Important questions about registration in California
 

OK, I have decisions to make while I can (didn't buy the drivetrain yet). Hope to have real life support here from the members who know about registration in California, so thanks in advance.

Here is what I plan to do:
Backdraft Cobra Replica with a Coyote Gen 2 or 3 engine.

What I know:
To get it registered, it's gotta have SB100 and accepted as a 1965 (less tax, less insurance, no smogg, and noise is no issue). Correct so far?

Now how is this even possible when this is actually a 2020 kit car and a probably 2018 engine?!

Who went through this with a set up like this or comparable? What are the hooks?

Do not apply logic when attemting to decipher the CommieFornia bureaucracy. They couldnt care less about emissions, it’s all about money. SB100 is an exemption to a code. Politicians wrote the code. Politicians were given money to write the exemption. You give them money to purchase said exemption. Emissions be damned, politicians get richer.
:cool:
Well, I guess there IS a certain logic to it.

First, off is your Backdraft dealer helping you through this process?

A benefit of Backdrafts is they are able to be titled as a 1965. At least that has been our experience with Backdrafts we deliver to our customers (not necessarily in CA...states each may have different requirements).

In addition there is a process to register as a 1965 Cobra as an alternative to local registration. And that is to register in Montana under an LLC. Very common process. Simply, an LLC is setup, your Cobra is registered in the LLC, Montana tax law applies, insurance is sourced in Montana. This is all managed for you through Deer Creek Corporate Services https://www.mtvehicles.com/. Use your own judgement.

Let me know if you have any questions. And if you have not yet purchased your Backdraft happy to help with that as well

Jeff - 586.489.5990 | jeff@nostalgicmotoring.com

Other states may allow you to register as a 1965 model year. California will not. Not only will they not, if you do they will make your life and this process painful in the extreme.

If you bring a car in from outside of California that was registered as a 1965 model year in the state it came from, in California you will need to change it to reflect the year of manufacture for the replica. You can choose not to and if you do California will have a field day with you and your car.

There are several threads on the site here about California SB100 registrations, some quite recent. I would recommend searching them out and reading them. They will save you untold pain, suffering and money.


Ed

Duplicate post. Mods pls delete.

OK so what if your car is in fact titled as a 1965 shelby cobra in montanna under an LLC... so what happens when you try to register it in CA? it seems as only a temporary solution, what am I missing here?

California DMV will not knowingly register it.

If you manage to sneak it through (increasingly difficult to do) they will come down on you like a bag of hammers. Don't tempt the CA DMV, the difficulty in dealing with them will cost you dearly.


Ed

Montana no longer registers as 1965, so let’s stop that advice. Particularly in CA where the out of state registrations are monitored closely.

You also cannot bring a ‘new’ car into CA purchased from out of state.

Our customers have been through the CA process many times over. There have been some recent changes with more to come. I was actually part of the group discussion with lawmakers and specialty vehicle manufacturers over the last few years.

Research SB100 and there’s a recent thread in this forum with detailed info on the process.

here are your steps... One go to the DMV and get your sb100 registration started. You may or may not need your brake and lamp inspection done first to get your sequence number. THIS IS IMPORTANT...do not register it as SPCN only it has to be a SPCN under sb100 to be smog exempt. Brake and lamp inspection is not as simple as it used to be good luck finding one that wants to help you. Next do the chp vin verification. They will check the car over to make sure you are good to go and give you a vin number( or use the one on the car already) CHP is cool, they know we are a not a problem. Next is the BAR inspection. They more or less just check to make sure you have the smog gear that goes on the motor you are putting in. on a 65 427 they just wanted a pcv system hooked up.

you will pay tax on the full purchase price of the car and all equipment. excluding anything you got in calif and already paid tax on. Bring all your papers to everything. BAR will go out of their way to research your car and make sure you are not ****ing them.


my advice... hire a guy who knows how to do it and let him do the leg work for you. i tried and dmv was not helping me so i got a guy to help me and it was worth every cent to get the help!!!!!


pm for me for the guys number


DO NOT try to fake your way into the state. The dmv has a website to turn in people who have cars from out of state here. They want their blood and they will get it.

Out of state cars in CA
 

I knew a guy who bought a SPF from Georgia that was titled as a 65Cobra. He thought that since it was registered that way in Georgia it could be registered that way in the Socialistic Republic of California. WRONG in fact to register it that way in California is illegal and would be deemed a fraud but to let people crap on the sidewalks is permitted. What a ****ing state.

its all about taking our $$ CA is a communist state

Moaning about the SB100 process does no good. Aeon already gave you guys the Cliff's Notes on how to do it. Exhibit a little initiative and search to find the threads on this forum that document this process. Take your current approach, improvise and adapt it to conform with what CA responds to because if you don't you have a non starter — no matter how much you ***** about it. Lastly commit yourself to overcoming the little administrative obstacles DMV places in your path that discourage you. If you don't approach the SB100 process like this you will fail — not a maybe, you will fail!

Some people like failure. If you are one of those people ignore everything I have just said and this will work out just fine for you and as an added bonus, consistent with the way most of your initiatives typically do. On the other hand if you want to get your SB100, remember the immortal words of the quintessential, albeit fictitious, Gunnery Sgt Thomas Highway from the Heartbreak Ridge movie, exercise a little initiative,

https://i.imgur.com/Znliqf9.jpg

It is not only better than *****ing, it really works! Ask those of us who have our SB100's ...


Ed

Hi there, Cashburn

Thanks for the update...but...when did Montana change? I recently titled a Backdraft Cobra as 1965, but not from CA (other states).

Jeff

I think he works for DMV LOL

How recently? They will typically recall the title in a few years when they catch it. Change was made about 3 years ago. Deer Creek being the agent.

SB100 was written to allow up to 500 "kit cars" a year to be registered. It allows you to register your car based on the year of the motor used or the year of the car that it most closely resembles. It does not cost less in taxes or save you any money. What it does do is it allows you to legally register your car and to avoid the biannual smog inspections that are otherwise required in California. You are correct that noise is not an issue and is not addressed by the SB100 process. Your car will be registered as a 2020 Specially Constructed Vehicle.

As others have said, you'll need to start out at the DMV. Bring your receipts. You'll need to show separate receipts for the engine and the car. You'll pay taxes on the full value of the car (including labor) less taxes that you've already paid for parts purchased in California. Next you'll need to take it to the CHP. They check to make sure the car and major components are not stolen. They'll also assign a VIN number and affix a tag to the car. You'll then need to go to a smog referee station. They'll check to make sure it has the required 1965 smog equipment. Basically a PCV valve but others have had to do other "minor" tweaks. They will also put your car on the smog machine but there is no pass/fail criteria. You may also have to take it to a Brake and Light inspection station. Some have had to do that but others have not.

In my opinion SB100 is a godsend since it gives those of us in California a legal way to smog and register our replicas without having to pretend they are something they are not (vehicles originally built and sold in 1965). There might be a little consternation as you work your way through the process but in the end it will have been worth it. You'll have a car that is legal in California, it won't need to go through biannual smog inspections and you won't need to worry about receiving a certified letter from the state attorney general - something that happened to many 1965 registered replica Cobra owners back in the mid 2000s. See this thread or do a search for posts from "morgester." http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/regi...ses-filed.html

Cash burn

In the past two months (not from CA). And several over the past 10 years.

And yes with deer creek. They are great!

Jeff

On a new MSO? Not according to DC today.

The Montana LLC tax dodge is a thing of the past. Most states are on to the deal and if they find you've registered it and don't have a legitimate business will be mighty unhappy. A number of years ago the counties around Denver went looking for motor homes and boats with Montana registrations (easy to find since they are often parked outside). They were fined, had to pay the sales tax that was due and also registrations that had been avoided since the date of the fradulent Montana registrations. Some people were mightily unpleased.

I don't understand why people would do it on a Cobra. Sure, I had to pay sales tax on the purchase amount, but since it was registered as a 65 the plates were something like $50 every 5 years. (More if you have a vanity plate.)

Jeff,

I think you ought to register your car(s) as 1965 car(s) with the CA DMV. You could then tell all of us how it worked out for you. Shucks, you could even post up a DIY thread showing everyone how you successfully pulled it off.

Should be interesting reading ...


Ed