Selling a junk or unlicensed car in Duncan

What Duncan counts as inoperable or unlicensed

Section 8-401 supplies the definitions. Inoperable describes a vehicle whose condition is "wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, inoperable, severely damaged or missing major body parts, drive train components or wheels." An unlicensed car is one built for the street "which does not bear a valid, unexpired license plate."

The ten-day limit in 8-402 has a few exceptions:

• raceway cars and off-road vehicles that run and are kept by the city's other rules
• cars inside an enclosed building
• up to two antique vehicles in the rear yard of a home, screened by a fence or evergreen hedge "not less than six feet in height"

Section 8-401 also describes an unlicensed or inoperable vehicle 15 years or older, where "the owner of the vehicle must have plans to restore the vehicle and must have made reasonable progress within the preceding 12 months." A stalled Duncan project with a year of no progress may fall outside it.

The zoning chapter, Section 12-204, goes further. It describes property holding "two or more unlicensed, inoperable, wrecked or junked motor vehicles," outside a body shop, with the same two-car rear-yard allowance.

Public property and the street

On public property the clock is much shorter. Section 8-409 says no one may leave an inoperable or unlicensed car there "for a period in excess of 48 hours," and failing to move it "shall constitute abandonment thereof and a public nuisance."

Section 8-410 explains the warning. The city affixes "a highly visible warning that the vehicle may be impounded if not removed within 48 hours," marked with the date, time and the name of the official who posted it.

Any car, running or not, also has a street limit. Section 15-704: "No person shall park a vehicle on any street for a period of time longer than 24 hours."

Titles from Stephens County

We have not checked a Stephens County title office for this page. Service Oklahoma handles titles and tags, directly or through the tag agencies it licenses.

When you sell, fill out the title assignment listing any liens, sign it under oath with a notary, and give it to the buyer when the car changes hands. Titles issued since July 1, 2025 are electronic. For those, the state's electronic-title bill of sale (Form 718) stands in for the title, and it is notarized as well. A lost paper title can be replaced with Form 701-7 for $11.

Your plate stays in Duncan with you

State law keeps the plate in the registered owner's name. Take it off when the car leaves. If your next vehicle is the same class, Service Oklahoma can move it over. Pre-registration of the sale falls to you or the buyer, and it is due inside two business days.

Getting an offer

Got a Duncan car to sell? Ring (877) 421-6008 or send the form. In Duncan we load behind a six-foot fence, in a side yard, or at a Main Street shop. For nearby cities, see Lawton and Ardmore, or read the Oklahoma page.