So im new to the carolinas, and therefore i have to get my 914 inspected at least once and i have a couple questions. Will they fail a car for not having those ugly wart lights on the side? And will they fail a car if the pop ups aren’t operational (my right one stopped working and i haven’t fixed it yet, it needs some new wires.) Is anyone here by chance an nc inspector that can help me out or know someone who does them and isnt a super stickler?

ps. side question what is the North Carolina antique plate for? is it like washingtons collector plates where it doesn’t require tabs/inspections but applies driving limits?

You have to submit to an inspection to get vintage plates in NC.
They are sticklers when it comes to these inspections. I’ve seen cars lose their original VIN plate as it was determined to have been removed during a restoration. They install their own assigned VIN to the offending vehicle.

What inspection are you talking about? And what County do you live in?

To get the vehicle title transferred, since it’s coming from out of state and over a certain age then a DMV inspector has to check it out which is more or less a VIN check. At least that’s what I had to do a few years ago.

Some counties require a safety inspection which most mom & pop places don’t even bother to look out the window at your car. They just run the VIN and mileage in their system. To be safe though I’d make sure all major systems work. Lights, horn, wipers, etc. Just checked... cars over 35 years don’t require a safety inspection.

Some counties also require an emission test which won’t apply for vehicles older than 1996

And some counties don’t require any inspection if it’s over a certain age.

There's always the option to move.

IMHO if they won't license a 914 I'm not sure I could live there. But hey, I live with cold weather and urban decay so I guess that's how messed up my priorities are.

iredell county is where im at, if its just a state inspector im probably good but ill try anyway.

what’s the point of the vintage plates? is it just that the car is over 30 something years old?

A friend happened to buy this car and explained what happened.

This car was restored by the book and has all of it's various numbers +Heritage Certificate, however, during restoration the actual VIN tag (and others) were removed for the full paint job (under the hood included).
The NC inspectors took note that the rivets weren't original and removed the VIN plate and affixed a new one sporting a NC number.

https://www.dmv.com/nc/north-carolina/custo...le-registration

"Since applicants for custom and antique auto registrations are mandated to submit their vehicle to a DMV inspection, they may be required to pay for additional services as well."



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One of the advantages of vintage plates in most jurisdictions is "no further inspections"

I brought my car from Puerto Rico. I'm in Caldwell County. I went to the DMV without the car. They were like.... Where is the title (from Puerto Rico). You have to pay X in taxes (like 50 bucks). Here is your temporary registration. Here is the plate. Your new tittle and customized plate will arrive in 2 weeks.... Have fun! Bah!!! (Bye) Less than 15 minutes.

No inspection required...

We are lucky in PA. Antique plates don’t require an inspection, are a one time fee and have very few restrictions.
Personally, I would just go to your dmv and ask your questions at the counter and then do what is appropriate to get the car to comply. In PA, since I don’t need an inspection, I go to an independent title center. They add ~ $25 but fill out the proper forms (it’s confusing just to figure out the proper ones) and expedite the process. It’s worth it to me. Sucks that in NC you have yearly personal property tax applied to your cars. My son moved to NC and was surprised about the yearly tax.

While Im in MA so not necessarily applicable, we have an annual inspection that is taken VERY seriously. All basic safety equipment, and suspension components are checked (car is jacked up and "shook"). Not a chance a car would pass with out a functioning headlight. To make matters worse, MA recently raised the bar of compliance adding video cameras, and the requirement for the tech to also take a series of pictures that are submitted (front, rear, vin tag etc). Point of the post is that these inspections are usually not subjective, and casual. You might have to fix your issues.

I live in Cabarrus County NC and 4 years ago purchased my 914... no inspection required initially, nor each year since due to the age of the vehicle (not sure the cut-off, but any 914 qualifies). I just get the personal property tax bill, pay it, and get the new registration / sticker each year.

For all your newer cars, you will get your tax bill and not be able to pay it until you get your inspection done.

Please allow me to clear up some misinformation and speculation that's in this thread. Because importing classic cars into NC is something I do almost yearly.

When you import a classic car (model year 35 years or older) into NC, you have to get it inspected one time by the License and Theft Bureau division of the DMV in order to get your title. You have one year from the time you register it and get your plates to have it inspected. Once the car is registered you can drive it, but you'll need to have it inspected to get the title. You can take it to a DMV inspection location, or you can have an inspector come to your house if the car is not running. When you go to the DMV to register it, they will give you the phone number of the License and Theft Bureau so that you can schedule a time to meet with an inspector. After the car passes the inspection, the DMV will issue you your title.
All they are checking is the VIN numbers. That is it. It is to make sure that 1) the car hasn't been reported stolen anywhere else in the country; and 2) that the VIN is legit for the car.

There was a fraud scandal 10 or 15 years ago here in NC where people were putting real 356 VINs on 356 replicas, in order to register and sell them as real Porsches. This is why NC now requires a one-time VIN inspection for classics imported into the state.
So now that you're an NC resident, you have one important thing to remember when buying a classic car from out of state: make sure that all VIN locations are there, and that all VINs match. If you see a 914 for sale and it's missing the door jamb sticker because someone removed it, or if the A-pillar tag is missing, etc you have to pass on the car because it won't pass the VIN inspection. Or for example, if you have a classic air-cooled VW that's had a pan swap, and the body VIN doesn't match the pan VIN, you'll need titles from the seller for both VINs.

I've imported about 6 or 7 classics into NC. I've never gotten an antique plate. I don't know why you'd want to. Just get a regular plate for your car. There are no emissions or safety inspections whatsoever for cars over 35 years old.

Also, had you gone to the DMV to register your car and get your license plate, they would have explained all of this to you there.

Thanks for the reply, this is exactly what i needed, im about to ship my car here and ive been working everyday the dmv even thinks of opening. I really appreciate it as i was quite confused by their website which is very unclear.

What does that do to resale value, future registration in another state, etc, etc???

It cetainly didn't help the seller when it was originally on BAT. I'd compare it to a bad CARFAX.

NY inspection is serious too, even for old cars. The first time I took my Roadster for the yearly inspection I figured they would just check lights, tires, etc. I took to a Goodyear tire place, when I saw they were taking my brake drums off I got very nervous and was about 3 inches away from the guy for the remainder of the test. From then on I had it inspected at my mechanic's shop.

I genuinely feel bad for you east coast guys.

If some dope from a state inspection agency took the brakes off my car I'd be mad beyond words. You know if they bugger it up and then you were to hit a tree because the brakes failed, they would all line up to testify that the brakes were absolutely fine . . . . cause' you know . . . they were just inspected.

What a racket!

*Northeast guys.

The South is a different world where fewer craps are given. As I mentioned, NC only checks VINs. South Carolina doesn't care about anything. They have no inspections of any kind for any model year of car!

Not a problem! I went into it completely obliviously with the first classic I bought back in 2012, which was a TR6 from South Carolina. I got lucky with that first one that everything was good on it, and spent a bit of time talking to that first inspector I had about the laws here. He's the one that told me about the 356 VIN scandal.

Best of luck with your move. I made the same one back in '91, moving from Woodinville, WA to Charlotte, NC. Of course I was 11 at the time and only cared that I was leaving all my friends