Selling a junk car in Costa Mesa

How Costa Mesa's code defines an inoperable car

Costa Mesa's municipal code has its own definitions for dead cars. A vehicle counts as "inoperable" if it is "Prohibited from being operated on a public street or highway" under four Vehicle Code sections. Those sections deal with "license plates, registration, equipment, safety and related matters." So the test is legal, not only mechanical: plates and registration count.

The code also names a "Wrecked and/or dismantled vehicle." That is one that "meets the criteria of a total salvage vehicle or nonrepairable vehicle, as defined by the California Vehicle Code."

The area covered is wide. It "includes all areas of the real property including but not limited to the rear, side, or front yard areas, parkways, sidewalks, or on abutting streets in all zones in the city." Items inside a solid waste receptacle are left out. Trailers, campers, motor homes, camper shells and boats get a definition of their own, and "The parking and storage of vehicles are subject to the provisions in Table 20-8(c)."

The text we found gives definitions only. It states no deadline or fine, so ask the city about timing before you count on any grace period.

State rules that reach Costa Mesa anyway

Some California rules apply in Costa Mesa no matter what the city code says. A Costa Mesa officer or assigned city worker can remove a car thought to be abandoned from a road or from public or private land under Vehicle Code 22669. A stripped wreck on the public right-of-way, say one with no wheels or no windshield, can go without any wait.

A car left on a Costa Mesa street 72 hours or longer against a local limit can be towed under Section 22651.

Section 22851.3 covers abandoned cars worth no more than $500. Those dollar lines are legal tests, not prices. Before removal the car gets a 72-hour notice, except when it's worth $300 or less and taken under 22669(d). The owner is told within 48 hours of the tow. Once 15 days pass after the notice, Costa Mesa may get rid of the car. Ask for a hearing within 10 days.

What abandoning a Costa Mesa car costs

In Costa Mesa, Vehicle Code 22523 bans abandoning a car on a highway. Leaving one on someone's private land without their permission is banned too. Costa Mesa violators face at least $100, plus proof the removal bill was paid. If nobody claims a Costa Mesa car from impound, the last registered owner has committed an infraction and must pay any balance the lien sale left. A filed report of sale is what spares that owner. Under Civil Code 3068.1, the tow company keeps a possessory lien on the car until the bill is settled.

Costa Mesa paperwork with DMV

The state DMV handles California titles at its own field offices. Orange County does not. You sign the Certificate of Title as seller, plus any listed lienholder. No notary appears anywhere in DMV's private-sale steps.

Costa Mesa sellers get REG 138 in online or by mail within five days of selling. Once it is recorded, tickets and lawsuits dated after the sale follow the buyer.

Each year a car sits unregistered in a Costa Mesa driveway piles on back fees and penalties. Only a timely Planned Non-Operation (REG 102) stops that. Car sitting for years has more. Junked cars don't need a smog test. Ordinary plates stay with the car, but they are surrendered once the car is recorded as Junk.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or go online. Selling a Costa Mesa car? The form is the place to begin. We come to it. Newport Beach and Fountain Valley are each 3.8 miles from Costa Mesa, and statewide rules are on the California page.