Rule No. 1 of owning an old car in California, NEVER go to the DMV. Join the
Auto Club and do all your registrations and transfers there. They hire
intelligent people and will patiently straighten out any mess you have. Ask me
how I know!
As to having your car visually inspected before registering. This is to make
sure the paperwork matches the VIN's and ID plates. This can also be done by
the Auto Club or by any sworn Police Officer. I had my TR2 and TR3 verified by
my local PD at my home. The TR3 was (and still is) completely disassembled. It
is just a tub on the chassis. The commission plate was still in place. I had no
problems even though the VIN on the pink was the engine no. (that's what they
used to do in Ca.) and of course it was different than the commission number on
the plate. Not a problem. I got the verification forms from the Auto Club. If
you happen to know someone who is a cop, you've got it made!
In Ca. if a car goes unregistered for 4 years, the record is deleted from the
computer unless you file a permit of non-operation form and pay a fee (I think
$10).
For the fellow with the 75 Spitfire with the header, you should be able to have
it verified to get the pink. The pink is a certificate of ownership only. They
should only be checking to see that the numbers match the paperwork. You will
have to get a current smog cert. in order to get it registered and tagged for
use on the street. Thats where they'll get you for the header. Hit the junk
yards and find a used stock manifold and fit it for the smog test (did a 75
Spit have a cat con?).
As for the "rat on your neighbor with the smoking car program", you might want
to make a purely political statement. Cruise by the local DMV and note the
plate numbers of the cars parked in the spots reserved for say, the office
manager, and call that in as a smoker, anonymously of course.
Cheers,
Kurt Oblinger
|