NJMVC Changes the Rules

[Mark Hendrickson]

 Shocked is all that I can say I was last Friday when I went to register my British Coach Works MGTD Replica.

NJ had initiated a class or status of registration/inspection, called Collector Car Status, several years ago. In fact, the New Jersey Replicar Club meetings were attended several times, by a then NJDMV official, who understood the plight of kit car owners getting their cars inspected in NJ. The solution NJMVC came up with was to register them as a new class called Collector Car Status.

It would also help aleviate the problem that was occurring at the time too. People were going out of state and getting titles, not so legally, saying their kits were actually a ’66 Cobra, ’52 MG, etc. in order to qualify for the “Historic” or Antique registration status which requires no inspection. The criteria is 25 years or older for that status. The Titles Unlimited (Alabama) proprietor is/was in Prision in California for sales tax related convictions with his title transactions.

Here’s how Collector Car worked: you buy a “regular”, annually renewed registration (license plates), request Collector Car Status and buy a $25 Collector Car Inspection Voucher. Then you had 90 days to get to a NJMVC Inpection Station. They would validate you had “collector”, limited mileage, insurance and validate that your odometer worked. You were limited to 3,000 miles per year. You would have to purchase a Collector Car Inspection Voucher Renewal for $10 every two years after that and bring the car back for the same two validations of miles driven and insurance. IT WAS GREAT!

Beginning 10 Sep 07, the rules drastically changed in NJ. Now they do not allow kit, replica or any vehicle titled as RECON (reconstructed) to have Collector Car Status.

We are now back at square one in my state as far as kit car or RECON titled inspections. My car is titled as 1998 RECON. So, I have to meet 1998 safety standards and emmission standards for the year of the engine by serial number on the engine block or pencil tracing of the donor car VIN!

Now I’m screwed, I transferred the title from Connecticut where it was first titled as “1998 RECON”, to a NJ title. I have no idea what year the donor car was and I do not think my engine block (Chevette) has a serial number stamped on it.

If anyone is interested in purchasing this car let me know. It it currently in “PROJECT” status and would need to be completed. The interior is out and the engine, trans and grille are currently removed. I can re-install the engine/trans, but would leave the interior re-assembly to the buyer.

It is NOT JUNK. The kit is VERY high quality, I’ve just spent over $2,000 on constructing new leather seats and door panels and re-chroming of the grille shell, bumpers and over riders. It’s 1.6L Chevette with a 4 speed stick. The car had less than 2,000 documented miles on it when I bought it and started the interior refurb. The engine and trans are out because the speedometer drive gear on the trans tail shaft had disintegrated and I had no speedometer or odomter. It is now repaired and I have a spare NOS trans too. I have most of the car’s history and a ton of new parts I planned to use during re-assembly. I can send pictures of how it now sits too. It’s in the photo gallery on this website too (Pink MG).

[William J Collins]

Hello Mark…Come on Bite the Bullet ..Don’t give up so soon…With all the owners of Recon Cars and Kits in NJ…. I think there may be a turn around on this decision’s by the latest Knot-Heads in the NJMVC

 

[Paul Weatherholt]

Hey Mark,

   I had the same issue here in North Ga. with the air thing and all and I just took the vin off the frame and had it re-registered with Haggerty to show it as so, mine shows as a modified VW 1974 for taging and insureance purpose.

Try it !!

 

[Keith True]

Check with SEMA to see if there is any action being taken on the new laws.We are lucky here in N.H.,no titles after 15 years,although now we are allowed to title antiques 26 years old and older.Also,to register we are supposed to use the year the car most resembles.I have a lot of Model A Fords,and out of state buyers are always looking for an original title.The first title in N.H.was issued in 1964.They did not exist before that.Keep looking,jump through the hoops,there is a way around everything if you look hard enough.

[Mark Hendrickson]

I have found a fellow in Evergreen, WA that collects and sells Chevette/T-1000 parts. His name is Rick Drake, 800-247-2954.

There is actually a few Chevette forums on the web too. Seems there is a vibrant dirt oval class for these cars in OH, TN & KY.

I have done business with Rick Drake several times. I may ask him to pencil trace a VIN from his oldest and engine-less Chevette (hopefully a 1976) and help me out with this dilema. He may just do it for a small fee too. I’ll present that at the inspection station.

I also was told by NJMVC to register the car as a “Low Mileage” vehicle. The limit is 10,000 per year. This would exempt me from the running dynomometer emissions test and subject me only to the tailpipe “enema” at curb idle. If I leave the CAT on it, it should pass. there is no other smog stuff on the car, no air pump, no EGR, etc. Just a PCV.

I would really like to finish this car. The sad part is that I had it registered in Collector Car Status (but not inspected) until July 2005. I knew I had to take the car apart to fix the speedometer drive gear, so I transferred the plates (w/o the Collector Car Status) to a new PT Cruiser I bought. DANG!!! Another smart move I made, but who knew that NJMVC was going to ram it up our keisters sideways.

[Mark Hendrickson]

 I may have located a complete title and a tracing of the same car’s VIN. Keep your fingers crossed.

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