Your dead or junk car in Lewiston, sold

What we found, and did not find, in Lewiston's code

We could not find Lewiston's ordinances online, so no city section numbers are quoted here. Everything below comes from state statutes. The city may set its own rules on junk, unregistered or parked cars as well. If Lewiston has sent you a notice, read it for the rule it cites, because this page cannot tell you that.

The state's graveyard rule, piece by piece

• Which cars count: ones that are unregistered or uninspected. A car with a current registration and inspection is outside the count.
• Where: the statute names a yard, a field or another outdoor area.
• How many: 3 or more vehicles, or parts.
• What follows: Maine declares junkyards and automobile graveyards a nuisance, subject to regulation and control.

Two cars that lost their stickers last winter plus a third that never got one puts a Lewiston lot over the line. Our guide to several junk cars covers selling them together.

The excise bill on a car that sits

Maine charges an annual excise tax for each registration year. The statute we checked sets no late fee or back-year charge for a car that went unregistered, so we quote none. What it does mean: a dead car you keep registered in Lewiston keeps drawing that tax every registration year. Sitting for years has more on cars that have not moved.

Title steps from Lewiston

The Division of Title Services in Augusta handles Lewiston titles. That office sits within the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, which the Secretary of State runs. For Androscoggin County, we checked the branch at 36 Mollison Way, Suite 1, Lewiston (207-753-7750). Measured point to point, that office is about 3 miles northwest of downtown Lewiston.

Whether you need a title depends on the model year. Maine requires one only for the last 25 model years: 2001 or newer as of January 1, 2026. A 1999 car in a Lewiston backyard is exempt.

For a titled Lewiston car, the assignment and warranty of title gets signed to the buyer at handover, along with the mileage on the odometer. Delivery is the deadline, and Maine has no separate seller notice form to file afterward. In Lewiston, someone with no dealer license must title the car to themselves before selling it on. If your title is gone, a duplicate costs $33 through the online Duplicate Title service or on form MVT-8 by mail.

Liability ends with the paperwork

Maine law says that after delivery and a finished transfer, you no longer answer as owner for harm from the way the car is driven later. Between you and the buyer, the transfer takes effect only when the title rules are met and the fees paid. That is why signing the title over when the truck arrives matters.

Plates come off the car

Maine treats plates as state property, and they stay with the seller. Your registration expires when the title is transferred. For an $8 transfer fee, that number can move to a different car within the same registration year. No plan to renew or transfer within 6 months? Lewiston sellers pull the plates and post them, registration included, to the Secretary of State. To cancel plates, the BMV uses form MVR-60. After you sell lists the rest.

Auburn, Brunswick and the coast

Auburn sits 3.9 miles off in a straight line, and that page points to the same Mollison Way branch. Auburn also publishes its code online, including a winter overnight ban in city lots. Brunswick is 16.6 miles off, Portland 31.5 and South Portland 32.2.

Getting an offer

Reach us online or at (877) 421-6008. Send us a few details on your Lewiston car and the form does the rest. Lewiston has 38,866 people on 34.146 square miles of land. In Lewiston we drive out to the car, be it in a downtown lot or a driveway out past the edge of town. For statewide rules, see Maine.