Selling a wrecked, junk or dead car in Kahului

When a car becomes salvage

Hawaii's definition sits in HRS 286-2. A "rebuilt vehicle" starts as one an insurer has declared a total loss. A total loss means material damage to the electronics, frame, unitized structure or suspension where the projected repair bill is more than the car's market value. Flood damage counts toward that test, but Hawaii puts no separate flood brand on the title.

Once a car is salvage, three things follow:

• The certificate. Whoever holds a salvage certificate may keep the car, haul it and transfer it. Driving it is not allowed. The word "salvage" appears on its face.
• The ten-day clock. HRS 286-48 gives the buyer of a salvage vehicle, or an insurer taking a total loss, ten days to mail the county finance director the endorsed title, the registration, the plates and an application for a salvage certificate.
• The next owner. The law limits who can take a salvage car next: someone licensed as a repair dealer, dismantler or scrap dealer, or anyone willing to sign an affidavit stating whether they plan to rebuild it.

Getting it back on the road means repairs at a certified Salvage Repair Dealer, then a VIN and safety inspection with the county's Motor Vehicle Control branch. The new title and registration carry the words "Rebuilt Vehicle". Our guides on salvage titles and wrecked or totaled cars go further.

The Maui County Code

Kahului is not a city. Its local rules sit in the Maui County Code, where section 10.48.200 is titled "Removal of abandoned vehicles". The sentences in it are about parking limits and tows:

• Where time limit signs are posted on a county street, lot or garage, a driver "must not park their vehicle for a period longer than the time limit designated by posted signage."
• A car can be removed when it "is left parked in tow or tow-away zones during the time of restricted parking."
• "Paid parking zones and permit parking zones are designated tow-away zones for twenty-four hours a day." Parking there is allowed only with the fee or permit the signs show.
• When an officer or property owner removes a car and can learn the owner's name and address, they "shall immediately give or cause to be given notice in writing to such vehicle owner."
• If the owner cannot be found or told, and the car "is not returned to the owner of the vehicle within a period of three days," the code sets further steps for the officer or property owner.

So a dead car left past a posted time limit, or in a tow-away zone, can be towed.

Dead cars on public streets and private lots

State statute adds its own test.

State law hands the definition of "abandoned" to each county. Without a Maui County rule, HRS 290-1 sets the test. In Kahului, the rule needs two things: the car sat unattended past a day, and it was illegally parked on public property or a highway's shoulder, setback or easement. After that, the county gets ten business days to take it in.

Private land works differently. HRS 290-11 lets a property owner order an unauthorized car towed at its owner's cost where signs ban unauthorized parking, and it caps what the tower may charge. The dollar caps are laid out on our East Honolulu page. If your car is already on a lot, see towed or impounded.

Where Maui titles are handled

Titles and registration for cars on Maui, Molokai and Lanai are handled by the County of Maui's Department of Finance, through its Division of Motor Vehicles & Licensing (DMVL). The one title office address we checked sits on Oahu: 1041 Nuuanu Ave., Suite A, telephone (808) 768-4325. As the crow flies, that is about 95 miles west of central Kahului, so a Maui car is a question for the DMVL first.

Hawaii's seller steps, as they apply on Maui

Maui gives sellers the same 10-day notice rule as the other three counties.

• Section A is on the certificate's front, and that's where your signature goes. On a Kahului title, all owners print and sign, add the date, and list mileage for model year 2011 and later. Section B belongs to a lienholder.
• Notary: optional, but recommended.
• The handoff. Give the buyer the signed certificate of title, the registration last issued for the car and its current safety certificate. Hawaii law makes delivering the endorsed title the seller's job.
• The notice. Look at the top edge of a Kahului title. On a Kahului title, that strip carries form number CS-L(MVR)53 and is called the "Notice of Transfer." Return it within 10 days to the Maui office where the car was last registered. Skip it and the fine can reach $100. Filing it and delivering the title end your liability as the registered owner.

Hawaii does not test emissions. It checks safety once a year instead, and Honolulu's FAQ says a transfer goes through only after the car has caught up on registration and inspection.

A car wearing a veteran specialty plate needs one more step: the county will not record the transfer until that plate is swapped for a regular one, at a $5.50 plate and emblem fee.

Nearby towns

Kihei is about 7.3 miles away. The Oahu pages are much farther: East Honolulu at 85.8 miles, Kailua at 89.6 and Urban Honolulu at 94.5. Statewide rules beyond Kahului are on our Hawaii page.

Getting an offer

Use the form or phone (877) 421-6008. Helpful details: model year, make, model, approximate miles, running or not, and any salvage wording printed on the title. Pickup happens at the car's location in Kahului, be it a home, an employer's lot or a body shop.