La Mesa junk and dead cars: the 72-hour rule and selling whole

Garage or gone

The same section goes further than the 72-hour clock. It says "Inoperative, abandoned, or dismantled motor vehicles and recreational vehicles shall be stored within an entirely enclosed building." A tarp, a carport or a spot behind the side gate does not meet that. A closed garage does.

Working on the car at home is allowed within limits. The code permits minor jobs on your own lot, such as tire changes, spark plugs, engine adjustments, lubrication, battery and brake work. Late-night work is out, though: the same section bans vehicle repair from 10 at night until 8 the next morning.

The removal letters

Chapter 10.15 is where La Mesa's council used its Vehicle Code 22660 power. Its opening findings say such a car, "on private or public property not including highways," is "hereby declared to constitute a public nuisance."

Section 10.15.070 has two letters go out by registered mail, one addressed to whoever owns the La Mesa parcel and one to the car's registered owner. The parcel owner's letter warns that the car must go "within ten days from the date of mailing of this notice." Otherwise the city does the hauling and bills the landowner, "together with administrative costs."

Either recipient can demand a public hearing. The request goes to La Mesa's police chief and has to land inside that same ten-day window. When the car isn't yours, 10.15.080 gives a shortcut. A landowner who "submits a sworn written statement denying responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on his land" counts as requesting a hearing without appearing. Silence counts against you, though. No request means no hearing, and the car can be towed.

A La Mesa seller's short list

Your part at the DMV is brief. In La Mesa, the seller and any lender with a recorded lien both sign the California Certificate of Title. The DMV's list gives sellers no notary step. The buyer covers the $15 transfer fee when the title goes in.

REG 138 is the form that protects you, and it is due within 5 days. For a junk car it does extra duty. Should a buyer abandon the car later and it ends up impounded, Vehicle Code 22523 shields a seller who reported the sale from the infraction and from any shortfall after the lien sale.

A car that sat in La Mesa with expired tags carries a bill for every unregistered year, penalties included, unless its owner had Planned Non-Operation status on file through REG 102. Regular plates usually stay with the car. Smog testing is waived for a car going to be dismantled. Statewide detail is on the California page.

Nearby

Measured in a straight line, Lemon Grove is 2.6 miles away, El Cajon 4.2 and Santee 6.3, and each one has a page of its own.

Getting an offer

Reach us at (877) 421-6008 or through the form about your La Mesa car. We come to a garage, a hillside drive, or a lot near the trolley.