Can I keep a covered car in my Salina driveway?

A tarp does not help. Under Section 38-89, a car in a residential district that can be seen from a street, with its license plate hidden by a cover, tarp, structure or plants, is deemed inoperable. It still counts as visible if the covered shape is recognizable as a vehicle. You have 15 days from the notice to show it has a plate and current registration.

On a Salina street, what's the limit for how long a car can sit?

Police may remove an unoccupied or inoperable vehicle that has sat on a Salina street at least 48 hours, under Section 38-51. Rolling it a few spots down the same side of the block keeps the clock running. Unless the car blocks traffic or creates an emergency, a sticker goes on it first, warning that it will be removed after 48 hours.

My car was towed in Salina. How long do I have?

Section 38-54 has the city notify you that the car was towed and how to get it back, including your right to a hearing. If notice is not handed to you at the tow, it goes by certified mail by the end of the second business day for cars with Kansas plates. Unless you act within 30 days of receiving the notice, proceedings may start to sell the car.

Can a teenager sell a junk car to a Salina salvage yard?

Not alone. Section 33-42 bars licensed junkyards, salvage yards and scrap metal yards from buying a vehicle from anyone under 18 without the written consent of a parent or guardian.

Town guide · Kansas

Selling an inoperable or junk car in Salina

Salina's code sees straight through a tarp. Section 38-89 says a car in a residential district that can be seen from a street, with its plate "screened from view by an adjacent structure or vegetation, or by a cover, tarp or similar object," is "deemed to be an inoperable vehicle." It also counts a car as visible "even if covered, if the shape of the covered object is recognizable as a vehicle." Once you decide to sell, we buy whole non-running and junk cars. Sell the whole car as it sits, with free pickup anywhere in the US.

Updated October 11, 2026 · 11 sources

Photo: User:Smuckola · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Salina, the short version

Population: 46,094 (Census estimate, July 2025)
County: Saline
Junk-car rules: City Code 31-1100 and 38-83
Covered plate: Deemed inoperable (Section 38-89)
Time to prove registration: 15 days from the notice
Street limit: 48 hours (Section 38-51)
Title office: Saline County treasurer's motor vehicle office
Plates: Seller keeps them

The base rule: Section 31-1100

Salina's starting point is blunt: "no inoperable or unlicensed motor vehicle shall be parked, kept or stored on any premises." Note the word "unlicensed." A car without a current plate falls under it whether or not it runs.

The section leaves room for real repair work. A car can be parked or go through a major overhaul inside a structure built and lawfully used for that purpose. An "immediate repair of a vehicle serving as an occupant's sole source of vehicular transportation" is also allowed, but it "shall not extend beyond two (2) consecutive calendar days."

Section 38-83 lists the other ways a car can stay: inside "a garage or other building," on the lot of a licensed junk dealer, or on land zoned I-2 or I-3 behind screening "not less than six (6) feet in height."

Fifteen days to prove a covered car is legal

When a notice arrives under Section 38-89, the owner can void it. The proof is a license plate and current registration, or a non-highway title issued because the vehicle was never built for the street. It has to reach a city officer "within fifteen (15) days from the date when a notice of violation was first given."

The 48-hour street clock

Section 38-51 lets police tow "any unoccupied or inoperable vehicle" left on a city street "for forty-eight (48) hours or more." Shuffling it along the curb does not help: the rule "may not be defeated by a mere location change" on the same side of the street in the same block. Unless the car is a hazard, it gets a windshield sticker first, warning of removal "after forty-eight (48) hours."

After a tow, Section 38-54 has the city tell you where the car went and how to get it back, including your right to a hearing. For cars with Kansas plates, a certified letter goes out by the end of the second business day. If you take no action within 30 days of receiving that notice, the city may start proceedings to sell it.

Selling to a yard inside the city

Licensed yards in Salina work under Section 33-42. They may not buy any vehicle from a person under 18 "without the written consent of a parent or guardian," and they may not keep cars in the floodway.

Saline County title and plates

Salina cars are titled at the Saline County treasurer's motor vehicle office, because Kansas works through the county where a car is kept. Lost the title? Form TR-720B gets a duplicate for $10, at any county treasurer's office or by mail, with the year, make, VIN, owner names and current mileage.

When you sign it over, no notary is needed. Fill in the price, date and odometer reading, and print and sign your names. Do not leave the buyer's name blank; Kansas law forbids handing over a title that way. Your plates stay with you, and moving them to a new car costs $1.50. Turning them in at the treasurer ends your record on the old car, as does the optional TR-216.

Getting an offer

Phone (877) 421-6008 or send the form. If Salina has already stuck a notice on the car, mention it. Our truck loads from the curb, a garage or a driveway anywhere in Saline County. Salina is 43.6 miles from Junction City and 54.1 miles from Hutchinson; see Kansas for the state rules.

Questions people ask

Can I keep a covered car in my Salina driveway?: A tarp does not help. Under Section 38-89, a car in a residential district that can be seen from a street, with its license plate hidden by a cover, tarp, structure or plants, is deemed inoperable. It still counts as visible if the covered shape is recognizable as a vehicle. You have 15 days from the notice to show it has a plate and current registration.
On a Salina street, what's the limit for how long a car can sit?: Police may remove an unoccupied or inoperable vehicle that has sat on a Salina street at least 48 hours, under Section 38-51. Rolling it a few spots down the same side of the block keeps the clock running. Unless the car blocks traffic or creates an emergency, a sticker goes on it first, warning that it will be removed after 48 hours.
My car was towed in Salina. How long do I have?: Section 38-54 has the city notify you that the car was towed and how to get it back, including your right to a hearing. If notice is not handed to you at the tow, it goes by certified mail by the end of the second business day for cars with Kansas plates. Unless you act within 30 days of receiving the notice, proceedings may start to sell the car.
Can a teenager sell a junk car to a Salina salvage yard?: Not alone. Section 33-42 bars licensed junkyards, salvage yards and scrap metal yards from buying a vehicle from anyone under 18 without the written consent of a parent or guardian.

Sources

Every fact on this page comes from one of these. Checked October 11, 2026.

Salina Code 31-1100, Inoperative or unlicensed vehicles library.municode.com
Salina Code 38-89, License plate obscured from view library.municode.com
Salina Code 38-83, Prohibitions and exceptions library.municode.com
Salina Code 38-51, Public nuisance vehicles library.municode.com
Salina Code 38-54, Notice after impoundment library.municode.com
Salina Code 33-42, Junkyard operating requirements library.municode.com
U.S. Census Bureau city population estimates, 2020-2025 www2.census.gov
Kansas Division of Vehicles: Title and registration FAQ ksrevenue.gov
Kansas Division of Vehicles: Used vehicle titles ksrevenue.gov
Kansas form TR-720B, duplicate title ksrevenue.gov
K.S.A. 8-135 (plates on a transfer of ownership) ksrevisor.gov