AZ emissions testing for Cobras

[C5GTO]

Originally Posted by moore_rb

If you do a simple, $12 title document transfer from CA to Az, then yes, the model year on the California title will transfer over (because they are simply copying the information from one legal document over to another), and you will be subject to the same emissions laws for that model year in Arizona (Az emission laws vary county by county). However, there will be no inspections, and minimal hassle if you perform the simple document transfer.

If you want to change/revise the model year on the car's title, then your other legal option is to completely re-title the car in Arizona as a specialty/custom vehicle, after you have completely re-located here.

This process requires some very specific actions that you must take, and some specific legal language that you must use, and these are trade-secrets that I'm not going to divulge in a public forum. PM me if you need more details.

The process is time consuming (you will need to present the car for inspection), legal (you will have to write, sign and notarize a legal affidavit expressing your claim of ownership to the car) and expensive (you have to purchase a surety bond which indemnifies the state of Arizona from any liability for the car's new title); but once you do the bonded title process, Arizona will attach a new VIN tag to the car, and will title the car using this new VIN number, and will apply the "spcon" model designation (special construction) and will title it as the model year which it replicates (usually 1965 for Cobras), and voila! Your car will now only have to be compliant with 1965 or older emissions laws (meaning: no emissions test anywhere in the state of Az)

The bonded title route works best if you know that you are going to hang onto the car for a minimum of 3 years from the date that the bond is purchased. After 3 years have passed, the bond drops off the title, and the title becomes "clean"

You can still sell the car and transfer the title to a new owner during the 3 year bonded period, but the buyer has to be willing to accept the legal surety (validity) of the existing bond (unless they are out of state, in which case they won't even know that the bond exists; so it's really no big deal, to be honest)

I've titled (and re-titled) a lot of old, abandoned, unique, and custom cars in the state of Arizona over the past 30 years. I've seen all the ins and outs of the process. I can state (as a matter of fact) that the process is agonizingly painful, not fun, and very time consuming ( towing the car down for inspection, then running back and forth from the DMV office, to the Surety bond place, back to the DMV, etc...)

Yuck.

Robert: you nailed the answer. Thank you very much, it's help like this that makes this forum so valuable!

I do have a follow up question. Does AZ assess a "use tax" as part of the titling process for specially constructed vehicles? CA does and they go great lengths to say it's a "use tax" and not a sales tax. In CA, they require receipts for major car components (e.g. chassis, engine, drivetrain, body, wheels, etc.), the dollars on these receipts is summed (minus sales tax shown on receipts), and use tax calculated from this amount. For example, if receipts total $50K and use tax is 6.25% (which it was last time I did this), then $3,125 in use tax must be paid prior to title being issued.

Obviously, it would be painful to have already paid this in CA and have to pay again in AZ.