(CALIFORNIA) Buying used car legalities help (No plates, Title jumping, late reg or non op)

Question

Hello, I check listings for cars everyday and I am pretty familiar with the business, like title in name, title in hand, current registration, yada yada. That is what you want when buying a used car.

Low and behold I found a C32 for an interesting price but the seller says the car is missing plates and he doesn't have the title, but he mentioned he needed to get some paperwork from the previous owner, so I know he is obviously jumping the title. I already ran the VIN, (which is what he gave me in a message, so it could be for a different car of course) and it didn't say it was salvaged.

If I buy this car with just a bill of sale as paperwork, what kind of legal troubles would I get into? Obviously the biggest problem is the title jump, but what would happen if I bought the car that way?

Main questions,

What happens when you buy a car with a jumped title (with title in hand and not in hand)
What happens when you buy a car without plates
How to calculate late fees on a car you are interested in buying
(a little bit off topic from above) How to drive home a car you just bought but its on PNO (do you have to go straight to the DMV?

I don't think at this point I would buy the car, maybe only just for the parts ( I have another W203) and then just send it off to a scrapyard, which would be very heartbreaking to see for an AMG car to be eaten away just because of morons who don't complete basic legal processes.

Any help is appreciated, thank you.

Mod_Man · Accepted Answer

It is a total hassle. No plates isn't so bad as you can get a Permit to Transport plate from your DMV which is good for 30 days...it may be called something different in your state. Basically, it makes it legal for you to go to the DMV. Once at the DMV, you get your new metal plates handed to you and they mail you a title.

California may be different, but here in Texas you absolutely HAVE to have a title or a duplicate of the title to register a vehicle. You can not register a vehicle on Bill of Sale alone. You can go the Bonded Title route, but I don't recommend it as it is an extreme pain in the neck and, if at any time, someone shows up with the title and claims the car is their's within a year from you applying for a bonded title, you immediately forfeit all ownership rights to the vehicle, including any parts added, repairs made, etc. They will, literally, repo the car and return it to the person holding the title. That's how it works here in Texas.

I would advise against getting involved in anything that has title issues. Not worth it at any price.

I summarized a lot as the legal speak for these things would take me AGES to type out.

MrBob · Answer

My brother bought a Toyota Prieus on a day the dealer got raided and was shut down by the state. The sale was not documented. It was a big hassle as he traded in his old car and it could not be recovered. He had to get an attorney and he could not drive the car for a month. Finally a judge ordered Toyota to acknowledge the sale so he could get it registered. Toyota claimed the car was on consignment and they never got paid so he was not entitled to a title. Based on the bank verifying the cashiers check was cashed and Toyota had licensed the dealer to sell it's vehicles it was up to Toyota to recover the funds not my brother. Toyota was eventually ordered to reimburse my brother for the car he had to rent, all the fees and give him a clear title but it took months. If you don't have a title your screwed. You can't register or insure a car without one. Normally the dealer takes care of all that stuff.

Doc · Answer

I would never buy any vehicle unless the clear title and the cash changed hands at the same time.  Period!

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[Solved] (CALIFORNIA) Buying used car legalities help (No plates, Title jumping, late reg or non op)