I just said "No Thanks" to a cheap MIata

This morning at breakfast, I was flipping through our local free weekly newspaper and spotted an ad for a 94 Miata, black and tan, 170k for $1000 or best offer. It was also less than three miles from my house.

As soon as my wife left for work, I made the call (Remember: Forgiveness is easier to ask for than permission) and arranged to meet the guy after lunch. He emphasized the part about "Best Offer".

On the phone, he said that his wife used it as a commuter car and that it ran great. He mentioned a small crease in one front fender, minor rust spots in front of each rear wheel, and a small tear in the top. None of this scared me away. I figured that a 94 with leather would have a 1.8, big brakes and a Torsen. At worst, I could easily flip the car for a profit. I spent the rest of the morning shuffling things around the large bay of my garage to get it into it's two-Miata configuration.

As I walked down his driveway, I immediately noticed the daisy wheels. Hmmm....Then I noticed that there was no passenger side airbag.

"Are you sure this is a 94?", I asked.

"That's what my wife said. Let's look at the registration...Well, I'll be dammed, it's a 93."

1.6, small brakes, no Torsen. Also, no rocker panels. Every corner of the car shows just enough damage to need replacement. Interior: shot, even the steering wheel. I asked how long he's owned it and he said seven years. I asked if he'd ever replaced the clutch or timing belt. "Nope."

Then he casually mentioned how he had bought it from a local body shop, one whose owner was arrested a few years ago for some title related shenanigans. Something about rebuilding cars with salvage titles and selling them with clean titles.

I thanked him for his time and walked away with cash in my pocket.

It was like the Perfect Storm of crappy Miatas.

I was thinking Locost donor, until you mentioned the possible title issues ...

Why would title problems be an issue for a locost donor?

When it comes time to register it, the DPS gets to check over paperwork - donor titles, receipts, engine numbers, whatever they want to look at. If they find something amiss on on a donor title, they're likely to grill you on everything. Also, it's easier to scrap the hulk if you have a legit title.

I'd rather not have my name associated with suspect titles.

slantvaliant wrote: When it comes time to register it, the DPS gets to check over paperwork - donor titles, reciepts, engine numbers, whatever they want to look at. If they find something amiss on on a donor title, they're likely to grill you on everything. Also, it's easier to scrap the hulk if you have a legit title. I'd rather not have my name associated with suspect titles.

I find clearing a title to be a challenge. Of course I do legal stuff for a living and live half a country away from California where they always want somebody to pay fees for the time that the car sits unregestered and I check the hot car list before I drag anything home.

Be nice to the lady at the Motor Vehicle Department and she will be nice to you.

Snowdoggie wrote: and live half a country away from California where they always want somebody to pay fees for the time that the car sits unregestered

California seriously requires that?

Chalk that up as reason #938 that I am glad not to live in Cali.

m4ff3w wrote:

Snowdoggie wrote: and live half a country away from California where they always want somebody to pay fees for the time that the car sits unregestered

California seriously requires that? Chalk that up as reason #938 that I am glad not to live in Cali.

I am not up on the current law, but when I moved from California to Colorado with my MGB, the California DMV kept sending me nasty letters demanding that I register the car in California and pay for the length of time it was not registered, explaining that if I did not do this the car would never again be legal to register in California. This was AFTER I exchanged my California license for a Colorado one and decided not to register the MGB in Colorado because it was no longer running and I had another car. I kept getting these letters at my Colorado address even after I sold the car to somebody else in Denver and was legally no longer a resident of California or the owner of the car.

When my parents moved from California to Arkansas they had to continue to pay taxes to California because they were living off of pensions from jobs they worked while living in California. They continued to pay California State taxes up until about the mid 90's when the law changed even though they did not live in California or even visit there during that time period. The law changed because of a constitutional issue, i.e. they could not vote in California State elections so they were being taxed and not represented.

California likes to keep their hands in your pocket, even after you move out.

When we pay our state income taxes we are supposed to report all internet purchases we made that were shipped in from out of state, so we can pay a sales tax on it too.

When I bought my MGB GT from California, I had to go through a bunch of hoops to avoid paying registration fees for the 6 years it had been stored in CA. The problem was that the PO had never filed a form of "non-operation" and officially taken it off the road. I was able to track him down, get a sworn statement from him, provide the address where it had been stored and also prove that the car had been transported out of California on a trailer with all four wheels off the ground. Had it left California on a tow dolly, I would be on the hook for 6 years of registration.

Even with all this documentation, nobody at the California DMV thought I was going to get away with it. Someone was feeling lazy the day my paperwork arrived, though, and I got my title.

Note to self: Do not ever buy, sell, purchase, drive, look at, think about, consider, contemplate or otherwise want a vehicle from California.

Keith wrote: When I bought my MGB GT from California, I had to go through a bunch of hoops to avoid paying registration fees for the 6 years it had been stored in CA. The problem was that the PO had never filed a form of "non-operation" and officially taken it off the road. I was able to track him down, get a sworn statement from him, provide the address where it had been stored and also prove that the car had been transported out of California on a trailer with all four wheels off the ground. Had it left California on a tow dolly, I would be on the hook for 6 years of registration. Even with all this documentation, nobody at the California DMV thought I was going to get away with it. Someone was feeling lazy the day my paperwork arrived, though, and I got my title.

I think I would have just taken it home and applied for a bonded title. I doubt if anybody in the Texas Department of Transportation would really give a hang whether California ever gets paid.

California DMV has gotten considerably better in recent years. Making the DMV experience better has been one the governators pet projects. It is much easier to get to transactions taken care of with a minimum of fuss and bother. That said, the poor souls who work there have to enforce some really inane and complicated provisions of the motor vehicle code. That we can blame on our legislators.

Before people get too scared off from buying California cars, Keith's experience was related to a rule that if you are not going to be re-registering a car to drive on the street, you need to pay a $15 per year "Planned Non-Operation" charge. If you don't pay it, then when a person does want to register it and drive it, her or she has to pay the full registration fees for every year that it was off the road and the "planned non-op fee" didn't get paid. If you buy a car that has been registered all along or the PO was diligent about paying the $15 per year, then there is no issue.

Type Q wrote: California DMV has gotten considerably better in recent years. Making the DMV experience better has been one the governators pet projects. It is much easier to get to transactions taken care of with a minimum of fuss and bother. That said, the poor souls who work there have to enforce some really inane and complicated provisions of the motor vehicle code. That we can blame on our legislators. Before people get too scared off from buying California cars, Keith's experience was related to a rule that if you are not going to be re-registering a car to drive on the street, you need to pay a $15 per year "Planned Non-Operation" charge. If you don't pay it, then when a person does want to register it and drive it, her or she has to pay the full registration fees for every year that it was off the road and the "planned non-op fee" didn't get paid. If you buy a car that has been registered all along or the PO was diligent about paying the $15 per year, then there is no issue.

I guess I still owe that for the MGB I sold many years ago.

Well, not to threadjack too much, but a few years ago, Ca ran a campaign to help find all the "criminals" who were registering their cars out of state, but living in state (can't imagine why someone would do that ;-). The idea was for you to write down out of state tag numbers around your neighborhood or on your way to work and then report them via a website when you got to work. Big Brother anyone? The DMV would then use that info to somehow track them down and send them a bill. I have no idea if it actually worked (I'm guessing not). With San Diego being such a military town, half the tags were out of state.

Type Q wrote: California DMV has gotten considerably better in recent years. Making the DMV experience better has been one the governators pet projects. It is much easier to get to transactions taken care of with a minimum of fuss and bother. That said, the poor souls who work there have to enforce some really inane and complicated provisions of the motor vehicle code. That we can blame on our legislators. Before people get too scared off from buying California cars, Keith's experience was related to a rule that if you are not going to be re-registering a car to drive on the street, you need to pay a $15 per year "Planned Non-Operation" charge. If you don't pay it, then when a person does want to register it and drive it, her or she has to pay the full registration fees for every year that it was off the road and the "planned non-op fee" didn't get paid. If you buy a car that has been registered all along or the PO was diligent about paying the $15 per year, then there is no issue.

That's basically how I ended up with my Opel GT. Dad bought the car from a family friend to teach my youngest sister about engines, she rebuilt the engine in it. He kept the car in the corner of the garage for years, never registering it and didn't even know about the non-op certificate. Years later when he thought about getting rid of it he found out about the non-op certificate and since the car had been off the road for 10 years and the smog laws at the time (early/mid 90's) and didn't yet qualify as an antique it would have been an expensive process to just make the car legal to sell, more than the car was worth at the time. So he asked me if I wanted it, sent me the paperwork and I went out and got license plates, registration and title in TN, where I was living at the time and then went out to CA and hauled it back. it is now currently tagged for AL, all legal and insured.

Clay wrote: Well, not to threadjack too much, but a few years ago, Ca ran a campaign to help find all the "criminals" who were registering their cars out of state, but living in state (can't imagine why someone would do that ;-).

I've heard of Philadelphia doing something similar, although geared towards insurance. People would register their car in Southern NJ, but live and work in Philly, paying considerably less for car insurance.

Feedyurhed wrote: Note to self: Do not ever buy, sell, purchase, drive, look at, think about, consider, contemplate or otherwise want a vehicle from California.

I live in CA and after growing up on the East Coast and living the Midwest for two years I can tell you I would rather fix a CA registration issue than than body rot and rust that plagues most of the US. Once you see the number of older rust free cars being driven on a daily basis out here you will understand the value of a CA car. Just make sure the CA seller has the paperwork in order before buying. This place is just littered with E30s and 240/260/280zs.