Selling a dead or junk car in Lewiston

If one of those cars is ready to go, we buy whole non-running and junk cars. Sell the whole car as it sits, no stripping it first. Pickup is free anywhere in the US.

Why the city cares

Lewiston's code states the reason plainly. Section 43-11 declares "the accumulation and storage of inoperable vehicles and parts thereof on private or public property within the city" a public nuisance. The stated goal is to keep them out of public view and limit their effect on the neighbors.

Section 43-12 then lists the ways a dead car may be stored on private or public property. Two of them:

• "One (1) inoperable vehicle that is being repaired or restored"
• a vehicle tied to a business or land use that by its nature involves inoperable vehicles, where that use is permitted under the zoning chapter and licensed if a license applies

A second idea from the zoning chapter helps too. "Outdoor storage" means keeping goods, junk or vehicles in an unroofed area "in the same place for more than twenty-four (24) hours." The definition of junk itself reaches any vehicle stored in public view in violation of the storage article.

From order to bill

The steps run in a set order.

1. The order to cure. When a Lewiston community resource officer finds a Section 43-12 violation, Section 43-13 has them serve an order on the property's owner, occupant or person in control. The order spells out the problem and the fix, which is taking away the inoperable vehicle or its parts.
2. The fine. Under Section 43-3, a violation of the storage article is a civil infraction "subject to a fine of three hundred dollars ($300.00)."
3. The city steps in. If the order to cure is not followed, the city may remove or abate the nuisance under Idaho Code 50-334.
4. The bill. Within 30 calendar days of the removal, the city mails the property owner a statement for the actual cost plus an administrative fee. If that is not paid within 30 calendar days of mailing, the city may send it to bill collection or levy a special assessment against the property.

So the most expensive version of a dead car in Lewiston is the one the city hauls away for you.

Streets and repair shops

The storage article "shall not apply to inoperable vehicles in rights-of-way." Cars like that are handled by Title 49, Chapter 18 of Idaho Code. There, an abandoned car by the road is posted with a notice saying it gets towed after 48 hours.

Two parking rules round it out. On streets in a residential zone, commercial vehicles get four hours at most. Some exceptions apply, like construction close by. And under Section 35-77, a repair business may not let a customer's car sit on the street while it is in the shop's custody. If your dead car is at a shop and the repair no longer makes sense, see stuck at a repair shop.

Title and plates in Nez Perce County

Private-sale title paperwork goes through the Nez Perce County assessor's motor vehicle office, which handles it for ITD. Expect $14 for the title and the county's admin fee on top. In Lewiston, filing later than 30 days costs the buyer a $20.00 penalty.

• Signatures. Sign the title to release your interest. A lender on the title releases too. An odometer disclosure is required on cars newer than 2010 that weigh under 16,000 lb.
• Junk sales. Sell it as not an operating unit and the face of the title is marked "for junk only". No one can ever sell it for the road again.
• Dismantling. A car cannot be scrapped on paper alone. ITD cancels the title once the owner turns it in.
• Plates. They stay with you, as does the registration card. A $5 transfer fee moves the plate to your next registered vehicle.
• The release. File it with ITD within 5 days of delivery ($3.50). After that, later tickets, towing and storage charges are not yours.

A lost title is replaced with the notarized ITD 3367; see selling with no title. The Idaho page has the state rules, and after you sell the last steps.

Nearby

Moscow is 23.3 miles north as the crow flies. Coeur d'Alene is 91.0 miles away and Post Falls 92.1.

Getting an offer

Send the form or call (877) 421-6008. List the model year, brand, rough mileage and title situation, and say if the engine still turns over. A Lewiston pickup can be set for a backyard, a carport or a shop's lot, so the car never has to touch the street.