Registering a car in CA, without a title Options

[lapuwali]

Look up surety bonds in the yellow pages, or ask the DMV for a bonds person. It's basically a short-term insurance policy. You'll pay a one-time fee to get the bond, and that bond person will be on the hook if you're trying to scam the DMV. The bond guy gets some fraction of the amount he'd be on the hook for. The only time I did this (to retitle a salvage car that hadn't been sold to me as a salvage car, and the PO had vanished), the bond was $50.

[billd]

Unless something goes wrong in Sacramento, the car is now registered and has black plates assigned to it.

This took more time at the DMV than I would have liked - partly because the idiot who "verified the car" (checked the SN) misplaced my registration paperwork and then took some teenager on a drivers test.

The sequence was

1. Fill out application for title form
2. Stand in line
3. They collect the fees and send me to get the vehicle verified
4. Verifier looks at serial number under front hood and fills out a form (but misplaces my registration paperwork)
5. Stand in line to return to registration
6. Registration people inform me that the verifier was supposed to return paperwork to me
7. Wait for verifier to get back from driving test. At which time verifier claims he gave me the paperwork, but then finds it buried on a desk.
8. Stand in line to return to registration
9. Registration person completes registration paperwork and fills out an application for year of manufacture plates.
10. They tell me that Sacramento has to do the final check and issue me a temporary registration good until October.

This wouldn't have been so bad except for waiting in line three times and waiting for the idiot verifier to get back from his driving test.

[BMartin914]

Sounds a hell of a lot easier than the hoops we have to jump through here in CO.

You're experience sounds like a walk in the park...relatively speaking...

[billd]

Unless something goes wrong in Sacramento, the car is now registered and has black plates assigned to it.

I knew it was too good to be true. I just got a letter from the DMV today denying my application to have black plates assigned to the car - informing me that they can only do this for 1962 and earlier cars. This is after the person at the Redwood City DMV office assured me it was fine.

I hope they still go through with the registration and title.

[BMartin914]

I plan on calling the Dept. of Revenue several times with the same question to ensure that what I am being told is actually fact.

Obtaining a Bonded Title here in Colorado is one hell of an ordeal, of which I am about halfway through. I am planning another call for next week... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)