registering out of state car in CA

widebody · 07-10-2003, 10:59 PM

Has anyone purchased a porsche from out of state and registered it in CA ? Is there any problems or procedures I should know about? It will be an 84 to 88 carrera, should it have all the smog on it for CA?

Sonic dB · Sonic dB's Garage

You just have to smog it, then take it to the DMV to have it visually inspected and pay the fee. Its a pain in the a--, but not the end of the world.

widebody · 07-10-2003, 11:17 PM

should all smog equipment be on the car

nestorjw · nestorjw's Garage

MOST DEFINITELY!

yelcab1 · 07-11-2003, 06:04 AM

It has to pass the Calfornia SMOG regulations. Period.

abisel · 07-11-2003, 06:12 AM

Correct me if I am wrong, but if it doesn't pass "current" smog test, the DMV will not allow you to register it. Even if it has all the OEM equipment and is emissions legal for the year of the car, if it doesn't pass current CA smog regulations, they will not allow registration.

I have heard of older cars not passing the current CA smog regulations and then the owner is stuck with a car they cannot drive on the streets. They either park it, sell it out of state, or junk it.

steve911 · steve911's Garage

I bought an '85 Targa in TX, had it shipped to CA. I had it smogged before I registered it, then just brought it to the local DMV, they looked to make sure everything was there; I paid my fees (including sales tax for purchase price) and off I went with new tags in hand.

If you're buying an '84 - '88, the smog stuff was the same in all 50 states - CA didn't have different smog requirements at that time (it was earlier).

The time window from when the vehicle enters CA and when it needs to be registered is short as I remember, (something like 20 days) so don't dally - the penalty fees are stiff.

Good luck and post pics once you get it!

tobluforu · tobluforu's Garage

I know this is probably not what you want to here, but do what I did 13 years ago. Call the DMV. They will tell you everything you need to know. Things have changed since then, so I can't tell you what I had to do, but since I was looking at a 72 at the time which was moded, I gave up.

yelcab1 · 07-11-2003, 08:03 AM

If you are a Cal resident, you can only bring in a car with california legal smog stuff.

if you are moving to californa, your cars only have to meet the Fed smog stuff. But for many cases, it is all the same anyway.

targa80 · targa80's Garage

I brought my car from New York in 1994. There is a sticker proclaiming the car to meet California emissions for the year of production. Smoged the car and took it to DMV, had a quick visual to verify the vehicle is what is claimed. As soon as the inspector saw the sticker they said OK and have a nice day. That's all it took, my car is 1980SC so a 84 should be no problem since my year and after where made to the more stricter California standard. Atleast this is what I have been told. Check for the sticker in the trunk or engine compartment. I can't remember off the top of my head where it is located but it should be on the car.

caliber60 · 07-11-2003, 09:27 AM

I bought my car from Arkansas. The car was originally from Ca. I has it smogged again. Passed. Went to AAA and they issued me a new plate. That's it. I think the main thing is the smog.

speeder · speeder's Garage

Just call the DMV, info will be a little more up-to-date than here.

I can tell you that the "sticker story" mentioned above is outdated, Federal court decided several (4-5?) years ago that CA.'s policy on out-of-state cars was a violation of free trade and/or free movement (between states), so no more CA. sticker required for registration.

Actually, they never disallowed registering "non-CA." cars here, they simply charged an extra $300.00 "environmental impact fee" to bring it into the state. That has been decided unconstitutional, if you ever paid that fee you may be due a court mandated refund, unless time has run out.

Porsche Head · Porsche Head's Garage

I have a 72E in AZ which I will have to bring back to CA in the next couple of weeks, I have a 3.0 with SSI's now, what about pre 74's, do they have to follow the same rule?

Thanks!

jhugh · 07-11-2003, 10:56 AM

In 1999 I bought a Ducati 900ss in Boise and rode it to San Francisco. Someone told me I was going to be screwed because it was a 49 state bike and I'd have to pay the $300 impact fee. But then when I went to the DMV, that fee had just been repealed and it was NO PROBLEM to register that thing.

ianz · 07-11-2003, 11:24 AM

Pre 74 cars are all exempt from smog checks......75 and newer have to adhere to the smog requirements for their specific model year

I just registered my 72 T in Ca and had no problems after "reminding" the DMV attendent of this fact.....thus no smog check required

but I could have gotten lucky.....

good luck with your carrera....

targa80 · targa80's Garage

My post on the California sticker was refering to the car having all of the right smog equipment for California in that production year. I have known that the $300 dollar out of state fee is long gone. That's why I never even mentioned it in my previous post. I had no problems passing the emissions test since it was designed to pass the more stingent smog test in California.