Here's the link to the DMV's page "What You Need to Know Before Buying a Vehicle from Out-of-State."
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures...cts/ffvr29.htm
"California law considers any vehicle with less than 7,500 miles on the odometer when acquired by a California resident or business to be a new vehicle. This holds true whether or not the vehicle has been registered in another state. If you acquire a new vehicle from another state, you may not subsequently drive it to accumulate over 7,500 miles to circumvent the law. DMV cannot accept an application to register the vehicle, and you cannot register or operate the vehicle in California."
Unfortunately, this isn't documented anywhere on the DMV's SPCN page.
My USPS delivery guy bought a motorcycle out of state and ran into this issue.
Gunner - You're best bet might be to: 1. Drive the car like hell to get the mileage up. 2. Ask ERA and the party who did the install to provide you with separate receipts for the car and engine/trans/install.