Selling a junk car in Mishawaka

Nuisance vehicles

Section 30-46 has a separate nuisance list. A vehicle is a nuisance if it:

• sits on a city street or public property under a tarp or cover that hides its reflectors
• leaks "glass, oil, transmission fluid, or brake fluid" onto a street or public property
• is "on blocks or is otherwise inoperable and unlicensed" on a street or public property
• is "on private residential property outside in a state of disrepair, is missing parts, or is an abandoned vehicle as defined in section 30-71"
• sits outside at a car sales or service business for more than 30 days while wrecked, junked or partly dismantled

What counts as a garage

The three-day rule turns on a "fully closed and weatherproof structure" that is "in compliance with all codes of the city." Separately, the zoning code defines a private garage as an accessory building "no greater than 24 feet by 30 feet and 720 square feet," with at least one automobile door.

Towing and the $5 fee

The Board of Public Works and Safety signs the city's towing contracts, and those contracts set what owners pay for towing and storage. On top of that, Section 30-72 says "An administrative fee of $5.00 shall be collected from the owner or lienholder of all impounded, abandoned, or inoperative vehicles." The fee goes into the city's abandoned vehicle fund.

If a car is still on a barricaded street after the time limit in Section 54-52, Section 54-54 lets the street commissioner have it "forcibly removed and impounded." The owner pays the costs.

Snow routes and stalled cars

The snow removal coordinator declares a snow removal condition by media release to local radio, TV and news services (Section 58-524). Under Section 58-525, a vehicle "parked, stalled, incapable of moving under its own power, or left unattended" on a snow route "shall be ticketed, towed, or impounded." Ordinary streets get a rotating daily parking ban under a schedule in the same section. A dead car can't follow that rotation.

Title and plates

Titles come from the state BMV, not St. Joseph County. One branch we checked is at 2544 Miracle Ln, roughly 2 miles west of central Mishawaka as the crow flies.

All owners sign and print in the seller block. Under the signatures, a Mishawaka seller writes the mileage, sale date, price and buyer details. You won't need a notary for a Mishawaka sale under the BMV's steps. Take the plates off. Indiana has no need for them back, so a Mishawaka owner can move them onto another of their cars. To replace a lost title, file State Form 205 for $15.00, which voids the original. No title? For scrapping, a Mishawaka car can use State Form 55018, the $4 Certificate of Authority. Junk car with no title explains both.

Nearby

South Bend is 5.3 miles from Mishawaka, Elkhart 10.5, Goshen 18.7 and La Porte 28.7, as the crow flies. The Indiana page covers statewide rules.

Getting an offer

Request an offer at (877) 421-6008 or online. Tell us the model year, make, model, approximate miles, whether it starts, and what paperwork you have. Our truck comes to houses, apartment lots and repair shops all over Mishawaka.