Selling a dead or junk car in Victorville

Three days, then fifteen

The three-day rule is the short one. Section 13.40.180 draws a harder line, making it "unlawful and a misdemeanor" to leave "any licensed or unlicensed vehicle or part thereof which is in an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative condition upon any private property or public property, not including highways, within the city for a period in excess of fifteen days." Loose parts count as well. Auto parts, scrap metal and tires stored "in excess of seventy-two (72) hours and visible from a public street, walkway, alley, or other public or private property" are a property nuisance under 16-6.13.020.

Section 13.40.045 carves out two cases: a car "completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where it is not visible from the street," and one parked lawfully "in connection with the business of a licensed dismantler, licensed vehicle dealer, or a junkyard."

How the city takes one away

Victorville's abatement section borrows its process from the state, starting at Vehicle Code 22660. Ten days or more before a tow, the city has to issue "a notice of intention to abate and remove the vehicle as a public nuisance." Signed releases from both the landowner and whoever owns the car let it skip that wait. Staff may walk onto private land to inspect. With a removal order in hand, Victorville can send the wreck to "a scrapyard, automobile dismantler's yard, or any suitable site for processing as scrap," and within five days it reports the removal to the DMV with whatever registration card, title or plates turned up. A Victorville car that's been abated can't be rebuilt. In Victorville the one exception is a car that qualifies for horseless carriage or historical plates.

The 24-hour street rule

Victorville's streets are stricter still. Section 12.28.095 bars leaving "any inoperative, disabled or dismantled vehicle on any public street, alley, highway or public right-of-way within the city for a period longer than twenty-four hours," and a city parking enforcement officer can tow and store it after 24 hours' notice. The section's test is narrow: "a vehicle is operative only if it displays a current registration" and can be driven legally. Expired tags alone can put a running car on the wrong side of it.

Paperwork for a Victorville sale

Titles here are a state job. The DMV runs its own field offices in California, and it also takes title paperwork by mail. In a private sale, you sign the Certificate of Title. Your lender signs too if a loan still shows on record. The Victorville buyer files it with DMV along with the $15 transfer fee. Those DMV steps never call for a notary. Title gone missing? REG 227 replaces it for $28; junk car with no title explains.

After a Victorville sale, the seller files REG 138, the release-of-liability notice, inside five days. The DMV accepts it online or by mail. Once it's recorded, Vehicle Code 5602 puts tickets and lawsuits arising after the Victorville sale on the buyer. Regular plates generally go to the next owner with the car. A junking sale needs no smog certificate. A car that sat for a while has one more snag. A Victorville car owes fees and penalties for each lapsed year, except when a Planned Non-Operation (REG 102) went in ahead of time. Car sitting for years has more.

Getting an offer

Ring (877) 421-6008 or fill in the form. Keep the miles nearby, along with what car it is, where the title ended up and if it cranks. We pick up from a Victorville driveway, a shop lot or a spot on the street. Pages for Adelanto (6.1 miles), Apple Valley (8.2) and Hesperia (9.3) cover the neighbors; California holds the statewide rules.