Selling a junk or unused car in Lodi

The 10-day storage rule

The key sentence in section 554-1 reads: "No motor vehicle, motorized vehicle, or trailer may be kept or stored for a period in excess of 10 days unless such vehicle shall thereafter be kept or stored in a fully enclosed, permanent structure."

A garage counts: "Nothing in this subsection shall prevent the storage of vehicles within an enclosed, permanent structure." The penalty is steep for a parked car. A violation can bring a fine, up to 90 days in jail, and/or up to 90 days of community service.

Why the borough cares

Section 550-2 gives the reason in its title: abandoned vehicles are "a menace to public welfare." The borough declares that keeping "any motor vehicle not currently in use for transportation" outdoors, on public or private land, is "contrary and inimical to the public welfare." The worry it names is children: such cars "attract or may attract persons of tender years" who may play in and around them.

Note the wording. The test is whether the car is in use for transportation, not whether it is registered or running. A working car you never drive fits it too.

Two rules for the street

• No dumping. Section 329-3 makes it unlawful to dump a "vehicle or vehicle parts, rubber tires" along any street or road, or on someone's property without their written consent, outside a place set aside for waste.
• No junk by the junkyard. Section 311-3 bars "the parking, demolishing or repairing of automobile junk or wrecks on any street which fronts a junkyard."

If it gets towed

Lodi's towing chapter, section 526-1, sets out how storage is billed. "Storage charges for a twenty-four-hour period" are the most a storage facility may charge "for a twenty-four-hour period or fraction thereof," starting when the car arrives. An hour into a new day counts as a full day. A towed car costs more every day it waits.

The Oakland office and the title

Lodi drivers use the Bergen County MVC office over in Oakland. Look for Suite 24 inside 350 Ramapo Valley Rd. That is roughly 13 miles northwest of central Lodi, measured straight. Other offices may be in the county too. New Jersey keeps title transfers at the motor vehicle agency counter; there is no mail route.

In Lodi, the seller signs the back of the title where it says seller. The bill of sale that goes with it records the buyer's name and address up top, then the price, the odometer reading and the date. Plates come off and stay with you, for return to an MVC agency or use on another car you own; the next owner never gets them. Let 10 working days pass without a transfer and a $25 penalty applies. A new copy of a lost title is $60. Lodi owners need an appointment at a Vehicle Center to hand in form OS/SS-UTA.

Towns around Lodi

Garfield is 1.4 miles away, Hackensack 2.1, Elmwood Park 2.7 and Passaic 2.8. For state rules, see New Jersey.

Getting an offer

Have more than one car sitting? See several junk cars. If not, call (877) 421-6008 or use the form. Tell us the kind of car, about how many miles, and who has the Lodi title. Pickup can be from a driveway, a back yard or the curb.