Selling a dead car in Cudahy

The Cudahy notice, step by step

Section 8.24.040 borrows the state's power to remove "abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicles, or parts thereof, as public nuisances." In Cudahy it plays out by mail:

• The letter. Headed "NOTICE OF INTENTION TO ABATE AND REMOVE," one copy reaches the landowner and one the registered owner.
• Ten days to clear it. The car must go "within ten (10) days from the date of mailing of this notice." The clock in Cudahy runs from when it's mailed, not when you open it.
• Ten days to push back. In Cudahy, the landowner or the car owner can ask for a public hearing in that window. A landowner writes to the Director of Building and Public Services, and Cudahy's planning commission runs the hearing.
• After the order. Disposal "by removal to a scrapyard or automobile dismantler" is allowed starting five days after a nuisance order is adopted. An appeal to the council pushes that to 15 days after council action.

Loose parts are no loophole: the letter covers a vehicle "or parts of a vehicle."

Cudahy curbs and tow yards

Cudahy's chapter is about lots and yards. Curbside, state law takes over. Three days in a row at the curb against a local parking rule makes a car towable under Vehicle Code 22651. Vehicle Code 22669 moves quicker with stripped cars: on a public right-of-way, one lacking an engine, wheels, doors or a windshield can be pulled right away. Under Vehicle Code 22523, a Cudahy driver who parks a car on another person's property without permission breaks the law, with a fine of $100 or more.

Once a tow company has it, Civil Code 3068.1 lets that company keep it against the bill. For a Cudahy car worth $4,000 or under, the yard starts selling within 15 days. For a Cudahy tow, Civil Code 3072 puts the auction between 31 and 41 days past the mailing of the notice. Answer within 10 days with the opposition form if you want a judge to look at it. Start with towed or impounded.

Title, smog and plates for a Cudahy sale

Title work for a Cudahy seller goes through the state DMV rather than Los Angeles County. DMV's private-sale instructions have you sign as seller on the California title and leave the filing to the buyer, and no notary appears among those steps. Title missing? Order a replacement on REG 227; DMV charges $28.

Junk cars headed for dismantling don't need a Smog Check. California plates normally belong with the car, though recording one as junk means turning the plates in to DMV. Next, file REG 138 within 5 days, either online or on paper. That record is what moves later tickets, and any blame if the buyer dumps the car, off your name. After you sell goes through it.

Getting an offer

Phone (877) 421-6008 or fill out the form. Got a car in Cudahy to sell? The form is the place to start. Got a Cudahy letter already? Keep its mailing date nearby. We pick up from driveways, the curb in front, or shop lots. Bell and South Gate are close by, and California has the statewide rules.