Buying Car with No Title?

[BASS]

Ive been seeing alot of good deals on used cars that dont have titles. Just how hard is it to buy a car with no title and get the car able to be driven again on the road (i.e. get a new title)?? Some people tell me its very hard to get the car titled again, and others say its not that hard to do.

Im in NJ and not sure if every state is different or what?

(In this case, its a trade-in car that a dealer is trying to sell. The dealer claims they lost the title and are having trouble contacting the previous owner)..Couldnt the dealer just apply for a lost-title form and get a new title from DMV? Something seems fishy here...

 

[pacecarta]

it can be done and NJ is a title state so you will need one before you can register or own it , basically if you buy without a title you technically dont own it since only the titled owner (or someone with power of attorney ) can transfer the ownership ..if you buy it you didnt buy it from either so you only posses it since you hold no such title signed over by the owner
and if there are leins you may find yourself in debt or have to forfeit the vehicle to leinholder
contact the dmv and ask them ... its time consuming process and i wouldnt want to get involved in it
i dont see how a dealership can misplace a title or not be able to contact the owner as there should have been forms or copies of the transfer or contract for sale

 

[Chuck Leeper]

The stealership did a trade, and then didn't pay off the trade-in. They are now trying to dump it on some unsuspecting buyer....
LOTS of that crap going on w/ dealers going "tango uniform"... They will try anything to generate cash, just B4 pulling the plug.

 

[rmar]

Or borrowed against it.........

 

[gnxtc2]

Don't do it.

My friend bought a single axle enclosed trailer (motorcycle drag use) with no title. I told him not to do it and he gives me every excuse why he should. He buys it against my advice. Goes to DMV and registers it as a homemade trailer. DMV issues him a VIN that he's suppose to engrave on the trailer......he doesn't do it and leaves the manufacturer's VIN on the trailer. He leaves it on the street one day and the PD gets a call on it (forgot the reason). The LEO runs the VIN on the trailer and it comes back "Not on File" so it gets impounded. He goes to the PD to get a release but he has no proof that he owns it. The PD won't release it. The impound yard now has an enclosed trailer for their use.

Billy T.
gnxtc2@aol.com

 

[TURBOTWIN2]

gnxtc2 is absolutely correct.
Without a title, it's just a parts car.
Been there, done that.
No T-shirt.

A lot of times, people will say "Getting a title for this is easy, all you gotta do is.....A,B,C."
If it's so easy, make THEM do it before buying.

 

[chopped39]

Ive been seeing alot of good deals on used cars that dont have titles. Just how hard is it to buy a car with no title and get the car able to be driven again on the road (i.e. get a new title)?? Some people tell me its very hard to get the car titled again, and others say its not that hard to do.

Im in NJ and not sure if every state is different or what?

(In this case, its a trade-in car that a dealer is trying to sell. The dealer claims they lost the title and are having trouble contacting the previous owner)..Couldnt the dealer just apply for a lost-title form and get a new title from DMV? Something seems fishy here...

Walk away from that deal.The dealer is full of $hit. They have the title number on at least 5 forms with the vin. I would do a title search and check for liens.There is alot of scams going around .Dealers have the resources to all the paperwork needed for title transfers.DO NOT BUY CAR WITHOUT A TITLE. If you dont sign a title or the proper paperwork you dont own the car

 

[BASS]

Yeah, this looks like too much trouble and looks too good to be true..I guess ill just forget about it..Thanks guys

 

[INEEDAGN]

That particuar deal sounds real fishy, but there are situations where dealers don't actually get the title in their hand when they trade for something. People trade in vehicles with existing leins all the time, and if the title is e-filed with the state, we have to wait to get it mailed to us after the existing lein is paid. Sometimes the trade in gets cleaned, displayed, and sold before we get the title and we have to mail it to the new owner. Dealers have legal recourse they can take if the title doesn't show up so there's no excuse for them not to be able to get one, though it may be more trouble and expense than the car is worth. If a $500 beater got in a title jam, it wouldn't be worth pursuing and would be sold as parts or scrap. So if you need the parts off the car, buy it and get some sort of bill of sale to cover your butt, but without a title it is no longer a vehicle that can be registered and driven.

If it is a really good deal, buy it and transfer parts to a wrecked one or a blown up one. But don't expect to drive it as is.

 

[Fast4Ward]

i have not read any of the posts but buddy you need to go talk to your local DMV and ask alot of questions.
I bought a ''71 Firebird about 1.5 yrs ago in WA with no title for $200 that was abondoned on someone's property....WA is not like some other states, i have to bribe a tow truck company to sell me back this car after it is towed off the property....still in progress
In Canada, BC and some states you find the previous owners address and send letter and if no response after 30 days you can apply for the title...so check with your state rules.
In WA..if the dealer has no title, they have privelages...(sp there) that lets them apply for and get a title for you.

 

[chopped39]

My friends own a relocating company and I would have to ask them but I am pretty sure when they relocate a car and the people dont pick the car up it has to be scrapped.

 

[gnxtc2]

The OP is from NJ and a lot of replies were from guys from NJ. NJ requires you to have a title for a MV.

The same friend with the trailer bought a Dodge Colt (had an eight speed manual trans) from a used car dealer with no title. The dealer was not able to get a title. The dealer told my friend to keep coming back to him and he will keep issuing him temporary registrations. Then one day the Dodge was parked in front of his GF's house and gets hit/totalled. The insurance company paid him and wanted the car and title. Well he has no title and had to make the car disappear.

Billy T.
gnxtc2@aol.com

 

[HUMBLE-U2]

stay away from the fire and you wont get burned.its a simple as that!

 

[salvageV6]

Doesn't anyone have google?

State of New Jersey - Motor Vehicle Commission

There's several pages at the NJ MVD site on how to acquire a title depending upon various circumstances.

None of which appear to be all that easy.

I'd put it on the dealer to do it for sure.

 

[gnxtc2]

Another thing, when a dealer takes a car in as a trade in, they need to put the car in their name. Something doesn't sound right here. There must a chain of ownership.

Billy T.
gnxtc2@aol.com