Selling a dead or smog-failed car in Brea

When Brea sellers need a Smog Check

Statewide, a Smog Check is required at change of ownership, and the seller is the one who gets it. You hand the buyer the inspection report, and the car must have passed within 90 days. These are exempt at sale:

• Brea gas, hybrid or alternative-fuel cars that are four model years old or newer owe an $8 smog transfer fee instead
• 1975 and older gas cars
• 1997 and older diesels, and diesels over 14,000 lb GVWR
• electric vehicles and motorcycles

The junk car exception

The DMV's procedures manual lists junking as a smog exemption: when the car changes hands to be wrecked or dismantled, no inspection is required. That is the route for a car whose repair bill is bigger than the car. If you are weighing a repair instead, our failed inspection guide lays out the choices.

The paperwork VC 24007 adds

A Brea seller handing over a noncompliant car supplies a certificate of compliance or noncompliance at delivery. Keep a copy with your records.

Rules for a dead car parked in Brea

Brea's code did not come up when we searched online. Since Vehicle Code 22660 lets a city adopt its own process for hauling away and billing for wrecked or inoperative cars, Brea may set its own limit for a dead car in a yard. The city can say.

What is certain is the state ban on dumping. In Brea, VC 22523 makes it illegal to leave a car behind on a highway. It also covers a private lot, unless whoever owns that lot said yes. A Brea violation costs $100 or more, plus proof that the removal bill got paid.

Title, release and plates

On a Brea sale, your signature (and a lender's, if any) goes on the Certificate of Title, and the buyer hands it to the DMV with $15 for the transfer. There is no notary step for sellers in the DMV's instructions. No title? File REG 227 first.

Within 5 days, report the sale on REG 138, either on the DMV's site or through the mail. Ordinary plates usually remain with the car. Owners of personalized or special plates can pay to move them elsewhere. For more on selling a junker, see selling a junk car.

Towns near Brea

As the crow flies: Placentia 3.1 miles, Fullerton 4.5, La Habra 5.0 and Yorba Linda 5.9. Statewide rules live on the California page.

Getting an offer

Fill in the form or dial (877) 421-6008. We need the car's year and model, the miles, whether it starts, and the title details. Pickup is free anywhere in the US, so a Brea garage, a smog station's lot or a curb near downtown all work for loading.