Selling an inoperable or junk car in Yuma

What Yuma calls an inoperable vehicle

The definition is wide. It covers any vehicle "that cannot be legally operated, that is disassembled, dismantled, or partially dismantled, that is incapable of being propelled under its own power, or that is not currently licensed or able to be licensed." An unregistered car that starts fine still fits that last clause.

A car on private property stays outside the rule in these two cases:

• it is "completely covered with an opaque car cover specifically designed and sold for such use"
• it is registered to someone who lives at the property, is "undergoing repair," and has been inoperable for a total that does "not exceed 15 days"

For a rear yard, the code adds that the fence, wall or barrier "need not be constructed of opaque material" as long as the car is completely covered by an opaque car cover.

The cover has to be one made and sold for cars. The 15-day window is for a repair in progress, so a project that stalls past that point loses the exemption.

Designated city employees can issue notices to comply and see that the property is returned to "a state that meets the local community standards." See notice to remove a car.

Parks, streets and impound

• City parks. Section 170-06 says "Parking inoperable or unregistered vehicles in or on City parks and adjoining parking areas is prohibited."
• Police impound. Under Section 212-03, police may remove and hold "any unoccupied vehicle" found violating city or state rules on standing or parking.
• Abandoned cars. Section 134-08 ties Yuma to the state's statutes on lost, stolen, abandoned and unclaimed vehicles, which begin at A.R.S. 28-4801.
• Refuse. The city's solid waste definitions even list "abandoned, wrecked or junked vehicles or parts thereof" as refuse (Section 190-15).

Those statutes set the timing. ARS 28-4801 reads 72 untended hours on any property, public or private, as prima facie evidence of abandonment, cut to 48 inside a road right-of-way. MVD then notifies the owner, who gets 30 days before the car can be transferred to its holder, often a tow company. Even then, the Yuma owner of record owes an MVD fee, billed at the next registration or license renewal. For a car already towed, see towed or impounded.

No emissions test in Yuma County

Arizona's testing zones are the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas, drawn from parts of Maricopa, Pinal, Yavapai and Pima counties. Yuma County is not among them, so a failed test is not what keeps a Yuma car off the road.

Arizona title and plate steps from Yuma

Yuma County has no title desk. A state MVD office or a Third Party office authorized by ADOT does the work, much of it also online at AZ MVD Now. Arizona keeps titles electronically. A Yuma seller can use eTitle Transfer, or sign the back of a paper title and pass it over at delivery. No notary shows up in ADOT's published seller steps. Where two owners are listed, the connecting OR, AND or AND/OR determines whose signatures are required. After the sale, the buyer gets 15 days to apply for title.

Keep the plate and remove it first. Then, within 30 days, it goes onto another car, back to MVD, or onto a sworn affidavit of destruction. File the Sold Notice within 10 days. It is free at AZMVDNow.gov, or use form 46-8502.

No title? A licensed automotive recycler or scrap metal dealer can still take a car 12 model years or older if it is worth $1,200 or less. Payment is by check, after you sign that it is lien-free and headed for scrap. Otherwise, replacing the title costs $4. See junk car with no title.

Getting an offer

Use the form or call (877) 421-6008 with the model year, make, odometer reading, whether it runs, and title details. The truck can come to a Yuma address or to San Luis, 11.9 miles away. Buckeye is 126 miles off; see Arizona for statewide rules.