No more NEW Registrations in Texas?!?!?

[RDCII]

The other day I went in to Renew my Registration on my street buggy.
Was told they are no longer registering buggies.. Be it Tubed framed or Tubed... I made a huge argument to them bout it till they called there main office for that district.. They confirmed what I was told the first time.
Went home, got online and searched for a new law or anything bout. Came up empty,... Nothing.. So I called the main DOT office.. Finally after a week, got my answer. I can still register mine since I've been doing it for many years now. But no NEW ones are being allowed.... So if I sell it or try and buy another I/them will not be able to.. Has anyone else experienced this? Is there a way to fight this? Just doesn't seem right.

[starrfisherman]

I have always registered mine as a 1969 VW Beatle. No one from the DMV (California or Texas) has asked anything about it. I have a title that say it is a 1969 VW. I use to have a problem with insurance. When most Insurance Companies found out it was a Dune Buggy, they turned me down. I now have a declared value policy.
This is hard to understand because you can buy a kit and build a 1932 Ford Hotrod from scratch and register it as a 1932 Ford.
Keep us all informed on this issue.
Herb

[johber41]

I have not heard of this new change but I bet it has to do with the new off-road vehicles being built that have very little in common with a car. A guy stopped me one day and asked me how I was able to register my buggy for street use when they would not allow him to do so. I was having a hard time understanding his issue until I saw that his machine as one of the go-carts you buy that are strictly off-road creations. I personally register mine as a 1961 Beetle because that is what the VIN will show. I even explain that it is a convertible. One guy told me that I should register my buggy as an antique vehicle. Even if the car is modified into a Manx style buggy, it is still a Beetle according to your VIN.

[Bill K]

I've been searching for any new legislation (This session of the Legislature) and can't find anything related to Dune Buggies. Also, any laws passed by this Session generally don't take effect until September 1st.

Did they make it sound like tubed buggies couldn't be registered, or any kind of Dune Buggy such as tub buggies?

If anyone knows any more about this please post it up.

[Ken]

Heres a link to the Texas Vehicle Registration Manual. Its states a revision date of April 2013. I haven't had time to research this issue myself yet. But thouggt someone else might have time.

[GregR]

Found this on TxDOTs site (they handle registrations along with county tax assesor/coollectors)
http://txdmv.gov/motorists/register-your-vehicle
Are you sure they don't think you have an "off-highway use only" vehicle?
They also list some contact numbers, but I'm not in a spot where I can call.
Anyone else want to conact them?

[BrianB]

Dune Buggy for sale! Clear title!!!!!!

[Bill K]

As Johber said, I think they are talking about the the kind of units you can buy at places like TSC. They like to call them Dune Buggies, but obviously they are not street legal.

Hey Brian, does it have a current registration?

[BrianB]

Hey Brian, does it have a current registration?

Yep, registered as an antique as of March.

[starrfisherman]

I renewed my Antique Plates in March. I found a new set of unused 1969 plates and are now using them. They will be good until March 2018.
I have noticed that not all the clerks at the DMV are up to date on all the new laws and rules. Just keep fighting and asking questions.
Herb

[JRod]

Since I am still in the market for a good dune buggy I thought I would check into this before purchasing one.

To make a long story short after an 45 minutes on the phone with the regional DMV office in the lower Rio Grande Valley, here is what I was informed.

Here is a hint: When your call is answered by an automated machine with many options to press......just keep hitting the o or operator button or any other button that is not on the menu....until you get a human to speak with. It may take a 3 or 4 iterations but it works.

When I asked for the legislative action that approved this denial, they quoted me "Texas Transportation Code - Section 502.005. Refusal To Register Unsafe Vehicle".

http://law.onecle.com/texas/transportat ... 05.00.html

They are denying registration for any vehicles that are deemed unsafe. They told me the vehicle had to have a "company manufactured frame".

They informed me that before I purchase a dune buggy, to provide them the current license plate and inspection of the dune buggy I am purchasing and they would tell me if I could register it or not!

My interpretation is they are not registering NEW home built dune buggies without manufactured frames.

Hope this helps.

[johber41]

That is interesting, especially since some home-made chassis are sometimes better than the manufactured ones.

[GregR]

stay tuned. I understand someone who's on The Samba is working on a workaround with DMV.

[Patrick]

Delete

[Patrick]

Delete

[Faron]

WOW! After reading all of this it sure makes me nervous about spending money to complete my Street Buggy. I think I am going to have a real hard time getting mine street legal, for multiple reasons.
1. It has a New Mexico State Title that is in my name.
2. The original VIN is still there, but the VIN number on the title is a hand stamped number near the original VIN. (Does that make sence?).
3. The original New Mexico Registration says its a - Year - 1973, Make - RBLT, Model/ Series - VWD, Color - Purple (I have changed the color to Orange & plan to ad graphics).
I understand that I have worked in auto sales for most of my adult life, but I have nothing to do with the titling or registration of the vehicles sold. When I talk to the business office about getting a custom built vehicle titled they shrug their shoulders and have no idea what I am talking about.
As my buggy sits I am confident is saying that it is close to being road worthy as far as spending money to complete it. However I do need to spend many hours to get everything pulled together. It sure would be a bummer to do all this work to complete it, and then have to do some major overhaul in order to get it on the road legally.
After reading this, does anyone have a valuable opinion.

[Patrick]

Delete

[Faron]

Thanks!

[jamboguru]

Here is the Texas title manual as of April 2013

chapter 25-15 & 25-16

http://ftp.txdmv.gov/pub/txdot-info/vtr ... ok_451.pdf


Dune Buggies are still being allowed.

it is the Sand rails and trikes that are not being allowed....new builds or renewals....

talked to the local Auto Theft Taskforce division guy and he said that local PD, DPS and County are being told to run a check on any seen on the road


Loop hole

Title and register the frame you are going to use and submit it as a body change....


that is the key according to the latest printing of the Texas title manual

[Patrick]

Delete

[jamboguru]

Assembled Vehicle Using a Manufactured Prefabricated Body

A certificate of title must be obtained for a vehicle assembled with a manufactured prefabricated body, such as Meyers Manx, Aztec, or Lone Star Classics Roadster, as one of the three basic component parts (motor, frame, and body).

The description of vehicle should be indicated on the application for title as follows:

1. Make of Vehicle - The make is the same as shown on the evidence of ownership covering the prefabricated body. If a make is not shown on the evidence, the make should be shown as “assembled.”

2. Year Model - The year model is the same as shown on the evidence of ownership covering the prefabricated body. If a year model is not shown or if the make is “assembled”, the year model is the year the vehicle was assembled.

3. Body Style - The body style should be shown as “2D” (2D Sedan), “4D” (4D Sedan), “RD” (Roadster), etc.

4. If a 1956 through 1969 year model Volkswagen Beetle floorpan or floorpan and chassis is used, the VIN appearing on the floorpan must be shown on the application as the VIN; or if the frame or frame and chassis is other than a 1956 through 1969 year model Volkswagen Beetle floorpan or floorpan and chassis, the manufacturer's VIN affixed to the prefabricated body must be shown on the application. If no manufacturer's VIN is affixed to the body or Volkswagen floorpan, an assigned VIN must be obtained from the department. (Refer to Chapter 13, “Vehicle Identification Numbers”).
The space for previous owner should show the word “assembled.”

The following evidence must support an application for title covering an assembled vehicle using a manufactured prefabricated body:

1. Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin, invoice, or bill of sale covering the installed prefabricated body.

2. Bills of sale covering other component parts (frame and motor). If a 1956 through 1969 year model Volkswagen Beetle floorpan or floorpan and chassis is used, any outstanding title (or registration receipt, if non title state) covering the vehicle from which such floorpan, or floorpan and chassis, was removed must be used as a bill of sale or evidence of ownership; or if the certificate of title has already been surrendered
to the department for cancellation, a bill of sale may be used.

3. A completed Rebuilt Vehicle Statement, Form VTR-61.

4. Pencil tracing of the frame number, body number, and die-stamped motor number; and if an assigned number has been obtained, a completed Notice of Assigned Number or Installation or Reassigned Vehicle Identification Number, Form VTR-68-N must be attached.

5. Photograph of vehicle.

6. A copy of the registration receipt showing that the vehicle was registered at the time the application for title was filed.

7. Certified weight certificate.

8. Valid proof of financial responsibility, covering the described vehicle in the
applicant's name.

9. If the vehicle is from out of state, only than is an Out-of-state Vehicle Identification Certificate, VI-30, issued by a State appointed Safety Inspection Station required.

Note: If the certificate of title covering a 1956 through 1969 year model Volkswagen Beetle floorpan and chassis, including motor, is in the applicant's name or assigned to him and a “reconstructed only” is involved, the procedure under “Body Change” of this Chapter may be used. When using the “body change” procedure, if a new body is installed on a currently registered vehicle, the registration may be retained.


Body Changes Volkswagen Beetle

When a body change occurs on a 1956 through 1969 model Volkswagen Beetle and the certificate of title covering the Volkswagen floorpan and chassis, including motor, is in the applicant's name or assigned to him, the following procedure may be used:

Application for Corrected Title

An application for corrected title must be filed showing the make, year model, and body style of the body which was installed and the VIN, which appears on the Volkswagen floorpan must be shown on the application. If the make is not designated on the evidence of ownership covering the body, such as occurs with some prefabricated bodies, the make must be shown on the application as Assembled; and the body style as 2D (2D Sedan), 4D (4D Sedan), RD (Roadster), etc. If the make is shown as Assembled or if the year model is not designated on the evidence covering the body, the year model must be shown as the year in which the body was installed.

The following evidence must support the application:

• A properly assigned title or a title in the applicant's name covering the Volkswagen floorpan and chassis, including motor.

• Bill of sale, title, invoice, or other negotiable evidence marked “body only” covering the installed body; and such evidence must include the body number from the body.

• Pencil tracing of the new body number and the Volkswagen floorpan number.

• Photograph of vehicle. Rebuilt Vehicle

• A completed Rebuilt Vehicle Statement, Form VTR-61.

• Copy of current registration.

• Certified weight certificate.

• Valid proof of financial responsibility, covering the described vehicle, in the
applicant's name.

Note: A “Reconstructed” brand is added to the motor vehicle record and prints on the Title and all subsequent titles.

[johber41]

That is great information, thank you! Do you know which of the numbers, or which identifyers will identify the model year? If you have a 63 engine and drivetrain, 70 front beam, and who knows what else, but a home-made frame, what model year will it be assigned by the DMV when it is titled? Not that it matters once you get it street legal, just curious.

John

[jamboguru]

All that info is located on the VTR 61 form that is filled out that request number on parts.....my understanding is home made frames are not going to be allowed anymore...

[Patrick]

Delete

[jamboguru]

Actually not any longer... If you noticed that the latest printing of the Texas Title Manual no longer has the sub chapter for kit cars.

Also. We had a local VW friend that was turn down a title by the county office, so he took it to the regional office and they turn him down, then he took his appeal all the way to Austin and they told him that rails and trikes are no longer being issued titles and as they come up for new registration (if they are titled as assembled or as rails) they are not renewing them.

[Patrick]

Delete

[jamboguru]

Cobra's and such are being processed as replicas and the process for titles on those is in the manual.....

I didn't want to bring this up, but I had been a consultant for the Texas Auto Theft division and for the Department that writes the Title Manual for a bit.....and I myself have been arguing the injustice they are creating for the VW hobby to no avail....especially on the issue of where they have in the manual that on "70 later Beetles the title stays with the body". It is like arguing with a brick wall....

at the last Auction that was held in Waco there were 4 Rails that had been confiscated either at inspection station because they came up as Beetles when they keyed in the VIN or when stopped for a traffic violation and they came up as beetles when the DPS keyed them in....

and I think I remember there being a handful of trikes also for similar reasons....

and yes... you are right that some offices are still having a few slip through....it is going to get harder as the rules begin to be enforced by more agencies.....The local office can approve it, but as it goes through the channels up to the regional offices and finally to Austin some (not all) are getting found and kicking them back

[Bill K]

Is this a Rail issue, or glass buggies also?

billk

[jamboguru]

seems to be mostly on the rails and trikes.

In the January 2013 printing of the Texas Title Manual they took out the sub-chapters for rails and trikes... they even put a paragraph about trikes as follows:


Eligibility for Title
Homemade vehicles are not eligible for title or registration. Homemade vehicles are
described as vehicles that were not previously manufactured by a NHTSA approved
manufacturer or a vehicle created by merging two or more vehicles from different vehicle
classes that were never engineered or manufactured to be combined with one another by
the original manufacturers of those vehicles (such as a motorcycle front and the rear of a
Volkswagon Beetle).
Vehicles can be assembled from two vehicles (previously manufactured by NHTSA
approved manufacturers to NHTSA safety standards) when they are from the same
general vehicle class (such as a Ford Sedan front and a Honda sedan rear), but there is no
guarantee that these types of vehicles will be considered ‘road worthy’ and eligible for
registration. If the vehicle can be titled, but is not eligible for registration, the vehicle
could be considered for titling as a off-highway branded vehicle.

[jamboguru]

The reason my friend was told (by Austin DMV) of why he could not title and register his rail was that it was not previously manufactured by a NHTSA approved manufacturer. His rail had the Chenworth (sp?) tag with a model and serial number. They said he could title it for off road use.

[Patrick]

Delete

[Patrick]

Delete

[jamboguru]

Patrick would you be willing to help Davis.... He is a disabled Vet and was building it as therapy and is really depressed about the whole situation.....can he give you a call. If so please PM your number so I can take it to him... He would be so happy if he could get it titled and registered the correct way.....

His rail did pass safety inspection.....and VIN inspection by a member of the Texas Auto Theft Taskforce division.

It is a (SP?) Chenwoth sandrail not a home made rail and he also has all his receipts, so hopefully he has all you would need to help him

[jamboguru]

When the rail went to Austin, they had a list of all NHTSA manufacturers and Chenowth and several other rail manufacturers were not on their list.

So no telling.... All of my buggies are title correctly with problem

[Patrick]

Delete

[jamboguru]

got it

[jamboguru]

who needs a job.... we just need to get an Air-Cooler to get in one of those positions that has the power to make/change the rules, then we would all be set

[BrianB]

So if we cruise from the Round Up and stop by the Capital we could let Mr Perry know how we feel? See ya at the Round Up!!!!!!!!!!