So big changes for me and my family. We are moving to Phoenix and I am stuck with a big question.

How should I register my 914?

I have gone through the old threads that discuss the benefits of registering old vehicles as classic/collectors vehicles.

Is that still the best way to go?

How difficult is the inspection process for normal old cars?

Does the car have to pass a visual inspection?

It has the original engine but I took off the air injection and backdated the exhaust. I don't want to keep the parts if I don't have to.

Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
Chris

Hi Chris - welcome to Phoenix. Your car will have to pass the roller test for CO and HC plus a visual. Not sure if they will know the exhaust was backdated (I assume you removed the Cat so they probably will look for that). If you have 1 more car than drivers in the house, you can get collectors car insurance (I use American Collectors Car Insurance) and register it as a collector's car and bypass all inspection requirements. My insurance is $210 per year and plates were $105 for 5 years. That is the way to go in my opinion. If you're still in the USAF you might be able to register the car in your home state and avoid AZ plates all together. Good luck and PM me if you need advise on good 914 mechs in the area.

I agree with Mike, getting collectors insurance is the easiest. No inspection needed!

I have Hagerty and they have been great.

Oh, and welcome! Lets try and do a welcome dinner :-)

I agree with the collector insurance, just make sure you meet all the requirments that American Collectors insurance requires to have your car insured through them.

Noticed the USAF... if your aren't familiar with the in leiu of tax form, I definantly recommend doing that. I was stationed at Davis-Monthan and my home of record is TX. Go to legal get the form, and it saves you having to pay taxes on the car when you register it. So for my 914 registered in Tucson it cost me $18 for two years. If you want more info feel free to PM me, I am not at DM any more I just PCS'd to Tampa, but I went throught the process a couple times while I was living in Tucson.

What they said.

In the PHX/TUS metro areas, if you have a 75 or newer, they will do a visual inspection for the air pump and the CAT (assuming they know what they are looking for). Since those are removed, you would likely have a problem. Get the classic car insurance and be done with it.

I have 4 collector cars on my American Family policy. American Family has all my cars (6 plus a golf cart) and 2 properties. Unlike a lot of insurance companies today, I have a local agent and they know who I am when I call. They give me some kind of policy that complies with the collector car requirements for emissions. I would definitely find some kind of collector policy whether it's Hagerty or someone else. Emissions on limited use hobby cars is stupid unless your job is collecting taxes.

Alternatively, the dirty way is to register your car to a non-emissions address and have the mail delivered to your home. We did this with our golf cart before we got our 2nd property in a non-emissions ZIP code. It was registered to a relatives place up north. They wanted me to emission test my golf cart which sees maybe 40 miles a year total. I was pissed, my lawn mower probably generates more emissions overall.

I am on the other side of the country, but I'll chime in. In Tennessee a vehicle registered as an antique auto can only be driven at certain times. Weekends, Holidays, Parades, to car shows, to the repair shop.... That last one can come in handy if you get pulled over. I used it one time, and the cop told me that the fines can be steep.

They can go back and charge you for every year you did not have a standard registration. In TN the Antique tag is permanent for $50. Also very cool feature of the program is that they let you use a tag from the model year of the car.

That feature helps, cause most of the cops don't know what my tag is. They know it if it says AA or Antique Auto, but a 1975 TN tag or even '86 (on my Cabriolet) ....? They don't bother.

I'll also add that the Antique insurance is less expensive, and I get to decide the value. But again, at the renewal they ask for mileage for that year. They have a limits on that too.

Just saying, you might get busted if you have a daily driver.

Good luck.

I am still in the USAF. Thanks for the tip on the form Chads74. I will definitely look into that. I will start looking for collectors car insurance. Never having the car inspected is a lot better than dealing with switching engines for inspection time. I rebuilt the engine to a 2056 a few years ago and don't really feel like getting it to pass emissions. I was planning on building a 2270 sometime soon. I just need some time and space to get it done. Thanks for the advice.

All of my cars are insured through USAA. USAA has a deal with American Collectors. I would guess that you are also insured through USAA? If not, you should be. Whenever these Asshats call telling me that they can save me money on my car insurance, I just say "really? I have USAA." "Have a nice day" they say...
I just called USAA and they connected me with American Collectors directly...

We had USAA as well and used to think the same thing....why even shop around, they can't be beat. Then we did. Two major insurers beat their rates no problem with coverage just as good. And the service has been second to none. You may want to call around just in case.

Exactly what happened when I called about the collectors insurance, mine was $202 for the year.