Selling a junk or dead car in Toledo

That leaves little time to arrange anything. We buy whole non-running and junk cars, and you sell the whole car as it sits. Pickup is free anywhere in the US, in every part of Toledo.

Which cars Toledo calls junk

Section 521.10 uses the term "abandoned junk motor vehicle" for a car on public or private land that is:

• three years old or older
• worth $1,500 or less
• extensively damaged, by any mix of these: flat, wrecked or missing tires or rims; missing or wrecked body parts; broken or missing headlights, taillights or brake lights; cracked, broken or missing windows or windshield; part or all of the motor or transmission gone; missing or invalid license plates; or otherwise apparently inoperable

The code declares such a car a public nuisance "subject to summary abatement." The notice describes the make or model, the condition and the location, and warns where the car is headed: a salvage dealer or scrap metal facility.

Note where plates appear. Missing or invalid plates sit on the damage list itself, right beside things like a flat tire.

The clocks once the notice is posted

Section 521.11 stacks a criminal charge on the tow. Willfully leaving such a car "on private property for more than seventy-two (72) hours," or more than 48 on a street, is a third-degree misdemeanor, and leaving it that long is itself "prima-facie evidence of willful abandonment."

Cars that fail the junk test fall under Section 521.09 instead. After a complaint, the city can store one that has sat on private property "for more than four (4) hours without the permission of the owner," or on a street past 48 hours. A certified letter follows, warning that the car "will be declared a public nuisance and disposed of if not claimed within ten (10) days of the date of mailing of the notice."

The city's plain-language guide to common code violations names inoperable or unlicensed vehicles and vehicles parked in the yard. Engage Toledo takes reports of broken-down vehicles on private property at 419-936-2020.

If the city already towed it

The Toledo Police impound FAQ prices a car or truck at $160.00 for the tow, plus $20.00 a day for storage. Every day of thinking it over adds to the bill.

Release under Section 303.08 starts at the Police Division: bring ID and ownership papers, and collect a release and receipt. Section 309.07 blocks any release while a parking infraction judgment is unpaid. A car stored under Section 521.09 comes back on payment of its removal and storage costs plus "satisfactory proof of ownership." The code says a certificate of title can show that, or a valid registration card for a leased car. Police non-emergency dispatch is (419) 255-8443.

Lucas County title offices

County clerk of courts offices handle Ohio titles; the BMV does not issue them. Lucas County runs four. Each distance below is a straight line from Toledo's center point.

Paperwork for a Toledo sale

• Notary. In Lucas County, as everywhere in Ohio, your signature handing the car over gets notarized.
• Electronic title. If your title is electronic, form BMV 3770 carries the assignment in a private sale. Dealers and insurance companies cannot use it.
• Lost title. A replacement comes from form BMV 3774, with Duplicate marked and a notarized signature. Expect to pay $18, though Ohio lets a board of county commissioners lift that to $23 by resolution.
• Plates. ORC 4503.12 says the registration expires at the transfer and the original owner "immediately shall remove the license plates."

No emissions test is in the way. Ohio EPA's E-Check list is seven counties long: Summit, Portage, Medina, Lorain, Lake, Geauga and Cuyahoga. Lucas is not one of them.

Getting an offer

Ring (877) 421-6008 or ask online. Useful to have: the VIN or plate number, the mileage, and the title, or word that it is missing. If the city has already posted a notice on the car, tell us when it went up. Perrysburg and Bowling Green have their own pages, and Ohio covers state rules.