://portal.ct.gov/dmv/vehicle-services/vehicle-title-service/sell-vehicle-no-title?language=en_US
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